California Restaurants - Restaurants Guide - San Francisco Dining Guide

Restaurants Guide

California Restaurants - 94 Results
Restaurants Guide (critics' picks are listed first)				Reset Search


1550 Hyde Cafe and Wine Bar				Write a Review
1550 Hyde (at Pacific)	California, Greek, Mediterranean	$$$, $$$$	Nob Hill/ Russian Hill
A charming neighborhood restaurant that's worth a drive from yours. The short but generally reliable menu features seasonal California cooking with a Mediterranean influence, complemented by a thoughtful and interesting wine list. Impeccable fresh salads, carefully cooked flesh and fish sided by... More >>

Absinthe				Write a Review
398 Hayes (at Gough)	California, French	$$$, $$$$	Hayes Valley/ Tenderloin
You can get anything you want including absinthe (now that it has been legalized) at this extremely pleasant French restaurant in Hayes Valley's restaurant row, which services the Opera House and Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall. Every gustatory desire, from exquisite cocktails through ripe... More >>

Bar Jules				Write a Review
609 Hayes (at Laguna)	Breakfast, Brunch, California, Greek, New American	$$, $$$	Hayes Valley/ Tenderloin
A charming small restaurant in Hayes Valley that changes its entire menu virtually every day (check the blackboard on the Web site to find out what’s cooking), in response to what’s fresh and local and the whim of owner-chef Jessica Boncutter. The menu is tightly focused: usually... More >>

Bar Tartine				Write a Review
561 Valencia (at 16th St.)	California, Dessert, Greek	$$$	Mission/ Bernal Heights
What better to accompany Bar Tartine's excellent bread (sourced from its famous parent, the Tartine bakery a few blocks away) than cheese? And cheese is treated with respect: It's given a separate menu, featuring about a dozen different varieties, whose careful affinage results in each one being... More >>

Bix				2 User Reviews
56 Gold (at Montgomery)	American, California, French	$$$, $$$$	Union Square/ Financial District
Bix is San Francisco's closest approximation of a supper club, with a superb bar and very good food that ranges from tony snacks to more serious dining, including thoughtfully composed salads followed by carefully cooked fish, flesh, and fowl and amazing desserts. Dinner is served in a soaring,... More >>

The Blue Plate				Write a Review
3218 Mission (at 29th St.)	American, California	$$$, $$$$	Mission/ Bernal Heights
Inventive, well-prepared takes on classic dishes -- perhaps a flatiron steak with huckleberry potato salad and a pork chop with baby mustard greens and hominy -- are followed by homey desserts like chocolate cake and banana cream pie. More >>

Cafe at Chez Panisse				Write a Review
1517 Shattuck (at Cedar)	California	$$$$	North Berkeley
The (slightly) less expensive upstairs adjunct to Chez Panisse proper features the cooking for which Alice Waters' establishments are justly famous amid casual, wood- and copper-heavy Mission-style décor. The daily menu -- which, unlike that downstairs, is a la carte -- is focused on... More >>

Café Rouge				Write a Review
1782 Fourth St. (at Virginia)	California, French, Steakhouse	$$$, $$$$	West Berkeley
Superb aged steaks, house-made charcuterie, and excellent fresh oysters are among the best things to eat at this always-reliable, comfortable, and airy Berkeley eatery. (There's a butcher shop on the premises, where you can choose from among 17 different sausages, salt-cured foie gras, and prime... More >>

Canteen				Write a Review
Commodore Hotel, 817 Sutter (at Jones)	California, French	$$, $$$	Nob Hill/ Russian Hill
Chef Dennis Leary, late of Rubicon, cooks every dish in a tiny open galley kitchen, in this once-diner, now modern eatery, which features four booths and seven counter stools. The dinner seatings fill up a week or two in advance, because his seasonal fare (menus change weekly) is amazingly... More >>

Chow				Write a Review
215 Church (at Market)	California	$, $$, $$$	Castro/ Noe Valley
This small chain has parlayed a simple and admirable formula -- interesting, seasonal, eclectic food, well-prepared and affordable -- into four busy, useful restaurants. The original location is always hopping, and attracts a young crowd. More >>

Coi				Write a Review
373 Broadway (at Montgomery)	California, French	$$$$	North Beach/ Chinatown
Coi is the home of gifted, adventurous chef Daniel Patterson, who showcases his refined and sophisticated California-French cooking in two nightly prix-fixe dinners, a multi-course tasting menu and a four-course meal with several choices per course. The dining room is calm, windowless, suffused... More >>

Fish & Farm				Write a Review
339 Taylor	California, New American	$$$, $$$$	Union Square/ Financial District
The of-the-moment gimmick at this chic, sophisticated small restaurant (in the Mark Twain Hotel) is that almost all its ingredients are sourced within a hundred miles of its front door. Luckily its front door is near central California, and our superb local ingredients are handily turned into... More >>

