Together, the two studios reinterpreted the beloved restaurant with care and restraint—preserving its historic identity while enhancing its spatial clarity, functionality, and atmosphere.

For MacCracken Robinson Architects, the task was to modernize the 1987 building with precision and respect for its origins. The team approached the renovation through a dual lens: safeguarding the restaurant’s original fabric and atmosphere, while introducing new infrastructure that meets contemporary standards of comfort, efficiency, and safety. This included a complete overhaul of the commercial kitchen and back-of-house facilities, new underground electrical systems, and upgraded office areas—all executed within the constraints of San Francisco’s seismic and building codes.

While the architectural updates ensure longevity and function, Gachot Studios shaped the project’s emotional core through a refined interior program that honors the restaurant’s enduring character. On the ground floor, original private booths have been meticulously refurbished, maintaining the intimacy that regulars associate with Izzy’s. A custom bar topped with soapstone anchors the main dining area, framed by vintage milk glass pendants and checkerboard marble flooring. Beadboard detailing, stained walnut beams, antique glass, and unlacquered brass bring warmth and tactility to the revived interior.

Art plays a defining role in the new identity of Izzy’s. A mural by Matthew Benedict animates the bar and dining room, depicting the restaurant’s founder Sam DuVall, its namesake Izzy Gomez, and performer Sally Rand—figures emblematic of San Francisco’s layered cultural history. Nearby, a Donald Judd artwork establishes a contemporary counterpoint, reinforcing the dialogue between tradition and modernity that defines the space.