Michelin two-starred restaurant Sons & Daughters, which transitioned in recent years from modern California cuisine to New Nordic under executive chef and co-owner Harrison Cheney, is about to transition again into much larger, swankier digs in the Mission District.
As first reported in June, the Sons & Daughters team decided to depart their home of fifteen years on Nob Hill in order to move into the recently vacated home of Osito (2875 18th Street) — a modern, wood-paneled space that was only built out about four years ago.
The big move is being completed now, and Sons & Daughters opens for business in its new space this Saturday, November 8. (As we learned last week, the space at 708 Bush Street will soon become Restaurant Naides, a Filipino-influenced tasting menu restaurant from former Sons & Daughters sous chef Patrick Gabon.)
It's been a big fifteen months for Sons & Daughters, after being elevated to two Michelin stars last summer, joining the likes of just thirteen other restaurants in California — plus the eight that hold three stars.
Cheney tells the Chronicle this week that he feels like Sons & Daughters has been turning out three-star-level food, but they needed to expand the kitchen and the dining room in order to provide three-star-level service and atmosphere, to achieve that third star.
"It’s not a secret: I have the mindset that this year’s the year," Cheney tells the paper, referring to that third-star achievement.
The new space received a light remodel in recent months, but really its minimalist decor and design was exactly what Cheney and partner Teague Moriarty had been looking for. He tells the Chronicle the space "feels like a Swedish summer house," which is fitting for the New Nordic direction that he has taken the menu.
He's adorned the space with his own abstract artwork, and the team has transformed part of the space into a lounge area where — in a similar style to nearby Lazy Bear — diners will begin their meal with an initial snack course, with Champagne. (It's unclear from the photos how, if at all, the adjacent former Bar Osito/Liliana/Bar Agricole space is being used.)
The former open hearth, where chef Seth Stowaway did the wood fire cooking that Osito's signature, has been jettisoned in favor of induction stoves, precision ovens, and double the amount of refrigerator space.
The dining room features ten concrete tables, mostly facing the open kitchen, as the Chronicle notes.
And the tasting menu, which had been 20 courses in the much smaller Nob Hill space, will grow to 24 courses — for which diners will pay $315 per person, plus a 20% service charge, plus any beverages. That puts it in line with Lazy Bear and Californios, which both also hold two Michelin stars, and $100 below the three-star Benu ($425) and Atelier Crenn ($405).
Dishes highlighted by critic MacKenzie Chung Fagan when she dined at Sons & Daughters last fall included a dish of black cod that was still being served over the summer, though in July it was with sour cherries, pickled wild roses, and a sauce made from green tomatoes. Dishes on the current fall menu include an apple ice cream made from fruit that is "grilled over burning spruce branches whilst being brushed with brown butter," with an acorn-flour cake, spruce cream, and Granny Smith apple reduction.
Sons & Daughters - 2875 18th Street - Reservations here
Top image via Instagram
