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Top 23 Restaurants with Private Dining Rooms in San Francisco

One of my favorite things about San Francisco is the food scene. Whether you’re just visiting, or you’re a local, there are so many different types of restaurants to check out while you’re in the city. Some of my favorite spots around town offer unique dining experiences with private rooms that are great for hosting special events like a birthday or even a work holiday party.

private dining room in a san francisco restaurant

To save you the trouble of finding spots that can accommodate a larger group, I’ve put together a list of the best restaurants with private or semi-private options for hosting a group of family and friends for an amazing meal. Whether you’re looking to host a smaller group for a milestone birthday or a larger group for a bridal shower or engagement party, these restaurants will be able to accommodate you! Not only do they have private sections, but the food is absolutely amazing and is guaranteed to exceed your expectations.


Mourad

140 New Montgomery St #1, San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-660-2500
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The Mourad restaurant is a modern restaurant that prepares food that pays homage to Moroccan food and culture. It’s a beautifully renovated restaurant located near the Ferry Building. The restaurant is run by executive chef and owner, Mourad Lahlou. The Ferry Building is a historical landmark in San Francisco and serves the community by providing a space for vendors to sell produce, coffee, and other foods. The restaurant features a laidback authentic Moroccan design for regulars and tourists to enjoy.If you love seafood, I recommend trying the scallops with pioppini mushroom and curry. It’s an entree that’s beyond delicious. They even offer sorbets for dessert.  Another great dish at Mourad is the short rib. It’s a colorful dish served with rainbow carrots and shallots.Mourad offers five different spaces for private dining that can seat from 10 to 100 guests.  Each space has its own flair of elegance and offers a full course menu.


Foreign Cinema

2534 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110
Phone: 415-648-7600
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The Foreign Cinema restaurant is a fantastic restaurant that’s earned recognition for being one of the “Top 100 Restaurants” in San Francisco for 18 years straight. It’s a beautiful restaurant that even features its own cookbook. It’s located near California Historical Landmark 192, which is the Jenny Lind Theatre and San Francisco City Hall site. The landmark was created in 1851 and serves as the third theatre as fires destroyed the first two. The building was purchased by the city of San Francisco in 1852, which utilized the building as a city hall. The Foreign Cinema offers some of the best desserts. It’s hard to forget their birthday cake which is my number one recommendation, I might add. It’s a layered chocolate cake with vanilla-bourbon buttercream and hazelnuts. It’s to die for or just to pretend like it’s your birthday. They also have a dinner and brunch menu complete with a full oyster menu. Foreign Cinemas offers six spaces for private dining and a personalized menu.  Some of their options have a built-in bar.


Del Popolo

855 Bush St, San Francisco, CA 94108
Phone: 415-589-7940
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Del Popolo is your destination for Neapolitan delicacies. I’m a sucker for state fairs and eagerly attend them each year in my hometown. Del Popolo is located near the California Historical Landmark 861, the first California State Fair site. Del Popolo specializes in Neapolitan pizza. The pizza crust is remarkably soft with a blistered crust.  I started with a little gem wedge salad with bacon. I substituted the blue cheese dressing with ranch. My favorite pizza was the roasted maitake mushroom pizza loaded with spigarello, garlic, and cacio e pepe. I ordered salami piccante as an add-on topping. Add in the Chenin, which is an energetic wine with eclectic acidity, and the meal was magnificent. Del Popolo features a beautiful garden space for private dining with dimmed lighting and a piece of nature.


Quince

470 Pacific Ave, San Francisco, CA 94133
Phone: 415-775-8500
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Quince is located in the middle of historic Jackson Square. The restaurant features a mixture of contemporary Californian and Italian cuisine. I love Quince because it offers tasting menus that highlight Chef Lindsay and Michael Tusk’s partnership with the Fresh Run Farm. The restaurant is beautiful and dim, perfect for couples. Another thing I love about Quince is that they create entrees based on what foods are in season. We were lucky enough to get our reservation in advance. It’s hard to make a recommendation on what to order here because their menu changes so often. However, I had the crab souffle with honey cheesecake as a dessert. It was amazing. My recommendation for Quince is to come with an empty stomach and be ready to enjoy whatever their menu throws at you. Their outdoor dining space is the perfect place for outdoor private events.


Birdsong

1085 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Phone: 415-369-9161
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Birdsong is run by executive chef and owner Christopher Bleidorn and executive sous chef Yesenia Castanon. It’s also located near the Ferry Building. Their focus is on serving their customer’s whole foods that are in season. They offer a tasting menu, and similar to Quince, their menu is constantly changing. However, we went during the fall, and I was able to get the black cod with pine mushroom bouillon. In case you haven’t noticed it yet, I love mushrooms. The dish was beautiful and tasted just as good as it looked. I also tasted some of my partner’s ya li pears which were also great. Birdsong offers private dining for smaller groups of five or less.

