# bay area michelin guide recommendations

food lists places
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if you're curious about the fine dining scene in the san francisco bay area beyond what i posted in my favorite sf restaurants and places (recently updated), look no further.

i have a rule of thumb for michelin star restaurants -- add 1 hour to your meal for each star. something to take into consideration.

below are all the restaurants that i have either been to, or want to go to in the future. all of them are good, but i'll put a star next to any that are especially good. some are repeats from my previous post. 🤖

san francisco & peninsula

1 star

  • *nari - the best thai fine dining restaurant in the city. excellent cocktail menu.
  • 7 adams - i haven't been yet, but this was highly recommended from a foodie friend with excellent food sensibilities.
  • *mister jui's - best fine dining chinese cuisine in the city. pro-tip: you can get a seat and eat at the bar if you can't get a reservation, as with most of these restaurants.
  • nisei - haven't been, but the photos look really good. i saw shirako in the photos, so if that's not your thing, put in a dietary restriction request.
  • *sorrel - went here several years ago before they received a star. i don't remember the food, but i don't remember having a negative impression of the restaurant and the photos look legit.
  • *angler - the food is excellent here. i don't know if they still have it on the menu, but avoid the cocktail that has burnt salt on the ice cube. everything else was excellent though.
  • *wakuriya - kaiseki. has maintained its one-star status since 2013. it's in downtown san mateo, which is south of the city 20 minutes by car without traffic. downtown san mateo is mostly restaurants, so there isn't much else to do there.

2 stars

  • kiln - haven't been here, but the photos look good. i'm a fan of gelée, and it looks like this place has it on the menu often.
  • *birdsong - received a michelin star the first year it opened in 2018, and was bumped up to 2 stars in 2021 and has maintained it since. it's in soma, so the location is subpar. don't walk to the restaurant.
  • *saison - this was recently featured on an episode of s3, and looked pretty good.

3 stars

  • benu - has had 3 stars since 2014. these are obviously talented people, but it fell short of my expectations. perhaps it was an off day. need to go back and try it again, soon.

napa

if you go to napa for dinner, i would suggest getting a hotel for the evening. napa is mostly 2 lane roads, and being napa, there is a higher statistical probability of drunk drivers. it's also an hour drive from sf without traffic. that being said, here's the list for napa.

1 star

3 stars

  • the french laundry - this is the quintessential bay area restaurant. haven't been. want to go, soon.