Gachot Makes Over an Iconic San Francisco Steakhouse

On a typical evening in prohibition-era San Francisco, as fog shrouded the scandalous Barbary Coast, the ramshackle saloon run by Portuguese immigrant Isadore “Izzy” Gomez drew rowdy revelers from all walks of life. Hard-boiled sailors, local ruffians, and starving artists caroused shoulder-to-shoulder over hearty steaks and bathtub gin concoctions as dusty reed organs trilled cabaret tunes into the wee hours—an underworld character that even went on to inspire The Time of Your Life, the seminal William Saroyan play. Though the red light district is long gone and Izzy’s taproom shuttered in 1952, the infamous bootlegger’s communal spirit has lived on for nearly four decades at the beloved Marina District steakhouse that bears his name. 

The crown jewel in a culinary empire built by late restaurateur Sam DuVall, who opened 30 dining rooms over five decades, Izzy’s Steaks & Chops was envisioned as a veritable time machine back to its namesake’s watering hole thanks to an unfussy mélange of wood-paneled walls, tufted leather banquettes, private booths, and dim lighting. The steakhouse quickly became a Bay Area institution owing equally to the Mississippi-born impresario’s distinctive blend of French culinary finesse with Cajun-inspired flavors and the sense of warm familiarity he fostered with regulars. When he died, in 2020, his daughter Samantha Bechtel, managing partner of his DuVall Family Hospitality Group, took the helm to preserve her father’s legacy.

The decades-old steakhouse was ripe for a refresh, so Bechtel approached the Galerie Creative Mind firm Gachot for the job. The New York City studio founded by husband-wife partners John and Christine Gachot fit the bill perfectly—their sumptuous interiors deftly mix warm minimalism with dashes of theatricality and nostalgia to momentous effect. At Izzy’s, they leaned into the latter to sustain that atmosphere of conviviality beloved by locals. “Our approach was to honor the generations of people who’ve celebrated life’s milestones at Izzy’s—birthdays, anniversaries, proposals, graduations—and what they’d want to come back to,” Christine tells Galerie. “We were careful to preserve the nostalgia that made the space special.”  

That meant respecting Izzy’s signatures—a moody palette, cozy wood elements, paneled walls—but with gentle updates. The Gachots refurbished the restaurant’s signature private booths, preserving their vintage appeal while adding sumptuous Burgundy Tiger Leather cushions. Beadboard paneling was reimagined in a black glossy finish applied to emulate a weathered patina. They replicated the original bar’s silhouette and rift-cut rails in dark-stained white oak, “salvaging components during disassembly and recreating the millwork with a more compact footprint,” explains Christine, who also restored its original milk glass pendants that cast a dreamy glow over the leathered-finish checkerboard marble floors.

New features never stray too far from Izzy’s original soul and spirit. The Gachots built an entirely new second-floor dining room outfitted with home-like touches such as a soapstone fireplace wall surrounded by dark-stained solid oak bookshelves. Guests are free to linger after dinner and enjoy a nightcap, especially on the two vintage-inspired suede armchairs. But the gallery wall backdropping the tables may prove more intoxicating. “After sifting through what felt like an endless amount of original collected memorabilia,” John tells Galerie, “we consolidated the collection and thoughtfully reframed the pieces in a gallery-style presentation.” It preserves Sam’s cherished collection of art, signage, and memorabilia culled from decades spent honing his culinary chops not only in the Bay Area, but on his extensive global travels. 

The menu will retain Izzy’s classics such as The Gomez, a luscious 10-ounce cut of prime rib served with cheddar potato gratin and creamed spinach. Other parts will be refreshed by newly minted executive chef Daniel Lucero, whose fine dining résumé began inside the kitchen of Chef Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bistro in Las Vegas and recently Chef Eric Upper’s former Afici in San Francisco, where he was chef de cuisine. Instead of a total overhaul, Lucero plans to build on fan favorites. Drunken prawns, traditionally prepared with rosemary butter and a beer glaze, will now come with grits to celebrate DuVall’s Southern roots. He’s also experimenting with house-made ravioli stuffed with slow-roasted prime rib and porcini mushrooms. 

But Izzy’s has always been about the crowd of regulars who enshrined the steakhouse—and its namesake—as a San Francisco institution. They’re honored in a breathtaking new mural that Gachot commissioned from artist Matthew Benedict, who specializes in historical paintings. Starting at the entrance and continuing throughout the bar to the dining room, the mural depicts the motley crew of personalities who frequented the saloon and steakhouse over the ages, including Izzy and Sam paired with characters from The Time of Your Life. “[He’s] a true historian,” John says of Benedict, who researched San Francisco lore extensively. “He’s remarkably talented at capturing moments and beautifully threading them together to tell a story.” With the redesign complete, its next chapter awaits.