Like the adjacent Mission District, industrial SOMA has become a hot address in the last few years. While its dining options certainly aren't as concentrated as those in the Mission, a few enclaves, such as the Steuart Street strip, boast noteworthy restaurants.

The opening of the Sony Metreon center at Fourth and Mission caused quite a stir; the giant entertainment complex is host to a number of restaurants.

Boulevard
1 Mission Street
(415) 543-6084
Lunch, dinner
San Francisco gastronomes have been fans of Nancy Oakes' culinary talents since she opened her first restaurant, L'Avenue, in 1988.

Fifth Floor
12 Fourth Street
(415) 348-1555
Dinner
This quietly hip, retro eatery was one of the brightest openings of 1999.

Hawthorne Lane
22 Hawthorne Lane
(415) 777-9779
Lunch, dinner
This stylish SOMA restaurant feels like a true hideout—the entrance, off tiny Hawthorne Lane, is obscured by high brick walls.

Kyo-ya
2 New Montgomery Street
(415) 546-5090
Lunch, dinner
This elegant, austere restaurant in the Sheraton Palace Hotel serves some of the best sushi and sashimi in town.

Woodward's Garden
1700 Mission Street
(415) 621-7122
Dinner
Cozy, intimate, welcoming and unquestionably superb, Woodward's Garden is one of the city's most romantic restaurants.

XYZ
181 Third Street
(415) 817-7836
Breakfast, lunch, dinner
Apparently, someone felt that less was more when it came to naming the W Hotel and its restaurant, XYZ.

42 Degrees
235 16th Street
(415) 777-5559
Dinner
Tucked in an unpromising, deserted China Basin location, 42 Degrees is popular with a relentlessly hip crowd of young professionals.

Basil
1175 Folsom Street
(415) 552-8999
Lunch, dinner
While you won't find the blisteringly hot dishes typical of Thailand, everything here is carefully prepared and artfully served.

Bizou
598 Fourth Street
(415) 543-2222
Lunch, dinner
Chef/owner Loretta Keller seduces even the timid with such exotica as beef cheeks, parsnip chips and house-cured anchovies.

Cosmopolitan Cafe
121 Spear Street
(415) 543-4001
Lunch, dinner
A hip, jazzy, American-style eatery with the right music to boot.

Dine
662 Mission Street
(415) 538-3463
Dinner
Engaging heartland cuisine in a large and welcoming SOMA eatery.

Fringale
570 Fourth Street
(415) 543-0573
Lunch, dinner
Everything, from delicate green salads to sturdy racks of lamb, is precisely prepared and artfully unadorned.

Le Charm
315 Fifth Street
(415) 546-6128
Lunch, dinner
The restaurant is set on a charmless industrial street in SOMA, but inside it evokes a traditional bistro feel.

Manora's
1600 Folsom Street
(415) 861-6224
Lunch, dinner
A quietly elegant restaurant serving innovative and affordable Thai cuisine.

Paragon
701 Second Street
(415) 537-9020
Lunch, dinner
A competent ballpark restaurant without the buffalo wings or doofy good cheer.

Pazzia Caffe and Trattoria
337 Third Street
(415) 512-1693
Lunch, dinner
A scattering of tables and banquettes and a homey collection of Italian travel posters give this small trattoria a friendly and casual air.

Red Herring
155 Steuart Street
(415) 495-6500
Lunch, dinner
Menu headings might sound cutesy ("Chum," "Bait," etc.) but with chef James Ormsby in charge, you can bet the food is all business.

Restaurant LuLu
816 Folsom Street
(415) 495-5775
Lunch, dinner
Simply put, San Franciscans are in love with LuLu.

Thirsty Bear Brewing Company
661 Howard Street
(415) 974-0905
Lunch, dinner
The industrial-chic space is populated by a decidedly urban clientele who come here as much for the food as they do for the well-crafted microbrews.