Awe shucks

Best oyster bars, Dalida, 5000 square foot listings, Decorator Showcase, Danielle, VCs & employee stress, MORE

May 15, 2024

RESTAURANTS • FOUND Table

The curious case of Dalida

If future generations want to learn about San Francisco dining trends circa 2024, they should type “Dalida” into the holodeck and take a look around.

The year-old Presidio restaurant serves Eastern Mediterranean food, with menu section headers like “Ocean,” “Garden,” and “Land,” along with illustrations of a goddess riding two giant fish-like water skis and a fox wielding a kebab like a sword. Cocktails are ingredient-heavy and served in ornate glassware, and the dining room is decked out in emerald green banquettes, floral wallpaper, and flattering natural light. But there’s one major detail that sets Dalida apart from the rest of the trendy restaurant pack: The kitchen serves some of the most exciting food in San Francisco right now.

Dalida is the brainchild of Sayat and Laura Ozyilmaz, a husband-and-wife duo who worked in some of the best restaurants in San Francisco, New York, and San Sebastián before striking out on their own. (Laura can currently be seen on Top Chef: Wisconsin, where she won the first Quickfire Challenge by serving a hop-infused rice pudding in the basement of the Miller High Life factory.)

On a recent Saturday night, the Dalida dining room was about half-full 10 minutes after opening, with a mix of 30-something gourmands and older couples on dates. I was one of the only people sitting at the chef’s counter facing the open kitchen, where Laura was inspecting ingredients and making the rounds to various stations. My server had to check to see if the $75 “Chef’s Menu” (full table participation required) could, in fact, be served to one guest (hi). But upon returning, she smiled and said, “Let the games begin.”

The first course, “Breaking Bread,” was a big, puffy flatbread served with hummus, muhammara, and other terrific mezze. A greenmarket fattoush salad and a plate of lightly cured salmon were next, both psychedelic in their layering of textures, colors, and flavors. A trio of single bites followed: crispy vegetable kibbe, a mussel stuffed with rice, and a nixtamalized butternut squash cube filled with goat cheese. A healthy half-hour later, a plate of fermented cabbage with an earthy ragu arrived, as well as an equally funky lamb kebab with more flatbread. Dessert was tres leches cake with a side dish of chocolate ice cream infused with orchid powder.

Every dish was good and some were sublime. But the meal was unevenly paced and the portions were so hearty that I found myself struggling to finish dishes on the back half of the menu. I’ll probably order à la carte on my next visit to Dalida, but I hope the Ozyilmazes continue to refine the Chef’s Menu, because it’s not far from delivering San Francisco’s next great tasting menu. –Greg Morabito

→ Dalida (Presidio) • 101 Montgomery St, Suite 100 • lunch Wed-Fri 1130a-2p, dinner Wed-Sun 5-9p; brunch Sat-Sun 1030a-2p • Reserve.

RESTAURANTS • The Nines

Oyster bars

Hog Island Oyster Co. (Ferry Building), first stop with out-of-towners for raw and grilled oysters, clam chowder, bay views
Anchor Oyster Bar (Castro), cozy mainstay, legendary cioppino
Leo’s Oyster Bar (Fidi), luxe spot known for two-tier shellfish towers
Popi’s Oysterette (Marina), excellent all-Pacific oyster lineup in stylish, airy space
Little Shucker (Pacific Heights), Fillmore favorite for Pacific and Maine oysters, raw or baked
Bar Crudo (NoPa), sleek spot with inflation-proof $2 oyster happy hour
Waterbar (The Embarcadero), upscale see-and-be-seen dining, great waterfront patio
Broad Street Oyster Co. (Fisherman’s Wharf), bright new location of West Coast chain (and good excuse to play tourist in Ghirardelli Square)
Swan Oyster Depot (Russian Hill, above), legendary counter, cash only, worth the wait

SF RESTAURANT LINKS: Fillmore fine dining Merchant Roots relocating to SoMa this summer • In wake of Baia closing, are SF’s vegan restaurants in trouble? • Cocktail king Death & Co. is everywhere. Is that a good thing?

REAL ESTATE • On the Market

Up market

Signs of a spring bloom in the Bay Area real estate market: Both listing inventory and sales jumped in April, particularly at the upper end of the market. Sales of homes priced above $2.5M increased nearly two-thirds year-over-year (and almost doubled above $5M), per Golden Gate Sotheby’s April Market Report.

Despite the increase in listings, sellers still call the shots: 66% of April’s sales clocked in above asking price and average premiums were the highest in two years. Here, a trio of May single-family listings north of $5M in San Francisco, each clocking in around 5000 square feet.

→ 479 28th St (Noe Valley) • 7BR/6.1BA 4940 SF house • Ask: $6.75M • 3500 SF main home with 3BR in-law unit • Days on market: 12 • Agent: Isabelle Grotte, Compass.
→ 207 Cherry St (Presidio Heights) • 6BR/3.1BA 5065 SF house • Ask: $10.6M • Detache home with central wood staircase • Days on market: 7 • Agents: David Cohen & Joan Gordon, City Real Estate.
→ 2870 Pacific Ave (Pacific Heights) • 4BR/4.1BA 5050 SF house • Ask: $14.75M • Remodeled William Wurster with courtyard framed by glass • Days on market: 8 • Agent: Max Armour, Compass.

SF WORK AND PLAY LINKS: Uber CEO selling $10M Pacific Heights house for $5M less than paid in 2017 • But in Buena Vista/Asbury, here’s a casual $800K residential overbid • SF Downtown back to normal at night, some nights anyway • Longtime jewelry purveyors Shreve & Co. closing in Union Square • Panorama Park on Yerba Buena Island has opened • Should you use Slack to manage your personal life?

