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| Sarah Sung's Articles: 1 to 10 of 38 | Previous Page 1 2 3 4 Next Page |
 | Potrero Hill’s New Spot for Raw Fish, Small Plates and Sake On a street with French, Mediterranean, Chinese, Southeast Asian and, of course, pizza, the only cuisine that’s been missing on Potrero Hill’s 18th Street corridor is Japanese, until this year -- when Umi opened its doors. A casual, sit-down sushi spot, the restaurant is a welcome addition to an already globally cuisine-rich street.More |  | Where Dinner Becomes the Show Upon entering Elizabeth Falkner’s new theater-scale SOMA address, you feel as much "on stage" as the local celeb chef/owner herself, with her easily recognizable platinum buzz cut. Named after the prominent American film auteur Orson Welles, Orson has been luring adventurous diners since its February 2008 opening, featuring an avant-garde menu full of boundary-pushing recipes -- from peppery chocolate pizza to maple-bacon ice cream.More |  | Jazzing Up the Fillmore This massive, 28,000 square-foot, multi-story restaurant/bar/jazz club -- the West Bay sister to the original Yoshi's in Oakland's Jack London Square -- debuted in November 2007 to huge hype, resulting in a mix of rave and blah reviews for its upscale Japanese menu. Having now established itself as a frontrunner among the city’s dinner-and-a-show offerings, Yoshi's has settled in as a defining force within the blossoming Fillmore Jazz District.More |  | Bringing Oak Hill Farm to the Marina The food at this rustic, diminutive salad-and-sandwich spot is direct-from-the-farm fresh (owner Sam Josi’s family owns Oak Hill Farm), and it’s all gourmet, from the greens and fixings in the salads to the sandwiches and grilled cheese panini. It only takes about five customers to make this sliver of a “barn” feel packed, but the end result is worth a bit of awkward shuffling.More |  | Bringing a New Sense of Community to SOMA Opening the massive front door of this wine bar/restaurant/café just might be the most difficult obstacle to the evening, but once the door's ajar (often the hostess will lend a hand), the 40-plus by-the-glass wine list, wood oven-grilled pizzas, and airy décor will make for a relaxing evening. Perhaps that's why when we visited Local Kitchen and Wine Merchant (sans reservations) for dinner on a Tuesday night, we snagged the last seats in the whole place -- two spots at the 30-foot-long, walnut-topped communal table.More |  | Authentic Venetian Cicchetti Becomes a Russian Hill Staple Like a fine wine, some restaurants get better with age, and Pesce -- a bustling, Venetian-style small plates eatery that highlights fresh seafood -- is one of those lucky few. Open since 2000, Pesce graces Polk Street with a winning combination of consistently fresh, relatively healthy cuisine and a friendly atmosphere that accommodates first dates, business meetings and casual neighborhood diners. While it's possible to walk in without a reservation, an immediate seat at one of the closely packed tables is never a guarantee.More |  | Pan-Asian Cuisine in the FiDi Dinner in the Financial District is usually a big-ticket, hopefully expensable, occasion -- the likes of Boulevard, Aqua, and One Market -- while affordable, low-key "neighborhood dining" alternatives seem as elusive as a certain one-horned mythical creature. That is until Unicorn Restaurant opened last fall. While dinner is an option and happy hour specials run throughout the week, lunch is when Unicorn, the sibling to Berkeley’s acclaimed pan-Asian outpost, is at its busiest.More |  | Afghan Cuisine Comes to Russian Hill After Telegraph Hill’s February 2007 landslide closed Helmand on Broadway, the 16-year-old restaurant relocated to Russian Hill and took over the Yaya Cuisine space on Van Ness and Green. While most foodies flocked to the North Beach Helmand for its $10 lunch buffet, Helmand Palace now serves dinner exclusively. Even so, most -- if not all -- buffet items are available on the extensive menu.More |  | Fusion Korean Cuisine That Makes for a Happy Belly Starting with a food cart business in Golden Gate Park last year, Dennis Lee and his brothers Dan and David have already expanded their empire with Namu, a largely undiscovered, chef's-night-out secret spot. This Inner Richmond family-run restaurant offers a modern twist on classic Korean and Japanese dishes in a sleek, minimalist 40-seat dining room. The décor features local art for sale and a wooden tree, crafted out of a fallen cypress that the brothers found in GGP. In fact, the name Namu, which means “wood” in Korean, was inspired by this tree.More |  | A San Francisco Institution, Perched in the Past Roosted cliffside on Telegraph Hill below Coit Tower, Julius’ Castle is all about panoramic eye candy. With unmatched bay views to the north and east, no other restaurant can rival the landmark vistas, including the Bay Bridge, Treasure Island, and Alcatraz. While the food might be considered good by small-town U.S.A. standards, it won’t entice the discerning San Francisco crowd. On our visit, we did see fellow San Franciscans sitting at a few of the tables, but on the whole, the diners were not from the city.More |
| Sarah Sung's Articles: 1 to 10 of 38 | Previous Page 1 2 3 4 Next Page |
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