100 Best Restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2025
If I visit Kitchen Istanbul on a Sunday or Monday, days when many restaurants in the city are closed, I’m apt to see some familiar faces. Is that the general manager of Quince? Didn’t that person sell me a bottle of wine at Saison? This neighborhood spot in the Inner Richmond is a restaurant professional’s restaurant thanks to owner Emrah Kilicoglu’s effortless hospitality and impeccable wine list.
Together with wine director Joseph DiGrigoli, Kilicoglu focuses on small producers, often with low-intervention farming and bottling practices. Ask DiGrigoli or Kilicoglu to pair something interesting with the charcoal-grilled adana kebab, and save room for the rice pudding, served with a blackened skin like a Basque cheesecake. In my line of work, it’s impossible to be a regular at any one place, but if I could be, I’d want to be a regular here. — M.C.F.
The 2025 James Beard Award Semifinalists
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Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
Bar Brava, Minneapolis, MN
Campo at Los Poblanos, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, NM
Cà phê Roasters, Philadelphia, PA
Charleston, Baltimore, MD
Elske, Chicago, IL
Hawksmoor, New York, NY
Hop Alley, Denver, CO
JJ's Restaurant, Kansas City, MO
Kitchen Istanbul, San Francisco, CA
Leo's House of Thirst, Asheville, NC
Ltd Edition Sushi, Seattle, WA
Lucian Books and Wine, Buckhead, GA
Macchialina , Miami, FL
MARCH, Houston, TX
Oyster Club, Mystic, CT
Pluck Wine Bar and Restaurant, New Orleans, LA
Spencer, Ann Arbor, MI
Strong Water, Anaheim, CA
Taconeta, El Paso, TX
Waxlight Bar à Vin, Buffalo, NY
Our L.A. food critic’s highly specific guide to San Francisco dining. Turkish, plus amazing wine:
Kitchen Istanbul
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A recent search for excellent doner kebab in Los Angeles reminded me that the Bay Area has far more Turkish restaurants than does Southern California. When Emrah Kilicoglu opened Kitchen Istanbul in 2013, it quickly settled in as a friendly neighborhood option for Eastern Mediterranean cooking in the Richmond: sumac-dusted lamb kebabs, shrimp and shishito peppers sparked with garlic-paprika butter, minted zucchini fritters with feta. But there’s more to the story. Like many restaurateurs, during the pandemic Kilicoglu pivoted to retail, and his long-simmering interest in wine boiled over. Within a year the restaurant was a darling of the industry, with off-duty chefs and staffers filling tables full of cultish, reasonably priced white Burgundies, Chenin Blancs and Rieslings. Wine director Joseph DiGrigoli, whose previous gigs include Cotogna, joined Kilicoglu’s staff in February to steer the list. He’s the kind of dream sommelier who spouts few flowery adjectives and almost reads your mind when narrowing down options. This is a lovely place to eat, but a spectacular place to drink and eat.
Sommelier Talk
Making Wine Fun and-Doing Things the Hard Way-at Kitchen Istanbul San Francisco
Wine director Joseph DiGrigoli talks about keeping markups low, sharing rare bottles and the big problem with Turkish wines.
From the outside, Kitchen Istanbul, in San Francisco’s primarily residential Inner Richmond district, appears to be a low-key corner neighborhood eatery. Inside, however, is a wine program newly recognized with a Best of Award of Excellence for a growing list of over 375 selections. But it wasn’t always this way.
When owner and executive chef Emrah Kilicoglu opened Kitchen Istanbul in 2013, it quickly gained a reputation for its cozy atmosphere and warm hospitality. The restaurant offers a comforting Turkish-forward menu, and in those early years, Kilicoglu developed a passion for wine. He began compiling an impressive list, including Middle Eastern selections alongside modern European and California classics.
At Kitchen Istanbul, a favorite among San Francisco oenophiles, the "Three Glass Progression," runs $60 for full glasses, around 5 ounces, and $30 for half glasses, 2½ ounces-though wine director Joseph DiGrigoli said, "It's usually more than that. We like to err on the side of generosity."
The night of my visit to Kitchen Istanbul, DiGrigoli poured (generously) three different half glasses for my guest: the ultra-dry Lelarge Pugeot Saignée de Meunier Brut Nature Champagne; the wonderfully minerally Jerome Bretaudeau Muscadet Granite Clos des Perrières; and the G.B. Burlotto Langhe Nebbiolo, a toothsome red from a terrific producer. He gave a brief explanation of each one, a table side education for my dining companion, who is just learning about wine.
San Francisco's Best Restaurants and Bars
for Cozy Fireside Dining
As the temperature seems to dial down a few more degrees each day, San Francisco gets cozy in the deep fog of winter. And as families flock into the city or urbanites steel themselves to head back to their small towns for the holidays, it’s also a critical moment for a nourishing meal and a stiff drink. As such, now’s the perfect time to find a restaurant or bar with a roaring fire.
Kitchen Istanbul offers tables right next to its back-wall fireplace, so diners who want a solid Turkish meal and a warm, rosy glow — from something other than just wine from the impressive list — should request one of those spots by calling in advance.