Restaurants in San Francisco
-
A
Escape from New York Pizza
The Haight's obligatory mid-bender stop for a hot slice. Pesto with roasted garlic and potato will send you blissfully off to carbo-loaded sleep, but the sundried tomato with goat cheese, artichoke hearts and spinach will recharge you to go another round.
reviewed
-
B
Chef Jia's
All three of the sauces on the menu here make nostrils flare in eager anticipation: spicy black bean sauce, tangy brown vinegar sauce, and savory-salty oyster sauce. Mix and match your choice with standbys of chicken, pork, and squid and/or green beans, eggplant, or yams. Dishes are generous to the point of embarrassing, but don't neglect the sublime onion cakes with peanut sauce.
reviewed
-
C
Swan Oyster Depot
Superior flavor without the superior attitude of most seafood restaurants. The downside is an inevitable wait for the few counter seats, but the upside of the high turnover is unbelievably fresh seafood. On sunny days, place an order to go, browse Polk St boutiques, then breeze past the line to pick up your crab salad with Louie dressing and the obligatory top-grade oysters with mignonette sauce. Hike or take a bus up to Sterling Park for superlative seafood with ocean views.
reviewed
-
D
Lefty O’Doul’s
Wood paneling and lamp-warmed roast beef welcome you to Lefty's, a dimly lit family spot that seems largely unchanged since the 1950s. It's campy, crowded with tourists and at the lower rung of San Francisco's culinary ladder, but for old world atmosphere and a shot-and-a-beer break from the swish department stores of Union Square, it's hard to beat.
Join the crusty old timers in a toast to Francis Joseph 'Lefty' O'Doul, the former San Francisco Seal for whom the joint is named.
reviewed
-
E
Dottie’s True Blue Café
Consider yourself lucky if you stand in line less than an hour and get hit up for change only once – but fresh baked goods come to those who wait at Dottie’s. Cinnamon pancakes, grilled cornbread, scrambles with whiskey fennel sausage and anything else off the griddle are tried and true blue.
reviewed
-
F
House of Nanking
Meekly suggest an interest in seafood, nothing deep-fried, perhaps some greens, and your brusque server nods, snatches the menu and, within minutes, returns with Shanghai specialties: meltaway scallops, fragrant sautéed pea shoots, garlicky noodles and a tea ball that blossoms in hot water. Expect bossy service, a wait for a shared table and a strict cash-only policy – but also bright, fresh flavors at reasonable prices.
reviewed
-
G
Fleur de Lys
Long before celebrity chef Hubert Keller took his show on the road to Vegas and Top Chef Masters, this was the ultimate over-the-top SF destination. There's nothing subtle about the swanky sultan's tent interior. It's perfectly suited for princely repasts, involving gnocchi graced with chanterelles, hazelnut-encrusted scallops, halibut crowned with rhubarb coulis and truffle, and a king's ransom of foie gras on every other dish. Vegetarians are entitled to five-course feasts for a surprisingly reasonable $72.
reviewed
-
H
La Mar Cebicheria
Big and bustling, La Mar has spectacular bay views and a snappy electric-blue and polished-wood decor. The key ingredient in its collaged plates of Peruvian cebiche is leche de tigre, the 'milk of the tiger,' a marinade of lime, chili and brine that 'cooks' the fish without a fire, and is said to have aphrodisiac properties. Sunny days are prime for flirting outside by the bay over a plate of pristine, spicy cebiche classico of sustainably caught California halibut, habanero, Peruvian corn and yam, with a side order of crispy-delicious housemade empanadas.
reviewed
-
I
Millennium
If all vegetarian food could be this satisfying and opulent, there could be cattle roaming the streets of SF and no one would give them a second glance. Seasonal first courses include grilled semolina flatbread topped with caramelized onions, wilted spinach and a flourish of almond romesco. This is followed by a peppery pastry roulade that opens with a fork's touch to reveal a creamy center of golden potatoes and smoky achiote (chili) chard. And it's topped off with a saffron-scented rice pudding with mango sorbet. Book ahead for aphrodisiac dinners and vegetarian Thanksgiving.
reviewed
-
J
Gelateria Naia
Chinatown and North Beach cross-pollinate with creamy concoctions that improve on the ordinary, elevating the usual Chinese green tea or Italian pistachio ice cream options to a decadent choice of Kyoto maccha tea or locally roasted California pistachio gelato. Local, seasonal flavors and constant experimentation introduce entirely new sorbet and gelato obsessions with flavors ranging from white peach to black sesame.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
K
La Palma Mexica-Tessen
Follow the hand-slapping sound of tortilla-making in progress to La Palma, and hit the take-out counter for still-hot tortillas, handmade tamales, hunks of carnitas (slow-roasted pulled pork) by the pound, queso fresco (Mexican cheese) and La Palma’s own tangy tomatillo sauce. Now all you need is a small army to finish off that meal you’ve assembled…
reviewed
-
L
Park Chow
Cozy up by the fireplace downstairs or the patio heat lamps upstairs, and shake that fog-belt chill with reliable, California comfort food like mild curry Smiling Noodles, stalwart spaghetti with meatballs, and caramel gingerbread with pumpkin ice cream. This is one of the most kid-friendly and pet-positive restaurants in the city, with booster seats and water bowls by the door.
