Go Again
Harris’, The San Francisco Steakhouse has been located since 1984. The restaurant has Old school steakhouse traditional decor with tall banquettes, and high quality 21 day dry aged, Mid-western, corn-fed meats. This is one place I think about when folks ask for a Steakhouse in San Francisco.
Best cornbread in town! House of Prime Rib opened in 1949 and concentrates on one dish, Prime rib. We have been coming here for many decades, whenever we have a desire for beef. They use corn-fed Prime beef Midwestern beef that is aged for 21 days and cooked in coarse rock salt.
Why did we dine here? – Best Restaurant in the USA? Tips to Dine here on the cheap! Eleven Madison Park is a well respected American restaurant situated at 11 Madison Avenue in the Flatiron District of New York City. Three Michelin stars were awarded in 2023. The restaurant was ranked #3 in the World by The World’s 50 Best Restaurant list.
City View Restaurant is a Chinese dim sum restaurant in San Francisco’s Chinatown. that only serves lunch.. Our last visit was in the middle of 2023 when they moved in to a new location next to Portsmouth square.
Be sure to read our Introduction to Chinese Dim Sum
Lai Hong Lounge Restaurant is a Cantonese Chinese restaurant on the outskirts of Chinatown. They have been around since Lichee Garden closed, 2012. They are VERY popular for lunch (Noon had a Wait for a Monday lunch), but it was much more quiet at dinner. We were in the neighborhood so we decided to try it out, being big Chinese food fans. Last visit was in Winter 2024.
Why did we dine here? – Copra is run by Srijith “Sri” Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar (who also own Ettan in Palo Alto) so we had to give it a try. The chef last had two Michelin stars at Campton Place. It is located across from Japantown in the location that used to be Dosa.
Why did we dine here? – Lily is a Modern Vietnamese restaurant in San Francisco is inner Richmond District. Sort of a neighborhood joint kicked up a notch. The Chef Rob Lam used to run restaurant Butterfly on the waterfront. There are a ton of VERY good restaurant options nearby including Burma superstar, Chapeau!, Wako, and Mamahuhu. Traditional Vietnamese restaurants are a block away. We have been here 3 times for lunch during the Pandemic, last visit Spring 2024.
Southwest Restaurant reviews from our trip in Spring 2023
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1/27/23
B Star Bar serves Pan Asian style comfort foods with flavors from Thailand, China, Burma, India and Japan. It is the sister restaurant of popular Burma Superstar Burmese restaurant (And has several of their dishes) and is located a couple blocks from it. Our last visit was in Spring 2023. No more parklet.
HK Lounge Bistro in San Francisco’s SOMA neighborhood takes the place of burned down Hong Kong Lounge 2 that was in the Inner Richmond district. This spot opened in 2023.
Be sure to read Foodnut’s Guide to Chinese Dim Sum Lunch
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Reviews from our 2023 trip to Spain and Portugal. Our goals were to eat at authentic non-touristy places while fulfilling our wishes to try certain items. One of us is Vegan, so will see many options for vegans and vegetarians.
Best Vegetarian heaven! Encanto is a vegetarian restaurant in Lisbon with one Michelin star from star chef José Avillez. We have no vegetarian restaurant with this rank back in San Francisco, so we had to give it a try. You can book online, they have a single 12 course tasting menu that is also available in English. Our server spoke English too.
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Restaurant reviews and guide from our recent trip to Portugal in 2023. We visited Lisbon and Porto and loved it.
Why did we dine here? – Octavia is the latest restaurant from Melissa Perello, chef-owner of 1 Michelin Starred and well loved Frances. A small 54 seat neighborhood restaurant that is already drawing crowds from throughout the City. We are in this area a lot, so we were waiting for it to finally open.
January 2023 Yan Peninsula replaces Old school dim sum Zen Peninsula is a Cantonese Chinese restaurant in Millbrae. This name almost sounds like a half baked effort to change the name. Long time stalwart Hong Kong Flower Lounge recently closed, making this a great time to sweep up business. Zen had previously been one of the goto places for banquets, weddings and the like. Millbrae is ground zero for some of the most popular Chinese food in the SF Bay area with spots like:
The must go to food market in Madrid!
Everyone goes to popular Mercado de San Miguel. Our last visit was about 5 years ago and it has definitely improved since. Each stall specializes in one category, so there is no overlap or competition with other stalls. Paella, Jamon, Olives, Fruits, Tapas, Pastries, Wine, Empanadas and more are all represented. Prices are higher than outside eateries, but do come hungry when you visit.
