Best San Francisco Restaurants Open On Thanksgiving

Situated in a beautiful original Art Deco building, the Elite Café has been serving outstanding food with the punch of New Orleans flavors since 1981. The restaurant's food quality and popularity have consistently been in the top range of the city's most beloved dining spots. Celebrating Thanksgiving at the Elite Café will add another dimension to the holiday table with a delicious twist on tradition. With all-American cornbread as a start, the Thanksgiving menu here offers choices in appetizers, entrees and desserts that include the traditional and more. Experience a classic Thanksgiving with a jazzed touch. View the menu here.

Palomino Restaurant & Bar
345 Spear St.
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 512-7400
www.palomino.com

Palomino Restaurant & Bar is a vibrant spot well known for its "Urban Italian" inspired and imaginative menu. A rotisserie famous for its hardwood-fired Mediterranean cooking, Palomino definitely satisfies the varied cravings of the city. Come celebrate Thanksgiving with Palomino's distinct twist on the traditional holiday dinner: slow-roasted turkey, apple-sausage stuffing, garlic herb mashed potatoes, herb-roasted vegetables and homemade cranberry sauce. Also available are Palomino's signature shareable and other menu entrée selections, including Tuscan filet mignon, rigatoni bolognese, asiago-almond crusted scallops, rotisserie prime rib and more. Reservations come in fast so the restaurant encourages guests to book as early as possible; also included are three hours of free validated parking for guests. That's a deal.

Beach Chalet Brewery & Restaurant and Park Chalet Garden Restaurant
1000 Great Highway
San Francisco, CA 94121
(415) 386-8439
www.beachchalet.com

Located above the Golden Gate Park Visitor Center, the Beach Chalet Brewery & Restaurant, and Park Chalet Garden Restaurant greet guests with the marvelous, historic WPA frescoes created by renowned French artist Lucien Labaudt in the 1930s. The frescoes capture the incredible and whimsical art style of San Francisco in that era. Upstairs in the Beach Chalet, visitors will enjoy the modern American cuisine and hand-crafted ales served in this historic building, restored and remodeled to its original glory in 1997. On Thanksgiving, the Beach Chalet will serve one specialized a-la-carte menu that includes all of the traditional favorites, like turkey dinner and butternut squash soup, as well as several seasonally inspired creations. A selection of brunch items will be available too, plus a focus on local, fresh seafood items.

The adjoining Park Chalet will offer a traditional Thanksgiving buffet with "all the fixins" one would expect including a carving station with prime rib and Kentucky ham, as well as turkey and sweet potato pie, warm puffed hominy and cheese and many other traditionally inspired offerings. Check the website for further details.

A longtime Financial District favorite for lunch meetings, terrific happy hours and fine dining, Palio d'Asti is proud to say it has been serving the area for over 20 years and is still going strong. Also known as a preferred private dining and special events venue, Palio d'Asti always seems to have something going on, from power breakfasts and lunches and all-day meetings, to cocktail receptions and private event dinners. Continuing in its celebratory style, Palio d'Asti will offer its Thanksgiving Day dining, serving a family-style four-course prix fixe menu that highlights classic American traditional dishes with an Italian touch, such as a choice of braised turkey dark meat and gravy; roasted turkey breast and gravy; a mix of white and dark meat and gravy; or pumpkin ravioli with Brussels sprouts and Grana Padano. Visit the website to see the full menu.

Nominated for VegNews' 2013 Favorite Fancy Vegan Restaurant, Millennium Restaurant is dedicated to supporting organic food production, small farms and sustainable agriculture, along with the recycling and composting that are essential earthly concepts Millennium promotes. The restaurant cooks with fresh produce daily and chooses organic whenever possible. Dining at Millennium is proof that vegetarian, healthy and environmentally friendly foods can create a gourmet experience. Thanksgiving dinner at Millennium is a delicious take on American tradition. Chef Eric Tucker and his talented team create Millennium's meatless Thanksgiving dinner that incorporates the season's traditional ingredients of pumpkin, cranberries, chestnuts, mushrooms and the festive fall colors they bring to the holiday table.

Melanie Graysmith is a writer, artist and educator based in San Francisco. She writes on adult education, art and lifestyle topics, and enjoys writing short stories and poetry. She is also a member of an independent filmmaking group. Her work can be found at Examiner.com.