S.F.'s newest dining trend? Old restaurants

San Francisco Chronicle​

2 days ago

In her March 1987 review of Izzy's Steaks and Chops, Chronicle critic Patricia Unterman described the transformation of an Irish pub in the Marina into 'an elaborate stage set' inspired by prolific bootlegger Izzy Gomez's North Beach saloon. She wrote, 'The place projects a history, a resonance, even though it's only a couple months old. The ambiance makes you want to have a shot of whiskey and a steak.'
Those sentences could have been written by me a few months ago, although I'm more of a whiskey sipper than a shooter. After an extensive renovation overseen by the late owner Sam DuVall 's daughter, Samantha Bechtel, Izzy's is back slinging steaks, and the projected history and resonance is as thick as the house creamed spinach. If the original Izzy's was a late '80s simulacrum of a Prohibition Era speakeasy, the new Izzy's is a 2025 interpretation of a luxurious late '80s steakhouse inspired by a Prohibition Era speakeasy.
This year, at least as far as dining is concerned, what's old is new again. Izzy's is one of a handful of legacy San Francisco restaurants that have recently been given a fresh lease on life. Old standbys like Turtle Tower, Wayfare Tavern and Crustacean have reopened in sparkling new locations. Others have overhauled their interiors and given menus the spit shine. But the house specialty is reliably the same — nostalgia.
The current economic climate is an arduous one for independent restaurateurs, especially those looking to launch their first business. My colleague Cesar Hernandez and I recently introduced the Now List, a quarterly round-up of the best new restaurants in the Bay Area. Of the 25 entries, 15 are either an additional location of an existing concept or are operated by groups that have at least one other restaurant. Like Marvel franchises and the Polly Pocket movie, restaurants that can trade on existing IP have an advantage.
Sam DuVall was wise to that in 1987, when San Franciscans would still have remembered Gomez's Barbary Coast gin joint. Well, maybe not all San Franciscans, but certainly Herb Caen, who described 'the long climb to the second floor, where the bar was jammed with winners, losers, beauties and beastly bohemians' in a column that year. DuVall crammed the walls with Gomez-related memorabilia, old-timey advertisements and sepia-toned photographs.
Much of that ephemera, together with memorabilia from Izzy's Steak and Chops, remains on gallery walls on the second floor, but the downstairs is dominated by a new mural by artist Matthew Benedict depicting the characters from William Saroyan's 'The Time of Your Life,' a play inspired by Izzy Gomez's clientele. Saroyan himself looks approvingly down at the refurbished dining room, with its long soapstone bar, milk glass pendants and checkerboard floors. Design firm Gachot Studios understood the assignment.
North Beach Restaurant, which served Tuscan fare from its opening in 1970 until it closed in 2023, reopened under new ownership late last year. Its dining rooms, spread across two floors, have received a similarly respectful treatment courtesy of local designer Maria Quiros, melding the old — a black-and-white photo of former ownerLorenzo Petroni mugging for the camera, a mirror so weathered it's more Rorschach Test than reflective surface — with the new. Booths have been upholstered in a sumptuous mossy green. Arresting canvases from Robert De Niro, Sr., brighten up walls. I don't know whether the glassware and china are holdovers from North Beach's previous incarnation, but their heft and quality are unusual for a contemporary restaurant.
It takes very little to make the nostalgia flow at North Beach. One evening, seated downstairs next to the Willie Brown room, which boasts its own private entrance, I asked our server about the mayors, governors and other political players who did their deals at the restaurant during the Petroni years. Our server needed but the gentlest encouragement to dish. It would be unseemly to repeat his ranking of the least gracious political clientele, but apparently Arnold Schwarzenegger is a real gent.
And the food at these establishments? Generally solid, but somewhat besides the point. You're not going to the latest Superman film for the dialogue, but rather to visit old friends and see what the new director has done with the joint. At Izzy's, stick to steaks and the dynamite potatoes au gratin, saving room for the warm cruellers, fried and glazed to order. At North Beach, the tweaked menu features more dishes reflective of the new chef's roots in Emilia-Romagna. Pastas and braised meats are a good bet.
The caveat here is that I was not a patron of Izzy's or North Beach 1.0, and I therefore have no basis for comparison. I called up my uncle, who dined at Izzy's with some regularity during his bachelor days in the '90s. His voice took on the aural equivalent of a Vaseline-lens flashback as he recounted the cocktails he and his pals would throw back before dinner, the skirt steak that they definitively decided was the best cut on offer, the hot sauce bar with dozens of selections.
He'd been back post-remodel, and I asked him how it measured up. 'Well I don't drink anymore, so that probably doesn't help,' he admitted, 'but it's never as good as you remember.'
Nostalgia — and alluring new interiors — will get people in the door. If superhero movies are any indication, these historic restaurants have a bright future ahead of them.
Izzy's Steaks and Chops
3345 Steiner St., San Francisco. izzyssanfrancisco.com
Noise level: Moderate
Meal for two, without drinks: $100-$150
What to order:
Drinks: A martini would be an excellent place to start, but with any classic cocktail, you're in good hands here. Wines by the glass, including Coravin pours, draught and bottled beers, and a few N/A cocktails.
Best practices: If you don't have a res, the bar is a beautiful place to dine. If you prefer something more secluded, angle for one of the private booths in back. Upstairs, there are club chairs by the fireplace for lingering over a nightcap. Skip the appetizers and the burger.
North Beach Restaurant
1512 Stockton St., San Francisco. northbeachrestaurant.com
Hours: 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m. Sunday-Thursday, 11:30 a.m.-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Noise level: Quiet to moderate
Meal for two, without drinks: $90-130
What to order: Tagliatelle Bolognese ($31); osso bucco ($36)
Drinks: Cocktails are excellent and all the better for being served in weighty, high quality glassware. N/A options are available. The lengthy wine-by-the-glass list is exclusively Italian and Californian.
Best practices: North Beach Restaurant is popular with large groups; on one visit, a party brought their own accordion player, so… be aware that that could happen. The main floor is light-filled during the day, while the basement level reminded me of 'The Cask of Amontillado,' but in a cozy sort of way.