Climb to the top of Ghirardelli Square to slurp oysters and crack into fresh Dungeness crab at this Southern California-born seafood restaurant. The San Francisco location is Broad Street’s first expansion up north and the dining room feels like stepping onto an actual boat — with impressive views of the water below. The must-order item? A warm, buttery lobster roll, which can upgraded with add-ons including caviar and uni. 

After wowing customers with flaky and visually stunning bacon, egg, and cheese croissants, baker Sophie Smith has given her former pop-up business Butter & Crumble a permanent home in North Beach. Head over to the former Tante Marie’s Cooking School space at 271 Francisco Street to select a treat from options such as pistachio and cardamom sugar croissants, pain au chocolat, and chocolate chip cookies. 

As of early January, there’s new place to enjoy a slice of pizza and one of the city’s finest views of the Golden Gate Bridge. Il Parco debuted in the Presidio near Tunnel Tops Park and is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner serving match mascarpone toast, cheese and charcuterie boards, panini, pizza, and a few kinds of pasta. The Italian-inspired cafe also offers beer and wine, which can be enjoyed al fresco so diners can fully take in their surroundings. 

Though Vikram and Anu Bhambri, the couple behind hit restaurant Rooh, have built their reputation for excellent Indian cuisine, their latest restaurant Alora serves food from the countries around the Mediterranean Sea. Located on the Embarcadero at Pier 3, the restaurant serves 100-layer lasagna, steak shish kebabs with hummus, and carrot fattoush plus original cocktails in a stunning modern space. 

Three-Michelin-starred Quince returned from a year-long closure with a new look and a more flexible menu. Chef Michael Tusk says he wanted to give diners more ability to tailor their experience at the restaurant so now there are two tiers of tasting menus, as well as a la carte options in the lounge. The food remains focused on seasonality and sourcing from around West Marin, while the space is now brighter and more relaxed.

After months as a roving pop-up, Four Kings settled into its new Chinatown home in mid-March, marking one of the most anticipated restaurant openings of the spring. Mister Jiu’s alum Franky Ho and Mike Long run the kitchen, pushing out plates of flat-iron chow fun kissed with wok hei and Xinjiang lamb skewers spiced with mala, chile, and cumin. Don’t miss the Canto-nostalgic fare that draws from both Chinese and non-Chinese culinary traditions, for example, mapo spaghetti and XO snails. It’s a small space so be sure to make a reservation. 

After a long closure, Jeanne d’Arc Restaurant is back in action in the basement of the Hotel Cornell near Union Square. The French spot is all about the old-school, baroque vibes with gold-and-red frescos covering the walls and elaborate chandeliers. On the menu, it’s classics galore: escargots in garlic, butter, and parsley; coq au vin; and lapin chausseur with mushrooms, herbs, and red wine shallot sauce.

The chef-couple that put Michelin-starred Marlena on the map as one of the city’s most exciting and affordable tasting menu restaurants has a new restaurant to unveil. 7 Adams takes its name from chef David Fisher’s childhood home and serves a 5-course menu that blends set dishes with courses during which diners will choose from a couple of seasonal options. Save room for star pastry chef Serena Chow Fisher’s desserts, and don’t be afraid to ask for a seat on the cozy back patio of this Japantown-area destination.

Curry Hyuga, a popular spot for Japanese curry with locations in Burlingame and Cupertino, made the jump up the Penninsula and into the city with a new location on Market Street. The menu is pretty straightforward: choose from various curry and rice plates, and add-on sides such as kaarage chicken, black pepper edamame, and potato salad.

Homestyle Indonesian cooking landed in the Mission in early March thanks to Rasa Rasa Kitchen, an expansion of the food truck business owned by Joe Sharp and Patty Tang. The menu goes beyond the favorites from the truck so while there’s no laksa on the menu, diners can try “large dishes of curry, fried fish, and sambal-smothered vegetables,” KQED reports. Many dishes are served family-style so bring a group to explore the menu’s breadth. 

Komaaj started as a pop-up serving multicourse Iranian dinners but now lives on as Komaaj Mazze & Wine Bar, a place for locals to gather over pomegranate rice and chicken and a glass of wine. Owner Hanif Sadr offers a taste of Northern Iran in sharable plates of cucumber salad, sumac yogurt dip, and sweet and sour chicken stew. Wines mainly come from the Caucasus region, which encompasses Armenia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, and northern Iran — though nonalcoholic options including teas and sharbat sekanjbin (a mint and vinegar drink sweetened with honey) are worthwhile, too. 

The Ferry Building is now home to Roman-style focaccia sandwiches and slices of pizza al taglio. A16, the Union Street restaurant that was listed as a Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2022, opened its newest outpost in the former Cowgirl Creamery stall of the legendary marketplace in February 2024, bringing high-class panini and pantry goods to the building’s hallowed halls.