After dining at two super-hip restaurants back-to-back while in San Francisco (see: State Bird Provisions and Al’s Place), a low-key lunch at beloved institution Zuni Café was just my speed before catching a flight back to Los Angeles.
I’ve been hearing about Chef and Owner Judy Rogers‘ legendary roast chicken ever since I started reading and writing about food, and my colleagues were kind enough to satisfy my longtime culinary curiosity on our final afternoon in the city.
Opened in 1979, Zuni Café serves an ever-changing seasonal menu inspired by traditional Italian and French recipes. As one of the pioneers of California cuisine, it’s not surprising that nearly all of the produce, meat, and fish served here is farmed or harvested in a sustainable manner.
To start: excellent bread served with a generous slab of butter.
Since it took a solid hour for the famous roast chicken to be prepared, we snacked on a pizza topped with Wagon Wheel cheese, Tenerumi greens, Lipstick peppers, green olives, and fennel seed ($14.75). It was a fine pizza, but we made sure to save room for the main attraction.
The roast chicken for two ($49), which is served atop a warm Tuscan-style bread salad, wasn’t much of a looker but totally delivered on the flavor front. The bird, juicy through and through, boasted crispy, well-seasoned skin and wonderfully flavorful meat. Quite possibly even better was the panzanella salad beneath that sopped up all of the chicken’s delicious juices.
It’s a rare occasion when a legendary dish lives up to its hype, but Zuni’s roast chicken met our high expectations. Joy!
—
Zuni Café
1658 Market Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: 415-552-2522
The Bay. Yay!
- Al’s Place – San Francisco
- b.Patisserie – San Francisco
- Beard Papa’s – San Francisco
- Craftsman and Wolves – San Francisco
- Dynamo Donuts and Coffee – San Francisco
- Dynamo Holiday in The Bay
- Ferry Building Marketplace – San Francisco
- Flour + Water – San Francisco
- Humphry Slocombe Ice Cream – San Francisco
- Magnolia Pub and Brewery – San Francisco
- Outstanding in the Field – San Francisco
- Pizzeria Delfina – San Francisco
- San Francisco Sweets: Morning Buns, Russian Honey Cakes, Egg Tarts, Doughnuts and more!
- State Bird Provisions – San Francisco
- Swan Oyster Depot – San Francisco
- Tartine Bakery & Cafe – San Francisco
- Taylor’s Automatic Refresher – San Francisco
- Tosca Cafe – San Francisco
- Wise Sons Jewish Delicatessen – San Francisco
Zuni Cafe is one of my favorite places when I visit San Francisco. It does work great for a dinner before boarding a flight back to LA. In fact I schedule my flights around having a nice dinner while avoiding rush hour. My go-to restaurant for this scenario is Fringale. Their Duck Leg Confit with Lentils is killer.
Love the reviews. Keep up the good work.
Paul