Oakland brunch favorite Grand Lake Kitchen leaps across the Bay Bridge for its first-ever location in San Francisco, opening on Saturday, March 14, in Noe Valley.
Opening in San Francisco wasn’t always the plan; owners May and Dave Wasem weren’t looking at opening a restaurant in the city at all. San Francisco native May says the opportunity in Noe Valley seemed “really good, and a little magical” – given that the couple met while they both worked at Balboa Cafe years before launching their business together in the East Bay. “We had just barely gotten the appetite [to expand] after COVID and everything,” May says. “And so for fun, we decided to see the space … and then it turned out to be so perfect that we couldn’t say no.”
With this location, the Wasems bring a neighborhood restaurant starring their personal brand of comfort food, a few surprises, and some slushies (of course). The menu is similar to the other locations, but they’re using the opportunity to have some fun with the dishes and bring back some past items.
Remy Anthes
Remy Anthes
Remy Anthes
To fancy things up a bit for their new neighborhood, and to throw something fun on the menu, the restaurant will serve caviar pie. It’s inspired by a family friend, who would bring caviar pie to Friendsgiving, they say. Think a base layer of chopped hard-boiled eggs, finely minced shallots, creme fraiche, caviar, and chives on top, served with Ritz crackers for a high-low moment.
Surprisingly, nothing on the menu goes much over $35. That caviar pie is priced at $32, for instance. The steak frites gives diners an option to go with an 8-ounce hangar steak for $34, or to ball out with a 16-ounce New York steak for $68, each made with a red wine demi-glace. A 12-ounce, bone-in Berkshire pork chop comes with crispy rice, sauteed cabbage, and jeow som, which costs $33.
he Wasems are bringing their favorite fried green tomatoes from the opening menu in Dimond District. The cornmeal-crusted green tomatoes are fried, then layered with pimento cheese and a sweet corn aioli, Dave says. They’re also serving their version of an egg salad sandwich, the Oyako, with chicken skin added in for salty crunch. The pork belly sandwich is another dish they point to as a favorite, made with a slow-roasted porchetta, broccoli rabe pesto, fontina cheese, and Calabrian chile aioli. Brunch will have items such as a savory French toast made with porcini batter, chilaquiles verdes, and eggs Benedicts.
“I’m really excited for people in San Francisco to try some of our older classics that we put away for a while because they were too labor-intensive, or, for whatever reason, we moved on from them,” May says. “I think that’s where a lot of our stuff shines.”
Befitting the martini frenzy, there is an entire list of martinis to order from, including the classic or dirty martini, all the way to a lemondrop or appletini. There shall also be slushies, both boozy and non-boozy; the Salty Dog pairs gin with creme de pamplemousse, grapefruit, and sparkling rose, while their version of the Dole Whip is nonalcoholic (although a floater of rum can be added as needed). A slushie order might be just the thing to people-watch from the new, larger windows they’ve added to the space, or to sip outside in the new parklet they intend to install soon.
Grand Lake Kitchen (1199 Church Street, San Francisco) debuts on Saturday, March 14, and is open for dinner from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday (closed Monday and Tuesday). Brunch begins on Saturday, March 21, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Starting Monday, April 6, hours expand to 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., seven days a week.
Remy Anthes
Remy Anthes
Remy Anthes
Remy Anthes