The Top 100 Places to Eat and Drink Near Saison
-
Rank 1. Saison
Fine dining
A warehouse devoted to the hearth, where Chef Richard Lee orchestrates playful, earnest cooking—tuna tartlette, rabbit with morels, antelope with blueberries—for San Francisco's elite. The wine program is exceptionally deep, the crowd studiously cool, the setting rustically refined.
-
Rank 2. Benu
Fine dining
Chef Corey Lee's tasting menu unfolds with technical precision, each course a miniature study in restraint and refinement. A roasted quail, glazed tableside with maple and soy, epitomizes his gift for marrying tradition with invention.
-
Rank 3. Kaiyō Rooftop
Peruvian Japanese
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service · Danny Louie
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
-
Rank 4. Rooh
Indian
Rooh fuses Indian flavors with modern techniques—oysters meet tandoori spices, burrata finds curry leaf. Jewel-toned dining room and inventive cocktails frame small plates designed for sharing and desserts that riff on subcontinental tradition.
-
-
-
Rank 7. Miller & Lux
Steakhouse
Tyler Florence's steakhouse rises improbably elegant near the waterfront, all vintage mirrors and modern angles. Oysters arrive from an in-kitchen saltwater tank; dry-aged beef is seared mahogany-dark and finished with barley; tableside Caesar and Dover sole meunière arrive with ceremony. A splurge worth making.
- World's 101 Best #25 · World's Best Steak Restaurants
- AAA Four Diamonds
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
-
Rank 8. Cavaña
Cental/South American
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Hotel Bar – U.S. West
- Spirited Awards 2024 · Regional Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
- Spirited Awards 2025 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Hotel Bar – U.S. West
-
Rank 9. Via Aurelia
Italian
- Esquire 2025 · Via Aurelia Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #66 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
-
Rank 10. Niku Steakhouse
Japanese Steakhouse
A gold door admits you to Niku, where Chef Dustin Falcon tends his coals behind an 18-seat counter in a wood-lined room designed for theater. The beef tartare and bone marrow are preludes to steaks—a Tomahawk for two, an Imperial Wagyu filet with aged kimchi and bordelaise—executed with the precision of someone who understands that luxury steakhouse cooking is about restraint, not excess.
- World's 101 Best #49 · World's Best Steak Restaurants
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- The Infatuation #20 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
-
-
Rank 12. Angler
Seafood
A hunter's lodge aesthetic frames the view along the Embarcadero, where an open fire drives the menu—embered oysters with smoked chili butter, a radicchio salad that demands a knife, aged black cod with seaweed-buttered rolls. The kitchen's restraint and deliberation show in every char and sauce, building toward soft-serve sundae in warm salted caramel and cocoa nibs.
- AAA Four Diamonds
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- The Infatuation Soft Serve Sundae · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
-
Rank 13. Paper Son
Coffee
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco
- Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops
-
Rank 14. Movida
Persian-inflected Mexican
Near Oracle Park, this stylish dining lounge marries Mexican and Persian cuisines with halibut in tomatillo aguachile and tahdig tostadas topped with spiced lamb birria. The drinks—mezcal with carrot juice and chiles—match the kitchen's savory ingenuity.
-
-
Rank 16. Shoji
Japanese
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF
-
Rank 17. Alexander's Steakhouse
American/Japanese
-
Rank 18. Yank Sing
Dim Sum Chinese
Yank Sing rolls out cart after cart of dumplings and buns in a dining room where the pace is brisk and the prices reasonable. The silken xiao long bao and paper-thin har gow announce themselves through their fillings, while the Peking duck arrives with lacquered skin that justifies the wait.
- Time Out The best Chinese restaurants in America
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 19. Taksim
Turkish
-
This waterfront dive has been around forever, slinging cheap burgers and beers with a Bay Bridge view that fancier spots charge triple for. The burgers come on sourdough with mustard and pickles, which sounds wrong until it isn't, and the fish and chips are genuinely great. Anthony Bourdain loved it, which tells you everything. Grab a table outside on a sunny day and watch the bay while construction workers and tourists figure out they're at the same place.
