Laura Ozyilmaz, one half of the fine dining chef couple behind the highly praised Dalida in San Francisco, has waited 10 years to cook the most cherished dishes of her childhood.
Growing up in Mexico’s coastal Guerrero state, her mother, Isabel, often made creamy octopus ceviches for the family for special occasions. Another favorite of Ozyilmaz, as well as her sister Maria, was tacos topped with milanesas — breaded, fried cutlets — which they often ate after school. “They’re the dishes that you maybe had once a week or saved for the weekend,” she said.
Ozyilmaz and her husband, Sayat Ozyilmaz, will open their latest restaurant, Maria Isabel, on March 3. Located at 500 Presidio Ave. in Lower Pacific Heights, it will pay homage to these special meals, as well as her mother and sister. Diners can expect a la carte offerings and a $90 tasting menu featuring Guerrero-style seafood and Mexican dishes informed by the owners’ experiences working at renowned fine dining restaurants, such as New York City’s Le Bernardin and Mexico City’s Pujol, combined with an appreciation for seasonal California produce.
Despite the long history of Mexican food in the Bay Area, upscale Mexican restaurants remain relatively rare; Oakland’s Bombera and San Francisco’s two-Michelin-starred Californios stand out among the few examples. But that could be changing: Oakland’s cheffy Tacos Oscarrecently expanded into San Francisco, bringing Dungeness crab tostadas and charred broccoli tacos to the city, while chef Gloria Dominguez, the owner of Oakland’s once bustling Tamarindo Antojeria, is gearing up to open her pan-regional restaurant Amado, in Burlingame. Artisan nixtamal outfit Bolita Masa, meanwhile, will soon open its first permanent location, Cafe Bolita, in the former Standard Fare space in Berkeley…