How to Feast for Easter in San Francisco in 2021

Pandemic Easter, take two, has some fresher menus than last year, when the city was recently locked down and still reeling. We’ve come a long way, and this year, it does feel like spring is breaking ground, as San Francisco begins its move toward the orange tier, eases up restrictions for indoor and outdoor dining, and many restaurants are coming out of winter hibernations. Whether you feel comfortable full-on sitting down for a decadent brunch or roast dinner or would prefer to do takeout pastries and chocolates, there are some fun specials hopping around town. Here’s where to feast for Easter in San Francisco.

Eggy brunch from the Vault Garden

The massive outdoor dining space at the foot of the Bank of America building is serving up outdoor reservations for a decadent brunch. It’s a prix fixe menu for three courses, starring truffled deviled eggs, ruby red shrimp eggs benny, carrot cake doughnuts, and more ($49 per person, $25 option for kids, reserve online).

Afternoon tea from Proper Hotel

Villon, the glamorous lounge off the lobby of the Proper Hotel, is serving what they call an “Easter tea brunch.” It sounds like more of an afternoon tea, given it’s served from 1 to 5 p.m. in the afternoon and is decked out with sandwiches, sweets, and chocolates, just perhaps a little more robust with the addition of grilled lamb and minted peas ($75 per person, plus more if you require a glass of Champagne).

Egg pie and lamb pie from Maison Nico

The new epicerie with the mesmerizing pate en croute has got a couple of pastry-wrapped treats for the spring holiday: a special pate de pacques packed with pork, veal, and hard-boiled eggs, once forbidden during Lent, but now very exciting to cut into in a savory pie. They’re also swapping out duck for lamb and doing a lamb version of the stunning pithivier ($12 to $40 for the pate de paques, $100 for the lamb pithivier, preorder here).

Cassava

A racked-up roast feast from Cassava

The favorite neighborhood restaurant in the Outer Richmond area is serving up holiday takeout while they put the final touches on a new parklet. The Easter feast includes a rack of lamb, carrot-ginger soup, spring onion tartlette, and a bright purple ube sweet potato cake with honey and lavender ($195 for four people).

Baskets of baby bagels from Daily Driver

The bagelry slash creamery gets extra cute points for a big Easter basket filled with hard-boiled eggs for decorating, cookies, edible flowers, and half a dozen “bagelinos”! Which apparently are their new baby bagels, sized down for small children. This all obviously comes with cream cheese ($35 per basket.)

Socola Chocolatier

Mini chocolate bunnies from Socola Chocolatier

Hey, you know what’s cuter than a baby bunny? The baby chocolate bunnies from Socola, the sweet chocolate shop run by two sisters. They’ve also got speckled chocolate eggs, filled with mini chicks and flavored with raspberry and matcha. You do need to go pick them up, as these beautiful eggs are fragile. ($4.50 for mini bunnies, $28.95 for speckled eggs, preorder online.)

A “ginormous” chocolate egg from Lord Stanley

The Michelin-starred restaurant is of course serving up a proper roast dinner complete with lamb, asparagus, and peas ($325 for four people). But also, they’ve got Easter baskets stuffed with macarons, chocolate eggs, and marshmallow treats ($40), as well as a “ginormous” Easter egg that costs a mere $400. It’s 13.5 pounds of chocolate and can be filled “upon request,” if you want to ask the chef to stuff a birthday surprise or engagement ring in there.

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