The 25 Best Restaurants In SF - San Francisco - The Infatuation

"For the most dramatic tasting experience in the city, go to Californios in SoMa. You’ll feel like you’ve scored VIP tickets to your favorite band every time you go here—which might not be often, since the 16-course menu is $325. The high-ceilinged walls are painted all-black, a thick booklet details the entire night ahead, and the well-choreographed staff switches plates and fills wine glasses in sync, like they share a single brain. The dishes at this fine-dining Mexican restaurant are designed to rewire your brain—chicharrones are covered in a cloud-like bed of truffle shavings that dissolve in your mouth like snow, a caviar-topped grilled banana is served in a pool of slightly salty dulce de leche, and the chilapita has a fat swirl of sturgeon cream and sturgeon caviar. Dining at Californios might be a one-time thing—which is why you’ll want to soak up every minute of your meal." - julia chen 1, lani conway, patrick wong, ricky rodriguez