The dining scene in San Francisco is among America’s most seductive, offering a unique combination of quality local ingredients and stunning interiors. While the city regularly welcomes gorgeous new restaurants with cuisine, coffee, and cocktails to match, photographer Madeline Lu has captured the very finest of the moment.
Villon is a sophisticated all-day restaurant and lounge located in the iconic flatiron building in San Francisco. Designed by the Los Angeles-based interior designer Kelly Wearstler, the space is decorated with deep colors, rich textures, and natural materials.
Toasts of the avocado and French varieties—beautifully plated and seriously delicious—are among of the most popular breakfast and brunch dishes at Villon.
None other than Josh Harris and Morgan Schick of BVHospitality (Trick Dog) crafted the inventive cocktail menu at Villon, within San Francisco's Proper Hotel.
The rooftop lounge at Charmaine's offers one of the best cocktail menus in the city and—at 120 feet above Market Street—some sweeping views of the city.
Charmaine's is the perfect spot for a sundowner. Arrive early enough and you may find yourself a cozy spot near the fire pits.
Foodies flock to Café Revéille for açai bowls, housemade granola, and avocado toasts served atop a picture-perfect pink café table. The restaurant’s outdoor space is a beacon of millennial pink—now a hallmark of Café Revéille.
With high ceilings, encaustic tile, and gold details, Café Revéille is undeniably one of S.F.'s most photogenic restaurants. The restaurant has two locations, in Mission Bay and Lower Haight.
Take a trip all the way back to the 1950s, when women and men paused mid-day for a liquid lunch. Black and white tile floor, large tropical print wallpaper with bright pink flowers, and over-exuberant details fill the the compact interior of Leo's Oyster Bar.
Warm buttered lobster rolls, salmon with squash purée, and a "Louie" salad with gem lettuce and rock shrimp are some of the essential dishes.
The Cavalier, a cozy yet sophisticated hunting lodge-themed restaurant, charms the second you step inside.
Mouth-watering dishes include: quail eggs mayonnaise, the Cavalier salad with vegetables, greens, aged goat cheese and truffled vinaigrette, vine-ripened tomato and avocado rarebit with burrata, chile oil and grilled levain, roasted cauliflower with golden raisins, braised greens, crispy shallots and aubergine. (Phew!) And save room for a dessert of Eton Mess, which is made with coconut ice cream, coffee meringues, and almonds.
At Cavalier, the the red leather banquette has the best seats in the house.
Mr. Holmes Bakehouse offers some of the best donuts in the city (if not the world)! The menu changes weekly, so savor the flavor of the day because you might not get the chance to have it again.
At Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters, patrons go for the pineapple wallpaper and stay for the fantastic brew.
One of the most beautiful interior spaces in all of San Francisco is found at Foreign Cinema. Stop by for dinner and a film.
Villon, 1100 Market St.
Charmaine’s, 1100 Market St.
Café Revéille, 201 Steiner St. and 610 Long Bridge St.
Leo’s Oyster Bar, 568 Sacramento St.
The Cavalier, 360 Jessie St.
Mr. Holmes Bakehouse, 1042 Larkin St.
Wrecking Ball Coffee Roasters, 2271 Union St.
Foreign Cinema, 2534 Mission St.