Yoshi's

The handsome, refined Jack London Square venue established Yoshi's as the best jazz joint in the Bay Area - possibly along the entire West Coast - and founder/co-owner Kaz Kajimura hopes to consolidate its reputation among artists and audiences alike with the new Fillmore Street branch in the Jazz Preservation District, which boasts a slightly larger live room and the same excellent acoustics as its predecessor. The Oakland club's separate dining room does good business on the strength of its Japanese food and Kajimura hopes to do the same in San Francisco, but the main attraction in both is the music, a cultured line-up of big names (working the weekend slots) and newcomers (earlier in the week). Book well in advance.