- San Francisco Chronicle Best classic San Francisco restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 21. Birdsong
Contemporary
Open flames and assembly-at-table theatrics define Christopher Bleidorn's cooking, where lacquered quail arrives with grilled rolls to be built like Peking duck. The whimsy persists through each course—from creek trout roe suspended in kelp kombucha to lemon mochi concealing blueberries and crème fraîche—a kitchen that treats fire and precision as equal partners.
-
Rank 22. Yank Sing
Cantonese Chinese
-
- 50 Best 2026 · #41 · North America's 50 Best Bars
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Outstanding Professional in Cocktail Service · Kevin Diedrich
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Nominee · Outstanding Bar
-
Rank 24. Quince
Fine dining
In a refreshed early 1900s room in Jackson Square, Chef Michael Tusk builds menus from his partner farm's seasonal bounty with surgical precision: silky broth married to guanciale and clam, agnolotti tender with white asparagus, lamb from the fireplace scattered with favas and edible flowers. The cooking is restrained and confident, letting each ingredient declare itself.
-
Rank 25. Kin Khao
Thai
Chef Pim Techamuanvivit's restaurant, wedged into a hotel alcove, forgoes fancy surroundings for something more valuable: Thai cooking that honors tradition while sourcing from local farms and letting each ingredient speak. A curry mousse arrives fragrant and studded with mushrooms; even green curry becomes an event when built around slow-cooked rabbit. The spice here pulls no punches.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Pim Techamuanvivit
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #58 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #3 · U.S. Barista Championship · Jason Yeo
- Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops
-
-
Rank 28. Boulevard
American
-
Rank 29. HK Lounge Bistro
Cantonese Chinese
A modest storefront in SoMa, rebuilt after fire destroyed its beloved predecessor, draws regulars for pleated Shanghai dumplings heavy with broth and crab, baked pork buns with crackled tops, and silken egg tarts. Dinner expands to roast duck and steamed seabass, but the soul of the place lives in its dim sum service—the artful work of a kitchen that understands both precision and comfort.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
-
Rank 30. Mister Jiu's
Chinese
Brandon Jew's Cantonese cooking at Waverly Place marries Bay Area seasonality with classical technique—scallion milk bread that dissolves on the tongue, silken tofu studded with maitake and Sichuan pepper. His Peking duck arrives with whipped liver mousse, a flourish that captures his gift for taking tradition seriously without pretending it needs apology.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- Time Out The best Chinese restaurants in America
- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Nominee · North America's Best Chinese Cuisine Restaurant
-
Rank 31. O' by Claude Le Tohic
Fine French
On the fifth floor of a French fine-dining tower, Claude Le Tohic composes tasting menus that marry classical French technique with California's best—a seafood salad layered with dashi and caviar, black cod dusted with five spice and shellfish purée. The experience unfolds with precision, from warm bread to a final cart of petit fours, attended by service that feels both formal and genuine.
-
Rank 32. Waterbar
Seafood
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
-
Rank 34. Californios
Fine dining
In a cavernous room alive with color and music, Chef Val M. Cantú channels Mexico's culinary depths through meticulous technique and daring reinvention. Tortillas—whether sourdough crisped with mezcal-battered cod or corn kissed with sesame—become the vehicle for a vision of Mexican cooking that feels both rooted and urgent.
- Michelin Guide 2 Stars
- 50 Best 2025 · #14 · North America's 50 Best Restaurants
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Val M. Cantú
-
Rank 35. Fikscue
Indo-Tex Barbecue
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #41 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation 2025 · #8 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
-
- Esquire 2024 · The Best Bars in America
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Hotel Bar – U.S. West
- Spirited Awards 2025 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
-
Rank 37. Holy Nata
Portuguese Bakery
- The Infatuation Pastel de Nata · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
-
Rank 38. Bombay Brasserie
Indian
-
Rank 39. ATWater Tavern
American
-
Rank 40. Prelude
Southern Cocktail Bar
The Jay Hotel's ground-floor cocktail bar trades the Financial District's noise for moody elegance, where drinks arrive with the precision and restraint of a well-edited film—nothing wasted, every element earning its place on the glass.
