Bistro remix

Bon Délire, Embarcadero

RESTAURANTS • First Person

There’s much to discuss about French restaurants’ rise (Le Parc Bistrobar, Galinette, Verjus) and fall (Monsieur Benjamin, Petit Crenn) in San Francisco this year, but the cool new bistro that’s taken over the conversation is Bon Délire, which popped open on the waterfront last month. 

Its founder, Kais Bouzidi, also owns Mediterranean Sens and Middle Eastern Barcha, two solid, downtown happy hour and lunch options. Both of those places reflect Bouzidi’s family roots (his dad was born in Tunisia), but this spot calls back to Bouzidi’s childhood in Paris, running around his family’s creperie and watching rap videos. 

Executive chef Vernon Morales (Sens, Barcha) and chef de cuisine Te’Sean Glass (Angler, Saison) have assembled a menu that delivers on bistro classics. There are leeks vinaigrette as well as oeufs mayonnaise with baby shrimp tucked underneath and caviar dotted on top to start the show. The steak frites involve eight ounces of New York strip, slender fries, and sauce poivre. Comté cheese bubbles out of the croque madame, and you can make it rain by adding shaved truffles. For dessert, the charms of warm madeleines or custardy pain perdu are hard to resist.  

Bon Délire took over its space from Charles Phan’s short-lived whiskey bar Hard Water, retaining its iconic horseshoe bar, where you can ease into the night with a Kir Royale or Boulevardier. The wine list swings from France to California, and sommelier Patrick Thillard (native of Toulouse, owner of the late Bask), can recommend an intriguing pet nat.

What Bouzidi believes will set Bon Délire apart from all these other bistros is the vibe. He built a DJ booth into a front corner, spinning his favorite hip hop, and installed a movie projector that beams Parisian scenes onto the back wall. On a recent Thursday night, the doors never stopped swinging. –Becky Duffett

→ Bon Délire (Embarcadero) • Pier 3, Ste 102 • Lunch 1130a-230p, happy hour 330-530p, dinner 5-930p daily • Reserve.