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Boulevard

1 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-543-6084
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A lot of restaurants are located near some sort of historical landmark. The Boulevard Restaurant is in the historic Audiffred building. It sits on the Embarcadero waterfront. The restaurant was created in 1993 by the owner and head chef Nancy Oakes. The Boulevard restaurant has a dining room as well as a bar and lounge. In order to eat in the dining room, you have to have reservations. Their private dining space was beautiful and quiet. We celebrated our 10th anniversary in the perfect setting without any distractions. Here, the menu includes advertisers, entrees, and desserts. I chose the king crab tagliatelle with cordyceps mushrooms and chanterelle beurre fondu. I highly recommend the dish. It was one of those dishes that you want more of even though you cleaned your plate.


Spruce

3640 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA 94118
Phone: 415-931-5100
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Spruce is an exciting restaurant. Esquire Magazine has recognized it as the “Best New Restaurant in America.” It holds the “Grand Award” for Wine Spectator in the Food & Wine Magazine. It was definitely a restaurant we wanted to try. Spruce serves California-inspired cuisine and focuses on creating those dishes from foods that are in season. If you are in the mood for a salad, I highly recommend their crispy chicken salad.  It comes with pear, avocado, and toasted pistachios. It’s a light and airy delight that’s also filling. One dish that was new to me was the s’mores cake. It was basically a graham cracker with toasted marshmallow and ice cream. It was simply delicious to the point that I tried to remake it at home. At Spruce, you can buy out the restaurant to host a private event.  We, however, were seated in the Siraga room. 


Harris’ Restaurant

2100 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109
Phone: 415-673-1888
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Harris’ Restaurant is a steakhouse that has a bar and piano lounge. It was opened in 1984 by Ann Lee Harris. Her goal was to create a space for the community that was elegant and enjoyable for tourists and natives alike. Michael Buhagiar is part owner and chef of the establishment and started with Ann back in 1984. The beef here comes from Kansas and Nebraska and is aged for three weeks at the restaurant. I’m not a big steak fan, so I ordered the Dungeness crab cakes with deep-fried onion rings.  They were the best crab cakes I’d ever had. There’s not much to say about the onion rings other than they were spot on with the crab cakes. The restaurant features three different private dining options.  One of the rooms includes a library which is a new experience.  We were lucky enough to participate in a rehearsal dinner in the Skylight Dining room.  We reveled over the customer service and private bar.


Wayfare Tavern

558 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: 415-772-9060
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The Wayfare Tavern is a great place to order a full-course meal and have it delivered to your home. It is located near the historical landmark 819, which is Hudson’s Bay Company site. The Hudson Bay Company was created in 1841 by William G. Rae. If you’re in this area, definitely stop by to take in what used to be a fur trading company. If you are in San Francisco on Thanksgiving, you can order a full course meal to enjoy in your hotel. I don’t mean the traditional turkey and stuffing. I mean salmon, mashed potatoes, fried chicken, and burgers. The salmon and mashed potatoes are my number one recommendation. Wayfare Tavern has three dedicated private dining spaces, one of which includes a pool table.


Angler

132 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-872-9442
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The Angler is my kind of restaurant because it features seafood and food preparation made by an expansive wood-burning hearth. Joshua Skenes is the head chef of this San Francisco Bay waterfront restaurant. All of the seafood is locally caught to ensure you are getting the freshest fish they have to offer.  The menu changes daily based on what’s available. My partner loves tuna. It’s his number one choice of fresh fish. We were amazed to see that they offered it on their menu. The tuna steak was delicious and served with slowly grilled hen of the woods mushrooms. I recommend the tuna steak even if you’ve never had tuna before. If you’ve only had canned tuna, it doesn’t count. Angler has a number of private dining spaces, all with views of the San Francisco Bay.


Leo’s Oyster Bar

568 Sacramento St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: 209-459-8335
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Leo’s Oyster Bar is only open four hours Monday through Friday. The design of the building is truly unique. It’s often described as “1950’s Beverly Hills meets Manhattan club”. I certainly can’t argue with that. It looks like something out of a movie that you can’t help but take pictures of. Leo’s features a raw bar conservatory, beer, and cocktails. If oysters are your thing, I recommend you try Leo’s Oyster Bar.  It won’t disappoint in good eats and atmosphere. The restaurant even offers takeout and private dining options. Their lobster roll and french fries is a dish you will want to try before leaving the city.