- Bon Appétit 2025 · America's Best New Bars
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
-
Rank 41. Delah Coffee
Yemeni Coffee
-
Rank 42. John's Grill
San Francisco
Dark wood, white tablecloths, staff in all black, and a replica of the Maltese Falcon watching over the second floor. John's Grill is an old-school San Francisco steakhouse that's been around forever, and it wears every year well. The menu is meat and potatoes done properly, the kind of room where you half-expect someone to be tailing you. Noir buffs and old-city romantics feel right at home here.
- San Francisco Chronicle Best classic San Francisco restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
-
-
Rank 44. Mashallah Halal Pakistani Food
Pakistani
-
Rank 45. Agrodolce Provisions
Italian
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
-
Rank 46. Bodega SF
Northern Vietnamese
- The Infatuation #11 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation Mochi Pandan Bar · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
-
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best New Bar
- Eater Best New Bar · The 2025 Eater San Francisco Award Winners
-
Rank 48. Okane
Sushi
The younger sibling to a sushi institution next door, Okane keeps the same rigor with Japanese-sourced fish but trades formality for communal energy—Adobe engineers and large parties share sake bottles over small plates. Pristine nigiri anchors the menu, though the sake-marinated cod and broiled salmon aburi with ikura deserve equal attention.
-
Rank 49. Prospect
New American
A soaring ground-floor space in a Spear Street high-rise, Prospect trades fuss for clarity: burnished wood, room to breathe, cocktails that justify their price. The cooking—burrata with roasted cherry tomatoes, bavette with creamed corn—stays straightforward and competent, letting ingredient and technique speak without apology.
-
Sam's Grill is an old-school seafood institution in the Financial District that makes you feel like you've stumbled into a city that still has some dignity. Tuxedoed servers, curtained back booths, and coat hooks from the hat-wearing era set the scene. The lunch crowd is regulars who know exactly what they're having before they sit down. Go on a weekday, order a martini, and don't be surprised if the guy in the next booth basically runs the city.
- San Francisco Chronicle Best classic San Francisco restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
-
Rank 51. Nagomi
Japanese Coffee Shop
-
Rank 52. Four Kings
Cantonese
A packed Chinatown counter where Franky Ho and Michael Long riff on Cantonese tradition with claypot rice studded with bacon and eggplant that sings with fermented chili heat. The room thrums with energy and the kind of crowd that camps out before opening; reservations vanish within minutes, but the cooking rewards whatever patience you muster.
- Esquire 2024 · Restaurant of the Year · The Best New Restaurants in America
- Food & Wine 2024 · Squab · Best Dishes Our Editors Ate This Year
- Bon Appétit 2024 · America's Best New Restaurants
-
Rank 53. Hamburguesa Bar
American
-
Rank 54. Verjus
French wine bar
Michael Tusk's wine bar near the Pyramid trades in seasonal French bistro cooking that pivots around impeccable seafood and produce—razor clams with celery and Meyer lemon, a pâté studded with pistachios. The crowd at the bar and counter suggests the kitchen's skill runs deeper than the menu's apparent simplicity.
- The New York Times 2025 · The Restaurant List
- The Infatuation 2025 · #9 · The Top-Rated New Restaurants
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
-
-
-
Rank 57. Zevi Cafe
Turkish
-
Rank 58. Lunette
Cambodian
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Nite Yun
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #35 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
-
Rank 59. Asha Tea House
Japanese Coffee Shop
-
Rank 60. Omakase
Edomae Sushi
A narrow counter in an industrial corridor serves Tokyo-sourced edomae sushi with methodical precision: kelp-cured sea bream, braised monkfish liver with its butter-soft minerality, mackerel sharp with chive purée. The chef adjusts rice and wasabi to each diner's preference, calibrating the experience bite by bite. Reservations and punctuality are non-negotiable; the ritual demands it.
