The 23 Best Restaurants Near Lake Merritt - San Francisco - The Infatuation

"The Uptown spot feels like a relaxed bistro with high-top seating and neon lights. It’s an ideal setting to appreciate soy-cured ahi tuna, spicy scallops, king crab, and other sushi fish stuffed inside seaweed. Their versions are pretty straightforward (there isn’t any gold foil or speck of caviar in sight) but also playful, so you'll see one with kimchi fried rice and spam. The casualness here is part of its appeal, and why this place is well-suited for intimate yet lively group dinners. One option is to order handrolls a la carte, but we prefer making life easy and going with one of the three sets (five handrolls, $29-$52)." - julia chen 1, lani conway