Sunday, April 22, 2012

Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants 2012: Part 3 of 3

Piccino

1001 Minnesota St. (at 22nd Street)
San Francisco
Tel. (415) 824-4224      
Map | www.piccinocafe.com
Before Piccino opened, few people, other than the area's residents, knew the Dogpatch neighborhood. Last year, owners Sher Rogat and Margherita Stewart Sagan moved the restaurant into much larger quarters in an old Victorian. They also lured MAC clothing into an adjoining space, developed a wine bar-shop called Dig, and opened Piccino coffee bar. The restaurant has become a destination for the Cal-Ital food produced by Rachel Sillcocks. Pizza, with a thin, golden and crisp crust, is at the heart of the menu, but Sillcocks creates some exceptional appetizers, salads, soups and a single large plate a night. Thanks to Piccino, Dogpatch is now on the culinary map.

Specialties: Pizza with mushrooms, stracchino and shaved garlic; pork and beef meatballs; pan-seared black cod with purple cauliflower.

Hours

Open continuously for lunch and dinner 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday-Sunday;lunch 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday, dinner 5-10 p.m. Tuesday-Thursday. Closed Monday.

Cuisines

  • Italian
  • Pizza

Features

  • Beer and wine
  • Corkage ($15)
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Disabled Access
  • Parking: Street (Difficult during the day, easy at night.)
  • Seating (70)
  • Lunch (Tuesday-Sunday)
  • Reservations: Accepted

Chronicle Rating

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Quince

470 Pacific Ave. (near Montgomery)
San Francisco
Tel. (415) 775-8500      
Map | www.quincerestaurant.com
Opening the wildly popular Cotogna next door allowed Michael and Lindsay Tusk to further refine their elegant flagship restaurant. Pasta is always a standout, with combinations such as cappellacci filled with quail and served with flowering rapini, pine nuts and golden raisins. Other dishes are equally astounding. Lindsay Lindsay Tusk has reconfigured the elegant dining room, a warehouse-size space made intimate with dark wood and given sparkle with glittery chandeliers, by removing 15 seats; she also redecorated the lounge to make it more comfortable. While there's only a fixed-price menu in the restaurant, there are a la carte offerings in the lounge, including a Parmesan cheese tasting.

Specialties: Menu changes nightly.

Hours

Dinner 5-10 p.m. nightly.

Cuisines

  • California
  • Italian

Features

  • Corkage ($25)
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Disabled Access
  • Full Bar
  • Bar Bites
  • Seating (65 (plus 10 at the bar, 16 in the lounge)
  • Reservations: Accepted

Chronicle Rating

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Sante

100 Boyes Blvd. (in hotel lobby)
Boyes Hot Springs
Tel. (707) 939-2415      
Map | www.fairmont.com/sonoma
As a hotel restaurant, Sante walks the line between elegant and casual, weighing the demands of Sonoma Mission Inn guests and those who come just to dine. Andrew Cain has done that masterfully with his upscale take on some familiar favorites such as his "grown up macaroni and cheese"; it mixes orecchiette with lobster, black truffles and Val d'Aosta fontina. The restaurant overlooks the swimming pool and has a casual spa-like air, but the tables are set for luxury. The restaurant features a three- or four-course menu, plus a chef's tasting menu; a la carte pricing is available on request. The impressive wine list, like the food, is locally sourced.

Specialties: Seasonal cheese selections (up to 30); seasonal offerings such as lamb with braised shoulder, and cannelloni with artichokes, carrots and white bean puree.

Hours

Dinner 6-9:30 p.m. nightly.

Cuisines

  • California
  • French

Features

  • Corkage ($25)
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Disabled Access
  • Full Bar
  • High Chairs
  • Live music
  • Parking: Valet (Free at dinner)
  • Seating (120 (plus 20 on patio in the summer)
  • Reservations: Accepted

Chronicle Rating

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Zuni Cafe

1658 Market St. (near Franklin)
San Francisco
Tel. (415) 552-2522      
Map | www.zunicafe.com
Even after more than 30 years in business, this restaurant is the place to send people who want to be surrounded by the San Francisco ethos. The food has the clean but soulful notes one expects, attracting a wide range of diners including politicians, artists, celebrities, business executives and a good number of tourists. They all seem to casually mingle over oysters, Caesar salad and the wood-fired chicken prepared by Judy Rodgers and her crew. Insider's tip: Try the margarita. The interior has a rustic but dramatic loft-like feel so unique, it couldn't be duplicated anywhere else.

