Several of 2026’s most anticipated restaurants are poised to debut in February.
San Francisco can look forward to Maria Isabel, the sophomore project from culinary power couple Laura and Sayat Ozyilmaz of Dalida. Since their first restaurant explores the eastern Mediterranean culinary traditions of Sayat’s heritage, their next effort puts Laura’s Mexican roots in the spotlight. Meanwhile, in the Mission, the owners of the Chicano Nuevo pop-up are set to fire up the stoves at their brick-and-mortar location with a Baja-centric menu of fish tacos and ceviche.
Finally, in Union Square, the original Bush Street home of Akikos will get a fresh start — this time with Tommy Cleary, former chef of Hina Yakitori, cooking alongside sushi pro Ray Lee.
Here are the five most exciting new restaurants expected to open next month.
Maria Isabel
Sayat and Laura Ozyilmaz of Maria Isabel. | Source: Courtesy Tracy Easton
Wife-and-husband chef team Laura and Sayat Ozyilmaz have been winning over diners since 2023 at their Presidio restaurant Dalida. Now, they’re expanding their footprint with Maria Isabel, a 58-seat Pac Heights restaurant that will explore the culinary traditions of Laura’s home country, Mexico.
Taking over the former Ella’s American Kitchen, Maria Isabel will draw inspiration from Laura’s memories of family dinners that featured aguachile, chilorio, and machaca — with everything translated through the lens of California cuisine and its affection for local and seasonal produce. There will be wine from underrepresented regions, including Baja California and Querétaro, while cocktails aim to go beyond the usual tequila and mezcal to explore less common agave spirits, like sotol, bacanora, and raicilla.
Opening hoursOpening in February TBD
The chefs behind Akikos and the now-closed Hina Yakitori have joined forces to open TBD.
After months of delays, chefs Ray Lee and Tommy Cleary are finally on the cusp of opening their joint project, TBD. Despite the ambiguous name — it started as a joke and just stuck — the space will be familiar to Lee’s fans: TBD takes over the Bush Street space that was vacated by Akikos when it moved to SoMa in 2023. Menu details have yet to be announced, but pop-ups from the chefs have featured king crab okonomiyaki with trout roe, crispy grilled skewers of chicken thigh under a dusting of yuzu kosho, and moriawase, a chef’s selection of nigiri.
Opening hoursOpening in early February Bar Orso
Chef Ryan Shelton of Merchant Roots. | Source: Joshua Foo for the Standard
Merchant Roots, the SoMa fine-dining restaurant known for whimsical tasting menus, has found a way to put its 12-seat bar to good use. Bar Orso will offer a menu of nine libations — chef-owner Ryan Shelton eschews the word “cocktails” — that play on the concept of “evergreen,” both as a flavor and as a stylistic contrast to the restaurant’s meticulous, ever-rotating themed dinner experiences.
In typical Merchant Roots fashion, the bar promises lightheartedness and complexity at once. For example, the signature drink will riff on a classic Fernet-and-Coke, distilling spruce tips, redwood needles, and other foraged botanicals into a simple syrup that’s combined with cola and house-made walnut liqueur. An à la carte food menu will include a garlic butter tri-tip sandwich, featuring meat roasted over charcoal in the style of Santa Maria barbecue. This may be as high-concept as a bar can get, but fans of Merchant Roots know to expect surprises.
Opening hoursOpening Feb. 10Chicano Nuevo
Chicano Nuevo specializes in Baja-style fish tacos. | Courtesy Chicano Nuevo
In December, the long-running pop-up Chicano Nuevo returned to its original Bernal Heights home — but as a bar only due to a noise issue with the kitchen hood. Undeterred husband-and-wife owners Abraham Nuñez and Courtney Fujita took this snafu in stride and expect to have the kitchen up and running by mid-February, with capacity in the dining room for 24 guests.
Fans of Nuñez’s Baja-centric Mexican food can expect ceviche, fish tacos, and the signature squid-ink corn dish with sherry-infused beef tongue, plus a few new items. What’s on offer will be determined largely by what time people will show up. Happy hour will be from 3 to 6 p.m.; a five- to seven-course pre-fixe menu will be available from 6 to 9 p.m.; and late nights will be devoted to à la carte options. It’ll be worth the wait, Nuñez says. “This has been a dress rehearsal for 10 years.”
Opening hoursKitchen opening mid-FebruaryGoldenette
Polk Street will get a new breakfast spot when Goldenette opens in mid-February. | Source: Courtesy Goldenette
Whether 24-hour or not, San Francisco’s classic diners have had an uneven go the past few years, with Fog City closing, Louis’ teasing a comeback that turned out to be a fantasy, and Orphan Andy’s hanging by a thread. Enter Goldenette, a breakfast-all-day spot that will take over a former Toast location on Polk Street. Details remain slim — there is no website, and the Instagram (opens in new tab) is bare — but the egg-heavy menu looks to consist of breakfast sandwiches and burritos, with burgers, salads, chicken sandwiches, and wraps for lunch. Open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily and with a retro-style interior, the Nob Hill newcomer aims to be the antithesis of the fast-casual slop centers that have come to dominate the city’s lunch scene.
Opening hoursOpening first half of February