NOPA is a “neighborhood based restaurant designed to attract and comfort those from all over the Bay Area.” They serve “simple, rustic food created with seasonal ingredients sourced from local purveyors.” The restaurant has redefined the north of panhandle (NOPA) area since 2006 and has been packing them in. We did not have reservations, so we can in early and put our name on the list, otherwise you can eat at the bar or communal table.
Trendy Plant Based Food in the City! Why did we dine here? – Wildseed’s motto is Work out, Veg Out. A trendy new 100% plant based vegan (No eggs!) restaurant in the Union street shopping district from the Back of the House Group (a Mano, Lolinda, Delarosa, Beretta, Super Duper, etc). They also have a location in Palo Alto’s Town and Country Center. We have dined at both locations.
Koi Palace has been on the best Chinese Dim Sum restaurant lists in the San Francisco Bay Area for years. The Peninsula is ground zero for some of the best Chinese food in the San Francisco Bay Area. Around 2018, new upcomers with opulent interiors and modern menu have challenged them.
Moody’s Bistro & Bar is a high end Mountain comfort food restaurant in downtown Truckee. Local, organic, seasonal focus or as they tell it – Moody’s food philosophy is “fresh, local, seasonal and simple”. Chef de Cuisine is Guy Frenette. The Restaurant opened in 2006. Moody’s has live music on some nights, so call ahead. Our last visit was during a trip to the mountains in 2023.
Pyeong Chang is a Korean restaurant located in the Temescal district of Oakland, where a cluster Korean restaurants are situated. Burma Superstar is a couple doors down, while Bakesale Betty and Pizzaiolo are a block or two away. We were looking for some higher-quality Korean food than is present in San Francisco. They also have a location in Berkeley on University. Our last visit was in Spring 2023 at their Berkeley location.
Why did we dine here? – Baekjeong (butcher in Korean) is a extremely popular Korean restaurant run a flamboyant former wrestler, Kang Ho Dong. (There is a huge cardboard cutout picture of him by the front door) They specialize in Korean BBQ using USDA Prime Meats.
Why did we dine here? – Ramen Parlor is the second location in San Mateo from the legendary original owner of Santa Ramen, Kazunori Kobayashi. It is located one block from the original Santa Ramen, which now houses the very popular spicy ramen oriented Ramen Dojo. Both are owned by Mr. Kobayashi.
Why did we dine here? – Top Italian on the Peninsula! Vesta is a California Italian restaurant in downtown Redwood City. They tried to support local and organic suppliers. It has an extremely high 4.5 stars on Yelp and was mentioned in San Francisco magazine as having great pizza. These two facts were enough to pique our interest. We finally got a chance to try them at the end of 2013, been back several times with latest visit in summer 2023.
Several years delayed because of the Pandemic (2021 was the last one), The New 2022 Michelin Guide California was released on 12/5/2022. It now covers all of California, not just San Francisco.
Why did we dine here? – Osmanthus is a Chinese dim sum restaurant in the heart of North Beach, on Broadway, where Enricos used to be. Several family members have been there and they liked it, and we also saw it on the SF Chronicle’s List of top Dim Sum, so we finally ate there.
Be sure to read our Beginner’s Introduction to Chinese Dim Sum Lunch – Top Dim Sum in San Francisco
Sorella is an anxiously awaited casual sister restaurant to Michelin starred Acquerello. In fact it means sister in Italian! It is located where 1760 once was. Having this pedigree, we quickly added it to our must visit list. We’ve dined here twice, the last time at the end of 2022.
We bought an Ooni Koda 12 Gas Powered Pizza Oven and took months to be able to reliably shape, stretch and cook a pizza.
Here are 3 videos to help your turbocharge your pizza making!
Why Here? A Mano or by hand in Italian, is a California Italian restaurant from Adriano Paganini’s group that runs many local restaurants including Super Duper, Delarosa, and Belga. A nice neighborhood joint in the trendy Hayes Valley area. We are big fans of pasta and pizza, so we had to give it a try.
Kauai Restaurant Reviews from our visit to the Garden isle in May 2022
Lots of local food trucks and Hawaiian favorites. We did not dine in once! None of these requires reservations.