Globe				Write a Review
290 Pacific (at Battery)	California, Italian, New American	$$, $$$	Embarcadero
The lusty, full-flavored, Italian-influenced California cuisine served at the casual (wood floors, brick walls, open kitchen) Globe is welcome at any time of day, but especially after midnight. This is one of the few first-rate San Francisco eateries that serve a full menu until 1 a.m. (11:30... More >>

Jardinière				Write a Review
300 Grove (at Franklin)	California, French	$$$$	Hayes Valley/ Tenderloin
Traci Des Jardins' temple to sublime California cuisine is housed in one of Pat Kuleto's most dramatic, elegant settings. The menu has included: supple duck confit with peaches and pistachios; cloud-light halibut with sweet, punchy mussels; a bountiful platter of tiny, jewellike cookies,... More >>

Lark Creek Steak				Write a Review
845 Market (at Fourth St.)	American, California, Steakhouse	$$$, $$$$	South of Market
This steakhouse occupies a plush room in the Westfield San Francisco Center, convenient for shoppers and moviegoers, and offers many other dishes (poultry, seafood, vegetarian) in addition to an array of grilled and roasted steaks. We loved the baseball-shaped six-ounce filet and the interesting... More >>

Nopa				Write a Review
560 Divisadero (at Fell)	American, California	$$, $$$, $$$$	Haight/ Fillmore
Lively two-story restaurant, housed in a vintage bank building, with a large bar (and scene) and menu of seasonal Mediterranean-inspired fare, with some dishes cooked in a wood-fired oven. The name is an invented acronym for its location: North of the Panhandle. Open late. More >>

Park Chow				Write a Review
1240 Ninth Ave. (at Lincoln)	California	$, $$, $$$	Sunset (Inner)
This small chain has parlayed a simple and admirable formula -- interesting, seasonal, eclectic food, well-prepared and affordable -- into three busy, useful restaurants. This two-story location is cozier than its sister place across town: Call it Family Chow. More >>

Poesia				Write a Review
4072 18th St. (at Castro)	California, Italian	$$, $$$	Castro/ Noe Valley
This charming spot, up a flight of stairs on the second story of a homey old building, is one of the best dining options in the area, and worth a trip to sample its Calabrian cooking. The golden walls (home to paintings and silent projections of Italian films) are a warm backdrop for the... More >>

Range				Write a Review
842 Valencia (at 19th St.)	California	$$, $$$	Mission/ Bernal Heights
A charming place that manages to be both modern in design yet cozy in feeling, and also both a destination and a neighborhood restaurant. Excellent California cuisine, and a small but well-chosen and interesting wine list. Especially well-made cocktails, too. If there's a soufflé on the... More >>

Rivoli				Write a Review
1539 Solano (at Neilson)	California, Greek, Mediterranean	$$$, $$$$	Albany
Earthy flavors are prepared and served with grace and imagination at this comely hot spot. Relaxed atmosphere; tantalizing menu. Portobello fritters, smoked duck breast with blini, scallop-lobster boudin, and berry pudding with crème fraîche are especially delectable. More >>

Saison				Write a Review
2124 Folsom (at 17th St.)	American, Asian Fusion, California, European, French, Fusion, Middle Eastern	$$$$	Mission/ Bernal Heights
Tucked away in a converted 19th-century stable, this rustic little rendezvous has the charm of a French country inn and food to match. After Champagne on the flagstone patio, dinner is served in a simply decorated dining room within peering distance of the bustling kitchen. Chef Joshua Skenes... More >>

Sea Salt				Write a Review
2512 San Pablo	American, California, Greek, Seafood	$$, $$$	West Berkeley
A delightful seafood-only restaurant, opened by the owners of the successful East Bay eateries Lalime's and Fonda Solana, in a spacious, airy, artfully decorated San Pablo Avenue space, with an especially pleasant tree-shaded patio. The cooking is of a very high caliber, featuring sustainable... More >>

Serpentine				Write a Review
2495 Third St. (at 22nd St.)	American, California, New American	$$, $$$	Potrero Hill
A welcome addition to Dogpatch's restaurant district, this sister to Slow Club features chef Mark Young's satisfying seasonal comfort food, an interesting wine list, and original cocktails in a industrial-chic room carved out of an old warehouse. The menu evolves frequently. More >>

Starbelly				Write a Review
3583 16th St. (at Market)	American, California, Italian, New American, Pizza	$$, $$$	Castro/ Noe Valley
Starbelly is both a neighborhood restaurant and a gastronomic destination. Chef Adam Timney makes his own salumi, available in assortments or at lunch in excellent sandwiches. The inviting, seasonal, and frequently changing menus offer sharable plates called snacks (which might include mini corn... More >>

Universal Cafe				Write a Review
2814 19th St. (at Bryant)	American, Breakfast, Brunch, California, New American	$$$, $$$$	Mission/ Bernal Heights
This small place in the Outer Mission (outer Mongolia when it opened in 1999, and still a little off the beaten track) draws crowds hungry for its fresh, seasonal, carefully-cooked New American fare. Everything from the big bright salads through the mains (usually including something for... More >>