Press enter or click to view image in full sizeMaybeck’s muhammara and crudite (Photo: Courtesy Virginia Miller)
Maybeck’s opened in 2016 in the Marina as essentially a renamed Spaghetti Bros. restaurant, going for modern “red sauce” Italian food. I still remember their spumoni ice cream. The restaurant wasn’t exactly worth crossing neighborhoods for but it was solid, and has been closed in pandemic not just for a refresh but a complete rebirth and ownership change, despite keeping the name.
I was excited to see it moving hands to Lori Baker and Jeffrey (Jeff) Banker of the former Baker & Banker (one of my top 10 openings of 2010 and a place I still miss). They partnered with Maybeck’s chef-owner Aaron Toensing and gifted chef de cuisine Glen Schwartz (most recently at Copas but also killed it at The Douglas Room, which I also miss). Toensing worked with Bruce Hill restaurants from Fog City to the great Bix (where he met Baker and, in fact, introduced her to Jeff Banker!) Banker has cooked from LA to Venezuela, and for over two decades in SF.
Reopening June 30, 2022, Maybeck’s bones are the same but the feel is totally different. In soothing, cool blues and greens, banquettes, a pressed tin ceiling and separate sections of the dining room are centered by a dramatic horseshoe bar with copper bar top. On a Tuesday night, the space exuded warm neighborhood feels with numerous guests lingering well over two hours, a couple…
Dining and Cooking