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Bon Appetit’s new Anecdote restaurant serves major multi-tenant life science campus

The two-story, 5,700 sq.ft. full-service waterfront eatery offers eclectic fare in its airy dining room and a small bites menu in its mezzanine-level cocktail bar offering with breathtaking views of the bay.

Mike Buzalka, Executive Features Editor

August 2, 2022

3 Min Read
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Serving as culinary anchor for South San Francisco’s billion-dollar Kilroy Oyster Point (KOP) project is Anecdote, a new two-story, 5,700-sq.ft. waterfront restaurant boasting a full-service dining room and a mezzanine-level cocktail bar offering with breathtaking views of San Francisco Bay. Designed to serve as an amenity for the surrounding 50-acre sustainable KOP waterfront revitalization development that is one of the largest planned life science campuses in the U.S., Anecdote is the product of a partnership between Bon Appétit Management Co. and real estate developer Kilroy Realty Corp. and the latest iteration of a Bon Appetit initiative to serve multi-tenant corporate sites with dining venues that operate as combination corporate cafes and public restaurants.

Anecdote is part of a planned commercial hub at KOP that will also include an abundance of outdoor amenities, new ferry terminals for waterway access on the Bay, a boutique hotel, parks that appeal to tenants and locals alike and connection to the San Francisco Bay Trail, a planned 500-mile walking and cycling path around the entire San Francisco Bay running through all nine Bay Area counties, 47 cities, and seven toll bridges.

Led by Bon Appétit Culinary Director Robbie Lewis (Chez Panisse, Boulevard, Rubicon, 42 Degrees, The Village Pub, Jardinière) and mixologist/bar consultant Enrique Sanchez (Bacar, Lulu Restaurant, Range, Tres Agaves, Beretta, La Mar Cebichería, Frescas Restaurants), Anecdote invites guests to linger over eclectic fare in its airy dining room or steal away for happy hour upstairs in the mezzanine-level “bar a” cocktail bar with its menu of small bites and breathtaking views of the bay.

Related:Bon Appetit grows public restaurant portfolio in B&I locations

Reflecting the ongoing sustainability focus of both Bon Appetit and Kilroy, Anecdote’s everything-from-scratch kitchen prioritizes environmental impact, local producers and traceable sourcing, turning out such diverse lunch offerings as Cajun salmon tacos, a blackened wild salmon sandwich, cocina milonga empanadas and an Anecdote panzanella salad. Breakfast specialties range from the smoked Passmore Ranch rainbow trout bagel, an egg and Niman Ranch bacon hand pie, the Anecdote breakfast sandwich with scrambled cage-free eggs and an assortment of pastries from Panorama Bakery.

The concept debuted with weekday breakfast and lunch service alongside a Thursday evening Happy Hour but plans to expand its hours and operation with the future development of the Kilroy Oyster Point campus, which is currently 100% leased in phase one and has broken ground on phase two.

Designed by Seattle-based SkB Architects, the restaurant's waterfront footprint and geographical context informed the design direction and works of art. SkB channeled the ease of coastal lifestyle and sourced materials from local area purveyors. Elements such as rope detailing at various scales, buoy-inspired fixtures, and brass hardware are carefully layered to create an airy, laid-back environment. Kilroy's art consultancy partner, DPA Fine Art Consulting, commissioned the restaurant’s impressive art program featuring site-specific works by renowned artists such as Molly Hatch, Emma Larson, Andrea Chung, and Moss & Lam. With a capacity for approximately 200 guests, a deliberate mix of seating offers casual dining, private dining, bar and open kitchen seating.

About the Author

Mike Buzalka

Executive Features Editor, Food Management

Mike Buzalka is executive features editor for Food Management and contributing editor to Restaurant Hospitality, Supermarket News and Nation’s Restaurant News. On Food Management, Mike has lead responsibility for compiling the annual Top 50 Contract Management Companies as well as the K-12, College, Hospital and Senior Dining Power Players listings. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in English Literature from John Carroll University. Before joining Food Management in 1998, he served as for eight years as assistant editor and then editor of Foodservice Distributor magazine. Mike’s personal interests range from local sports such as the Cleveland Indians and Browns to classic and modern literature, history and politics.

Mike Buzalka’s areas of expertise include operations, innovation and technology topics in onsite foodservice industry markets like K-12 Schools, Higher Education, Healthcare and Business & Industry.

Mike Buzalka’s experience:

Executive Features Editor, Food Management magazine (2010-present)

Contributing Editor, Restaurant Hospitality, Supermarket News and Nation’s Restaurant News (2016-present)

Associate Editor, Food Management magazine (1998-2010)

Editor, Foodservice Distributor magazine (1997-1998)

Assistant Editor, Foodservice Distributor magazine (1989-1997)

 

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