What Che Fico does

Che Fico operates an Italian taverna restaurant and hospitality group headquartered at 838 Divisadero Street in San Francisco's Nopa neighborhood. Founded in 2018 by Executive Chef David Nayfeld and Matt Brewer under the Back Home Hospitality umbrella, the flagship restaurant offers handmade pasta, wood-fired pizzas, antipasti, housemade salumi, and a distinctive Cucina Ebraica (Jewish-Roman heritage) menu framed as "Italian cuisine through the lens of California." The culinary program is led by Chef Nayfeld (formerly of Eleven Madison Park and a 2023 James Beard Outstanding Chef semifinalist), Culinary Director Evan Allumbaugh, and Wine Director Jason Alexander. The group has expanded to include sister restaurant Che Fico Parco Menlo, retail market Il Mercato di Che Fico, and the forthcoming Che Fico Pizzeria, all operating under the Back Home Hospitality group with 11-50 total employees.

The business generates revenue across five primary streams: dine-in service (with a 5% SF Business Mandate surcharge funding healthcare, living wages, and 401k matching); monthly Pasta & Provisions subscription boxes shipped nationwide via Table 22; full-service catering for events of 8 to 150+ guests; private dining room rentals and full-restaurant buyouts; and retail/gift card/cookbook sales (including the 2025 Knopf-published cookbook "Dad, What's for Dinner?"). Distribution is direct-to-consumer with technology partnerships — OpenTable handles reservations, Toast Tab handles online ordering and gift cards, and Table 22 powers the subscription commerce. The restaurant operates dinner service Thursday-Sunday and brunch Saturday-Sunday, with full buyout capacity of up to 80 seated guests or 150 standing.

Geographic footprint is concentrated in the San Francisco Bay Area (Nopa flagship and Menlo Park sister location), while subscription products ship nationwide. The restaurant earned "Best New Restaurant in America" recognition from Bon Appetit and Esquire in 2018, and the 2025 cookbook was named Bon Appetit Best Cookbook of the year. The operation is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors or external capital structure.

Name

Che Fico

Legal name

Che Fico

Website

https://chefico.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Che Fico is a San Francisco-based Italian restaurant group operating a flagship Italian taverna, Menlo Park sister restaurant, retail market, and forthcoming pizzeria, with supplementary revenue from nationwide subscription boxes, full-service catering, and a 2025-published cookbook, serving Bay Area diners, event hosts, and D2C consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Upscale Italian Restaurant / Cal-Italian Casual Fine Dining

NAICS

Full-Service Restaurants (722511)

SIC

Retail-Eating & Drinking Places (5810), Retail-Eating Places (5812)

akta.pro primary industry

Ethnic & Regional Cuisine Restaurants (THAFACAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Casual Dining Restaurants (THAFACAB)

Keywords

• Italian restaurant dining
• Handmade pasta production
• Private dining events
• Italian catering services
• Artisan provisions subscription

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dine-in Restaurant Service: Full-service dining with Italian California cuisine. Features 5% SF Business Mandate charge to cover employee healthcare and living wages.
2. Subscriptions (Pasta & Provisions): Monthly subscription boxes featuring rotating selection of shelf-stable products, dried pastas, house sauces, Italian pantry condiments, seasonal jams. Expanded option includes fresh produce, local cheeses, dairy, and baked goods. Powered by Table 22 platform.
3. Catering Services: Full-service catering bringing restaurant food to events. Customized menus for small dinner parties of 8 to wedding celebrations of 150+. Includes event design, florals, rentals, and staffing assistance.
4. Private Dining & Buyouts: Private dining rooms (Celentano Room up to 14 guests, Rosalinda Room up to 40 guests) and full restaurant buyouts for corporate dinners and weddings (up to 80 seated, 150 standing reception).
5. Merchandise & Online Shop: Online shop at cheficoalimentari.squarespace.com and ilmercatodichefico.com offering provisions, merchandise, and specialty goods.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Che Fico operates a full-service Italian restaurant in San Francisco's NoPa neighborhood built around in-house handmade pasta, wood-fired pizza, house-cured salumi, and Jewish-Italian (Cucina Ebraica) heritage dishes. Beyond the flagship dining room the business runs private dining rooms, full-service Italian catering and buyout events, a sister location in Menlo Park (Che Fico Parco Menlo), the Il Mercato di Che Fico retail market, and the Provisions pasta subscription box distributed through Table 22.

Product overview

Che Fico is an Italian Taverna restaurant in San Francisco offering a rustic, market-driven menu featuring handmade pasta, pizzas, antipasti, housemade salumi, meat, fish, and dishes from Cucina Ebraica. The restaurant operates as part of Back Home Hospitality group and includes multiple branded locations: the main Che Fico Restaurant, sister restaurant Che Fico Parco Menlo, Il Mercato di Che Fico market, and upcoming Che Fico Pizzeria. Additional offerings include private dining spaces (Celentano Room, Rosalinda Room, Famiglia Table), full-service catering, restaurant buyouts for events, and subscription boxes for Provisions and Expanded Provisions featuring their food products. The company also publishes the cookbook "Dad, What's for Dinner?" through Penguin Random House.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Che Fico Parco Menlo: Sister restaurant located in Menlo Park
• Il Mercato di Che Fico
• Che Fico Pizzeria

