Nine years after its last large-scale renovation, downtown dining destination Quince is closing later this month for six months to undergo another significant overhaul.
Quince, the Michelin three-star stage for chef Michael Tusk and wife/manager Lindsay Tusk, is turning 20 this year. And in an announcement on Instagram, the team says, "the Tusks are embarking on an exciting new chapter and are temporarily closing the restaurant for a renovation to our dining room and bar."
No exact opening date is being given, but the renovation is expected to last six months. As the a spokesperson has told Eater, the goal is to make the dining room "lighter and brighter," and to uncrowd the dining room by spacing tables further apart. Also, they will be installing "a series of floor-to-ceiling glass doors that open onto tree-lined Pacific Avenue."
"When Quince reopens in the Summer, we hope that the renovation will give the restaurant what it needs to succeed and flourish for another 20 years to come," the team says.
Quince is one of only three Michelin three-star restaurants in San Francisco proper, leaving only Benu and Atelier Crenn picking up the slack for high-end Michelin-obsessed tourists in the meantime.
The restaurant last underwent a major renovation in 2014, exposing brick walls, adding more private dining spaces, and decking out the space in soft fabrics and earth tones.
The restaurant began life in 2003 in the space currently occupied by Octavia, at the corner of Octavia and Bush streets, with Michael Tusk earning a reputation for creating high-end California cuisine with a focus on finely made pastas and Italian influences. Tusk won the James Beard Award for Best Chef: Pacific in 2007, and the restaurant's popularity outgrew that original space. The Tusks relocated to 470 Pacific Street in 2009, and opened the more casual Cotogna next door in late 2010 — which serves wood-fired pizzas and meats, as well as pasta out of Quince's kitchen.
Wine bar Verjus, on nearby Washington Street, followed in early 2019. Verjus has remained closed since the pandemic began, serving only as a private event space.
The team says that they will continue to accept private event reservations for Cotogna and Verjus while the Quince renovation takes place, and Cotogna remains open for business Tuesday through Saturday for lunch and dinner, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Quince, meanwhile, is continuing to accept renovations through January 21.