-
Rank 61. Barcha
Middle Eastern
-
Rank 62. Dabao Singapore
Singaporean Chinese
-
Rank 63. Holbrook House
American Cocktail Bar
-
Rank 64. Kusakabe
Sushi
At Kusakabe, a serene counter lined in live-edge elm sets the stage for an omakase that moves with theatrical precision yet lands every note. Bluefin arrives with yuzu and sesame; softshell crab swims in sweet corn broth; sea urchin crowns scallop and snapper with cured yolk. The kitchen's command of technique serves a singular purpose: making you remember what you ate.
-
Rank 65. Azalina's
Malaysian
In a Tenderloin storefront designed like a tropical sanctuary, Chef Azalina Eusope interprets the Malaysian cooking of her childhood through a California lens—economy noodles topped with barbecued quail and toasted hazelnuts, steelhead trout wrapped in banana leaves. Her seasonal prix fixe menu moves with precision and wit, from savory to a pandan custard finale that shows serious pastry work.
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Azalina Eusope
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
-
Rank 66. Smish Smash
Burgers
-
Rank 67. Joujou
French
-
Rank 68. Harborview
Cantonese Chinese
A vast Cantonese dining room commands the Embarcadero with bay views from its sun-soaked patio and a polished interior that shifts between brightness and intimate shadow. The kitchen moves fluidly from dim sum carts at lunch to a showstopping Peking duck at dinner—lacquered mahogany skin, house-made sauce, the whole deliberate machinery of a room built to impress.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 69. Origin Lab
Coffee
-
Rank 70. Restaurant Naides
Modern Filipino
Chef Patrick Gabon's tasting menu distills Filipino tradition through a Californian lens—fluffy brioche pandesal with braised chicken gizzards, dry-aged duck adobo with horseradish—each dish as visually composed as it is flavorful. The small room hums with the ease of two people who know their craft, and the cooking feels like an argument that refinement and boldness need not be at odds.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
-
Rank 71. Turquaz
Turkish
- The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation 2025 · #11 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
-
Rank 72. Montesacro
Roman Pizza Wine Bar
-
Rank 73. Square Pie Guys
Detroit-style Pizza
-
Rank 74. Sons & Daughters
Fine dining
Harrison Cheney's tasting menu moves through fermented vegetables, foraged mushrooms, and carefully butchered seafood with the precision of Nordic technique and the warmth of British comfort—a quail egg wrapped in sausage, rutabaga noodles glossed in pork fat and brown butter. Service matches the cooking's generosity.
- AAA Four Diamonds
- Michelin Guide 2 Stars
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Best Chef: California · Harrison Cheney
-
-
Rank 76. TBD izakaya
Japanese
-
Rank 77. Perbacco
Italian
-
Rank 78. Tadich Grill
Seafood
-
Rank 79. Hon’s Wun-Tun House
Cantonese Chinese
A Chinatown institution that's been around forever, Hon's is a Hong Kong-style noodle shop where the steamed-up windows alone will make you feel like you wandered into a better movie. The wonton noodle soup is the whole reason you're here, with a broth that smells like it has opinions. The crowd is regulars who know exactly what they're ordering and tourists who wisely follow their lead.
- San Francisco Chronicle Best classic San Francisco restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
-
Rank 80. Liholiho Yacht Club
American
An airy dining room built around an open kitchen where Chef Ravi Kapur marries Hawaiian ingredients with Californian technique, drawing crowds who order halibut kinilaw and fried game hen across a bar loud with cocktail chatter. The house-made Spam in kimchi fried rice signals a kitchen unafraid of culinary contradiction.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #57 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
-
Rank 81. Sam Wo Restaurant
Chinese
Sam Wo has been an institution in Chinatown forever, the kind of place that closed, broke a few hearts, and then quietly came back under new ownership like nothing happened. It's a casual, no-frills Chinese spot where the rice noodle rolls with char siu are still the move, served with enough hot mustard to rearrange your sinuses. The crowd runs local and loyal, which is usually a good sign.