reviewed
-
M
Boulevard
The quake-surviving, 1889 belle epoque Audiffred Building is a fitting locale for Boulevard, which remains one of San Francisco's most solidly reliable and effortlessly graceful restaurants. Chef Nancy Oakes has a light, easy touch with classics like juicy pork chops, finesses Dungeness crab salad with fresh basil, watermelon and yogurt, and ends East–West coastal rivalries with Maine lobster stuffed inside California squid.
reviewed
-
N
Lovejoy's Tea Room
All the chintz you'd expect from an English tearoom, but with a San Francisco crowd: curators talk video-installation art over Lapsang souchong, scones and clotted cream, while dual dads take their daughters and dolls out for 'wee tea' of tiny sandwiches, petits fours and hot chocolate.
reviewed
-
O
Rainbow Grocery
The legendary cooperative attracts masses to buy eco/organic/fair-trade products in bulk, drool over the bounty of local cheeses and flirt in the all-natural skincare aisle. To answer your questions about where to find what in the Byzantine bulk section, ask a fellow shopper – staff can be elusive. Small though well-priced wine and craft beer selections; no meat products.
reviewed
-
P
Axum Cafe
Whether you've got a hot date with a vegan, the hunger of an athlete or the salary of an activist, Axum's vegetarian platter for two with spongy injera bread is your saving grace. Dig in with your bare hands, and try not to hog lip-tingling red lentils and mellow yellow chickpeas.
reviewed
-
Q
Yuet Lee
With a radioactive green paint job and merciless fluorescent lighting, this Chinese seafood diner isn't for first dates, rather for drinking buddies and committed couples who have nothing to hide and are willing to share outstanding batter-dipped, salt-and-pepper calamari and tender roast duck.
reviewed
-
R
Red's Java House
All the cheap diner classics you'd expect from a waterfront shack that's been dishing out hearty fare to dockworkers and the terminally hung-over since 1812: restorative greasy-spoon breakfasts, double cheeseburgers, chili cheese fries, even a deli Reuben on rye a New Yorker wouldn't refuse.
reviewed
-
S
Pancho Villa
The hero of the downtrodden and burrito-deprived, delivering a fresh, heaping condiments bar and tinfoil-wrapped meals the girth of your forearm. The line moves fast going in, and as you leave, the door is held open for you and your newly acquired Pancho's paunch.
reviewed
-
T
La Taqueria
Rabble-rouser, are you? Ask a group of San Franciscans where to get the best burrito in town, then as voices rise, quietly slip off to La Taqueria. There's no debatable saffron rice, spinach tortilla or mango salsa here – just perfectly grilled meats, flavorful beans and classic tomatillo or mesquite salsa wrapped in a flour tortilla. They're purists at La Taqueria – if you don't want beans, you'll pay extra because they pack in more meat – but add-ons of spicy pickled vegetables and crema (Mexican sour cream) are true burrito bliss.
reviewed
Advertisement
-
U
Greens
Career carnivores won't realize there's no meat in the hearty black-bean chili with crème fraîche and pickled jalapeños, or that roasted eggplant panino (sandwich), packed with hearty flavor from ingredients mostly grown on a Zen farm in Marin. On sunny days, get yours to go so you can enjoy it on a wharfside bench, but if you're planning a sit-down weekend dinner or Sunday brunch you'll need reservations.
reviewed
-
V
Underdog
For cheap, organic meals on the run in a bun, Underdog is the clear winner. The roasted garlic and Italian pork sausages are USDA certified-organic, and the smoky veggie chipotle hot dog could make dedicated carnivores into fans of fake meat.
reviewed
-
W
El Tonayense Taco Truck
The best meal on wheels in SF. Burritos and quesadillas are generous to a fault, but the $2 tacos are an easy gourmet meal on the go – especially the al pastor (marinated roast pork) and lengua (beef tongue).
reviewed
-
X
Home
There's no place like it, especially if you enjoy comfort food - mac 'n' cheese, roast chicken, pot roast - served fireside, with a gaggle of gym-fresh men and $4 Homegirls (aka Cosmo plus Champagne) during the 4pm to 7pm happy hour.
reviewed
-
Y
Rosamunde Sausage Grill
Impress a dinner date on the cheap: load up classic Brats or duck-fig links with complimentary roasted peppers, grilled onions, whole-grain mustard and mango chutney, and enjoy with your choice of 100 beers at Toronado, next door.
reviewed