Michelin Guide Announces SF Bib Gourmand Picks for 2011

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The Michelin Guide 2011, which will be released in San Francisco next Tuesday, October 26, just pre-announced this year's list of Bib Gourmand picks. This initial offering includes the local inspectors' favorite affordable gems throughout the Bay Area. It includes former picks like Betelnut, Kokkari, FIVE in Berkeley and Sonoma's the girl + the fig along with 29 new additions like C Casa in Napa, Domo, Santi and Sons & Daughters. Supposedly, at all of these selections diners should expect to get two courses and one glass of wine for $40 or less before tax and tip. Though it can be hard at a couple of these. This year to drum up a little extra attention for the oft-overlooked Bib picks, six members of Team Michelin went to each and every of the 74 restaurants on the list throughout the night last night and put chalk drawings on their sidewalks (see the gallery above). Michelin Guide director Jean-Luc Naret, who recently announced he's moving on, explains to Eater that San Francisco was actually a global leader in value driven restaurants, "You can stretch your dining dollar in San Francisco, perhaps more than in any other city in the world,” he says. “Starred restaurants earn an outsized share of the attention every year, but those restaurants only represent 10 percent of those included in our guides. The Bib Gourmands deliver everyday excellence at a reasonable price. And they can be found throughout this entire region.” That said, The MICHELIN Guide San Francisco, Bay Area & Wine Country 2011 covers a wider geographic region than most of its peers, stretching from Los Gatos in the south to Geyserville in the north.

He also adds that some of his personal favorite Bib Gourmand picks this year are Hibiscus in Oakland, Kabab and Curry's in Santa Clara and Slanted Door in San Francisco, where he says he'll dine when he arrives in San Francisco next week.

The full list is below and -- with a bit more info -- here:

A 16
BarBersQ
Bay Wolf
Bellanico
Betelnut
Bistro Aix*
Bistro Jeanty*
Bistro 29*
Bottega*
Brown Sugar Kitchen
Burma Superstar
Café des Amis*
Cafe Gibraltar
Camino
C Casa*
Chapeau! *
Chevalier
Chu*
Coa*
Colibrí
Cook St. Helena
Corso
Crouching Tiger
Cucina Paradiso
Delarosa*
Delfina
Domo*
Dosa
eVe*
FIVE
flour + water
Gather*
Hachi Ju Hachi*
Henry’s Hunan
Hibiscus*
Hong Kong Flower Lounge
Incanto
Insalata’s
Kabab & Curry’s*
Kitchen (The)
K & L Bistro
Kokkari Estiatorio
La Costanera*
Laurus*
Le Charm
Mamacita
Marinitas
Market
Monti’s Rotisserie
Nopa
Oenotri*
Perbacco
Picán
Risibisi
Rivoli*
Sakae
Santi*
Sauce
Slanted Door (The)
Slow Club
Sociale
Sons & Daughters*
SPQR*
Starbelly*
Sumika*
Sushi Ran*
Tavern at Lark Creek
Thai House*
the girl & the fig
Troya*
Vanessa’s Bistro
Willi’s Wine Bar
Wood Tavern*
Yank Sing

* denotes a new addition

· Michelin Guide Director Stepping Down [~ ESF ~]
· All Previous Michelin Coverage [~ ESF ~]