The yr 2023 is shaping as much as be a promising one for the Bay Space eating scene.
In San Francisco, the variety of new restaurant openings is approaching ranges not seen since late 2019, based on metropolis knowledge. Many hotly anticipated eating places are planning to open all through the area within the new yr, from hit Korean barbecue chain Baekjeong’s first Bay Space outpost to East Bay pop-up Poppy Bagels’ new Oakland store.
Acclaimed native cooks are additionally launching thrilling new initiatives: Cal-Indian chef Srijith Gopinathan, of Ettan in Palo Alto and previously of Campton Place in San Francisco, is bringing diners a brand new restaurant targeted on the meals of his native Kerala, India. Anthony Robust, a former Delfina and Locanda chef who’s been quiet since closing his San Francisco restaurant Prairie in 2020 and working a camper van pop-up in 2021, is returning with a pasta store within the Inside Richmond.
Different delayed eating places, in the meantime, are lastly gearing as much as open within the coming weeks. Look out for Kajiken, a preferred Japanese abura soba chain, in San Mateo in mid-December and chef Nora Haron’s Indonesian-Singaporean restaurant SanDai in Walnut Creek in late January.
Winter formally begins Dec. 21 and runs by March 20. Listed below are 10 of the Bay Space’s most anticipated restaurant openings, listed in alphabetical order.
Akikos Restaurant will welcome diners this winter at its modern new house in downtown San Francisco’s East Reduce neighborhood. The two,700-square-foot venue is a serious growth in comparison with the restaurant’s earlier tackle.
Akikos RestaurantAkikos Restaurant
Akikos is resurfacing at a trendy new venue this winter, the place chef and proprietor Ray Lee will proceed to information diners by omakase tasting menus that includes the best catch from Tokyo’s famed Toyosu Fish Market. The two,700-square-foot restaurant plans to accommodate 46 diners, however will characteristic a 24-seat open counter “chef’s stage” the place visitors can witness each step within the preparation of the evening’s nigiri and sashimi bites. The bar program is about to characteristic intricate cocktails, Japanese beers and sake. — M.C.
Projected opening: January
430 Folsom St. San Francisco. akikosrestaurant.com
Baekjeong is thought in L.A. and New York for its round tableside grills and high-quality meats.
BaekjeongBaekjeong
Get excited for the primary Northern California outpost of Baekjeong, a wildly common Korean barbecue chain in Los Angeles and New York Metropolis, opening on the South Bay’s food-filled Westfield Valley Honest mall. Count on Baekejeong’s signature round, tabletop grills, on which specifically skilled servers expertly cook dinner skinny slices of brisket, spicy pork stomach and different meat for diners. Sides like corn cheese and steamed eggs additionally cook dinner in compartments across the grill. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: January/February
Westfield Valley Honest. 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd. #1808, San Jose. baekjeongkbbq.com
The traditional pepperoni pie at Cellarmaker Home of Pizza, which is increasing to the East Bay.
Yalonda M. James/The ChronicleCellarmaker Brewing Co.
A large Jack London Sq. warehouse will quickly be serving Cellarmaker Brewing Co.’s common beers and crispy-edged pizzas. The brewery’s first East Bay location can have not solely the oblong Detroit-style pizzas followers devour at their Mission Road location, but in addition Midwest-style bar pies: assume a spherical, tremendous thin-crust pizza lower like a checkerboard so everybody can snack on small, sq. slices. A present Cellarmaker bar pie channels fall vibes with merguez sausage, squash and pomegranate. For drinks, anticipate an ever-changing beer record plus Cellarmaker’s personal pinot noir and cider, which they plan to begin making in 2023. Co-founder Connor Casey hopes the Oakland taproom will probably be a draw for giant group outings, with 68 seats inside plus a 50-seat parklet. It’s the start of a brand new East Bay period for the brewery, which is closing its authentic SoMa taproom on the finish of the yr and likewise buying Berkeley brewery the Uncommon Barrel. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: February
300 Webster St., Oakland. cellarmakerbrewing.com
Srijith Gopinathan, pictured at Taj Campton Place in San Francisco in 2015, is opening a brand new Indian restaurant.
Randi Lynn Seashore/Particular to The ChronicleCopra
Acclaimed chef Srijith Gopinathan, recognized for his Cal-Indian cooking on the as soon as two-Michelin-star Campton Place in San Francisco and now the stylish Ettan in Palo Alto, is gearing up for his first new San Francisco restaurant in years. He and Ettan co-owner Ayesha Thapar are bringing Copra to the earlier house of hit Indian restaurant Dosa in Decrease Pacific Heights. Copra (named for the dried flesh of a coconut, a necessary Indian ingredient) will deal with meals from the southern coast of India, the place Gopinathan grew up. He’s working with a neighborhood farmer to develop betel leaf, a barely candy and bitter leaf that his grandmother chewed as a post-meal digestif, and plans to prime it with eggplant or tuna. Different dishes might embody Dungeness crab swimming in a shower of caramelized coconut, tamarind and coconut milk; and kothu roti, a preferred avenue meals dish of chopped roti and meat that pulls flavors from close by Sri Lanka. Copra will probably be decked out with tropical wallpaper and decor; if it’s something just like the glamorous Ettan, it’s positive to be a stunner. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: January/February
1700 Fillmore St., San Francisco
Dumpling Membership’s San Francisco retailer will promote frozen dumplings, cooking necessities and extra.
