One night in SF: Where to eat?

[uphillrun]

My boyfriend is in SF for an extended business trip and I am flying down for the weekend to join. I wanted to take him out to a hip yet casual restaurant for dinner on Saturday but have no idea where to go. We're staying in Union Square but can travel. Also drink spots for Friday night? Help!

[iheartsf]

NoPa (North Panhandle) is good. Delfina (Mission) is great, but you will need reservations in advance. A16 (Marina) takes walk-ins as well, however be prepared to wait. Mamacita is nearby (two stores down) and they make yummy margaritas. It might be best to choose your neighborhood first, then your restaurant. Bourbon & Branch (Tenderloin) is good for strong drinks where you can focus on each other due to the tall booths for privacy. Enjoy!

[jrhsfcm]

But just be aware that you need to make a reservation at Bourbon & Branch as well.

[uphillrun]

These are all great suggestions and Bourbon & Branch is pretty close to our hotel. I'm making a call as soon as they open!

[jrhsfcm]

If they've started taking reservations by phone, well, that's new (and possible). But I've always made reservations online. Check out: http://www.bourbonandbranch.com/

[grocerytrekker]

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/380148

[dinnerout]

If you can get in there, Nopa would fit the bill - food is great, as are the cocktails. Delfina and A16 are also good choices - all 3 of these are pretty popular, so you should try to get reservations asap. Have fun!

[whiner]

A16 if you can get in.

[Maya]

You can wear jeans in nearly every restaurant here, so that's not a problem. A16 or Perbacco would fit the bill for Italian. You will find it tough to get into Delfina. Other "hip/casual" places that could work include NoPa, Range, COCO500, Aziza...

[Morton the Mousse]

Bar Crudo

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/385240

www.barcrudo.com

[cafecreme]

You could try Nopa, which is near Lower Haight. It's in my neighborhood but I haven't tried it yet--but everyone raves. Michael Bauer ranked it as one of the 10 best new restaurants in the Bay Area for 2006. I've peeked inside and it looks very cool and a stylish French/Cal/Meditt. menu, nice wine bar.

[Robert Lauriston]

There are lots of reports about Nopa in the archive here, no need to trust Bauer.

[cafecreme]

I literally just joined today, so I'm new to the boards--but looking forward to reading up on NOPA--got a gift certificate there for my birthday (and a babysitter...)

[rworange]

Welcome to Chowhound cafecreme. If the babysitter was part of the gift along with a gift certificate, what a great idea.

Here's some search results on NOPA to get you started. Hope you'll report back when you go.
http://www.chowhound.com/search?item_...

[cafecreme]

Thanks, rworange. Babysitting is part of the deal, so it should be fun (our first real night out in months and months). Looks like NOPA will be closing for a couple of weeks in early April, so I'm hoping to get reservations soon. I'll let you know how it goes.

[uphillrun]

Scott- Definitely not t-shirt and shorts but jeans would be great. Delfina looks like a possibility.

Maya- The problem is that we eat just about everything and this is a surprise so I haven't been able to ask. :) I've mostly been looking either seafood or italian since they are pretty easy to come by but am open to great restaurants of any persuasion. It's about that special combination of food and atmosphere which is hard to find over the 'net.
A

[Scott M]

What is your idea of casual?
Myth or Delfina could both fit the bill as long as we aren't talking about t-shirt and shorts.