Diners were once regarded as a symbol of affordability, but the truth is that many in the Bay Area have increased prices to account for the rising costs of, well, everything, which means it’s not uncommon to find $20 breakfast plates. San Francisco has its fair share, but rarely does the city get new ones — much less ones that use higher quality ingredients, like Goldenette.
Opened last month, Goldenette is a diner in Polk Gulch from building owner Eddie Naser and chef Wes Rowe, previously of WesBurger n’ More, one of the early adopters of smashburgers in the Bay Area, which closed last year. Goldenette may not have the bargain prices of yore, but it succeeds at channeling the charm of a diner with plush booths and an easygoing vibe while utilizing ingredients like Benton’s bacon, Brandt beef, Point Reyes cheese and Panorama Bakery bread. Those improvements make it the city’s best new diner.
The vibe is not quite as retro as WesBurger, but you’ll usually find kids sipping milkshakes from fluted glasses, couples in their 30s indulging in burgers and solo diners on the bar gingerly peeling foil off of burritos. The interior shows more flair than the average retro refit, such as the gold penny tiles underneath the bar. Plates, dining room walls and even the toilet are tinted a pastel pink. (The restroom, it’s worth noting, features a floor made of epoxy and about 13 pounds of glitter — “I have a glitter lady now,” Rowe said.)…