The simple secret to these SF restaurants’ success? Family.

It’s a Thursday night at Chapeau on Clement Street, and the scene is so familial and wholesome, it almost seems like you’re a guest at someone’s house. Owner and executive chef Philippe Gardelle is standing at the door welcoming regular customers with hugs. “Do you want your usual table?” he asks in a thick French accent. His wife, Ellen Gardelle, delivers sugar-rimmed martini glasses to a table. “Earl Grey martini, my creation – I used all the alcohols,” she says with a conspiratorial smile.

Story continues

TRENDING NOW

LATEST LOCAL NEWS