12 of the Bay Area's hottest new restaurants
Inside Sobre Mesa. Photo courtesy of Sobre Mesa.
Despite the additional difficulty of opening a restaurant during a pandemic, many new restaurants have prevailed recently. With indoor dining coming back, it's the perfect time to venture out and try something new. We've picked out 12 spots in the Bay Area (all within an easy walk of a BART station) you're going to want to check out the next time you're in the mood for a culinary adventure.
East Bay
Chocolate haupia pie from Ono Bakehouse. Photo courtesy of Ono Bakehouse.
Ono Bakehouse
Owner Desiree Valencia was born and raised on Maui, Hawaii. After moving to California and falling in love with its culture and ingredients. She decided to plant some roots and open a small bakeshop. Check out the lilikoi poppyseed pound cake, chocolate haupia pie, and Queen Emma cake by the slice. This is Valencia's version of Aloha!
Tapas at Sobre Mesa. Photo courtesy of Sobre Mesa.
Sobre Mesa
Created by Top Chef Season 18 Contestant, Chef Nelson German of alaMar Kitchen & Bar, Sobre Mesa is an Afro-Latino Kitchen featuring lush surroundings, refined cocktails, seasonal cuisine, and up-tempo music. The libations and lively atmosphere take their inspiration from Nelson’s Dominican roots and African ancestry, with influences from Cuba, Puerto Rico and other Latin countries. The tapas menu, made using fresh local ingredients and flavors designed to pair perfectly with the cocktails, is a joyful expression of Nelson's culinary journey and heritage.
A cocktail from Low Bar. Photo courtesy of Low Bar.
Low Bar
Low Bar is a new cocktail bar and kitchen in Oakland. The name Low Bar suggests that your expectations can only be exceeded. Visit Low Bar for new and inventive cocktails like the Oaxacan Green Machine with mezcal, green chartreuse, poblano chile, and lime. For munching, enjoy quesabirria tacos, a burger with salsa verde and fried onions, and grilled octopus with crispy potatoes and cashew salsa macha.
Chicken shawarma sizzling on the spit. Photo courtesy of Shawarmaji.
Shawarmaji
Shawarmaji started with the idea of creating the best Jordanian-inspired shawarma. Former Noosh sous chef Mohammad Abutaha specializes in chicken shawarma, sliced hot off a towering vertical spit. Get your shawarma in a wrap or on top of French fries, and don't forget the key element -- intensely garlicky white sauce known as toum.
An array of dishes from Hermanos Verdes. Photo courtesy of Hermanos Verdes.
Hermanos Verdes
According to chef Mikey Ochoa, a Castro Valley native who previously cooked at Michelin-starred spots like Lazy Bear and Rich Table in San Francisco, this particular stretch of the East Bay suburbs has never really been a destination for buzzy, ambitious restaurants. That helps to account for the excitement around Ochoa’s mostly Mexican pop-up, Hermanos Verdes, which has drawn huge crowds since the chef first started dishing out plates of pork chile verde and barbacoa tacos, the sweet corn pancakes known as cachapas, and a Mexican take on congee.
A dish from Tang's Haus. Photo courtesy of Tang's Haus.
Tang's Haus
A newcomer to the East Bay’s vibrant Korean food scene, Tang’s serves a few of the standards you’ll find at your typical all-purpose Korean restaurant in the Bay Area — bibimbap and bulgogi and such. But the restaurant is more of a specialist: The vast swath of the menu is dedicated to tangs (soups) and stews. Options run the gamut from seolleong tang (beef bone soup) and kkorigom tang (a thicker oxtail soup) to a pork-based version of the crowd favorite spicy-sweet stew known as galbi jjim. The restaurant has a few tables set up on the sidewalk for outdoor dining.
San Francisco
Inside the La Cocina Municipal Marketplace. Photo courtesy of La Cocina Municipal Marketplace.
La Cocina Municipal Marketplace
La Cocina’s Municipal Marketplace is a food hall that’s all about opportunity with the goal helping women of color develop and launch their food businesses. This new 7,000-square-foot marketplace has taken over the vacant post office, previously owned by the Federal government, at Hyde St and Golden Gate Ave. Current vendors include Boug Cali (Creole Bodega), Esterllita's Snacks (Salvadoran), Kayma (Algerian), Los Cilantros (Mexican), Mi Morena (Mexico City street food), and Teranga (Senegalese). A bar, La Paloma, is set to open later in 2021.
The bar at Kona's Street Market. Photo courtesy of Kona's Street Market.
Kona's Street Market
The focus at Kona's Street Market is cocktails inspired by street markets from all around the world, and there's also just enough food for dinner. Started by the team behind, award-winning cocktail bar Pacific Cocktail Haven (PCH), the cocktails focus on familiar and unfamiliar ingredients and spirits. Food comes from Francis Ang’s Filipino pop-up, Pinoy Heritage.
A dish from Ernest. Photo courtesy of Ernest.
Ernest
Ernest is a new restaurant from Chef Brandon Rice in San Francisco’s Mission District. Experience a market-driven menu with intense global flavors that reflects the way that Chef loves to eat — fun and approachable, yet refined with elegant layers of familiar flavors done in a new way. Grab a beer and a snack at the bar or taste your way through our menu in a relaxed, fun environment.
Northern Iranian food is served at Komaaj. Photo courtesy of San Francisco Chronicle.
Komaaj
With over 300 recipes at hand, Komaaj offers a different take on Iranian cuisine. Northern Iranians, founder Hanif Sadr says, eat rice flour-based breads and use rice flour to thicken their soups and stews. Because there are so many varieties of nuts in the region he says, “the technique of using crushed walnuts or hazelnuts to thicken stews or in marinating is, technically, northern Iranian.” The wide range of vegetables, herbs, and fruits cultivated in Iran accounts for the large number of vegan and vegetarian options.
A dish from Mr. Digby's Bar & Restaurant. Photo courtesy of Mr. Digby's Bar & Restaurant.
Mr. Digby's Bar & Restaurant
Mr. Digby’s is a neighborhood bar and restaurant offering elevated American comfort food and classic cocktails in a comfortable, polished setting. Order everything from chicken pot pie and beef tartare to spinach dip baked in sourdough. Wash it down with a glass of beer or wine, or one of their house cocktails (they have everything from martinis to a Fiero spritz). Mr. Digby’s is currently open for dinner with indoor and outdoor dining, and you can look forward to weekend brunch starting soon.
An array of dishes from Herbal. Photo courtesy of The Infatuation.
Herbal
Herbal is a new spot from William Lue, owner of Oakland’s beloved, since-closed Burmese restaurant, Grocery Cafe. With Herbal, Lue wants to share the rich culture and diversity of flavors of Burmese cuisine. The menu at Herbal includes some familiar standbys, like mango chutney pork stew and a nutty tea leaf salad, as well as new dishes, like hemp falafel and steak and brisket curry. Herbal’s biggest draw is that everything is delicious, super shareable, and affordable.
Let's get social.
Where's your favorite new restaurant? Let us know via social media, @SFBARTable #SFBARTable! Keep up with us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to see all of the best BARTable (virtual) events, places to eat (grab take out from) and have fun (outside) around the Bay.
by BARTable
More BARTable
Trending
We partner with all kinds of organizations. See our guidelines:
