Café restaurants in San Francisco
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A
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.
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Warming Hut
Wetsuited windsurfers and Crissy Field kite fliers thaw out with fair-trade coffee, organic pastries and organic hot dogs at the Warming Hut, while browsing an excellent selection of field guides and sampling honey made by Presidio honeybees. This eco-shack below the Golden Gate Bridge has walls ingeniously insulated with recycled denim and a heartwarming concept: all purchases fund Crissy Field’s ongoing conversion from US Army air strip to wildlife preserve.
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Imperial Tea Court
A tea break at the serene Imperial Tea Court, where birdcages hang above antique tables, is meant to be a relaxed, cultured experience. The helpful staff, whose knowledge and appreciation for tea rivals that of your above-average wine snob, will help you pick from a variety of aromatic green and black leaves. The tea is pricey - about the same as a premium cocktail. There's another branch at the Ferry Building.
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Vital Tea Leaf
With so many teas to taste free, you might get jitters before you decide between the venerable Thousand Year Red and the gender-bending Iron Goddess King. Sounds like a job for White Peony - even if it's not 'antispasmodic' as advertised, there's no arguing with its mellow flavor. For gifts, go with flower teas that blossom in a pot of hot water: one ball serves four and costs around US$2 to $2.
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Caffe Trieste
Poetry on the bathroom walls, opera on the jukebox, monthly Saturday accordion concerts, and occasional sightings of poet laureate Lawrence Ferlinghetti: this is North Beach at its best, as it’s been since the 1950s. Linger over a legendary espresso, join aging anarchists debating how best to bring down the government, or just sit with your sketchpad and watch the world go by outside.
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Blue Bottle Coffee Company
Once this microroaster sold only to fancy restaurants - but when caffeine freaks got a whiff of premium organic beans being ground in this garage storefront, they lined up in the alley, twitching for a taste. Giant Steps is strong and Espresso Temescal will make your heart beat in solidarity with Chiapas coffee farmers. There's no indoor seating or bathroom, so think dry thoughts.
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Trouble Coffee
Coconuts are an unlikely find by blustery Ocean Beach, but Trouble Coffee happens to like unlikelihood. Hence the ‘Build Your Own Damn House’ breakfast special: coffee, thick-cut cinnamon-laced toast, and an entire young coconut. Surfers, stoners and surrealists in need of a snack, you must be looking for Trouble.
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Bread and Cocoa
When’s the last time you actually craved a sandwich? Local, artisanal ingredients add a fresh zing to roast chicken panini with pesto, and tangy Humboldt Fog cheese works similar magic with prosciutto, organic tomato and arugula. These sandwiches may not be huge for $8 to $10, but their flavor sure is.
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Coffee to the People
This utopian coffee shop hosts folksy Tuesday open-mic, and serves enough fair-trade coffee to revive the Sandinista movement. Five percent of your purchase goes to support community organizations, and baristas donate 3% of their tips to send children in coffee-growing regions to school.
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Cafe Bianco
Cafe Bianco's back patio is a suits' retreat from the Financial District hustle. They serve a top-notch cuppa in an honest-to-gosh cup and saucer (no paper-cup chintziness here). You can also nibble on decent sandwiches, pizzas and lasagna from a push-a-tray-and-point counter.
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Crown & Crumpet
Designer style and rosy cheer usher teatime into the 21st century: girlfriends rehash hot dates over scones with strawberries and Champagne, and dads and daughters clink porcelain teacups with crooked pinkies and 38 kinds of tea. Reservations are recommended on weekends.
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Caffè Greco
Greco's friendly crew prepare fine espressos, but only if you're lucky will you snag one of the sidewalk tables on a warm Saturday afternoon. The place has some of North Beach's most devoted regulars, and you'll feel like an outsider for not knowing your server's name.
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Mario's Bohemian Cigar Store
You can't smoke cigars here anymore, but otherwise the Boho days of yore are in full effect at Mario's every night. The foccacia here are cheap and ample enough, but mostly a pretense to glug wine by the carafe served by good-looking art-schooled wait staff.
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Atlas Cafe
A bohemian magnet for SF artists, some of whose works hang on the walls, Atlas has a big sunny patio, occasional weekend bluegrass jams, and a menu of exemplary coffees, full breakfasts, sandwiches, soups and small pizzas. Packed weekends.
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Jumpin’ Java
Alterna-dorks hunch over MacBooks and trade passing glances at the Castro’s quietest café, nicknamed ‘Laptop Library.’ Nobody talks. Bring a computer or be bored. Packed weekends. Fun fact: this chapter was penned here.
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Cole Valley Cafe
Powerful coffee, free wi-fi and hot gourmet sandwiches that are a bargain at any price, let alone $6 for lip-smacking thyme-marinated chicken with lemony avocado spread.
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Radio Africa Kitchen
Radio Africa Kitchen, run by chef Eskender Aseged, serves inspired Mediterranean-African small plates with organic, local ingredients.
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Cafe Flore
Mind your pasta-slurping and racy IM-ing with free wi-fi: this all-glass corner venue maximizes opportunities to see and be seen.
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Caffe Amici
Amici serves excellent coffee in hand-painted Italian cups, and draws hearts in cappuccino foam, warming the spirits of Downtown office workers.
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