Charles Phan Opening a Second Restaurant on Pier 3

Phan, his real estate partner and an inspirational canoe.

By Meesha Halm

Looks like Charles Phan is poised to become the king of San Francisco’s waterfront. His flagship, perennially packed Vietnamese restaurant Slanted Door, is already one the city’s top-grossing restaurants and now word comes from the Phan family that he’s planning to open a second restaurant on Pier 3 just a few doors down on the Embarcadero.

Unlike his other ventures, which include Out the Door, Heaven’s Dog, Wo Hing General Store and as of last month, the Moss Room, the new 1,300-sq.-ft. restaurant and bar will not have an Asian slant but instead look toward the rich cocktail and Creole cuisine of New Orleans for its muse. That includes of course, lots of whiskeys and stirred drinks, which will be overseen by bar manager Erik Adkins, who’s worked with Phan for nine years.


The still unnamed bar-restaurant, projected to open in the summer of 2012 with design by his longtime architect collaborator Olle Lundberg, will be inspired by his salvaged canoe (shown in the picture) and is sure to feature views of both the Bay and the Embarcadero. It’s yet another feather in the cap of San Francisco’s developing waterfront, which now includes La Mar Cebicheria Peruana, Lafitte and Plant Cafe Organic, not to mention the popular über-foodie-friendly Ferry Building.