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Two iconic culinary symbols leave San Francisco at the start of 2026
Noe Padilla, USA TODAY
Tue, January 6, 2026 at 10:28 PM UTC
As the new year begins, residents of San Francisco will have to say goodbye to a few staples of the community.
After nearly a century, the Alioto name will no longer be associated with Fisherman's Wharf. And lovers of soufflés will no longer be able to enjoy the specialty of Café Jacqueline after its sudden closure over the holiday season.
'A changing of the guard': Café Jacqueline
For the last 46 years, soufflé lovers knew they would be taken care of at Café Jacqueline, one of San Francisco's staple restaurants. The cafe's owner, Jacqueline Margulis, 90, was known for cooking one type of dish — her specialty, the soufflé.
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"Café Jacqueline is a restaurant from another time, but for those who appreciate its eccentricities, it’s a total treasure. Savory and sweet soufflés big enough for two make up the entirety of the menu, but getting one requires endurance," reads a review of the restaurant on the Michelin Guide.
Perhaps that's why residents were confused when Margulis' cafe at 1454 Grant Ave. appeared to be for sale on the Compass real estate website.
"Truly a changing of the guard," wrote listing agent Steven Gerry. "Not for sale in 40 years is the amazing and storied business Café Jaqueline."
USA TODAY attempted to reach out to Margulis for comment, but she could not be reached at the time of publication.
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"The cafe is closed," Margulis said in a voicemail recording. "Please do not leave a request for a reservation at this time. We will post more information in the new year. Happy holidays, merci."
Margulis told the San Francisco Chronicle that she had been considering retiring from the business for months, but decided to close the cafe after her sole server had a family emergency.
Café Jacqueline's final day of service was on Dec. 20, 2025, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
Alioto's sign leaves Fisherman's Wharf
For decades, the neon-lit fish sign and green letters that spelled out Alioto's were a staple of Fisherman's Wharf and welcomed steady streams of guests into the famous seafood restaurant.
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The restaurant closed in 2020 due to the pandemic. But even after its closure, the Alioto's sign remained at Fisherman's Wharf.
But on Jan. 5, a demolition crew was seen dismantling and removing the restaurant's famous sign as it prepared to tear down the iconic building.
The demolition is part of Mayor Daniel Lurie's new plan to "reinvigorate the heart of Fisherman’s Wharf," as part of the Fisherman’s Wharf Forward project, which was announced in September 2025.
“Our administration is creating a city where people want to live, work, and play. Fisherman’s Wharf is one of our most iconic San Francisco destinations and our most visited neighborhood — and our entire city benefits when our tourism sector thrives,” said Lurie in a September 2025 press release.
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As part of the project, developers plan to create a public plaza at the former Alioto’s site. The new plaza will have picnic tables, public seating facing the bay, a pop-up space for retail or beverage service, and signage highlighting the history of the Wharf, according to the Fisherman’s Wharf Forward project.
The Alioto name has been associated with Fisherman's Wharf for nearly a century, after Nunzio Alioto Sr., a Sicilian immigrant, opened his fish stand in 1925.
In 1932, Alioto built the first building on Fisherman's Wharf, which would come to define his family's legacy in San Francisco for nearly 100 years.
Noe Padilla is a Northern California Reporter for USA Today. Contact him at npadilla@usatodayco.com, follow him on X @1NoePadilla or on Bluesky @noepadilla.bsky.social.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Farewell to Bay Area icons Café Jacqueline and Alioto's restaurant