The 12 most hotly anticipated Bay Area restaurants winter/spring 2023
From an affordable fresh pasta joint in Oakland to hip Korean barbecue in Santa Clara, tapas in Mountain View and what may be the most stunning rooftop terrace in the Bay Area, here's what lies ahead.
Despite frustrating delays and sky-rocketing construction costs, the Bay Area’s culinary dreamers continue to keep us drooling with the promise of new places to eat, from an affordable fresh pasta joint in Oakland to hip Korean barbecue in Santa Clara and new tapas in Mountain View. Here are 12 of the most eagerly anticipated restaurants debuting before summer, and eight more nearing their debut.
Burdell, Oakland
This is the most highly anticipated opening in the East Bay. Chef-to-watch Geoff Davis made the announcement Nov. 22 that his buzzy modern soul food pop-up, Burdell, had found a permanent home in the former Aunt Mary’s Café in North Oakland. Named after Davis’ grandmother, the restaurant will “tell the story of Black impact on American food and the lost history of farming, ranching, fishing and foraging,” according to the restaurant’s website.
Burdell’s California-inspired comfort food will draw on the seasons and Davis’ Michelin-cred career thus far — he’s cooked at Cyrus, Aqua and True Laurel, to name a few — and shine a light on “nostalgia, family recipes and obsessive sourcing.” Burdell’s roving Sunday Suppers have included everything from Lady Edison country ham with cherries and cheddar to slow-roasted pork collar with morel gravy.
Details: Opening in the first half of 2023 at 4640 Telegraph Ave., Oakland; www.burdelloakland.com
Rollati Ristorante, San Jose
The gleaming Miro Apartments, 28 stories towering over downtown San Jose and City Hall, sprang up on Santa Clara Street during the pandemic. However, in 2023, attention will turn to the ground floor at the corner, where a signature restaurant will welcome both the public and tenants.
With a name meant to evoke the rolling of pasta, Rollati Ristorante is the latest concept from the Vine Hospitality Group, which owns and operates the Bay Area’s Left Bank, LB Steak and Meso Modern Mediterranean restaurants.
Three noted chefs will create the menu: Chef Roland Passot, of San Francisco’s La Folie renown, who founded the Vine Hospitality group; chef Larry Finn, formerly executive chef of Scala’s at the Sir Francis Drake Hotel in S.F., and chef Roger Rungpha, an LB Steak veteran.
Besides housemade pasta and riffs on Italian regional favorites, Rollati will feature late hours, a creative cocktail menu and DJ-spun music to enhance the nightlife scene.
Details: Hoping to open in Q2 or Q3 at Miro, 181 E. Santa Clara St., San Jose. www.vinehospitality.com
Blossom & Root, Danville
When it opens in late spring, Blossom & Root will be the first plant-based California-centric restaurant in Danville and probably the entire Tri-Valley.
For the uninitiated, plant-based means vegan and vegetarian, yes, but it also means that only plants — legumes, grains and vegetables, not fake meat from Beyond or Impossible — will be on the menu. “Chemical engineers will not be involved,” says Susan Virgilio, who is helming the project with her daughter, Sally, who is chef de partie at KLE, a plant-based Michelin-starred restaurant in Zurich, Switzerland.
They’ve tapped chef Sean Baker, who helped make Gather in Berkeley a destination for plant-based cuisine, to elevate the scratch-made soups, salads, pastas and burgers the Virgilios have made at home since the family started going plant-based in 2015. Look for a dessert program dominated by rotating flavors of vegan soft serve ice cream as well as a robust wine-centric happy hour and brunch program.
Details: Opening in May at 411 Hartz Ave., Danville; https://blossomandrootkitchen.com.
MOHI Farm, Morgan Hill
Morgan Hill developer/vintner Frank Leal, who turned an unfinished parking garage into an alfresco dining hit, MOHI Social, during the pandemic, is building a casual farm-to-table restaurant on the ground floor of a major project downtown.
His farm-fresh venture, MOHI Farm, is going in at the mixed-use Sunsweet development, which is located next to the site where farmers and vendors gather Saturdays for the weekly farmers market. “What better place to do a farm-to-table restaurant than 100 feet from a farmers market?” Leal, who owns a 4-acre farm that will also supply the kitchen with fresh produce, said when announcing the project last June.
Implementing the plan will be Aidan Ocampo, a California Culinary Academy-trained chef with a global focus who previously helmed the kitchen at Hayward’s Bijou restaurant and Terrain Cafe at Palo Alto’s Stanford Shopping Center and has cooked at the James Beard House in New York.
Details: A springtime opening is expected at 90 E. Third St., Morgan Hill; www.mohifarm.com
Sfizio, Oakland
Affordable pasta? Count us in. The former Noodle Theory in Oakland will soon be home to another destination for noodle lovers. Sfizio (pronounced svee-tsio), the beloved Oakland pasta pop-up from chef Matt Solimano, will bring the same menu that’s been delighting diners at spots such as Ramen Shop, Korner Oakland and The Punchdown since 2020, to Rockridge for good.
