Since COVID shuttered our offices, we hardly ever cross the bridge into San Francisco anymore, but for Restaurant Week (April 1-10, 2022), we just might 🙂
During San Francisco Restaurant Week 2022 (check out our similar coverage of Oakland and Alameda), 160 participating restaurants are offering special menus and pricing tiers for dining:
- Brunch or Lunch (2+ Items or Courses) Pricing Tiers will be offered at $10, $15, $25, $30
- Dinner (3+ Items or Courses) Pricing Tiers will be offered at $30, $45, $65, $75
Eater SF has a round-up of the best Restaurant Week deals, which include some BIPOC-owned restaurants. Many restaurants have posted their special menus, which we have made an effort to include below. We’ll be sure to update this post (and keep you updated on our Instagram) when we have more info to share!
Here at BBA, we strive to highlight and support BIPOC communities, and to make it easier for you to identify and support BIPOC-run establishments. As such, we’ve put together a short-list of eateries which are participating in Restaurant Week 2022 and are owned/operated by BIPOC chefs and restauranteurs (there are certainly more than listed below!).
If you live in San Francisco or are willing to make the trek into the city, we recommend supporting these BIPOC-owned restaurants (most of them kid-friendly) participating in this year’s Restaurant Week!
Before you go
- Make reservations, if possible!
Black Women-Owned Restaurants Participating in San Francisco Restaurant Week 2022
Located in the women-led food hall, La Cocina Municipal Market, Teranga (the Wolof word for hospitality) offers Senegalese dishes as well as take-home juices, energy bars, and hot sauces. Founder Nafy Flatley emphasizes the superfood baobab in much of her offerings. For Restaurant Week, enjoy Teranga’s Djollof Rice: spiced and saucy, with a choice of veggies or chicken, as well as a housemade drink.
Entrepreneur, author, and local legend Ayesha Curry (and mama to Riley Curry!) offers Southern food and cocktails in a sleek setting, perfect for happy hour or date night. I would take my kid here but wouldn’t prefer to 😉 Try Ayesha’s cornbread topped with thai red curry butter, plus a cocktail to wash it all down. International Smoke’s Restaurant Week dinner menu includes a five-course family-style meal with an optional beverage add-on. Plus, you never know when you might catch a sighting of Ayesha (or her hubs) during your visit!
Other POC-Owned Kid-Friendly Restaurants
Bun Mee takes the Vietnamese sandwiches we all know and love and adds a “hip” take on them, which also means the price tag becomes a bit inflated at $12 per sandwich–talk about sticker shock! Still, it’s well worth it. I love getting the Hanoi-style crispy catfish sandwich or vermicelli bowl ($16). They also offer a few salad options ($16) for a refreshing meal.
Onigilly was the first restaurant I tried that offered Japanese onigiri as their exclusive lunch option. While I was skeptical at how much a set of onigiri would fill me up, I was ultimately proven wrong! Onigilly is a great lunch option and offers both vegetarian and pescetarian-friendly options.
We love Burma Superstar, so it should be no surprise that we’re giving a shout-out to their sister restaurants, B Star and Burma Love. B Star and Burma Love have similar menus, but it seems Burma Love caters more to the dinner crowds while B Star does a little bit of everything. I would love to try B Star’s brunch menu, which include Asian-inspired bowls. We have enjoyed dinner there, both in the front area of the restaurant, and their enclosed patio in the back.
Don’t pass up the fried brussels sprouts, platha, or tea leaf salad. #ZeroWaste bonus: they offer takeout in reusable containers that you can have picked up once you’re done with your meal! During Restaurant Week, get their three-course dinner and a drink, or two-course lunch.
Burma Love’s Restaurant Week menus: For lunch choose one entree (mango chicken, kebat, ginger chili pork, fiery tofu with veggies, or eggplant curry), with a side of rice or salad, and a drink (sparkling lemonade or Burmese milk tea), or for dinner choose a starter (pick the samosas!), entree, rice, and dessert
For a Kid-Free Night Out
Basil Thai is always such a treat to visit, whether before a show at the Orpheum Theater, or during dinner with coworkers. Get your favorite Thai restaurant staples in a relaxed date-night-worthy setting. Their Restaurant Week dinner menu offers a starter, main course (choose between oxtails and Petrale Sole), and dessert.
I used to work in the building adjacent to E&O, so this was our office’s go-to place for happy hour. Their Kamayan Platter is the best way to try their variety of appetizers, though I’m bummed that it seems they no longer include the ahi bites, which, along with the corn fritters, were my fave! (The ahi is still available as a separate appetizer, though.) Try this place for happy hour (3-6 p.m.), lunch, or a dinner date! Their Restaurant Week dinner menu offers Japanese-style milk bread rolls, salad, a chicken stir fry, and a dessert, all with some Asian influence.
We tip our hats to the creators of numerous existing lists of black-owned restaurants, which made double-checking the ownership of these restaurants a tad easier. We’re excited to continue their great work and expand upon their lists. Still, we may have missed some restaurants, so please let us know how we can continue to improve this guide!
So, what’s at the top of your San Francisco Restaurant Week list? Any tips you want to share about the family-friendliness of the establishments listed above?
Angelica (she/her) is of Cebuano(Pilipinx)-descent and was born and raised in Huchiun Ohlone territory (the East Bay Area--pay your Shuumi Land Tax!), where she also now resides with her partner and their toddler. She loves to spend her time sipping on boba and dirty chai lattes (sometimes together), and eating pescetarian goodies at BIPOC-owned cafes and restaurants.
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11 Black-Owned Eateries to Support During Oakland Restaurant Week 2023, and Beyond
Our Favorite POC-Owned Kid-Friendly Restaurants in Alameda
POC-Owned Restaurants to Support During Alameda Restaurant Week and Beyond
Our Favorite Black-Owned Restaurants in the East Bay and San Francisco
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