Last night I went to the opening of Joseph Manzare and Mary Klingbeil's (of San Francisco's delectable Globe Restaurant) newest creation, Zuppa Restaurant.
The 4th & Brannan restaurant takes over the space that once housed Monk, one of my favorite places during the dot-com days. While the pictures of the Dalai Lama are gone, they've preserved much of the other great features of the space, most notably the bar running along the long open kitchen where you can sit and watch the kitchen staff prepare your meal, the 15' long "Sunday" table to house huge parties, and plenty of dining upstairs, including a great "crow's nest" table from which you can check out your fellow diners from above.
If the drinks and appetizers they served last night were any indication of things to come, this place will be a delightful addition to the South of Market area. Their theme is "Italian Cuisine with specialties from southern Italy" (I love it that so much Italian stuff is going on in the wine and food world). We had a great time sipping on some lovely Proseccos, Plymouth Negronis, and wine from Iron Horse (yum) among others, while nibbling on such treats as delicious pizzas, ahi tuna in roasted red pepper, crostinis with octopus, and much more (I need to take better notes at these things). I believe the prices will run around $7 - 10 for appetizers, and $15 - 18 for main courses. Right now it's dinner service only, but I'm told lunches will come soon.
I think this opening is a sign of good things to come for the whole city of San Francisco. After a pretty depressing past few years with restaurant closings being much more frequent than openings, it's great to see some exciting new restaurant openings going on. While this restaurant won't keep the kitchen open until the wee hours as Globe so kindly does, it does still have the super friendly and knowledgeable staff who provide impeccable service (not an easy task for a crowded opening night party).
I'm particularly delighted to see a resurgence of the restaurant scene South of Market, as we're moving our office over there this summer. I'm sure I'll be a regular at Zuppa!
Zuppa Restaurant564 4th Street (at Brannan), San Francisco, CA
415.777.5900
Opening June 21, 2005