Look for Solimano’s famous meatballs along with starters, fresh pastas (often under $15), seasonal salads and desserts, plus beer, wine and vermouth cocktails. We’re particularly partial to the pappardelle with mushroom ragu, creme fraiche and mint, grilled eggplant sub and broccolini with salsa negra.
Details: Opening this spring at 6099 Claremont Ave., Oakland; www.instagram.com/sfiziopasta.
Baekjeong, Santa Clara
A hip, communal Korean grilling experience is joining Westfield Valley Fair’s restaurant plaza.
Baekjeong — the name translates to butcher — has been a hit on both U.S. coasts since joining Los Angeles’ Koreatown in 2012, and then heading two years later to New York City, where it’s a celebrity favorite. Since then, several other Southern California restaurants have opened.
After the SoCal launch, LA Weekly pronounced Baekjeong “the restaurant Koreatown didn’t know it needed,” praising it as “an uncompromising import that combines the impeccably sharp service and top-tier meat of more refined places” with the “rustic, atavistic pleasures” of casual KBBQ joints.
The Santa Clara mall location will be the Bay Area’s first Baekjeong.
Details: Opening date still to be determined. Valley Fair, 2855 Stevens Creek Blvd. No. 1808, Santa Clara; www.baekjeongkbbq.com
Komaaj project, San Francisco
Chef Hanif Sadr has already made a name for himself and his predominantly vegetarian Iranian cuisine at Oakland’s recently-opened Calabash and his longtime Komaaj pop-ups in Berkeley and San Francisco. Now, he is in the process of opening the first brick and mortar devoted solely to the food and cultural vibe of Northern Iran.
Located in San Francisco’s Bernal Heights, the yet-to-be named two-story restaurant will take off where Komaaj started: Showcasing the dips, snacks, seafood and other drink-friendly mazzeh using the recipes, techniques and ingredients inspired by the villages around the Caspian Sea and Alborz Mountains, where Sadr grew up visiting his family’s farms.
“When you walk into a northern Iranian bazaar, there’s a cultural, social and historical feeling to it … walking for an hour, you get exposed to many different things,” he says. Sadr has hired a hip architecture firm in Tehran to re-create that feeling. Look for a large dining room, preservation lab for making dressings, pickles and other fermented goodies and market where Sadr plans to showcase artisanal Iranian products.
Details: Opening in March at 10 29th St., San Francisco; www.instagram.com/komaajfood
Vida!, Mountain View
The founders of the Southern Italian Doppio Zero restaurants, with locations in Mountain View, Concord and San Francisco, are branching out with a new Mediterranean concept.
Gianni Chiloiro and Angelo Sannino saw a restaurant space open up near their Castro Street location in Mountain View and jumped on the opportunity to create a contemporary Spanish restaurant with an emphasis on tapas and cocktails. Besides shareable plates, the menu will also feature Gaucho Bistec, Parilla Mixto, Sea Bream, three types of paella and, after the launch, a Spanish-themed brunch.
Local architect Oswaldo Mesia is renovating the interior and dividing the current space into three distinct sections — horseshoe bar, dining room and private space — to accommodate monthly wine events and happy hour patrons as well as diners.
Details: Opening in late January at 110 Castro St., Mountain View; www.vidatapasmv.com
Pizzeria da Laura, Berkeley
Three-time World Pizza Champion and Tony’s Pizza Napoletana alum Laura Meyer is nearing the opening of her first restaurant, an ode to New York, Sicilian and Detroit-style pizzas, in downtown Berkeley.
Meyer, a native of Hayward, spent nearly 20 years alongside Tony Gemignani, making world-class pizzas at both Tony’s and Capo’s, traveling around the world on the competitive circuit and helping run Gemignani’s International Pizza School in San Francisco. Starting her own pop-up, Focaccia da Laura, in 2021, sparked the idea to strike out on her own with a brick and mortar.
Pizzeria da Laura will showcase Meyer’s vast knowledge as an award-winning pizzaiola. Look for slow-fermented doughs topped with California tomatoes and Wisconsin cheeses, seasonal salads, appetizers and a full bar program.
Details: Opening in February or March, at 2049 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley.
Moro Napa, Napa
Downtown Napa will get a much-needed dose of global cuisine when esteemed San Francisco chef Mourad Lahlou opens Moro Napa in the former C Casa space at Napa’s Oxbow Public Market. Moro Napa will specialize in Moroccan street food reminiscent of the food stalls of the Marrakesh medina. Think live fire, spices galore and fresh, local ingredients.
Lahlou, owner of Mourad and Aziza in San Francisco, is partnering with longtime friend and Napa Valley native Jorge Velazquez on the project. Velazquez, formerly a butcher at Christopher Kostow’s Charter Oak, will head the kitchen, bringing fine-casual versions of Lahlou’s California-inspired Moroccan cuisine to food hall crowds.
Dish details are pending, but we’re betting on inspiration from the casual bistro menu at Aziza: braised lamb shanks with parsnips and prunes, hand-rolled couscous with pickled raisins, chickpea shakshuka, and — hopefully — Lahlou’s famous basteeya with chicken confit and spiced almonds.