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Nari

1625 Post St, San Francisco, CA 94115
Phone: 415-868-6274
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Nari is a Thai restaurant that also sprinkles in ideas of modern Californian cuisine. Nari is the Sanskrit word for “women” and Chef and owner Pim Techamuanvivits’ way of paying homage to women who created the path for creating Thai cuisine. I started off with a busaba cocktail, a mixture of sour cherry gin, pineapple, yuzu, lemongrass, and soda. It’s not like anything I’ve tasted before. It was terrific. I recommend the beverage. My entree was the Kua Kling moo which is pork spare ribs with southern curry paste and makrut.  This was my adventure from seafood, and it was really yummy. Nari’s offers two private dining options. We chose the Wine room because it gave us a direct view of the kitchen. It was fun to watch the frenzy of the staff as they prepared orders.


Epic Steak

369 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
Phone: 415-369-9955
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Epic Steak is a contemporary waterfront steakhouse run by executive chef Parke Ulrich. It’s a beautiful place to dine in because of the available views of the waterfront and the bay bridge. You can even enjoy them on their heated outdoor patio. Sometimes you just get in the mood for something traditional. When I went to the Epic Steakhouse, that’s exactly how I ordered. I got the steakhouse cheeseburger with bacon and steak fries. The burger hit the spot. It was one of those enjoyable meals that put me to sleep an hour after. I recommend you try it and don’t forget the bacon. Private dining at the Epic steakhouse is a dreamy experience.  Their Bay room has a dedicated kitchen and chef.


The Cavalier

360 Jessie St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Phone: 415-321-6000
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The Cavalier is a restaurant that features upscale British cuisine. Executive chef Jennifer Puccio manages it. It’s located across from the Hotel Zetta in the SoMA neighborhood. It’s another one of those restaurants you want to be near if you are in San Francisco on Thanksgiving. I was really in the mood for a country meal that reminded me of home, so I ordered the roasted half chicken with grilled broccolini, kale, and butter beans. It was so warming, comforting, and filling. I finished it off with sticky toffee bread pudding. The pudding was another dish to die for. They top it with coffee ice cream. Get this; we were able to enjoy it in a private booth with a dedicated bar and restroom. We even had a private entrance.


Fiorella

Multiple locations
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Fiorella is an Italian restaurant created in 2015 when Brandon and Boris had an idea to start a wood-fired pizza shop that featured fresh ingredients. They brought their dream to life with Fiorella. I’ve always loved Italian, but trying pizza from Fiorella’s gives your perception of Italian a facelift. One pizza on their menu is the funghi pie. It features oysters, cremini mushrooms, rosemary, garlic, crescenza, and fontina. My partner placed our order, and when the pizza arrived, I knew I was in for a new experience. All hail the funghi pizza!  It’s unforgettable, fresh, and filling at the same time.  Fiorella’s offers private dining and restaurant buyouts for larger crowds.


Acquerello

1722 Sacramento Street NEAR VAN NESS &, Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109
Phone: 415-567-5432
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Acquerello is another Italian restaurant that’s operated by executive chef Suzette Gresham and owner Giancarlo Paterlini. So far, they have received two Michelin stars and held the Wine Spectator Grand Award from 2012 to 2019. The restaurant is located near the historic Painted Ladies’ colorful Victorian houses. The menu at the Acquerello changes based on seasonal foods and the chef’s personal creations. At the time, we were able to try Brent Wolfe’s quail. It was served with mushrooms and cabbage. The dish was seasoned with a honey sauce. If this is on the menu when you visit them, go for it, you won’t regret it. What I liked about Acquerello’s private dining was that they offered floral arrangements and audio-visual equipment. It seats up to 14 people and is a perfect option for family gatherings.


Delancey Street Restaurant

600 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94107
Phone: 415-512-5179
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The Delancey Street Restaurant is a restaurant that serves multicultural comfort food. It’s a restaurant that you must experience, primarily because of its back story. First, the restaurant serves as a training school of the Delancey Street Foundation. It is the most prominent self-help organization that works to help people rebuild their lives. The restaurant was designed by Delancey residents and has an ever-changing menu. The reviews spoke highly of their barbeque ribs, and that’s what we wanted to try. If you’ve ever heard about the barbeque ribs that have been marinated and cooked until they are so tender that the meat falls off the bone, you can actually try some here. They have two private dining options that seat between 24 and 40 individuals.