WORK • Wednesday Routine

Design mixology

TINEKE TRIGGS • owner • Tineke Triggs Interiors
Neighborhood you live in: Cow Hollow

It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
I work out every morning before I go into the office. On Wednesdays, I play tennis in the Presidio and get to work around 9am. We’re a hybrid office, and usually anywhere from five to nine people are there at a time. We work in teams of three, and we’ll have everything from client meetings to people running errands, or opening boxes, or conducting interviews. We’re planning and drawing new designs. I’m usually doing about 20 different things — I’ve got spreadsheets open, drawings to redline, Powerpoint design boards, Pinterest boards, etc. It’s just very, very fluid. Chaos doesn't usually start hitting till about midday.

What’s on the agenda for today?
Today is the first day back in the office after press day for this year’s Decorator Showcase (through May 27). For the last week, I’ve been hyper-focused on making the showcase’s reception room a hit. I’ve collaborated with vendors like Hewn, Dolby Chadwick Gallery, and Luis Peña for the custom wet bars on either side of the fireplace. Tonight is the big gala event, so I’ll leave early to get ready — I’m wearing an outfit themed to match the reception room I designed. I’m also working on a Victorian restoration in the Castro, which will have a nouveau riche undertone and funky tech vibe.

Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
This weekend, we’ll be going to designer Jiun Ho‘s Sonoma home for a private dinner. The house even has a name. It’s a Japanese-inspired getaway with gardens called Nagomi.

How about a little leisure or culture?
I convinced a few showcase designers to join me for a boxing class at Baker Street Boxing this weekend. I’ve been practicing for 13 years. We also love going out in SF for all things culture. We recently saw Alonzo King LINES Ballet and had dinner at the classic Zuni Cafe. We belong to both SFMOMA and the de Young, where we just saw the "Fashioning San Francisco” exhibit. And I’m excited to check out this year’s San Francisco Art Fair at Fort Mason. We can’t do what we do unless we stay connected to the arts.

Any weekend getaways?
We have a house in Sonoma with tennis courts and a pool, so we spend a lot of time there. Santa Barbara is another favorite for weekend getaways. I either stay with family or at a client’s guest house, and always visit Oliver’s for great vegetarian, Rosewood Miramar Beach for happy hour, Field and Fort in Summerland, and Hendry’s Beach. And when I can, I love to escape to Mexico.

What was your last great vacation?
Paris is one of my favorite places on the planet, and I try to go once a year. I mean, there’s nothing you can’t love about Paris. On my last trip, I saw the Iris van Herpen exhibit at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs. She’s a Dutch fashion designer, and her work is incredible. The show blew my mind. I also bought some wonderful things for this year’s showcase from the Paris Flea Market. One of my favorite things to do when I’m here is to start at a coffee shop (Noir is the best) and then wander the streets exploring different arrondissements.

What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
I had the luxury of seeing local designer Lan Jaenicke’s latest collection with my good friend Caroline Lizarraga. I splurged on some custom dresses, which I’ll be debuting at upcoming showcase events. After our atelier visit, we all went to dinner at Bix.

What store or service do you always recommend?
I love Danielle and Betty Lin for clothes. Found by Maja is one of my favorites for housewares and unique objects. For jewelry, there are too many good ones, but I’ll say Carats & Stones and Fiat Lux on Fillmore.

GETAWAYS LINKS: It’s official: OAK is now ‘San Francisco Bay’ • At SFO, an ode to Virgin America (RIP) • Highway 1 in Big Sur to reopen Friday • Wine store Bay Grape Napa closing, Decant Napa moving in • Beloved bar Mother’s Tavern in San Luis Obispo closes after 30 years • Soon you’ll have to pay to camp on the Lost Coast • Current Soho House waitlist: 102K people.

CULTURE & LEISURE • Unscripted

Lauren Graham in conversation with Sam Pancake, Curran Theatre (Union Square), Sat @ 4p, orchestra, $72 per
Luke Combs, Levi’s Stadium (Santa Clara), Sat @ 545p, section 104, $228 per
Samara Joy, SFJazz Center (Civic Center), Fri @ 730p, floor, $105 per

WORK • Office Life

Stress test

This bit from Andreessen Horowitz general partner David Ulevitch in Feed Me last week has been taking up some space in my head:

My observation as a board member in a lot of companies is that the entirely-remote teams always seem way more stressed out. Commitment to work tends to also fall off when the only work dynamic is toiling away alone and then being on zoom for meetings — no laughing at jokes during lunch, or taking a walk around the office with coworkers to brainstorm. Offsites help, but aren’t everything.

Mostly, I’ve decided that companies that have raised venture capital from Andreessen Horowitz are probably not the best sample set for measuring employee stress. And that the presence of board members from Andreessen Horowitz may be tipping the scales.

Secondarily, office jokes are overrated (and often better on Slack). Though at my last company, also fully remote, we did end the weekly all-hands with a joke. Everybody laughed (maybe performatively!).

That said, I do worry about the unseen, slow-burn risk of a single door separating my work from my life. So far, the studies seem mixed, which makes sense, given how early in this experiment we are and how complicated the re-imagining of the workplace is. But I’ve been fully remote for almost a decade, with less stress I think, but also probably less connection outside these work-home walls.

For FOUND, now publishing in four markets five times a week, the results of our efforts are mostly on the page, easier to track maybe than a software business building toward a big product release. Those four markets (FOUND SF, NY, LA, Miami) also make remote infrastructure more central to the mission than a forced, physical HQ.

It also looks good in the budget and saves us those painful early discussions of whether we can commit to a 10-year lease or splurge on the good desk chairs. Maybe we’d feel differently if we had that sweet A16Z cash. –Josh Albertson

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