Products and services

• Che Fico Restaurant (Italian Taverna, flagship) Full-service Italian restaurant serving a Cal-Italian and Jewish-Italian (Cucina Ebraica) menu built around in-house handmade pasta, house-cured salumi, wood-fired pizza, and heritage Italian dishes. Aimed at Bay Area diners seeking upscale-casual experiential Italian dining.
• Che Fico Parco Menlo Che Fico's sister Italian restaurant location in Menlo Park, offering the same Cal-Italian and Cucina Ebraica menus, private dining, catering, and events to Peninsula diners and event hosts.
• Il Mercato di Che Fico Retail Italian market concept from Che Fico selling pantry items, Provisions boxes, and the "Dad, What's for Dinner?" cookbook — extending the restaurant brand to retail/grocery buyers.
• Che Fico Pizzeria (pizza concept) Pizza-focused concept within the Che Fico program, serving personal and shareable pizzeria items like the Crunchy spicy cold-brew chicken and cheese pizza.
• Private Dining — Celentano Room Private dining room (Celentano Room) inside the flagship Che Fico restaurant for seated private events, dinners, and small buyouts.
• Private Dining — Rosalinda Room Private dining room (Rosalinda Room) at Che Fico for seated private dinners and intimate events.
• Private Dining — Famiglia Table Family-style private dining (Famiglia Table) at Che Fico for large group dinners and milestone celebrations.
• Restaurant Buyouts and Weddings Full-restaurant buyout events and hosted weddings at Che Fico, with custom menus and full venue access for milestone celebrations.
• Full-Service Catering Off-premise catering from Che Fico for corporate and private events, delivering restaurant-quality Cal-Italian menus including pasta, salads, and pizzas.
• Provisions Pasta Subscription Direct-to-consumer subscription box delivering chef-made fresh pasta and accompanying sauces from Che Fico to home cooks, shipped nationwide via the Table 22 platform.
• Provisions Box (expanded subscription) Expanded Provisions subscription box from Che Fico featuring a broader chef-curated assortment of Provisions pantry and fresh items for home cooks.
• Dad, What's for Dinner? Cookbook Cookbook associated with the Che Fico brand authored by Chef David Nayfeld, offering home-cook recipes from the restaurant.
• Wholesale Programs Wholesale distribution of Che Fico Provisions (pasta, sauces, pantry items) to other retailers, restaurants, and foodservice buyers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 5% SF Business Mandate provides comprehensive physical and mental health coverage for team, living wages, and 401k with match

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Back Home HospitalitycoreOthersParent company that co-created Back Home Hospitality and opened the group's first restaurant, Che Fico, in San Francisco. David Nayfeld worked with Back Home Hospitality to launch the restaurant group.
• Jon de la Cruz / DLC-IDcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInterior design firm responsible for the vibrant interior design of the Che Fico space. The design has garnered multiple awards.
• Williams Sonoma Chef's CollectiveminorGTM or Marketing PartnerChe Fico is part of the Williams Sonoma Chef's Collective, a group of chefs collaborating with the retailer.
• Independent Restaurant CoalitionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerChe Fico participates in the Independent Restaurant Coalition, advocating for restaurant interests.
• Culinary AgentsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCulinary Agents Career Page for recruiting food, hospitality and bar industry professionals. Link provided on Che Fico careers page.
• Table 22coreTechnology or IntegrationPlatform powering Che Fico subscriptions, handling the Pasta & Provisions boxes and Expanded subscriptions. Handles nationwide shipping and local delivery.
• OpenTablecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorReservation platform for booking tables at Che Fico. All reservation links on website direct to OpenTable.
• Toast TabminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOnline ordering and gift card platform used by Che Fico for takeout orders and gift card sales.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Flour + Water: San Francisco Italian restaurant and pasta-focused concept by Chef Thomas McNaughton; directly comparable as a high-profile SF Italian dining destination with handmade pasta, housemade salumi, and an award-winning wine and cocktail program.
• Pizzeria Delfina: Long-standing SF Italian restaurant from chef Craig Stoll with multiple locations; comparable as a celebrated California-Italian neighborhood institution serving handmade pasta, pizza, and salumi with full table service.
• A16 (Nopa, SF): Rocky and Kelsie Barr-era SF restaurant focused on Southern Italian (Campanian) cuisine with regional menu, Italian wines, and full-service dining room; competes directly in the SF Italian fine-dining category.
• Foreign Cinema: Mission District SF restaurant serving California-Mediterranean cuisine with strong private-events and brunch business; comparable as a chef-driven SF neighborhood icon with high-volume private-event revenue (weddings, buyouts).
• State Bird Provisions: James Beard Award-winning SF restaurant from Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski; comparable as an award-winning chef-driven SF concept with strong national press, innovative service model, and cookbook-driven brand extension.
• Liholiho Yacht Club: SF Hayes Valley restaurant from Chef Ravi Kapur with Hawaiian/California cuisine; comparable as a buzz-driven, James Beard-recognized SF chef concept offering a similarly design-forward dining room.
• Rich Table: Hayes Valley restaurant from chefs Evan and Sarah Rich with a contemporary California/Italian-leaning menu; comparable as a chef-owned SF fine-dining concept with cookbook publishing and award recognition.

Broad incumbents

• Tartine Manufactory / Tartine Bakery: San Francisco landmark from Chad Robertson and Liz Pruebus; comparable as a chef-driven SF bakery/restaurant destination with cookbook publishing (Tartine Bread, Tartine Book No. 3), strong brand, and multiple sub-brands across retail and dining.
• Zuni Cafe: Iconic SF restaurant offering Mediterranean/California cuisine with a more Italian-leaning identity; comparable as a long-tenured full-service SF dining destination with brand prestige and private-events business.
• Spruce Restaurant: Established Presidio Heights SF fine-dining destination with a strong private-events program and wine list; comparable as a high-ticket SF dining destination with catering/event revenue and brand prestige.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Che Fico