Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The landmark gallery of modern cuisine attached to SFMOMA also showcases avant-garde masterpieces – but these ones you'll lick clean. Chef Corey Lee…
Must-see restaurants in Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
SF has pioneered Asian fusion cuisine for 150 years, but the pan-Pacific innovation chef-owner Corey Lee brings to the plate is gasp-inducing: foie-gras…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Who needs yachts to be happy? Aloha abounds over Liholiho's pucker-up-tart cocktails and gleefully creative Calwaiian/Hawafornian dishes – surefire mood…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Live the dream at this bayfront bistro, where California-fresh, Vietnamese-inspired dishes are served with sparkling waterfront views. Chinatown-raised…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Do not attempt to order pad thai at this fashionable younger sibling of nearby Lers Ros, where the 120-dish menu is inspired by the cuisine of the lesser…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Trust chef Mitsunori Kusakabe's omakase (tasting menu). Sit at the counter while the chef adds a herbal hint to fatty tuna with the inside of a shiso leaf…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The space is cramped, dingy and covered in street art, including several graffiti chickens. But the Korean 'tapas' are sublime, and Aria is famous for its…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The 1889 belle epoque Audiffred Building once housed the Coast Seamen's Union, but for 20-plus years James Beard Award–winning chef Nancy Oakes has made…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Dinner theater can't beat brunch at Boulette's communal table, strategically placed inside a working kitchen amid a swirl of chefs with views of the Bay…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
The pride and joy of SF foodies, the Ferry Building market showcases more than 100 prime purveyors of California-grown organic produce, pasture-raised…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Chef-owner Brenda Buenviaje blends New Orleans–style Creole cooking with French technique to invent 'French soul food.' Expect updated classics like…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Chef-owner Michael Tusk racks up James Beard Awards for a quintessentially Italian culinary balancing act: he strikes ideal proportions among a few…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Jealous seagulls circle above your outdoor bayside table, eyeing your sustainable fish tacos and tangy jicama and grapefruit salad. James Beard Award…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Bootstrapping start-ups and venture capitalists alike hit Hakkasan for three-course lunch specials ($39) or elegant dim sum (get XO brandy scallop…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
San Francisco's most iconic dim sum experience has earned its accolades, and remains the go-to choice for its pork and broth-filled Shanghai dumplings and…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Rebel SF chef Dennis Leary revolutionizes the humble sandwich with top-notch seasonal ingredients: lamb gyros get radical with pesto and eggplant, and…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
A ray of sunshine in the concrete heart of the city, this plucky little storefront showcases seasonal California organics in just-baked breakfasts and…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Don't get distracted by Tenderloin street scenes while you wait – be ready to order your banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) when the Saigon boss ladies call …
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Slurp the bounty of the North Bay with East Bay views at this local, sustainable oyster bar. Get them raw, grilled with chipotle-bourbon butter, or…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Bring your sweet tooth to Hookers, named in honor of generations of sweet and salty Tenderloin sex workers. Get lemon blueberry bread pudding and an…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Long-standing mom-and-pop deli where the service couldn't be sweeter and the sandwiches still cost under $7. It's perfect for picnic supplies, and the…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
What do you get when you cross a croissant with a muffin? Hint: it's not a muffant. It's a cruffin, people! In late 2014, this tiny Tenderloin bakery…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Would you like a side of humanitarianism with that lamb shank? Brave the Tenderloin and check out San Francisco's only Sudanese restaurant, owned and…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
To do in San Francisco: see Golden Gate Bridge; ride cablecar; develop opinion on Red Hawk, the distinctively stinky, washed-rind cheese that put Cowgirl…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Most Thai eateries stick to familiar favorites, but Lers Ros imports regional Thai cooking with bold spicing and wild ingredients – house specialties…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
What began as a catering business out of a VW Westfalia graduated into this beloved cafe and Belgian-Californian bakery, now set in a bright, industrial…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
In the historic Pacific Telephone & Telegraph building (check out the splendid black-marble deco lobby), Iron Chef star Mourad Lahlou creates such…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Mt Everest is for amateurs – gourmet adventurers brave the Tenderloin's mean streets for Red Chilli's bargain butter chicken, Kathmandu rolls (naan wraps)…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Salesforce employees are famously well-treated by their benevolent CEO Mark Benioff, so it's no surprise that a swanky (but playful!) Hawaiian restaurant…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Pocket change left over from farmers-market shopping scores Argentine pocket pastries packed with local flavor at El Porteño. Vegetarian versions like…
Amawele's South African Kitchen
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Salads alone won't power you through downtown days – follow techies sneaking away from their corporate cafeterias and duck into the Rincon Center for…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Rising star chef alert: Brian Fernando is turning Sri Lankan inspirations into Californian cravings. Velvety halibut ceviche in coconut milk is an instant…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
She was from Michigan; he was from Tennessee. But this BBQ-loving couple brought their respective meat traditions with them to SF and absolutely nailed it…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Chef Michael Tusk's tasting menu of Northern California bounty is an adventure and an investment – if you're not entirely sold on this season's menu (see…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
All signs say San Francisco: barkeeps wear white jackets over their tats, couples canoodle around a fireplace salvaged from the 1906 earthquake, and lunch…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Last time you enjoyed casual Mexican dining this much, there were probably balmy ocean breezes and hammocks involved. Instead, you're steps away from SoMa…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Perfectly placed before Giants games, 21st Amendment brews stellar IPA and Hell or High Watermelon wheat beer. The vegetarian-friendly bar-and-grill menu …
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Rules need not apply in San Francisco: concrete warehouses can become cozy bistros, duck-fat cauliflower and oysters are daily dietary requirements, and…
Heart of the City Farmers Market
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Bringing farm freshness to the city's concrete-paved center since 1981, this nonprofit, farmer-operated market is on a mission to provide local,…
Downtown, Civic Center & SoMa
Eureka! Wedged between brokerage firms under the glowing sign that says Au (the periodic-table symbol for gold) is an elusive FiDi find: a memorable lunch…
