For anyone prepared to ask us, “Where should I eat tonight?” here’s our answer: the Hot List, our opinionated guide to the top restaurants and bars in San Francisco right now. Some of the picks are new and noteworthy; others are rediscovered favorites. All are worth your while, whether for some of the most exciting food in the city right now or a seasonal pizza topped with local produce. We’ll update the list at the top of every month.

For more restaurant recommendations, check out our series Eat Here Now. 

And if you’re ready to raise a glass, let Swig City be your guide.

One of the city’s most exciting new restaurants
How do you sum up a restaurant that’s both a total scene (the Warriors’ own Draymond Green is one of the owners, after all) yet totally heartfelt? The music (Bad Bunny and bachata) is up, the lights are low, and the menu is a mashup of Ethiopian and Dominican cooking — a reflection of the heritages of the other two owners: Guma Fassil and chef Nelson German. Get the humble Meski platter (greens, beans, veggies, plantains, plus injera for sopping), but also order the pretty tiradito, starring cured salmon with berbere and blood orange, plus a light bath of chile-spiked passion fruit. Feel free to wear that strapless dress: This is a place for stepping out.

A new way of doing dinner and drinks
SF-based Brucato has been making small-batch amaros for a while now, but this spring, it opened the doors for both distillery tours and dinner. The restaurant — Bar Brucato — is small and cozy. Of course, the cocktails are great. But the kitchen also serves a delicious and comforting menu. The likes of sunchoke toast; house-made spaghetti with mackerel, sultanas, and pine nuts; and octopus with Iacopi Farms butter beans are all part of Brucato’s dogged California ethos. The next release? A gin, steeped with bay laurel and Meyer lemon, called Mission, a nod to the hood. 

An unexpected new contender on a North Beach party block 
This Green Street bar and taqueria is adjacent to its sister business, the historic Columbus Cafe. But the two watering holes couldn’t be more different. Whereas the former is a grungy dive, Next Door, with its arcade games and plants, has a surprisingly family-friendly vibe. That’s intentional, says co-owner Zak Kennedy, who hopes parents looking for a casual meal of asada fries and quesabirria will wander in and stay for a margarita or two. In a sea of Italian joints and crowded bars, it’s just the kind of destination the neighborhood needed.

A Bayview legacy lives on 
Vanessa Lee never thought she’d own a restaurant on Bayview’s Third Street corridor. But the city should be grateful she does. Lee opened Smoke Soul Kitchen in April after years of honing her catering skills. She calls the food “soul fusion,” her spin on classics like fried chicken, shrimp and grits, and mac ’n’ cheese. The homey little restaurant, which took over the home of soul food institution Auntie April’s, is open only for brunch and lunch, but consider yourself warned: After eating a plate of Lee’s classic fried chicken and sweet-cream waffles, an afternoon nap may be required. 

A second act from two unexpected industry pros
Margherita Sagan and Sheryl Rogat — the women behind the original Piccino, which opened almost 20 years ago in Dogpatch — seem to be just getting started. In March they debuted a second Piccino, taking over the massive space formerly occupied by Sessions at the Presidio. The menu will be familiar to Piccino lovers, with seasonal pizzas like stinging nettle with braised leeks, delicious and simple pastas, and entrees like a fish of the day with spring morels and horseradish. For a last-minute night out, grab a seat at the bar; for a sunny-day brunch, request the big patio and enjoy the surrounding nature. Get ready for more: A third Piccino will open next year on the waterfront near Sausalito.

Turkish food hits Mission central
This corner of 18th and Valencia has experienced a few iterations. The space that formerly housed two pizzerias (Flour + Water and Yellow Moto) is now home to Anatolian Table, focused on Turkish and Greek food. Now the oven is being used for pita; the thin flatbreads are actually rather pizza-ish but come with the likes of ground lamb and kasseri cheese or eggs, feta, and za’atar. Yes, there is hummus and falafel, but more interesting is the grilled octopus and butter beans. Brochettes are prominent, as well as manti, the delicious little Anatolian meat dumplings.

