San Francisco Restaurant Week: Your Essential Guide to Prix-Fixe Deals and Top Spots (Jan. 23-31)
San Francisco captivates crooners and earns Michelin stars in abundance. In 2019, the city solidified its status as the nation's three-star restaurant capital.
Experience this world-class food scene at its best during San Francisco Restaurant Week, Jan. 23-31. Nearly 130 restaurants offer prix-fixe menus: two-course lunches at $15 or $25, and three-or-more-course dinners at $40 or $65. Here are standout participants.
Michelin-starred Luce impresses with soaring ceilings, dramatic lighting, and cushioned banquettes, complementing Chef Daniel Corey's globally inspired, locally sourced dishes. The $65 dinner menu features roasted Kabocha squash with brown sugar, winter citrus, and pistachio; lemon verbena-steamed Gulf snapper with roasted sweet gems, cauliflower, and hazelnuts; and lavender-infused panna cotta with grapefruit, candied pine nuts, and honey.
Michelin-starred Spruce by Chef Mark Sullivan celebrates hyper-seasonal California cuisine in a mohair-walled setting. The $25 lunch menu includes baby kale Caesar salad with shaved parmesan and anchovy tuile; duck confit with cauliflower, turnips, and Bordelaise sauce; and toffee verrine with salted-butterscotch custard and chocolate chip cookie.
Bellota shines with paella, especially the $25 lunch arroz negro: creamy black rice with gulf shrimp, scallops, green beans, roasted red pepper, and squid ink, plus beloved patatas bravas with Kennebec potatoes, chipotle salsa, and smoky aioli.
Power couple Craig and Annie Stoll's spots: casual-Italian Delfina ($40 dinner) offers Parmigiano sformato with chestnuts, brown butter, and aged balsamico, or goat cheese francobolli with steelhead roe and cucumber. Nearby Locanda ($40 dinner) reimagines Roman fare like chicken alla Romana with tomato, little potatoes, fermented cayenne, capers, and white wine, ending with clementine pudding cake.
Tyler Florence and Scott Quinn's Wayfare Tavern delivers legendary organic fried chicken—brined in buttermilk, sous vide, then fried—on the $40 dinner menu with butter lettuce salad and house-made doughnuts with streusel glaze and whipped crème fraîche.
For a unique twist, the Cheese School of San Francisco at Ghirardelli Square offers a $25 lunch grilled cheese with Hook’s 5-year cheddar, Point Reyes Toma, and Nicasio Valley San Geronimo—peak Bay Area comfort.
