San Francisco Restaurant and Bar Recommendations
 

Hi all...I will be traveling with a group of 5 others for a business trip this Friday. We are looking for a unique San Francisco restaurant to celebrate a successful business venture. Would like something possibly kinda of trendy with a fun vibe. Not too dressy or formal. Entrees not to exceed $30.00. We will be staying at the Westin on market street but don't mind taking the trolly to other destinations. Seafood, italian and continental are good. Asian or french are out.

Also, possibly a good bar for drinks beforehand...

Would love to get some suggestions asap so I can get a reservation.

We were in SF last week and wanted a restaurant of the type you describe for a celebratory meal. We went to Park Tavern and really liked it. It was lively, not too dressy, youthful, but adult and most importantly, all four of us loved our meal.

www.parktavernsf.com

We walked from the Hyatt Regency stopping at Tyler Florence's place for a drink along the way. Should you end up there, I can tell you what we ordered and enjoyed.

Have fun! If you click on my name, you can see where else we ate in a short TR.

Check out Perry's on Union St - in the Marina. Classic place, fun bar and good food - and I used to love their French Onion Soup. They filmed part of the movie - Looking for Mr. Goodbar there - with Diane Keaton. http://perryssf.com/

It's also fun to stroll along Union for other places to dine/have an appertif.

And also in the Marina is Chestnut St - on the bay side of Lombard, which also has a number of places - as does North Beach.

Here's the movie - which was a big deal back in '77:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0076327/

Tom you have been away from SF a little too long. Perry's does not qualify as trendy on anyone's list.

lisa, take a look at NOPA, Bar Agricole, Flour+Water, Commonwealth for a start. Too bad Asian food is out, one of the hottest places right now is Mission Chinese Food. Just a reminder trendy equals hard to get into.

SAB: Geesh - not even a little "trendy"? How about - classic cool? :)

Today is Wednesday. I don't think that there is any way a group of 4 will be able to get reservations for this Friday at Commonwealth, Flour & Water, & Park Tavern (I didn't like it). I usually have to book weeks in advance.

Perbacco is a favorite of mine, very popular, trendy & lively, & close to your hotel. Italian food. They have openings on opentable for Friday.

Stu Dudley

BTW - I stopped by Perry's for a nice glass of Chard last fall - and it was still "happening". :)

I'll probably have to group myself in the passe group as Tomsd. My recommendation for a drink would have been The Viewlounge on the 39th floor of the Marriott which is just around the corner from the Westin.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-view-san...nge%20marriott

Of the restaurants that have availability this Friday night on OpenTable for a party of 6, I would consider Foreign Cinema, Dosa on Fillmore, Salt House, Slanted Door. My first choice would be Cotogna, but I doubt you can get in.

Oops, no Asian, so not Slanted Door.

Asian is out.

That takes out Slanted Door which is Vietnamese and Dosa which is South Indian.

>>>Foreign Cinema, Dosa on Fillmore, Salt House, Slanted Door. <<

sf

All these are noted for their "bomb" (high) noise level. I doubt if 6 people will be able to talk to each other.

Stu Dudley

I don't recall the noise level at Foreign Cinema being so bad, but what Stu says is absolutely true about the others (and it's why I didn't recommend Skool, which much be "two bombs"). But if you happen to be here on the weekend, brunch at Foreign Cinema is excellent and a lot quieter.

Keep in mind that although its pretty late in the game for Friday at the trendy spots, and I love using Opentable - restaurants may have availability by calling. OT often shows none when a phone call works.

I second Stu's recommendation for Perbacco, but I also recommend Fish & Farm - had a great meal there a few weeks ago and liked the vibe. Towns' End could be another good choice, but might be a bit loud.

<<<Towns' End could be another good choice, but might be a bit loud.>>>

Now that's one I specifically left off my list (along with Skool) because of the deafening noise!

It may be pretty late in the game per Stu's posting, however, if you are staying at a hotel with a good concierge he/she may be able to get you into a hot spot. BTW most trendy spots will be noisy, it is part of the scene.

Personally - I never trust the Concierge. Too many "perks" coming back from places they recommend.

I don't know what OP means by trendy, to me it means new, different, "the" place to go for hipsters and foodies alike. So places like Perbacco, Slanted Door, Foreign Cinema, whilst very good and popular are no longer "trendy " per se; they were when they first opened because they introduced something new and different into the SF Food scene. Two of the trendiest restaurants right now are State Bird Provisions and Mission Chinese Food.

Tom--I didn't say ask the concierge for advice, I said see if they can get you a reservation. Different beast, but never mind!!

Ditto on having to reflect a bit about trendy? Is that new and Tres Avant - or perhaps Art Deco - while possibly just having ok food?

