Zagat's Top Ten Bay Area Restaurants

Based on voting of Zagat readers -

http://blog.zagat.com/2012/02/bay-ar...n=blog20120215

1. Gary Danko
2. French Laundry
3. Cyrus
4. Manresa
5. Aubergine
6. Meadowood
7. Acquerello
8. Sushi Ran
9. Kiss Seafood
10. Chez Panisse

Check the link for location and details

The fact that Benu is not on there is demonstrative of how out of date Zagat can be.

Seems to be the top 10 "expensive" restaurants, not necessarily the to 10 best restaurants.

What part of the Bay are the French Laundry, Aubergine, Cyrus and Meadowood on?

There are many top places missing and while I like Gary Danko, the best in San Francisco it ain't, let alone the Bay Area.

I've never been to Gary Danko. I keep meaning to go, but then I read the menu and think it looks too basic for the money. Maybe if someone else is paying . . .

Benu is by far the best restaurant in the Bay Area these days. TFL seems to be well past its prime.

I think you'd get an argument from fans of Saison, Atlier Crenn and maybe even Baume plus a dozen other places. I like Benu, even better than Atlier Crenn, but I think I am a minority at than. I do like Commis better than Benu and probably Bix too.

I went to Atelier Crenn and was very disappointed. Yes, she's an "iron chef", but the food was okay. Nothing terribly great. I thought Commonwealth was much better, and very much in similar presentation & style. And Commonwealth was way cheaper.

Benu is very good, no question about it. I probably wouldn't say that it's that it is better than Gary D's, but it certainly is very good. Benu is $180. Gary D's 3 course is $72. Saison is $160. Personally, I'd choose Gary D's over the other two.

My main expectation for restaurants at this price range is that the restaurant serve a series of delicious courses that I have never eaten or even considered before. My biggest disappointment in these places tends to be in more traditional courses - usually the fish and meat courses of the meal. Meat and fish courses are usually failures at these places, no matter how well they are done, because I've had so many different lobster, pork loin and fillet dinners that nothing ever seems truly innovative when using those ingredients. What I love about Benu is that there are so many non-traditional courses, and there is not a focus on any big meat course at the end. I loved Coi and Saison (and to some extent, Sons & Daughters) for that reason, as well. Outside of SF, Manresa, Momofuku Ko and the El Bulli menu at Next all lived up to this expectation. TFL was a big failure.

The menu at GD looks to be very focused on the traditional coursed menu, with the protein as the star of the show at the end of the meal. Granted, GD is cheaper than most these other places, but I just can't bring myself to spend more than $20-30 an entree for a place that serves "lobster risotto" and "roast pork belly and tenderloin" as main courses. Maybe it will blow me away when I actually visit, but it's hard to justify to myself unless I can do it on a company expense account.

I'm partial to JoAnne's in South San Francisco, at least for breakfast.

My complaint about Atelier Crenn wasn't the quality of the food, which I thought was great, but that after the cost I left the place hungry. Thank goodness I found an open restaurant near my hotel.

I agree completely. In fact, my wife and I often create a meal by ordering several appetizers and skip the main course entree entirely. The appetizers at many "fine dining" restaurants are often much more interesting and creative than the main courses.

A top ten listing begs as many questions as it answers. Already from the posts in this thread, we see that many people want asian style, others want non-traditional preparations, others focus more on quantity.

Personally, I like the best ingredients prepared in such a way that the flavors shine through and the combinations work seamlessly together. This is something Bay Area chefs are good at and there is a reasonable supply of places which achieve this. I agree, though, that they are not necessarily these restaurants. I do miss Ubuntu, however (even if it could be said it's not in the Bay Area, but very close).

Yes, but as you yourself said, it is the stimulus for an interesting discussion, and isn't that one of the values of this board?

how come alexander's isn't on there? they seem to be doing well enough to have jacked up their tasting menu price 100+ percent...