Looking back on 2009's top new restaurants

It was a year of recession for the economy and progression for the dining scene. Looking over the restaurants I reviewed this year, you'd never know money was tight; new places kept opening, and quality remains high.

In just one week this month, three high-profile places premiered in San Francisco: Melissa Perello's Frances; the Beretta offshoot, Delarosa; and Baker & Banker in the old Quince space.

Because I wait at least a month to give the staff time to settle in before beginning the three-visit review process, these restaurants won't be featured until next year, along with other places that opened in the past few months, such as Out the Door in San Francisco and Marzano in Oakland.

In fact, 2009 will go down as the year Oakland blazed its own culinary trail, with the opening of such places as Ozumo, Sidebar, Adesso, Bar Lata, Pican, Commis, Lake Chalet and Bocanova. Plus, there's more to come in 2010.

I reviewed 50 new places in 2009 and visited more than a dozen others that didn't make the review cut, so what follows is really the top of the heap. There was a good mix of blockbuster openings and small neighborhood places that were so good they quickly gained a Bay Area-wide reputation.

I have to fess up: I cheated a bit. The following list doesn't include two stellar restaurants - Limon, which was closed for more than a year because of fire but opened with a spiffed up decor and even better food, or Gialina, which actually opened a couple years ago. I'd written about it many times but only got around to reviewing this year. Yet neither of them is actually new.

So here is my list, in alphabetical order.

Adesso

At this Oakland restaurant, Dopo owner Jon Smulewitz and salumieri Chad Arnold produce the top salami in the Bay Area. They offer about 40 varieties at a time. Each is distinctive, whether it's coppa with Lambrusco and wild fennel seeds, or salami with fresh oregano and garlic. The menu includes a raw bar, pates, salads, panini and one large plate. Early in the evening and late at night Smulewitz offers free platters of salumi to go with the well-crafted cocktails.

4395 Piedmont Ave. (at Pleasant Valley Road), Oakland; (510) 601-0305. Dinner Monday-Saturday until at least midnight. No reservations. Salumi, $7-$11; secondi, $18.

Bottega

Michael Chiarello is a rarity - a celebrity chef who went back into the kitchen to open this mega-popular Italian restaurant in V Marketplace in Yountville. He's collected his share of groupies who come to get a glimpse of the chef, but the allure here is really about the beautifully designed interior, the outdoor patio with two roaring fires and the food. Try the pecorino pudding and the wood-oven-roasted fish.

6525 Washington St. (in V Marketplace), Yountville; (707) 945-1050 or botteganapavalley.com. Lunch Tuesday-Sunday; dinner nightly. Main courses: $23-$36.

Flour+Water

This Italian restaurant generated as much excitement as Delfina and A16 when it opened last spring. Thomas McNaughton takes two simple ingredients - flour and water - to new heights, creating exceptional wood-oven pizza, and pastas such as chestnut tagliatelle with braised pheasant, roasted squash and sage; and winter savory pappardelle with pork sausage. The feel of the place is casual, with a communal table, naturally.

2401 Harrison St. (at 20th Street), San Francisco; (415) 826-7000 or flourandwater.com. Dinner nightly until midnight. Pizza, pasta and main courses, $13-$23.

Neela's

Neela Paniz made a name for herself at the Bombay Cafe in Los Angeles, which she sold in 2007 with plans to retire. However, she fell in love with Napa, and within two years she opened her eponymous restaurant. The modern space is a proper stage for her unique take on Indian food, including samosas filled with shrimp and tart-hot mango pickles, and a paneer loaf with the fresh ricotta-like cheese in a mild tomato sauce studded with peas.

975 Clinton St. (near Main Street), Napa; (707) 226-9988 or neelasnapa.com. Lunch Tuesday-Friday; dinner Tuesday-Saturday. Main courses, $14-$24.

Nopalito