Biggest surprise for me is that State Bird Provisions isn’t included.
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Majordomo?
The 2005 thing is funny because they clearly knew they had to put Momofuku in there, but the way it comes across is that, because Momofuku opened in 2004, they put in Momofuku Ssam Bar which opened in 2006.
I had to check what year Toro opened because it feels like it’s been around longer, but indeed it was 2005…just squeaked in!
The inclusion of Reem’s surprised me - it’s great and for sure has made a strong imprint on SF, but to be one of the 38 most influential in the country they must have some wider influence that I’m not familiar with.
Good publicist?
I actually think Ssam was in many ways more influential than Noodle Bar, even though Noodle Bar obviously started the whole thing.
Ssam kinda failed as a sandwich shop, so Chang pivoted toward serving really interesting and elevated food at Ssam Bar, which (among other things) is a core part of Momo’s influence: that you could get Michelin-quality ingredients/execution/creativity in a casual hole-in-the-wall for reasonable pricing. Noodle bar was tasty, for sure, but at bottom it was just a really good noodle bar (with other delicious stuff like their awesome shrimp and grits).
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Just seems like a weird list cuz it assumes that because a restaurant opened 30 years ago it wasn’t influential in the last two decades? Like Le Bernadin isnt still influencing the NY food scene even though it opened in 86.
I would say its interesting Paul Kahans restaurants aren’t present, I would say Avec and Publican were very influential in the timeframe they are looking at. I agree with some of the confusion at other restaurants, I’ve been to Mi Tocaya Antojeria, maybe I went at the wrong time. I guess do they still need to be open? Superiority Burger and Nong’s Khao Man gai are also pretty interesting, both great restaurants, but honestly the more I read this the more confused I get. Kogi is a good shout whatever the criteria is.
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Is Dakar Nola really something to not be missed? I was frankly unfamiliar besides name recognition with it and looked it up. Certainly Sounds fun and interesting but I go to New Orleans to get the food that you mostly can’t get anywhere else in the country. To be fair I’m not sure where else to go for Senegalese either though.
It is very high on my list of restaurants in the U.S. to try.
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Franklin’s is legit. I’m from GA originally but have lived in NC for the past 20+ years. Lots of good BBQ here and I’ve become accustomed to the various NC types - eastern, Lexington, etc. Franklin’s was eye-opening for me. Everything was done very well. The brisket is obviously superb, but I’ve been able to taste everything there and it was all top notch.
I remember asking for the brisket at the counter and the lady asked if I wanted the regular or the lean. I was confused by the question so I awkwardly asked “the lean?” She said, “yeah it’s just a leaner cut. A lot less fat.” I then asked “is there any reason to try that?” She just looked at me and said “No.” Lol.
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