Checkout reviews of the other Hawaiian Islands
Solid Dim Sum in Hillsdale Mall of all places!- Why did we dine here? – Palette Tea Garden is from the team behind top rated Chinese restaurants: Koi Palace and Dragon Beaux.
Koi Palace is a popular Cantonese Chinese restaurant in Daly City, California. (Just south of San Francisco) The Peninsula is ground zero for some of the best Chinese food in the SF Bay area. It has been around since 1997 and specializes in wide selection of Dim Sum for lunch and special dishes for dinner.
This restaurant also has locations in Dublin and at Thunder Valley Casino. We came for dinner and have previously reviewed Koi Palace dim sum lunch. Our return trips included the latest in 2024. Yelp reviews emphasize lunch and do not factor in where this place falls in the Chinese restaurant pecking order.
Why did we dine here? – Sultana is a long established Mediterranean restaurant in downtown Menlo Park. This is a nicer place with a outdoor patio in the back, perfect during the Pandemic. This spot is definitely a step above all the casual Mediterranean restaurants you find around. (We like Hummus Mediterranean in San Mateo) A friend recommended it, so we decided to give it a go.
Flour + Water is a wildly popular Italian restaurant in the Mission district of San Francisco. They focus on hand rolled pastas, house cured meats, and an Italian pizza oven. The chef, Thomas McNaughton is a veteran of La Folie, Gary Danko, Quince. They take reservations on rezy and reserve space for walk ins (Communal table), causing a line to form 20 min. before the place even opens. Yelp rating has faded to 3.5 stars.
Village Pub is a fine dining establishment in the small town of Woodside. We have passed by many times, on our way back from hiking or biking, and felt it was time to try it. They have received One Michelin star starting from 2009. They use lots of seasonal, local, and organic ingredients. They have a sister restaurant Spruce, in San Francisco.
Limon is a Peruvian restaurant in San Francisco’s Mission district serving Nuveo Latin Fusion. It has grown to 6 locations now. Our last visit was in summer 2023.
Martin Castillo opened Limon with Emmanuel Piqueras from three Michelin star Arzak restaurant in Spain.
Absinthe is a popular French restaurant in Hayes Valley, right near the symphony and War Memorial Theater. It has long been a favorite of art patrons before performances.
Greasy, Cheesy and satisfying! Square Pie Guys serves great Detroit Style Pizza. “A crispy, crackly caramelized cheese crust that comes from baking in rectangular blue steel pans originally used to ferry auto parts around Detroit automotive factories.” We’ve seen a lot written about them, so we finally gave it a try. Definitely have been back too. Great stuff. No dine in or outdoor dining, all take out.
Why did we dine here? – Star Noodle is a popular Asian restaurant on Maui focusing on a variety of noodle dishes that originate from Japan through other Asian countries. We have been here on all our recent Maui visits.
They moved to downtown Lahaina in November 2020, and are known as Star Noodle v2. Star Noodle also does takeout but you need to call it in early. Parking lot is part of the new location!
Best Buffet in Reno – Lake Tahoe.
Why did we dine here? – Atlantis Buffet Toucan Charlie’s is one of the leading casino buffets in Reno. The place was remodeled about 2 years ago and upgraded. We were in town for a conference, so we decided to see how good this buffet was. We drove up from San Francisco to Lake Tahoe, and added to our Road Trip Food Guide
Several years delayed because of the Pandemic (2019 was the last one), The New 2021 Michelin Guide California was released on 9/28/2021. It now covers all of California, not just San Francisco.
Why did we dine here? – Terzo Is a Mediterranean restaurant in San Francisco’s Marina neighborhood. They been around for over 15 years, we haven’t been there in a while, so we visited it and dined outside during the pandemic. Easy availability spot on Opentable was the main reason we came! Nothing hot about this spot. The restaurant appears to cater to the neighborhood crowd, which mirrors the diners.
French Laundry Books at Amazon
With French Laundry it’s more than just a meal, it’s the whole experience. Beautiful atmosphere in the middle of the wine country, superb service, and of course great food. You could argue that this restaurant or that restaurant has a better beef course or appetizer, but few have the exquisite combination of everything.
Why did we dine here? – Gao Viet Kitchen is a Vietnamese restaurant in downtown San Mateo. The same folks run several, casual Ben Tre restaurants in San Mateo and Millbrae.
(Which we like for casual fare.)
.jpg "Northeast Trip Food Roundup – Boston – Maine")
