News for Restaurants in San Francisco April 2011 Archive Search / Openings / Closings / Chef Shuffle / News Bytes / Sign up for our free, monthly newsletter / News Archive Want to know who's doing what in your city? Gayot has the restaurant news you want to read on openings, closings, special events, and more. Learn everything you need to know about the restaurants in San Francisco here. RESTAURANT NEWS Openings Check back soon for more news. News Bytes Brunch Chez Spencer Laurent Katgely's tucked-away Chez Spencer, a perennial local favorite for romance and French bistro dining, has debuted Sunday brunch. Seasonal dishes might include eggs baked in a wood-fired oven, topped with shaved truffles. Fresh cocktails will be a focal point. Chez Spencer, 82 14th St., San Francisco, CA 94103, 415-864-2191.   New Look for Manresa Manresa, chef David Kinch's Los Gatos restaurant and one of Gayot's Top 40 Restaurants in the U.S. for 2011, has debuted a new interior. The refresh comprises a relocated entrance and new dining areas, a wine cellar in the restaurant's former foyer, and a ten-seat bar and lounge (and subsequent cocktail program). The revamped space has a more contemporary feel, though the warmth and bones of the 1940's ranch-style building, including the open beam ceiling, mosaic tiled fireplace and curved wall, remain. Project leads Sterry Architecture and Sunny Hills Studio completed a color palette update to light earth tones with accents such as a backlit, mother-of-pearl bar, curved lounge seating, new carpeting, tables and lighting, including a glass chandelier centerpoint by artist Erik Powell in collaboration with Cleveland Art. Manresa's new arrangement hosts 70 diners, including four outdoor seats and one private area with room for ten. Manresa, 320 Village Lane, Los Gatos, CA 95030, 408-354-4330.   Lafitte's First Year Chef Russell Jackson's waterfront restaurant Lafitte will feature some special meals and menus in April in celebration of the venue's first anniversary. Every Friday and Saturday night throughout the month, Jackson will cater to diners at the eight-seat chef's counter overlooking the kitchen with customized, five-course, themed dinners for $59 per person, exclusive of tax and gratuity. Throughout the dining room, there will be a special prix-fixe lunch (two courses for $18) and dinner (three courses for $45). As a permanent change, Jackson is launching new seasonal menus (in lieu of changing the entire menu daily) that will change six times a year. Lafitte, Pier 5, The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94111, 415-839-2134.   Seven Nights at Ubuntu Napa standout Ubuntu now serves dinner nightly, and features new spring menu options from chef Aaron London, including a $50 family-style six-course menu; $65 per person chef's tasting menu; and $35 per person three-course prix-fixe menu available at both lunch and dinner. Ubuntu, 1140 Main St., Napa, CA 94559, 707-251-5656.   Tapas at Masa's Destination restaurant Masa's has launched a new Friday night tapas menu, available at the bar from 5:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m., lending a casual, reservation-free opportunity for a lucky few (there are only four seats available at the diminutive bar). All tapas from chef Gregory Short are priced under $15, and include dishes such as saucisson d'homard, a scallop mousseline with Maine lobster and house-made choucroute, and a "croque madame" of fried queso de la serena with soft-poached quail eggs and Iberico ham. Masa's, Executive Hotel Vintage Court, 648 Bush St., San Francisco, CA 94108, 415-989-7154.   Chef Shuffle After a notable three years with Luce restaurant in the InterContinental San Francisco hotel, chef Dominique Crenn has officially moved on to commit herself to her solo project, open since January, Atelier Crenn. Meanwhile, Luce is seeking a new executive chef. Luce, InterContinental San Francisco, 888 Howard St., San Francisco, CA 94103, 415-616-6566.   Closings Sleek and storied XYZ restaurant in the W San Francisco hotel, once a temple to hip dotcom indulgence, closed on Sunday, April 10. The hotel has announced a new restaurant, Trace, that will open in the coming months, featuring a new focus on local, seasonal cuisine. Trace will be helmed by executive chef Paul Piscopo (Oliveto, Masa's, Charles Nob Hill), who was chef at XYZ, and will even staff a professional forager, Alaun Grimald.   E & O Trading Company shuttered its San Jose location on March 27, less than a year after the group's Marin location also closed. Bay Area fans of the southeast Asian restaurant's cocktail-friendly ambience and fare can still head to the one remaining E & O property in San Francisco, helmed by chef Arnold Eric Wong, that is very much open for business. E & O Trading Company, 314 Sutter St., San Francisco, CA 94108, no phone.   After nine years, stately, contemporary French restaurant Marché in Menlo Park did not renew its lease and closed at the end of March. French-born chef Guillaume Bienaimé hasn't yet announced his next steps. Marché, 898 Santa Cruz Ave., Menlo Park, CA 94025, no phone.   CULINARY EVENTS Want to learn to cook? Try new dishes? Meet a foodie friend for fun? Check out our compilation of culinary events in your area. View our calendar of Wine Dinners & Tastings in San Francisco Discover the top restaurants in the San Francisco/Bay Area for various cuisines and categories like sushi, steakhouses, happy hours, romantic dining and even gourmet food trucks. Find the best restaurants in SF here!

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