Specialties: Oysters; Caesar salad; polenta with mascarpone; house-cured anchovies; house-ground hamburger; wood oven-roasted whole chicken; espresso granita.

Hours

Tues-Sat 11:30 a.m.-midnight; Brunch Sun 11:00 a.m.-2:30 p.m., dinner Sun 5-11p.m.

Cuisines

  • California
  • Mediterranean

Features

  • Online Reservation
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Delivery/Take out
  • Disabled Access
  • Full Bar
  • High Chairs
  • Open Late
  • Outdoor Seating
  • Parking: Valet ($10)
  • Reservations: Recommended
  • Seating (100, plus 20 at bar)

Chronicle Rating

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Saturday, April 21, 2012

Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants 2012: Part 2 of 3

Adesso

4395 Piedmont Ave. (at Pleasant Valley Road)
Oakland
Tel. (510) 601-0305      
Map | www.dopoadesso.com
It seems just about every restaurant these days offers house-made salumi, but no place does it better than this compact Oakland restaurant. Owner Jon Smulewitz was inspired by the aperitivo bars in Bologna and has recreated that feel in an industrial-looking space near his other Italian gem, Dopo. Chad Arnold creates up to 40 kinds of cured meats on a menu that includes pates, antipasti, oysters, cheese, dessert and exceptional cocktails. Every meat is distinctive -- you can taste the fennel, garlic and red wine in the Abruzzo,; the vanilla and anise in the Felino. Early in the evening and late at night, look for free platters of salumi to go with cocktails and wine.

Specialties: Any of the house-made salumi; pates such as duck liver mousse in a jar; 18-month-old prosciutto; any cocktail.

Hours

Dinner 5 p.m.-midnight Monday-Wednesday, until 1 a.m. Friday-Saturday.

Cuisines

  • Italian

Features

  • Beer and wine
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Open Late
  • Seating (50)
  • Bar Bites
  • Reservations: No

Chronicle Rating

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Flour + Water

2401 Harrison St. (at 20th Street)
San Francisco
Tel. (415) 826-7000      
Map | www.flourandwater.com
Even after nearly three years, getting a seat at this small Italian restaurant hasn't gotten any easier. While half the restaurant is open for walk-ins, if you don't get at the door well before the 5:30 p.m. opening, you're in for a long wait. However, people don't seem to mind once they fork into Thomas McNaughton's pasta with smoked duck and fresh horseradish or his classic take on the Piedmontese agnolotti dal plin. He also offers great pizza, a couple of main courses and some of the best Italian-inspired desserts in the city. The casual interior has a soulful quality, with stained-glass accents from the still-missed Myth, rustic ceiling beams and handsome walnut tables.

Specialties: Pasta tasting menu, featuring five pastas, appetizer and dessert ($60); chocolate budino tart with espresso caramel cream.

Hours

Dinner 5:30 p.m.-midnight nightly.

Cuisines

  • Italian
  • Pizza

Features

  • Beer and wine
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Open Late (until midnight Thursday-Saturday)
  • Parking: Street (Fairly easy)
  • Seating (40 (plus 19 in the lounge))
  • Reservations: Accepted

Chronicle Rating

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Pesce

2227 Polk St. (near Vallejo)
San Francisco
Tel. (415) 928-8025      
Map | www.pescesf.com
Venetian-inspired seafood is what sets this Polk Street restaurant apart from other Italian places. Chef-owner Ruggero Gadaldi, who also owns Beretta and Delarosa, offers a unique take on cicchetti, small plates such as grilled sardines, tuna conserva with a three-bean salad, or an Italian take on cioppino. The few larger plates include whole roast fish, and spaghetti with lobster, saffron, tomato and brandy cream sauce. You'll also find a few meat dishes, including milk-braised pork with gnocchi. The comfortable interior features a zinc bar, teak shelving, mahogany paneling and hexagonal floor tiles.

Specialties: Warm octopus salad with potatoes; crab tower; fennel and arugula salad; squid ink risotto; pappardelle with duck; sgroppino (a dessert drink).

Hours

Dinner 5-9:30 p.m. Sun.-Thurs., until 11 p.m. Fri.-Sat.

Cuisines

  • Italian
  • Seafood

Features

  • Online Reservation
  • Credit Cards: Accepted
  • Full Bar
  • Parking: Difficult
  • Parking: Street
  • Private Dining Room (Semi-private room for 14)
  • Reservations: Accepted
  • Seating (38 plus 15 at the bar)

Chronicle Rating

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