Who says you can't drink mimosas during a pandemic?
While indoor dining remains a thing of the elusive future, San Francisco's phased reopening is still, at press time, allowing for socially distanced outdoor dining. Restaurant staff are required to wear masks at all times, and diners must wear them between bites and sips of French toast and mimosas, but we can still enjoy one of the city's favorite unofficial pastimes plus all the morning cocktails we need to forget about 2020 for an hour or so.
Before you brunch, we recommend making reservations or joining the restaurants' online wait lists to keep with social distancing practices. Play it safe, smart, and don't ruin it for everyone else. Now, here's where to get your benedicts, chicken and waffles, hotcakes, millionaire's bacon, and bloodies in SF.
Kitchen Story
Open for weekday (10am to 2pm) and weekend brunch (9am to 2pm), Kitchen Story is still serving its millionaire's bacon (dusted with brown sugar, black pepper, and cayenne before baking), ricotta hotcakes, poached eggs benedicts, and mimosas during 60-minute seatings outside. Weekday reservations are available through Yelp. // 3499 16th St. (Castro), kitchenstorysf.com.
620 Jones
620 Jones is extra-relishing the perks of having a huge patio during the pandemic—the TenderNob party spot has reopened its outdoor space for brunch all day, Tuesdays through Sundays. Celebrate the weekend with a breakfast martini or Grey Goose frozé alongside fried chicken and waffles and avocado toast. // 620 Jones St. (TenderNob), 620-jones.com
Plow
Pretend like it's life before the pandemic (and like you aren't wearing mask at every moment you aren't stuffing your face with Annie's almond flour pancakes) and relive the old days of weekend brunch at Plow, which is serving outdoors once again seven days a week. Dip into soft scambled eggs, heavenly custard French toast, fried egg sandos, or summer hash, along with grapefruit mimosas and Equator coffee. // 1299 18th St. (Potrero Hill), eatatplow.com
Sweet Maple
Brunchgoers have long flocked to Sweet Maple for millionaire's bacon, morning pizzas, eggs Benedict and, most importantly, the bottomless mimosas ($22) which are still pouring during the pandemic. The mimosas—with fresh-squeezed orange or grapefruit juice or raspberry lemonade—are well worth signing up for the online wait list. Brunch is served on the patio here daily. // 2101 Sutter St. (Pacific Heights), sweetmaplesf.com
Blackwood
During the reopening phase, Blackwood is serving brunch seven days a week on the patio. Mimosas, sangrias, and bloody marys are served alongside Thai and American dishes including Dungeness crab omelets, deep fried french toast, and curries. // 2150 Chestnut St. (Marina), blackwoodsf.com.
The Front Porch
Oh how we've missed those Nola-style beignets and buckets of fried chicken. The Front Porch has a new parklet and is now open once again for brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 3:30pm. Make an online reservation or call ahead to guarantee your spot for a country breakfast, pulled pork chilaquiles, or baked eggs and grits—plus bloody marys with bacon, mimosas, and pitchers of hot ass margs. // 65a 29th St. (Bernal Heights), thefrontporchsf.com
Zazie
Zazie tables have always come with a wait. Now open for limited outdoor seating with brunch seven days a week, the popular Cole Valley spot is taking waitlist signups via Yelp. But those miracle pancakes will be yours once again, plus bennys, croques, salads and "magic" mimosas. // 941 Cole St. (Cole Valley), zaziesf.com
Dolores Park Cafe
The sidewalk seating at Dolores Park Cafe still promises sunshine and mimosas. Pair your drinks with French toast or a chorizo breakfast burrito—or if you're feeling healthy-ish, down a glass of organic, fresh squeezed veggie juice, too. Then, head to Dolores Park for a post-brunch coma. // 501 Dolores St. (Mission), doloresparkcafe.com.
The Sycamore
Located just steps away from the Mission's famous mural-painted Clarion Alley, the Sycamore is an intimate bar with a relaxed atmo and a spacious back patio. On weekends, come hungry for chicken and waffles with bourbon-spiked syrup, Florentine eggs benedict. Their bottomless mimosa deal, offered on Saturdays and Sundays from 10am to 3pm, can't be beat—just $16 with a $10 food order. // 2140 Mission St. (Mission), thesycamoresf.com.