See also  Where to Get Delicious BBQ Food in San Francisco

Perbacco

230 California St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: 415-955-0663
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Perbacco is an Italian restaurant that features the tastes of Piemont, Liguria, and Provence. Staffan Terje is the chef, and Umberto Gibin is the owner. Perbacco is also near the Ferry Building. As I mentioned before, I love Italian. I love the meats, the cheeses, and the pasta. So I was excited to try Perbacco’s. Since it was only lunchtime, we opted to share a delicious agnolotti da plin. It is pasta stuffed with meat, vegetables, and cabbage. It reminded us of an eggroll because of the stuffing, but it was totally different in regards to texture and taste. Perbacco’s private dining experience was semi-private for us because our group was only 10 people. However, they offer restaurant buy-outs and dedicated spaces that seat up to 250 guests.


Piperade

1015 Battery St, San Francisco, CA 94111
Phone: 415-391-2555
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The Piperade is a restaurant that features French, Spanish, and Basque cuisine. It was created by chef Gerald Hirigoyen and his wife, Cameron. Piperade is actually the name of a ham stew with garlic and poached egg. The lunch menu at the Piperade includes dishes such as seared octopus, garlic soup, and stuffed piquillo peppers. I opted for the garlic soup. Yes, it has shrimp, but it was still an adventure for me because it also had bacon and egg. To my surprise, it was really tasty. The way the flavors mixed together made it a truly unforgettable dish. The Lauburu private room was a beautiful space that featured a wine wall.


MKT Restaurant and Bar

757 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94103
Phone: 415-633-3838
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The MKT Restaurant and Bar features American cuisine and sources its food ingredients from the Bay Area. The kitchen is guided by Executive chef Cyrille Pannier and his team. The restaurant is open between 6 pm and 10 pm daily. The San Francisco Louis Salad was an unforgettable, tasty experience. The salad contained shrimp and crab, lettuce, boiled egg, olives, and the yummy Louis dressing. What makes this restaurant different from the others is that it’s inside of the Four Seasons Hotel. Their private dining spaces feature floor-to-ceiling windows.  It was such a lovely high view of the city.


Absinthe Brasserie & Bar

398 Hayes St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: 415-551-1590
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The Absinthe Brasserie & Bar restaurant is one of the oldest places to dine in San Francisco. It offers French Brasserie fare and a warm France atmosphere. The restaurant was founded in 1998. It’s a tourist and local favorite. We found it because of all the positive reviews. I ordered the trout salad sandwich. I grew up eating trout. It was my dad’s favorite fish. So I knew the trout would be good, but I didn’t expect it to be that good! It was yummy. It had a nice smoked flavor served with a dill pickle. You get to choose between fries or a side salad as a side. Of course, I chose the fries. It is best to utilize private dining at this restaurant because you not only get a separate entrance, but there is a private bar, coat room, and restroom.


Gary Danko

800 North Point St, San Francisco, CA 94109
Phone: 415-749-2060
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Gary Danko’s is a French restaurant that had earned 12 Five Diamond ratings from AAA. Gary Danko believes that you don’t just open a restaurant. You constantly work at it to make it better.  Their menu is full of appetizers and entrees to satisfy any preference. In fact, it took me some time to figure out what I wanted. As you know, I was on the fence between seafood, chicken, and dessert. My goal is to order something I don’t eat at home or that I can’t make myself. So I opted for the quail stuffed with sweet potato and finished it off with roasted caramel pears with gingerbread and nutmeg ice cream truffle. I did feel guilty after eating that meal, but It was worth it. Gary Danko’s private dining room seats up to 8 guests.  I love that there is staff dedicated to the private parties.  The care and customer service they provide were excellent.


Mastro’s Steakhouse

399 Geary St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Phone: 415-363-9539
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Mastro’s Steakhouse is dubbed as one of the top 10 steakhouses in the United States. I am not much on steak, but we decided to visit with a reputation like that and my partner’s love for steak.  It is an upscale restaurant, meaning you have to dress up. No sneakers or beanies are allowed. The steakhouse is located near Frank Lloyd Wright’s Spiral Interior Historical Landmark. It’s a fantastic place to visit. It is the miniature version of Wright’s plans for the Guggenheim Museum in New York City. We started with a shrimp cocktail as an advertiser and shared a lobster mac & cheese. I’ve only had this dish a few times, but I must say that Mastro’s serves it best.  I definitely recommend private dining for this restaurant because it’s so upscale and works well with formal events.

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Written by Brian Nagele

Brian attended West Virginia University, then started his career in the IT industry before following his passion for marketing and hospitality. He has over 20 years experience in the restaurant and bar industry.

As a former restaurant owner, he knows about running a food business and loves to eat and enjoy cocktails on a regular basis. He constantly travels to new cities tasting and reviewing the most popular spots.

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