Yalonda M. James/The ChronicleDumpling Membership
In early 2023, this pandemic-born dumpling sensation is opening a specialty Asian meals retailer in San Francisco. Dumpling Membership proprietor Cathay Bi, recognized for her plump, flavorful dumplings, is popping her Mission District area into an Asian home-cooking hub stocked with pantry necessities, cookbooks, ceramics — and naturally, frozen dumplings in flavors like Japanese curry hen and scallop with jalapeño. There’s seating, nevertheless it stays to be seen whether or not Bi will serve sizzling meals, although she has for previous pop-ups on the area. Bi hopes to open the store in time to have fun Lunar New Yr, which begins Jan. 22. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: late January
3233 twenty second St., San Francisco. dumpling.membership
Hana Izumi
The Peninsula is arguably the Bay Space’s kaiseki hub, with specialists within the multicourse model of Japanese cooking like Kaiseki Saryo Hachi in Burlingame, Michelin-starred Wakuriya in San Mateo and Ranzan in Redwood Metropolis. One other one becoming a member of the scene in early 2023 is Hana Izumi, run by chef Koji Murakami and his spouse and companion Luna Miyuki. Murakami, who works for Bay Space sushi mini chain Sanraku, discovered the artwork of kaiseki at Kitcho, an acclaimed Tokyo restaurant, and was additionally the personal chef for Japan’s ambassador in Washington D.C. At a current preview pop-up, Murakami served dishes like eggplant braised in dashi and a yuzu salmon sashimi. Kaiseki eating places are sometimes high-end, costly eating experiences; Hana Izumi will probably be open for lunch and dinner with each a la carte and tasting menus to make it extra accessible. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: January
293 El Camino Actual, Millbrae. hana-izumi.com
Les Components
Pastry chef Luis Villavelazquez’s dessert tasting menu pop-ups are headed to a brick-and-mortar house within the Tenderloin. The brand new 10-seat area will set the stage for the intimate, omakase-style dessert experiences the model has change into recognized for. Previous dishes have included bread pudding with truffles, pan de muerto-inspired beignets and a pumpkin and chestnut tart. Plans for the incoming store embody walk-in, ala carte desserts and drinks like espresso and tea. Villavelazquez plans to have a reservation system (and an app) for these arrange by the tip of the yr. — M.C.
Projected opening: February
442 Hyde St. San Francisco. leselementssf.com
Luma Bar & Eatery
The plentiful greens, herbs and greens from the various farms surrounding Petaluma would be the stars of the present on the incoming Luma Bar & Eatery, taking up the previous house of the brewpub Dempsey’s. Proprietor Jazmine Lalicker, additionally of close by seafood restaurant the Shuckery, is bringing a menu of vegetable-focused dishes like braised greens with beans and a testarolo pasta with squash and dandelion pesto. Omnivores can add a aspect of brisket, eggs or duck confit to their dishes. Whereas many will miss the pours of recent beers as soon as brewed on website, Luma can have loads of beer and wine on its drinks lists. — M.C.
Projected opening: December
50 East Washington St., Petaluma. lumaeatery.com
Piglet & Co.
Chris Yang, finest recognized for his position as chef de delicacies at Dogpatch Hawaiian spot Aina, and companion Marcelle Gonzalez Yang’s new place within the Mission, Piglet and Co., will probably be all about Taiwanese avenue meals and evening market fare — although the couple is fast to make clear that it’s going to not be a “conventional” Taiwanese restaurant. The comfortable eating room, with fewer than 10 tables, will probably be opening for dinner service Wednesday by Sunday with a la carte objects together with Yang’s common char siu pork, brief ribs and rice dishes. The restaurant plans on opening to e-mail record subscribers within the coming weeks, and to most people afterward. — M.C.
Projected opening: December
2170 Mission St. San Francisco. pigletandco.com
Freshly made garlic and plain bagels from Poppy Bagels cool on a tray in Oakland.
Stephen Lam/The ChroniclePoppy Bagels
Followers of Poppy Bagels have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of proprietor Reesa Kashuk’s first everlasting location, which is able to imply simpler, extra frequent entry to her chewy, in-demand bagels, at the moment bought solely by weekly pre-orders and on the Grand Lake farmers’ market in Oakland. Kashuk’s hand-rolled and boiled bagels will probably be bought recent, with optionally available toppings like scallion cream cheese with tomato and chives, and within the type of a new egg and cheese sandwich. She’ll quickly add extra bagel sandwiches for lunch — assume egg and tuna salads — plus baked items like rugelach. The New York native taught herself the way to make bagels through the pandemic, and enterprise took off amid a rising bagel growth within the Bay Space. — E.Okay.
Projected opening: January
5004 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. poppybagelsca.com
Elena Kadvany (she/her) and Mario Cortez are San Francisco Chronicle employees writers. E mail: [email protected], [email protected]
