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Restaurant Website: http://www.cliffhouse.comGoogle Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=1090+point+lobos+ave.+San+Francisco&sll=37.782638,-122.401836&sspn=0.009277,0.013304&ie=UTF8&ll=37.777516,-122.511914&spn=0.009277,0.013304&z=16&iwloc=A

From a wall of windows, diners at this sweeping restaurant set at the site of the historic Sutro Baths are treated to one of the most stunning ocean vistas in the city—a true amuse-bouche. A mix of diners (heavy on the tourists, but increasingly more locals) come for special occasions. Time your most romantic dinner reservation to coincide with the sunset. The view also comes cheaper at brunch.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>Although Sutro’s has never cultivated the foodie set, the decision to place veteran chef George Morrone at the helm is changing that. Morrone, who famously started Aqua, has his delicious signature tartare on the menu, but you’ll also find “New American” dishes such as citrus-and-coriander cured Loche Duarte salmon with beets, crab bisque and a thick cut of veal prime rib with marsala sauce and roasted parsnips.</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?q=1512+Stockton+St.+sf&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&ie=UTF8&hl=en&ll=37.802562,-122.409046&spn=0.005595,0.008583&z=16&iwloc=addr

Tuxedoed waiters and valets delivering Lamborghinis will tip you off that this is a place for movers and shakers. More than a few celebrities and politicos—think Gavin Newsom and Mick Jagger—have come to this restaurant over the decades to drop a few C-notes on fine wine and Tuscan fare. The upstairs dining room’s cathedral ceilings and original Miro prints set the stage for dates and dealmakers, while dining in the gothic recesses of the restaurant is reserved for larger groups.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>The menu is standard Tuscan, with an emphasis on familiarity rather than seasonality. Start with prosciutto and melon, made with house-cured salumi that hangs in the famed Prosciutto Room, then move on to a pasta dish like linguine with clams. High rollers will opt for the $75 plate of abalone with lemon-white wine sauce and pair it with one of 500-plus wines offered; the more moderate spenders will go for cioppino or one of nine veal preparations, like piccata or marsala.</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Venticello++sf&sll=37.819277,-122.397995&sspn=0.049495,0.106087&gl=us&ie=UTF8&ll=37.811818,-122.41293&spn=0.05262,0.106087&z=13&iwloc=A

Located in the heart of Nob Hill, where cable car bells ring in the distance, this quintessential SF restaurant still manages to transport you to Tuscany. There’s a rustic elegance to the farmhouse ambiance that makes this spot appropriate for both celebrations and romantic date nights. A granite-topped bar and batch of tables are situated at the entrance, but ask to be seated in the lower dining area, by a window with views of the Bay Bridge and the wood-burning oven, tiled in lapis blue.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>The menu is extensive and classically Italian. Fire-grilled pancetta-wrapped prawns with a spicy dipping sauce make for an intriguing antipasti, and anything from the wood oven—the fresh pear and Gorgonzola pizzetta, for instance—is top-notch. The gnocchi is made in house, and because the mushroom cream sauce is so rich, it’s a good dish to share. Toast your meal with a hearty Chianti or a light Prosecco—all from the list spotlighting Italian and Californian selections.</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Bushi-Tei+,+SF&sll=37.797102,-122.433786&sspn=0.027807,0.054073&gl=us&ie=UTF8&ll=37.785775,-122.428808&spn=0.027811,0.054073&z=14

A special-occasion destination, Bushi-tei is a family-owned restaurant with no detail left unconsidered. From the high-tech toilets and micro-structured electrolysis water to the cedar-and-pine-wood planks shipped from a 17th century Japanese home and the pine beam communal table, the 40-seat restaurant weaves modernity into ancient tradition.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>Before you begin to eat, make sure to pause and appreciate the elegant, yet functional, utensil holder designed by the owner’s wife. That deliberate attention to detail extends to the food, which is French-California fusion with a Japanese twist. Items such as seared foie gras with pumpkin, tuna tartare and Kobe beef with pan-fried Yukon gold potatoes don’t disappoint.</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=circa+,+sf&sll=37.83609,-122.411041&sspn=0.103578,0.215263&gl=us&ie=UTF8&ll=37.839615,-122.411041&spn=0.097336,0.215263&z=12&iwloc=C