Or is it the latest Asst Chef who has finally opened her/his own place and is truly wowing their loyal diners?

Or is it a new concept in dining, such as Asian Fusion once was?

If I was on point for taking out five of my business colleagues - I might even error a wee bit on the side of KISS. Keep it simple stupid. :) Or stated differently - perhaps head a little more to the "tried and true" side.

Of course - guess I am now in the "passe" group. :)

SAB - capice.

I loved State Bird Provisions! It was very difficult to get a res, but I tried only about 10 days before. Had to settle for 6:30 on a weekday, but so glad I did.

SAB: "<i>I didn't say ask the concierge for advice, I said see if they can get you a reservation. Different beast, but never mind!!</i>"

Perhaps if one doesn't stay at 'concierge-type' properties one doesn't understand subtle differences like that. >:-)

Slanted door may try to move you along too quicly for your liking likethey did to us once. Have not been back.
Try LuLu. Great food snd nice service.Took out french friends there and they loved it. Very california for them. Check it out on open table. Perhaps you could get a table in one of theside "alcoves"

Ahhh Yes. That is a major challenge - to discern such "subtle" distinctions. Have generally found the Concierge at 5 star properties to be most affable (and they definitely are more "subtle" about their expectations of being tipped) - but still rarely request much from them. Prefer to have done my own homework/research ahead of time (including blogs such as this :) ) - and usually have already made the necessaary reservations.

The Concierge can be an ok sounding board though - although - I find the best person at the front desk and the doorman to be fairly reliable soures of info. Those two normally aren't receiving any "perks" from the places they know about/recommend :)

you STILL don't 'get' what SAB meant...

Restaurant LuLu is a great idea. Their skillet mussels are excellent. http://www.restaurantlulu.com/

Yo Janis: I got it just fine, now go back to watching the schoolyard, ok?

Ooh. Skillet mussels? I may need to head there for lunch one of these weeks!

Tomsd - Perry's??? That's so '70's.

SAB has it right. Bar Agricole was just named one of the top bars in the U.S.

Good luck on finding a restaurant in your price range.

Geesh Rasta: Can we at least stretch it into the 80's? :)

Who named Bar Agricole one of the top bars in the US? It doesn't even garner great reviews on local review sites. (But I see it won an award for best bar interior design :-) )

I must be the only person who did not like the Slanted Door.

It was so loud, we could hardly hear each other across the small table. It was packed with people, elbow-to-elbow, and was a frantic environment. We were also rushed by wait staff.

Great food. Ridiculously expensive. Won't go back.

Peaceout: you're not the only one :)

"Ridiculously expensive" - exactly.

We tend to find the same/better flavors - only not in fancy presentation - at hole-in-the-wall or just plain neighborhood places. We have Vietnamese friends and rely on their recommendations.

Slanted Door is just like any number of "great" restaurants in San Francisco with a well-known name and a devoted clientele. They can charge exorbitant prices. More power to them.

Slanted Door is the highest grossing restaurant in San Francisco.

>>It was so loud, we could hardly hear each other across the small table. It was packed with people, elbow-to-elbow, and was a frantic environment.<<<

Welcome to the San Francisco Restaurant scene!!!

My wife & I plus our dining friends are resorting to dining earlier in the evening to avoid the crowds/noise. Many restaurants turn on the "noise" (not music) machine around 7pm - Party Time. The San Francisco Chronicle rates the amount of noise at a restaurant, & we avoid all the "bomb" and 4 bell ratings. If we do go to a 4 bell place, it is just the two of us - never 4 or more (where we can't have a conversation).

About a decade or two ago there was an article in the NY Times or Wall Street Journal that explained that the restauranteurs discovered that the more noise there is in a restaurant, the more people drink and the faster they eat their meals.

"Hard"/sound-reflecting surfaces are "in". The Ritz Carlton recently gutted their "quiet" formal restaurant and replaced it with a "bomb"/noisy more-casual place. According to the recent review in the Chronicle - it's "packed".

Stu Dudley

sf7307 - here's a local site review or two for you.

http://blogs.sfweekly.com/foodie/201...en_cocktai.php

From the SF Chronicle - reporting on Food & Wine's review.
http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog...gazine/#2074-2

StuDudley - the dining scene in SF is loud, louder and loudest. I tend to go to more neighborhood restaurants, where there isn't as much 'scene', but high quality food.

I'm sure it's a great place to have a cocktail (I'll be sure to give it a try). But it was named one of the best bars <i>in San Francisco</i>, not one of the best in the US :-)

We were in San Francisco earlier this month and ate at Range in the Mission District. Trendy? Not really, but very comfortable and fun. Fantastic wine list! We were a group of 6 and they did a spectacular job with food and service. On Rastaguytoday's scale it was a "loud".