Bay Area restaurants make Yelp's Top 100
Yelp is out with its Top 100 Places to Eat in 2024 list, an annual crowd-sourced rating of restaurants — including pizzerias, delis, ramen shops, pancake houses, taquerias and barbecue joints — that diners visited in 2023, rated highly and hope to return to this year.
California, with 18 on the list, received more nods than any other state. Five Southern California restaurants cracked the top 10, and five Bay Area restaurants made the list.
To create the Top 100, Yelp solicits nominations from reviewers on its website and sends that information through its data science team. Next, the company says, the list of candidate restaurants is narrowed down “with the expertise of our community managers and Trend Expert to curate a list as quirky, interesting and unique as the Yelp Community itself.”
Ranking No. 1 nationally is Tumerico, a Tucson, Arizona, restaurant that serves plant-based versions of classic Mexican tamales, chilaquiles, enchiladas, barbacoa and more.
Tops among Bay Area favorites at No. 23 is Mazra, a family-owned, all-halal Mediterranean restaurant in San Bruno that first made the list in 2021 for its woodfire-grilled specialties. Yelpers, who posted more than 1,700 five-star reviews, raved about the “phenomenal, fall-off-thebone tender” slow-roasted 6-Hour Lamb Shank, “fantastic” shawarma and “cooked-to-perfection” kebabs, the report said. (504 San Bruno Avenue West, San Bruno)
A second Mazra location, in Redwood City, is in the works and expected to open around March 1, coowner Saif Makableh told the Bay Area News Group.
Ocean Indian Cuisine in San Francisco's Richmond district, No. 29, serves a fusion menu of Indian, Nepalese and Himalayan dishes in a white-tablecloth setting nice enough for date night. According to the ranking, “The best-selling Everest Chicken Momo Special (Nepalese steamed dumplings filled with chicken and Himalayan spices) is `a must,' say Yelpers.” (6127 Geary Blvd., SF)
At No. 32 is Guiso Latin Fusion in Healdsburg, a 24-seat restaurant with a Salvadoran-Latin menu and a largely Sonoma County wine list. “This place is fabulous. The food was so inventive and so, so good,” said one Yelper who had the Paella Caribena, a Caribbean spin on Spanish paella. The Camarones Borrachos (wild prawns in a family recipe sauce) and Salvadoran sweet dinner rolls get high marks too.
The Shakespeare-themed
artisanal pizzas at Pleasanton's Much Ado About Pizza, No. 51, inspire Yelpers to write five-star reviews — in iambic pentameter. Fans of this “amazing” takeout-only shop praise the light, tangy sourdough crust and the inventive combinations, like Titania's Bounty, which features 10 vegetables, and the Montague, a meaty pizza topped with Point Reyes Toma truffle cheese. (1991 Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton)
At No. 55 is Curry Hyuga in Burlingame, which now has locations in Cupertino and San Francisco. “The hype is real here,” Yelp Elite member Vincent L. wrote. “The Signature Katsu, for example, was ever-so-lightly crispy on the outside while being both meaty, juicy, and almost melt-in-your-mouth soft on the inside. The caramelized onion-based curry sauce that it came with was rich without being too salty or heavy and would be comforting any time of year, but especially so in the colder months.” (1204 Broadway, Burlingame; 19650 Stevens Creek Blvd., Cupertino; and 1819 Market St., San Francisco)
Tennis-themed taproom is set to open in Albany
After a long day whacking balls on the court, you might want a cold beer. And now there's a truly appropriate place to grab one, thanks to a tennisthemed taproom scheduled to open soon in Albany.
Match Point Brewing is a local operation started by two tennis doubles partners, Simon Chen and Johnny Weng. The brewery specializes in beers made in Concord with Asian ingredients such as Mandarin Wheat Ale and Jasmine Rice Lager. It also does collabs with Richmond's Origin Brewer, like a Heritage Five Spice Saison and a Slava Ukraini California Amber Ale (with proceeds going toward aid for Ukraine).
“We are planning on opening a taproom by mid-March in Albany,” emails Chen. “What we hope will help with our opening is a partnership with the 310 Eatery restaurant next door to provide excellent food service and new food-menu concepts. Today, we just knocked down a wall to make the two spaces connected and help develop this craft beer and micro-food hall.”
Like Match Point, Albany's 310 Eatery has an Asian flair, serving up grub such as a Tokyo Po' Boy Soft Shell Crab
and the 405 Traffic Jam Burger with short rib, bacon, portobello, dipped pastrami and kalbi aioli.
The tennis theme goes beyond the brewery's name and logo, which prominently features a tennis ball. Last summer, the brewery sponsored an inaugural Match Point Brewing tennis tournament in El Cerrito, and the owners have expressed hope in throwing similar events in the future.
“Through our love of sports, we encourage others to challenge themselves and take pride in their accomplishments,” the founders wrote on their Kickstarter page last year. “Match Point Brewing celebrates the rich cultural heritage of Asian Americans through craft beer. Our beers are inspired by the traditional and modern Asian cuisines and ingredients the founders had the privilege of growing up with in the Bay Area.”
The taproom is taking over the space formerly occupied by the Albany Taproom, which closed last year, after a decade, due to COVID-era economics.
DETAILS >> Opening in spring 2024 at 745 San Pablo Ave., Albany, next to the 310 Eatery; matchpointbrewing.com.
Local Kitchens food hall expands to San Bruno
Local Kitchens, a micro food hall that offers mix-and-match restaurant meals from one kitchen for dine-in, delivery and takeout, has opened its newest location in San Bruno.
Customers can select from six concepts: The Melt, with Angus-Wagyu blend burgers; Sushirrito's sushi burritos; Detroit-style pizza from Square Pie Guys; Boba Guys` bubble tea, Proposition Chicken's sandwiches, tenders and salads; and burritos and bowls from Nopalito Taqueria.
This is the 11th Local Kitchens for Northern California, with the bulk in Santa Clara County (Campbell, Cupertino, Los Gatos, Mountain View and Palo Alto). Two are in Marin (Novato, Mill Valley), one in Contra Costa (Lafayette) and two in the Sacramento region (Davis and Roseville).
DETAILS >> Open from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily at 851 Cherry Ave., San Bruno; www.localkitchens.com