The best place to grab a beverage before hitting the new park 
There’s no shortage of great places to eat and drink near Sunset Dunes. But the very best spot to start your outdoor adventure is Blackbird Bookstore and Cafe. The walk-up window pushes out specialty coffee drinks brewed using Hydrangea beans and excellent matcha (try the strawberry!) that are perfect for sipping while you stroll. In the petite pastry case, you’ll find babka and tea cakes from Hayes Valley’s Loquat bakery, plus a selection of just-sweet-enough conchas from Florecita Panadería. 

The beloved pho joint is back
The chicken pho is flowing again. Turtle Tower opened in mid-March right next to Tadich Grill in FiDi, and while “improved” is in the eyes of the beholder, the second coming of the Vietnamese restaurant has definitely been spruced up. At the new restaurant — unlike the original, on a funky corner of the Tenderloin — plants line the brick walls, and there’s uplighting. Owner Steven Pham stands behind the counter making fresh spring rolls and papaya salad while servers precariously navigate the long restaurant with bowl after bowl of steaming noodle soup. Every diner in sight seems to be elated.

Heating up the Castro with Japanese hot pot
The corner of Sanchez and 16th Street just got a shabu-shabu restaurant with clean, modern lines, huge windows, warm service, and pristine platters of raw meats and veggies ready for swiping through through a selection of nabe, bubbling pots filled with a variety of broths, including one made with dashi that comes with pork belly and a classic sweet-soy and sake sukiyaki that comes with Wagyu beef. Yes, you’re here for the soup, but don’t skip the appetizers, including mushrooms, battered and fried till shatteringly crisp, and cold tofu with bonito flakes.

Happy hour returns to the Northeast Waterfront 
Sometimes the night calls for unfussy cocktails and a straightforward burger. When that’s the case, there’s Grumpy’s, the FiDi-adjacent bar and restaurant that returned this year after a four-year hiatus. The bar offers three cocktails on tap (including the Grenier Negroni #2, made with gin, Campari, sweet vermouth, and amaro), plus a list of classics, most of which cost just $13. During the bustling lunch service, expect to see crowds digging into truffle fries, meatballs in sugo, pizza, and, of course, the popular burger.

A nontraditional neighborhood bistro 
It might sound strange that the signature dish at a French-inspired restaurant is sashimi. But Cache, a newcomer to the Inner Sunset, doesn’t adhere to your steak au poivre expectations. Though Cache bills itself as a bistro, the menu offers ample non-French fare, including surf-and-turf crudo, quinoa in green curry, and that eye-catching sea bream sashimi, plated with head and tail intact. The cacophonous dining room is a stylish backdrop for a dinner date, making Cache a buzzy addition in a neighborhood that’s not exactly known for destination dining.

One man’s Palestinian restaurant dream
This cute joint is the realized dream of owner Art Herzallah, whose father was from Gaza and mother is Jordanian. The menu is served tapas-style. Musakhan, a classic Palestinian dish of sumac-and-olive-oil-sopped chicken with loads of sauteed onions, is wrapped in flatbread and sliced “like sushi.” Kufta, a kebab of ground beef and lamb, is served with a little dome of freekeh, an ancient grain. For dessert, get the fantastic kanafeh, filled with cheese and coated in crispy shredded phyllo, topped with a sugar syrup and pistachios. The Roxie Theater is across the street, so make it a dinner-and-a-movie date. 

A Korean food experience like no other 
Sure, there are other Korean grocery stores around San Francisco. But there’s none quite like Jagalchi, the massive market and food hall at the Serramonte Center in Daly City. Shoppers can not only pick their way through a section of marinated bulgogi, dried fish, and sool but can purchase freshly fried fish cakes studded with octopus and kimchi pancakes the size of your head. In short, visiting Jagalchi is as much about eating Korean food as it is about shopping for ingredients. So come hungry for steamed mando stuffed with pork — and take some soy-marinated crab to enjoy at home. 

The family-run steakhouse gets a fresh look 
Izzy’s has been holding it down in the Marina since 1987, and even after closing for an extensive renovation, it remains the kind of classic spot where you’ll see groups sipping martinis after a round of golf or young couples on a nice night out. Chef Daniel Lucero did give the menu some upgrades, though, adding a little New Orleans flair in the form of oysters Rockefeller and drunken prawns in Cajun spice. You can’t go wrong, however, with the classics: a grilled steak, a cold cocktail, and made-to-order crullers for dessert.