The Albichelin Guide 2018
I believe that food and dining is an important glue to the fabric of our society: it’s an opportunity to build relationships, a time to exchange ideas, and an edible way to experience millennia of human culture. Before I dive into my 10 best restaurants of 2018, I wanted to define the purpose of this guide and criteria for how I selected these places.
Mission: Showcase this year’s best restaurants of the world that would impress your friends without breaking the bank.
Criteria
- Good food: Obviously, the minimum bar any restaurant needs to clear is having really tasty food. In this guide, I feel comfortable recommending anything on the menu at each of these places.
- Ambiance: A meal is more than just the stuff on the plate. The interior vibes, service, experience of sitting down and eating there matters just as much.
- Quality/Price/Accessibility Ratio: If I simply made a list of the best food I had this year without considering anything else, it’s likely that the most expensive food would win. I believe that the quality must be counterbalanced by the price as well as ease of getting a reservation.
- X-Factor: On top of the fundamentals listed above, I find that a restaurant is always more interesting if there’s something more than just what you can see on the surface. It could be the chef’s story, concept, or what the establishment means to the neighborhood.
The List (in reverse alphabetical order)
- State Bird Provisions (San Francisco, CA)
- Sorrel (San Francisco, CA)
- RT Rotisserie (San Francisco, CA)
- Plow (San Francisco, CA)
- Okane (San Francisco, CA)
- nonono (New York City, NY)
- Nojo Ramen Tavern (San Francisco, CA)
- Izakaya Rintaro (San Francisco, CA)
- Gasterea (Barcelona, Spain)
- Dishoom (London, UK)
State Bird Provisions
San Francisco, CA | $$$ | New American
X-Factor: New American food served in a dim sum format
The novelty of being served New American food in a dim sum format makes this place it worth trying out. Yes, reservations are typically difficult to make, but the novelty and experience allow for an exception. This innovative California-centric cuisine is worth a try, even with all the hype surrounding it.
Sorrel
San Francisco, CA | $$$ | New American
X-Factor: Dry-Aged Liberty Farms Duck for two, thoughtfully crafted pasta
Sorrel started off as a series of popups in the Mission before moving to Pacific Heights. There’s a seasonal menu and measured focus on both fresh pasta and French style cooking, influenced by Alexander Hong’s experience working at Quince (SF) and Jean Georges (NY). Each dish is carefully laid out, and you’ll often find small flowers or perfect oval dollops of sauce circling the edges of the plate. With a tasting menu and food that won’t break the bank, Sorrel is perfect for any date night or special event.
RT Rotisserie
San Francisco, CA | $ | New American
X-Factor: High quality, fast casual food for a fair price and without the wait
RT Rotisserie is Evan and Sarah Rich’s answer to the growing desire for fast casual food in the city, similar to establishments like Souvla. The star of the menu is its golden brown roast chicken, racks of which are cooking when you order food. It’s been long known that citrus and chicken are a perfect match, but RT perfects this marriage using the lemony-minty flavors of Shiso leaf, adding it almost all the menu items.
I love that you’re now able to enjoy the cooking philosophy of Rich Table without having to plan too far in advance — there’s typically always space for two on a weekend evening.
Plow
San Francisco, CA | $$ | American
X-Factor: Traditional American breakfast basics with locally sourced ingredients
In a city that’s overrun with maple syrup/chili flake covered bacon and bottomless mimosas, it’s easy to get starry-eyed over gimmicks and forget the fundamentals of what makes a brunch truly great. Plow is a pure, true American breakfast. To get a taste of everything they have to offer, order The Plow on your first visit, a plate filled with crispy roast potatoes, lemon ricotta pancakes, eggs, and your choice of breakfast meat. There is typically a long wait for Sunday brunch, but send someone to put a name down 1 hour ahead of time before swinging over to the nearby Philz.
