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With its remade Ferry Building—a mecca for food mavens—and a fresh slate of first-rate restaurants, San Francisco has sealed its reputation as a culinary capital. Many of the best spots are a short walk or cab ride from downtown.
A16
Pizzaiolos pull perfect pies from a wood-fired oven, and patrons gather
at the bar, sipping wines from southern Italy and sampling simple but sophisticated
Neapolitan dishes such as petrale sole with capers and lemon leaves.
DINNER FOR TWO $80
2355 CHESTNUT ST.; 415/771-2216
Bocadillos
The small-plates trend was growing tiresome when this Basque tapas restaurant
brought it back to life. Grilled meats and marinated seafood in Mini Me portions
and rotund sandwiches known as bocadillos make for relaxed, elbows-on-the-table
eating that complements the casual atmosphere.
Dinner for two $50
710 Montgomery St.; 415/982-2622
Boulette's Larder
Like a quaint culinary lab, this small open kitchen in the Ferry Building produces
sauces, crèmes, and stocks for discriminating home cooks. At night a
large farm table (available for group reservations only) becomes a stage for
some of the city's most magical meals.
DINNER FOR TWO $240, BASED ON 10-PERSON TABLE
1 Ferry Building; 415/399-1155
Canteen
Imagine if the Fonz had gone to cooking school in France. What was once a worn-out coffee
shop has been transformed into an haute diner by wunderkind chef Dennis Leary, with apple-green
counters and canoodle-friendly booths for two. Entrées like veal pot pie are served
with flair but without fuss. Dinner for two $50
817 Sutter St.; 415/928-8870
Michael Mina
Meals come in trios—foie gras, scallops, tomatoes—and Modernist presentations
at this smart (and beautiful) restaurant, which overlooks the renovated lobby of the city's
landmark Westin St. Francis hotel. Ideal for special occasions and expense accounts. Dinner
for two $176
335 Powell St.; 415/397-9222
Myth
A restaurant worldly enough to serve citrus-glazed salmon in lobster sauce and relaxed enough
to deal in burgers too. The cushy, carpeted setting, perhaps the most comfortable in the city,
walks a similar line: it invites blue jeans and black ties alike. DINNER FOR TWO $80
470 Pacific Ave.; 415/677-8986
Quince
The redial button is required to land a reservation, but Chez Panisse alum Mike Tusk makes
it worth the extra work. House-made pastas like pork-and-veal-stuffed agnolotti are as close
as cooking comes to art.
DINNER FOR TWO $120
1701 Octavia St. 415/775-8500
Slanted Door
Charles Phan's fans have followed his rise from his original place in the dog-eared Mission
District to his new home in the gleaming Ferry Building. The food remains the same sharp vietnamese
cuisine, light on the grease, heavy on the organic ingredients.
DINNER FOR TWO $90
1 Ferry Building; 415/861-8032
Tartare
George Morrone, a chef never afraid of extravagance, goes for a big change in mood and
a slight change in food. The space is intimate, with soft leather touches and latticed woodwork,
and the menu, true to the restaurant's name, offers creative versions of the rare and the
raw (think ostrich tartare with pink peppercorns).
DINNER FOR TWO $90
550 Washington St.; 415/434-3100
—JOSH SENS
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