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Located at 470 Pacific Ave. (at Montgomery Street) in Jackson Square, Quince is one of San Francisco’s most elegant restaurants. Set away from traffic on a quiet tree-lined street, the 1907 brick building allows for a clear view of the bustling kitchen next to the dining room. Quince has earned praise, including a Michelin star, for its Italian-meets-Californian cuisine. Chef Michael Tusk’s emphasis on fresh, locally-raised meats and locally-grown produce — along with a world-class selection of more than 800 Italian, French, and Californian wines — earned him the coveted 2011 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Pacific. A sister restaurant, Cotogna, opened in 2011 with a focus on more rustic Italian dishes.

Parking near Quince is difficult, as in much of San Francisco. You could try your luck on side streets in nearby North Beach, but most of the area requires a residential parking permit. Unless you’re prepared to circle the neighborhood for 20 minutes — and that’s an extremely conservative estimate — it’s better to use Quince’s valet service for $12. If you’ll be in the area for a while, your best bet is the parking garage at 555 Jackson St., which is only one block away and costs $12 for 12 hours. The neighborhood is safe, so there’s no need to worry about leaving your wheels there for a few hours.

Quince is open for dinner Monday through Saturday from 5:30 to 10 p.m. The bar opens daily at 5 p.m. Reservations, which are strongly recommended, can be made two months in advance by phone or online at Quince’s website. The Four-Star restaurant is known for its contemporary Italian cuisine led by chef Michael Tusk, the 2011 James Beard award winner for Best Chef: Pacific. His handmade pastas have earned rave reviews, along with the extensive wine list that highlights several varieties from small Northern Italian vineyards. Your best bet for scoring a table is to reserve as early as possible; even a couple of weeks out, you may have to settle for an early-bird reservation at 5:30 p.m.

If you aim to impress, Quince is an excellent option for group dining. A private dining room can hold up to 22 people, but groups of up to 12 can be accommodated in a semi-private space next to the wine cellar. And if your group is large, the entire restaurant can also be booked for up to 120 people, complete with a custom-planned menu and floral arrangements. Realistically, for groups of more than four, it’s worth looking into the semi-private space; the main dining room, while not cramped, is small enough to make a group’s conversation dominate the space, which may earn a few looks from people in the relatively quiet dining room.

A dining experience at Quince is a splurge, but a worthwhile one. Each night, the kitchen offers two five-course tasting menus ($105, wine pairing $65) along with a la carte options. First courses range from $14 to $20, pasta courses are $19 to $24, and main courses are between $30 and $40. On some evenings, the chef will prepare a special dish like a spring vegetable risotto for the entire table; that runs around $25 per person. Desserts are $11, and an exquisite tableside cheese presentation is $6 per cheese. For dinner for two, including a glass of wine, expect to spend $200 before tip.

When Quince moved to a new location in 2009, it upgraded its space and style. It’s elegant but not stuffy, with plush mushroom-colored settees and ivory leather seating giving a clean (almost austere) color palette. In the main dining room, a Murano glass chandelier adds a little sparkle and glitz to the understated decor. To one side of the room, tables flank an exposed brick wall. To another, a marble bar with room for 12 diners allows for a slightly more casual experience. The restaurant’s art collection includes large-scale works by contemporary photographers including Edward Burtynsky. A barside lounge area allows for a pre-dinner cocktail with an outdoor view. If a room with a view is important to you, sitting at the bar or lounge is essential because once you’re in the dining room, it’ll take a lot of neck-craning to see the windows.

Despite having a huge reputation, Quince isn’t an enormous space. Even though it expanded into a larger area in 2009, the restaurant has enough space to feel exclusive rather than sprawling. Quince has 23 tables, plus 12 seats at its bar, which is slightly more casual than the sit-down dining area. Lounge seating is available, too, but having a meal there may pose a challenge due to its low seating and minimal dining space. For group dining, you can book a private room that holds up to 22 people. Larger events such as weddings and company parties can be accommodated by a restaurant buy-out.

In a city overflowing with fine dining options, Quince provides flawless service from start to finish. Upon our entrance, we were seated immediately by a friendly but not simpering host. From there, our server managed a nice balance of warmth and professionalism, explaining dishes in detail and deftly fielding questions about the wine menu. Both bread and water were replenished almost imperceptibly. The staff seemed to anticipate your every need without being overly intrusive. Dishes were impeccably timed, and never brought out too early or too late. How do they make it look so easy? We’re not sure, but if any stress was involved, it didn’t show on a single person’s face. In short, Quince aims for a flawless dining experience, and more impressively, it succeeds.

Quince, a Northern Italian restaurant in San Francisco, was opened by chef Michael Tusk and his wife, Lindsay, in 2003. A New Jersey native, Tusk studied the culinary arts at Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., before working in restaurants across Europe. Upon returning to the States in 1994, he had stints at Bay Area restaurants Stars, Oliveto, and Chez Panisse before opening Quince. Since then, Tusk has won the 2011 James Beard Award for Best Chef: Pacific. In the same year, he opened a sister restaurant, Cotogna, which offers a more rustic menu.

Michael Tusk, the chef at Quince in San Francisco, abides by a farm-to-table ethos in creating his contemporary Northern Italian cuisine. It’s not surprising, considering his past stint at localvore legend Chez Panisse, where Alice Waters pioneered the idea of eating fresh, in-season regional food. At his own restaurant, Tusk works with ingredients from local farmers, ranchers, fishmongers and creameries—building on relationships that, in some cases, reach back 20 years. What’s more, he does much of the food shopping himself, often traveling to nearby Marin County for meat, produce and eggs. Tusk’s efforts were rewarded in 2011 with the James Beard award for Best Chef: Pacific.