Zuni Cafe

Zuni Cafe is a lot like that person who keeps talking about the good ‘ol days. The star athlete, the valedictorian, the friend who threw parties everyone wishes they were invited to. The years keep passing by, and they’re stuck in a time that doesn’t exist anymore .

When the restaurant opened in 1979, Zuni Cafe put San Francisco on tourists’ and locals' bucket lists. It was part of an early wave of so-called California cuisine, utilizing seasonal produce to prove that dishes don’t need complex preparations or imported ingredients to be great. The restaurant's mark on the city persists to this day, especially their famous brick-oven chicken and its warm bread salad that’s as synonymous with San Francisco as clam chowder and the Mission burrito .

There’s still something special about sitting down to a sunlit dinner at Zuni Cafe. Through those big glass windows, white tablecloths match the buttoned-up waitstaff, and a pile of wood waits for its turn to roast the fowl that launched a thousand Instagram posts. It’s easy to feel a prestige contact-high from sitting in the split-level dining room that never seems to want to empty out and from eating at one of SF’s most famous restaurants on one of the city’s most famous streets.

Unfortunately, the classics that once made Zuni captivating now feel anything but. Their chicken, while flavorful, is salty and inconsistent. The weekend lunch-only focaccia burger is solid, but doesn't stand-out among the many others in the city. Brittle shoestring potatoes (read: fries) would be better used as kindling, and desserts are a mixed bag. Of all the dishes we’ve tried lately, Zuni’s famous caesar and a citrus and cherry pavlova stand out the most. In a city with so many exciting restaurants , a perfectly pleasant salad and enjoyable dessert don’t cut it anymore. A meal at modern-day Zuni Cafe won't be bad by any stretch of the imagination, but it also won’t inspire the awe of previous decades.

After 45 years, we want to be reminded of why Zuni carries so much weight, why it continues to be booked solid . Instead, we’re more apt to thank Zuni for the memories, and bring out-of-towners only when they insist on being able to say they were there once.

Food Rundown

The menu at Zuni Cafe changes regularly. But some things, like the roast chicken or the caesar salad, never leave.

Zuni Roast Chicken

If you’re chasing the myth of this $75 brick oven-cooked bird, by all means. Order it as soon as you sit down since it’ll be a 60-minute wait until it hits your table, resting on cushion of warm bread salad and topped with a tuft of bitter greens. Enough for two, the chicken is flavorful (albeit salty), but you’ll be stuck fighting with your dining companions over the pieces that aren’t so dry. Of note, the bread salad, which has been soaking up the chicken drippings. This should be an entree on its own.

Zuni Caesar Salad

A fan of lettuce is painted in coats of happily fishy caesar dressing and topped with crunchy bread croutons and grated parmesan. This will be the highlight of your meal.

Shoestring Potatoes

Let’s call it what it is: a plate of matchstick fries that either aren’t crispy enough or are so dry and brittle we could use them for tinder.

photo credit: Patrick Wong

Hamburger On Rosemary Focaccia

A thick juicy patty sandwiched between aioli-slathered focaccia buns (cheese, tomatoes, onions or bacon are an extra few bucks each). Is it good? Yep. Is it worth planning your weekend lunch around? Not really.

Bread Service

And now for something you could do better at home: a handful of thin slices of Acme levain with butter so hard that you'd need a chisel to excavate enough for your bread.

photo credit: Patrick Wong

Sticky Toffee Pudding

The dessert menu at Zuni changes. If you order this, you won’t be upset, but you also won’t be thrilled. The pudding is dense and satisfying, but for some reason, despite not being warm, the accompanying ice cream and whipped cream are already melting when it arrives.

photo credit: Patrick Wong

Citrus & Cherry Pavlova

If you only have room for one dessert, get this one. The meringue has crispy shells and marshmallowy interiors, and the layers of sweet cherries and tart citrus are so well-balanced that a Buddhist monk may ask for a consultation.