Details: Opening late spring at 610 First St., Napa; https://oxbowpublicmarket.com
President’s Terrace and Lou & Herbert’s, Palo Alto
The Graduate hotels group has undertaken a historic renovation of the Hotel President, a six-story landmark on downtown’s University Avenue. With that reboot comes two new eating and drinking spots.
On the rooftop of the Graduate Palo Alto, the President’s Terrace will supplement the 360-degree views with seasonal bites, cocktails and curated natural wines. On the weekend, brunch and a Wild Bloody Mary Bar are planned.
Inside, the casual all-day cafe, Lou & Herbert’s — named for the presidential couple who met at Stanford, Hoover and first lady Lou Henry — will serve Power Pancakes, Breakfast Poke Bowls, pastries from Manresa Bread and Saint Frank coffee during the day and shareable plates in the evening.
Details: Opening this month at 488 University Ave., Palo Alto; www.graduatehotels.com/palo-alto
Cellarmaker Brewing Co., Oakland
Tanks and tile have officially been installed at the massive, forthcoming Jack London Square home of Cellarmaker Brewing Co. The beloved, decade-old San Francisco brewery located in SoMA — our readers’ 2019 pick for the Best Brewery Taproom in the Bay Area — is transforming the old Blue Bottle Coffee warehouse and cafe into a beer and pizza destination.
Known for balanced IPAs and Detroit-style square pies, which they introduced a few years ago at Cellarmaker House of Pizza in the Mission District, the 8,000-square-foot location’s bar will feature “30 faucets for beer, wine, cider, seltzer, house-made soda and who knows what else,” owners Connor Casey, Tim Sciascia and Kelly Sciascia Caveney posted on Instagram last month. In addition to the those chuggable IPAs, don’t miss a smoked stout called Coffee & Cigarettes.
You’ll find classic cheese and pepperoni, of course, but also look for unique pies, like Winter Market, which is topped with bok choy, maitake mushrooms, marinated yuba and green onion ricotta, and a pizza with shaved Himalayan black truffles.
Details: Opening this winter at 300 Webster St., Oakland; https://cellarmakerbrewing.com
STILL COMING:
We’ve highlighted these much-anticipated restaurants before, and they recently confirmed that, yes, they are still on the way! Most say it’s hard to estimate opening dates, given the current economic climate, but here’s what lies ahead.
SanDai, Walnut Creek: Signage is up and staff is being trained at 1522 N. Main St., where chef-owner Nora Haron is set to open her one-of-a-kind Indonesian restaurant and coffee bar in January. The daytime bar will offer fresh-baked Southeast Asian pastries and strong coffee with sweetened condensed milk. The restaurant menu will marry Haron’s Singaporean roots with California sensibilities.
Matty’s Old Fashioned, Oakland: Horn Barbecue fans will finally get a taste of Matt Horn’s hamburgers when his Old Oakland burger joint debuts in late January or early February. Named after this son, Matty’s will focus on dry-aged double-patty burgers made from Horn’s proprietary blend as well as craft-made hot dogs and artisanal milk shakes.
Copita, San Jose: The most common foodie question one hears on Willow Glen’s Lincoln Avenue these days is, “When is the rooftop tequila bar opening?” That’s because celebrity chef Joanne Weir’s first South Bay restaurant and bar looks nearly completed from the outside. She’s predicting an opening date in May. “The weather will be perfect for rooftop drinks!”
The Model Bakery, Walnut Creek: Proprietor Sarah Mitchell Hansen is hoping to debut the second location of her Napa Valley artisanal bakery in late spring. Hansen’s massive English muffins have made Oprah’s Favorite Things list four times, and that’s just the beginning of a lineup that will include fresh-baked pastries, breakfast, lunch and a full espresso program.
Meyhouse, Palo Alto: Now housed in a 55-seat restaurant on Sunnyvale’s Murphy Avenue, the Turkish standout Meyhouse needs to stretch out. The new digs, Dan Gordon’s former barbecue/beer place on Emerson Street, will accommodate 175 diners. Plus there’s room where the beer tanks used to sit for a live-music stage. Look for an opening in the first quarter.
Canteen, Menlo Park: Chef Greg Kuzia-Carmel of the Camper restaurant in Menlo Park has opened his Canteen Coffee House on El Camino Real, but the main act is still to come. Canteen will be a casual eatery and wine bar situated on Oak Grove Avenue, on the eastern side of the Springline complex.
Poppy Bagels, Oakland: Owner Reesa Kashuk is looking at a January opening for her Temescal bagel shop, which will offer the same hand-rolled, boiled and baked bagels that have made Poppy a star at the Grand Lake farmer’s market. Look for signature cream cheeses to go with classic varieties well as lunchtime sandos, like tuna.
5 Tacos & Beers, Walnut Creek: Construction is nearly complete at Lito Saldana’s taqueria and beer spot in downtown Walnut Creek. Saldana started the concept in Albany, where you can get warm, handmade corn tortillas filled with barbacoa, al pastor, fish, lengua and more, plus 25 beers on tap. Also look for quesabirria, flautas and vegan birria. It’s opening at the end of February, around the same time as Saldana’s 5 Tacos & Beers in Berkeley.