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Benu
Korean
A courtyard full of earthenware crocks, each housing a different fermentation experiment, is how Corey Lee introduces himself before you've touched a menu. Benu is a tasting menu restaurant in SoMa holding three Michelin stars, and the dining room's monastic quiet makes the food's color and technical audacity land harder. Lee's Korean roots fold into California's pantry across a long, ever-changing progression where restraint does more work than flash.
Nine honors, in evidence:
The record strongest first
- Michelin Guide 3 Stars
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Five Star
- AAA Five Diamonds
- 50 Best #33 · North America's 50 Best Restaurants
- 50 Best Estrella Damm Chefs' Choice Award 2026 · North America's 50 Best Restaurants · Corey Lee
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle #17 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Best fine dining restaurants in San Francisco Bay Area
One number, weighted & current 98
How we scoreThe dishes from the writeups
- Marinated mussel San Francisco Chronicle, 2026
- Roasted quail Michelin Guide
- Pheasant gun-mandu Michelin Guide
Nearby in the record closest first
- W San Francisco Stay · 79
- Equator Coffees Eat · 93
- Shoji Japanese Eat · 78
- San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Do · 62
- Cafe du Soleil French Eat · 65
- The St. Regis Hotel San Francisco Stay · 95
- Outset Coffee Eat · 62
- Komakase Coffee Eat · 65
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