Maria Isabel Restaurant Opens in Presidio Heights From Star Chef Couple

The couple behind Dalida, the acclaimed pan-Middle Eastern restaurant in the Presidio, opened their second San Francisco restaurant on March 3, planting a pan-Mexican concept inside the former Ella's American Kitchen space at 500 Presidio Avenue in Presidio Heights.

Maria Isabel takes its name from Laura Ozyilmaz's mother, Isabel, and her sister, María, and from lyrics tied to the Acapulco of Laura's childhood. The menu draws on two Mexican coastal states: Guerrero, where Laura was born, and Sinaloa, where her father's roots lie. "My strongest childhood memories are sensory," Laura said. "Fresh-caught seafood. The smell of barbacoa and all the tropical flavors that come with the coast, like limes, herbs and chiles." Among the dishes at opening was an aguachile negro, ribbons of fish served in a dark sauce, visible in photos from the restaurant's debut service.

Sayat Ozyilmaz described the project as something more personal than an expansion of their culinary brand. "What I'm hearing from Laura is her ability to connect deeper with her culture," he said. "So it's not just us becoming a conduit for diners to connect with our cultures, but this whole exercise allows us to connect deeper with our upbringing, with our families, with the people that we loved and grew up with — and I'm just really excited about that for my wife."

The restaurant occupies a small footprint by design. The website describes "a handful of seats, exceptional attention to detail, and a pace that respects the pleasure of a lingering meal." Interior work was led by designer Jenne Wicht of JAK W, with Laura emphasizing lighting and acoustics to sustain an intimate atmosphere. Local artist Emily Parkinson, who previously painted a Presidio-focused flora-and-fauna mural at Dalida, was commissioned again to create a botanical mural highlighting Mexican biota for the new space.

The beverage program reflects the same regional specificity as the kitchen. Bar director Evan Williams built the spirits list around sotol, bacanora, raicilla, and lechuguilla, alongside gin and whiskey produced in Mexico. Wine director Jerry McGie sourced bottles from California, Mexico, and South America; at opening, the wines-by-the-glass list spotlighted exclusively female producers.

The ambition behind Maria Isabel carries clear market positioning. It aims, as SFist framed it, to do for mid-range Mexican fine dining what Californios did for the upper end of the dining spectrum more than a decade ago. That Dalida holds a Wine Spectator Best of Award of Excellence adds credibility to the couple's track record as they take on a second kitchen simultaneously. The two restaurants sit 1.4 miles apart, a roughly 30-minute walk up and down the neighborhood grid.

Maria Isabel is open Tuesday through Saturday, 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., at 500 Presidio Avenue. Reservations are available through OpenTable, and the restaurant can be reached at (415) 275-0075.