Filipino is one of the Asian cuisines my wife Jun and I have not as encountered as much as other countries’ throughout our culinary journey. We would love to visit the Philippines one day despite the distance; for now, we would need to explore the surprisingly rich and diverse tradition of this country’s cuisine stateside. Thankfully, the Filipino cuisine has been on a run across the country, including in the DC area where I have a few on my wish lists that I hope to fulfill this year. In any event, during our Bay Area trip last year, we were debating where to get brunch on our last day in San Francisco, and Abacá came to our attention. Opened by chef Francis Ang along with his wife Dian in the operations, Abacá seems to be on a large number of “best restaurants in SF” list for its presentation of Filipino cuisine with California seasonality. Our meal at Abacá ended up being quite a decadent brunch.

Before we entered the stylish dining room inside the Kimpton Alton Hotel near the Fisherman’s Wharf, Jun and I had no idea what kind of brunch experience we would have. Sure, we anticipated having a dish like pork lumpia, a traditional dish of fried spring rolls, with peach mango ketchup. It wasn’t until our meal at Abacá that we learned of a popular Filipino breakfast meal called tocino silog, consisting of garlic rice, pork belly and sunny side up eggs. It turned out to be quite a memorable dish, not just in terms of display but in terms of how addictive it was in the flavor of pork belly that was marinated with pineapple flavor. The other main dish that we ordered left even more lasting impressions to me: a Filipino take on loco moco (a popular Hawaiian dish) by using wagyu burger steak and truffle mushroom gravy alongside the same garlic rice and eggs from the silog dish. Jun whispered that the gravy was becoming a little too rich for her taste, but I didn’t mind continuing to dig into this massive and addictively delicious dish, thinking we would take a long afternoon walk to burn all the calorie. If you have more room for dessert, you should certainly give a try to one of the pastries on the menu, particularly the buko pie with coconut, pandan and pistachio that we were lucky to secure before it ran out.

Abacá is one of the more popular restaurants in SF even for brunch time (the restaurant was fully packed by the time we were finished), so getting a reservation in advance is highly recommended. There is a short list of cocktails using Filipino ingredients as well as wines and beers to wash down all the deliciousness from the kitchen. The casual vibe of the colorful dining space, despite being located on the first floor of a hotel right after its entrance, was another plus for having a good time at Abacá. Abacá was one of the highlights of our dining experiences during our trip, and Jun and I are happy to come back next time in SF for a proper dinner at the restaurant.

Address: 2700 Jones Street, San Francisco, CA 94133

KenScale: 8.0/10 (Jun’s Score: 7.75/10)

Website: https://www.restaurantabaca.com/

Reservation via Resy