The Bottom Line
Chef David Gingrass decided it was time to re-invent his Hawthorne Lane restaurant. The result is Two, a warm and inviting space with some tasty menu items and the perfect location in SoMa. The name derives from the fact that the restaurant has two chefs, and it's the second restaurant at 22 Hawthorne Lane.
Pros
- Warm bamboo and gold decor
- Varied menu
- Fast service and refills on bread and beverages
- Full bar menu available all day
- Easily Accessed SoMa location
Cons
- Smaller space, reservations recommended (back room not yet reopened for service)
Description
- Address: 22 Hawthorne Street (at Howard)
Parking: Valet for $10
Reservations (via Open Table) - Telephone:(415) 777-9779
Driving Directions - Public Transit
- BART Station: Montgomery
- Muni Station: Montgomery
- Bus Lines
- #9X,9AX,9BX (Formerly #15)
- #30 Stockton
- #45 Union-Stockton
- #10 Townsend
- Public Transit Information
- Lunch Hours
- Mon to Fri: 11:30a - 2:00p
- Dinner Hours
- Everyday: 5:30p - 10:00p
Guide Review - Two Restaurant - Review
Ambiance
The first thing you notice – if you’re not too hungry to blitz right by -- is the landscaping outside Two’s front door: bronze ant sculptures crawling across a pile of smooth stones.
Inside, the organic theme continues with bamboo paneling and coconut lamps, which could almost be described as “tiki” if tiki didn’t have such amusement park connotations. The atmosphere is elegant and warm. Had it not been for a post-meal meeting, my lunch companion and I would have lingered and enjoyed.
Tropical Iced Tea
For all of you tropical iced tea fans, Two has a lovely, unsweetened blend. Iced-tea lovers fall into two camps: traditional black tea purists and flavored iced tea hybrids. I’ll drink either but am partial to tropical – a hold-over from my time in L.A., I suppose --so it’s always a treat for me to find it in San Francisco restaurants.
Menu
Everything we tried was tasty, from the grilled Dungeness crab to the caramelized Brussels sprouts. The latter dish made a Brussels sprouts lover out of a former Brussels sprouts hater.The menu ranges from appetizers like clam chowder, to black olive and goat cheese pizza, on up to carnivorous choices like New York strip and roasted pork.
The Bar
Two has specialty cocktails and a nice wine list. Choose from a decent selection of wines by the glass or a more extensive range of wine by the bottle. A nice twist: the wine menu includes a “Fifty Under Fifty” price-range category.
The bar itself is centered in the room, with space to perch, chat and count the shards of coconut used to construct the unique lamps.
Great Service
On the day we were there, the service was exceptional and friendly. We trickled in at the tail end of a busy lunch hour and our server was anything but frazzled. The host staff was also exemplary in dealing with a few tricky customer service situations we witnessed.