Okane
San Francisco, CA | $$ | Japanese
X-Factor: High quality fish sourced from Japan you can afford to eat at weekly
Okane is my version of a neighborhood restaurant. It’s part of the restaurant group that owns Omakase, Dumpling Time, and Live Sushi, and I love the life they’ve brought to the area. Okane brings the finesse of Omakase to a relaxed Japanese restaurant — sushi rolls and slow simmered comfort food at a very reasonable price. They’re able to serve a simple meal for a casual lunch, or impress your manager with a fresh selection from Toyama Fish Market. If the evening calls for good Japanese cuisine but without breaking the bank, this is a place worth going to.
nonono
New York City, NY | $$ | Japanese
X-Factor: A dedication to Yakitori & Japanese inspired cocktails without the frills
With ample seating and an industrial vibe, nonono is a perfect place to grab a casual dinner with a group of friends. I love nonono for two reasons: 1) the menu focuses on using all parts of the chicken, from the bones for the ramen broth to the hearts and cartilage for the yakitori, and 2) the menu consists of a variety of small dishes, allowing you to try tons of different flavors at a reasonable cost. On top of the great food, they have an inspired cocktail menu, and an extended sake/shochu selection that pairs beautifully.
Ramen Nojo
San Francisco, CA| $ | Japanese
X-Factor: Chicken based broth in a city filled with tonkotsu ramen offerings
Ramen Nojo’s claim to fame is their abandonment of pork bones and tonkotsu broth in favor of something mostly unheard of: chicken paitan as the ramen base. They’re able to challenge the status quo by owning the farms in Japan that raise their chickens to ensure an incredible depth of flavor. In addition to the green onion and soft boiled egg, Nojo garnishes with fried gobo shoots and finely chopped red onion to diversify the texture of the ramen. Ramen Nojo offers other dishes as well, such as their Chicken Nanban and other izakaya classics, but ramen is unquestionably the star. Perfect for a quick and cheap dinner for one or quick roommate dinner — be sure to add yourself onto the Yelp waitlist to avoid the line.
Rintaro
San Francisco, CA| $$ | Japanese
X-Factor: Immersive ambiance will make you believe you’re in Japan, with ingredients reminding you that you’re in California
Step into the courtyard of Rintaro and you’re immediately transported to an immaculate replication of an izakaya in the heart of SF. If you’ve ever been curious what Japan was like, the vibe here is unmatched by any other Japanese restaurant in the city. Rintaro also has an undying loyalty to ingredients sourced from California, from the Riverdog Farms grilled yakitori, to the Becker Lane pork in the tonkatsu; each dish has been sourced from a local farmer or producer. With their seasonal menu that changes based on what’s available and their reasonably priced tasting menu, Rintaro is an ideal restaurant to take your friends if you’re looking to show them the perfect marriage of Japanese cuisine and the bounty of California.
Gasterea
Barcelona, Spain| $$ | Spanish Tapas
X-Factor: Cozy, energetic tapas bar filled with locals where food and wine is practically thrown at you
As you squeeze into this narrow restaurant, you can feel the unlimited well of energy that permeates this place. There are no tables in this tightly packed room; your only options are a counter on one side of the restaurant or the bar on the opposite side. Rows of tapas stretch the length of the bar, and the friendly and slightly rowdy staff only adds to the experience. This place is worth trying out if you‘re looking for Spanish tapas in a non-touristy place.
Dishoom
London, UK | $$ | Indian
X-Factor: Bringing back vintage Iranian cafe vibes combined with great food for any time of day
Ask around and without a doubt, Dishoom will be mentioned as one of the essential restaurants in London. Some people might scoff, but it’s hard to deny that the food is pretty damn good. Regardless of what time of day it is, Dishoom serves an outstanding meal. Their equivalent of a full English breakfast includes twists such as masala beans and homemade buns, while their lunch and dinner offerings include the dish they’re best known for: black daal. Unlike other curry houses in the city, Dishoom doesn’t offer some standard staples such as butter chicken, instead encouraging people to try more exciting Indian food. Top it off with a trendy vintage cafe vibe, and it’s clear why so many people wait to eat here.
This year’s guide skews more towards restaurants in San Francisco because I moved to the city and was able to try out more places nearby on the weekdays.
There were also many places that people hyped up but didn’t make the cut. Ju-Ni (expensive, not intimate enough for a omakase even with 4 people/chef, some okay sushi), Sasa (uninspired menu), Prairie (an unbalanced menu with many heavy flavors), Jukai (hodgepodge of weird appetizers paired with a very non-japanese main course), Mister Jiu’s (crazy expensive), China Live (also crazy expensive Chinese food), etc.
Looking forward to the new tastes of 2019!
