Aphotic (restaurant)

Aphotic
Interactive map of Aphotic
Restaurant information
EstablishedMarch 21, 2023 (2023-03-21)
ClosedDecember 21, 2024 (2024-12-21)
ChefPeter Hemsley
Pastry chefDeirdre Balao Rieutort-Louis
Food typeSeafoods
Rating1 Michelin star 1 Michelin green star
Location816 Folsom Street, San Francisco, California, 94107
Coordinates37°46′55″N 122°24′07″W / 37.782°N 122.402°W / 37.782; -122.402
Websiteaphoticrestaurant.com

Aphotic was a seafood restaurant on Folsom Street in the SoMa neighborhood of San Francisco, California, with one Michelin star. It opened in March 2023 and closed in December 2024.

Cuisine

Named for the deepest ocean layer, Aphotic was primarily a seafood restaurant. It served a seasonal 11-course tasting menu, and desserts included oyster-flavored icecream.[1][2][3][4] The restaurant created sauce by fermenting bones and other unused parts of fish with salt and koji, and dry aged much of its fish.[1]

Aphotic also had a distillery license and produced spirits using a rotovap, including gin infused with seaweed that is used in its martinis. It offered an extensive cocktail menu alongside its wine list.[5][6][7][8][9] Aphotic's martini was one of three San Francisco versions listed in a 2024 Esquire "best of America" article.[10] The non-alcoholic drinks were also seafood-related, including a zero-proof vermouth and sweet cider cocktail with a dot of uni on the glass for aroma, and a seaweed cream soda.[9]

Reviewers noted that the restaurant's decor was very dark, in keeping with the deep undersea theme.[9] In 2023, the Michelin Guide characterized it as a "rarified pescatarian tasting menu that abounds with personality", served in a "vast, tenebrous space",[5][11] and a San Francisco Chronicle review as "groundbreaking seafood" served in a "drowned temple in the dark ocean".[2]

History

Hemsley, who had worked at Quince, opened Aphotic in March 2023 in a former warehouse; he had previously operated Palette, a restaurant and art gallery, at the same location.[1][5][12] The following July it was awarded a Michelin star[2][11] together with a green star for sustainability.[13][14] The California Michelin Guide reviewers also selected pastry chef Deirdre Balao Rieutort-Louis' oyster icecream as one of their favorite desserts of 2023.[4][15] In 2024, Trevin Hutchins, the bar director, received the Michelin "exceptional cocktails" award.[5][16]

In October 2024, Hemsley announced that the restaurant would close on December 21, blaming lack of traffic and unsafety in the neighborhood since the COVID-19 pandemic.[5][9][17][18][19] In late 2025, he announced he would open a cocktail bar called Jupiter Room.[4][20]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Mario Cortez (March 17, 2023). "S.F.'s moody new seafood restaurant is putting fish in everything, even dessert". San Francisco Chronicle.
  2. 1 2 3 Cesar Hernandez (November 1, 2023). "How good is S.F.'s newest Michelin-starred restaurant? The seafood might change your life". San Francisco Chronicle.
  3. ↑ Lauren Saria (March 29, 2023). "Take a Deep Dive Into the Menu at SoMa's Fancy New Seafood Restaurant Aphotic". Eater San Francisco.
  4. 1 2 3 Tara Duggan (April 20, 2026). "This rule-breaking S.F. pastry chef puts oysters and chicken in her desserts — and makes it work". San Francisco Chronicle.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Elene Kadvany (October 4, 2024). "Chef will close Michelin-starred restaurant, citing 'desolate convention center suck hole' in downtown S.F." San Francisco Chronicle. [W]e all did this at the ugly butt end of a desolate convention center suck hole in the post-panny apocalypse.
  6. ↑ Mario Cortez (November 2, 2023). "Seaweed liquor? Green tea spirits? This S.F. restaurant makes them in-house". San Francisco Chronicle.
  7. ↑ Jillian Dara (December 6, 2023). "Aphotic Changes the Cocktail Game with their Sea-Inspired Beverage Program". Michelin Guide.
  8. ↑ Caleb Pershan; Cesar Hernandez; Janelle Bitker; Jess Lander (December 27, 2023). "The 14 best new bars in the Bay Area". San Francisco Chronicle.
  9. 1 2 3 4 MacKenzie Chung Fegan (October 8, 2024). "This S.F. restaurant earned a Michelin star in its first year. It wasn't enough". San Francisco Chronicle. The restaurant commits to the bit. It's dark, it's moody and almost everything you eat, including dessert, will be kissed by the sea.
  10. ↑ Nico Madrigal-Yankowski (February 20, 2024). "Esquire names 3 San Francisco martinis among the best in America". SFGate.
  11. 1 2 "Aphotic – San Francisco". Michelin Guide. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  12. ↑ Matt Charnock (March 27, 2023). "This SF Restaurant Owner Just Pulled a Beyoncé". Underscore SF.
  13. ↑ Madeline Wells (July 19, 2023). "I went to the California Michelin awards in Oakland and did caviar bumps with famous chefs". SFGate.
  14. ↑ "2023 Michelin Guide California Green Stars". Michelin Guide. July 18, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2024.
  15. ↑ Nancy DePalma (July 18, 2023). "Michelin Guide Inspectors' Favorite Desserts in California". Michelin Guide. Retrieved May 12, 2026.
  16. ↑ Madeline Wells (August 5, 2024). "3 SF restaurants snag first Michelin stars, one longtime spot loses its star". SFGate.
  17. ↑ Dianne de Guzman (October 4, 2024). "Michelin-Starred Fine Dining Restaurant Aphotic Announces It Will Close in December". Eater San Francisco.
  18. ↑ Madeline Wells (October 4, 2024). "'Miracles do not last forever': Michelin-starred SF restaurant announces closure". SFGate.
  19. ↑ Alex Baker (October 4, 2024). "Michelin starred restaurant trashes SF's SOMA in post announcing closure". KRON-TV.
  20. ↑ Astrid Kane (November 24, 2025). "Chef who ripped San Francisco plots his return". San Francisco Standard.
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