- San Francisco Chronicle Best classic San Francisco restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
-
Rank 82. Turtle Tower
Northern Vietnamese
-
Rank 83. Outta Sight Pizza
Thin-crust Pizza
- The Infatuation #19 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
-
Rank 84. La Mar
Peruvian
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 85. Merchant Roots
Creative
A dinner here unfolds like a theater piece, with advance tickets and custom sets that change with the seasons. The cooking—visually inventive and genuinely flavorful—matters as much as the spectacle; a Mad Tea Party might begin in a hedge maze before unfolding across multiple rooms. Service has charm if not polish, and the whole affair rewards a willingness to be delighted.
-
Rank 86. Cotogna
Italian
An open kitchen framed by exposed brick and copper gleams behind wooden tables where Michael Tusk's pastas—agnolotti stuffed with rabbit and veal, rigatoni with guanciale and chanterelle—arrive with the ease of something both refined and casual. The room moves at the tempo of a neighborhood trattoria, though the cooking never settles for rustic shorthand.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
-
-
Rank 88. Bon Délire
French
- Sunset 2025 · Fabulous French · Where to Eat and Drink
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 89. The Morris
New American
A former sommelier's Mission bistro named for his father, where wine knowledge and warm service frame unfussy California cooking built on house-made charcuterie, grilled squid, and a signature smoked duck with burnished skin and silken meat that justifies its reputation.
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Nominee · Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Professional in Beverage Service · Paul Einbund
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
-
-
Rank 91. Acquerello
Italian
Suzette Gresham's A-frame dining room has sheltered ambitious Italian cooking since 1989, where handmade pastas and pristine seafood arrive with equal finesse and daring. The mignardises cart alone—stacked with housemade chocolates and caramels—suggests a kitchen that understands generosity as a form of rigor.
- Michelin Guide 2 Stars
- AAA Four Diamonds
- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Nominee · North America's Best Italian Cuisine Restaurant
-
-
Rank 93. Sungho
Traditional Korean
In a Tenderloin corner, Sungho serves grandmother's recipes: fall-apart pork stews, hand-cut noodles in beef broth, crisp seafood pancakes meant for sharing. The house-made kimchi and lively K-pop soundtrack frame dishes that taste less like restaurant fare than like comfort borrowed from someone else's kitchen.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation 2025 · #10 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
-
The wood grill perfumes this San Francisco taverna with charred meat and citrus, where attentive servers navigate tables and fireplaces with easy grace. Bizelosalata arrives bright with feta and scallions; chicken souvlaki emerges from the rotisserie burnished and simple. A galaktoboureko of semolina custard and pistachio ice cream closes the meal with crisp filo and sweet restraint.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
Rank 95. Good Mong Kok
Chinese
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Doughnuts in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation #15 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
-
Rank 96. True Laurel
American
- The Pinnacle Guide 2 Pins
- 50 Best 2025 · #64 · World's 50 Best Bars
- 50 Best 2026 · #14 · North America's 50 Best Bars
-
Rank 97. Heartwood SF
American
-
Rank 98. Hog Island Oyster Co.
Seafood
Tourists and locals queue at this Ferry Building outpost for Tomales Bay oysters—briny, plump things worth eating plain, though lemon and mignonette stand ready. The kitchen handles crudo and seafood stew with similar care, but the Manila clam chowder is the sleeper, deep and generous; eat it facing the bay.
-
Rank 99. Atelier Crenn
Fine dining
Crenn's white-walled atelier channels a painter's precision, each seafood course glazed in silken sauces that speak to her Breton roots and California present. A grandmother's brioche and vegetables from Sonoma orchards anchor the pescatarian tasting menu in something tactile and real, even as desserts from Juan Contreras push toward pure invention.
-
Rank 100. Arsicault Bakery
Bakery