It’s amazing what some crystal-dripping chandeliers can do: Cozmo’s, in the Marina, once best known for its singles scene, was reinvented in 2006 as Circa with the help of a revamped gold-and-sage interior by Michael Brennan. He opened up the space to make the central, square-shaped bar and plush dining room more inclusive, adding round booths and a raised communal table.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>The food takes itself more seriously now too. Chef Erik Hopfinger’s appetizers are twists on all-American: “Tater tots” are given a filling of Dungeness crab, foie gras is seared and served with peanut-butter brioche and huckleberry jam for the ultimate PB&amp;J, and mac-and-cheese gets lobster and truffles. Entrées have international flavor, such as rosy Moroccan-spiced lamb “lollichops.” Instead of dessert, you may want to feast on the eye candy at the bar—proof that the meet-and-greet scene is still alive and well.</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=big+4++,+sf&sll=37.7853,-122.441511&sspn=0.026319,0.053043&gl=us&ie=UTF8&ll=37.800154,-122.420225&spn=0.026314,0.053043&z=14&iwloc=F

Not surprisingly, given that it’s named for the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad—Messrs. Stanford, Hopkins, Crocker and, of course, Huntington—the restaurant feels like a turn-of-the-century men’s club, the walls paneled in wood and mirrors and lined with leather banquettes. The chef, however, breaks the mold: Keep an eye out for Gloria Ciccarone-Nehls, vibrantly dressed in chef’s reds (instead of whites), making the rounds to chat with the regulars—of which there are many.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>This is where the wild things are. Each night you’ll find at least one game dish—pepper-cured wild boar, say, or smoked buffalo ribs—on the menu. November brings the restaurant’s annual Wild Game Week: Most recently, the parade of exotic proteins ranged from crocodile tacos (a touch tough) and New Caledonian blue salt prawns (over a delicious lemongrass salad) to saddle of caribou (served fork-tender rare, in a cherry-Banyuls reduction) and rib-eye of Himalayan yak (which, confusingly, hailed from Colorado).</p>

Google Maps Link: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=517+Hayes+St.,+San+Francisco&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=48.240201,79.101563&ie=UTF8&z=16&iwloc=addr

2008 EAT + DRINK AWARD: Best Japanese

In this beautiful, intimate Japanese restaurant, angular lines echo throughout, from the handcrafted mahogany tables to the walls, installed with lights that glow through big shoji-screen fixtures. The mood is mellow, with down-tempo music and a crowd too focused on the sushi to get rowdy.

Eats:What's on your menu.: <p>Co-chefs and owners Michael Black and Daniel Dunham have cultivated a following of serious raw-fish aficionados. Don’t come here for California rolls and sake bombs. Instead, trust them to do their magic by ordering the omakase menu, which changes nightly: One night you might be served nigiri sushi with teeny baby eels, rich tender slices of ankimo (monkfish liver) with edamame and a delicate konbu-shiso broth with honshimeji mushrooms. Sunday nights, the kitchen turns out izakaya-style food, home-style dishes typically served in the bars of Japan.</p>

A circular bar is the focal point of highly social Mecca, where patrons sip honey-lychee daiquiris and orange blossom martinis. The crowd consists of well-dressed Castro couples and groups of revelers celebrating special occasions. Eats:What's on your menu.: The fries and ribs are to die for, and don’t pass up the seared foie gras starter, paired with pomegranate-glazed black Mission figs and crispy polenta. The menu reflects a comfort-food-meets-California sensibility, with entrees such as prosciutto-wrapped halibut with Blue Lake beans and smashed baby carrots and the roasted Fulton Farms chicken with sweet corn and oyster mushrooms.