The Best Seafood Near Psychic Pie, by the Record

The smell hits before you sit down: salt air, grill smoke, charred shells, then garlic butter. This is an oyster bar and smokehouse perched on a deck above Tomales Bay, an hour from San Francisco and a world away from it. Raw and grilled oysters from Tomales Bay Oyster Co. are the move, though there are fish tacos and sandwiches too. Deck seating is first come, first served, so arriving early is less a suggestion than a strategy.

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Perched right on the edge of Tomales Bay, this casual oyster bar and seafood spot is owned by Hog Island Oyster Co., which means the bivalves on your tray were probably in the water very recently. Freshly shucked oysters are the move, though grilled versions in garlic butter or smoky barbecue sauce give the purists something to argue about. Weekends fill fast, so a reservation beats showing up hopeful after the scenic drive up the coast.

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A family-run crab shop on the Bodega Bay waterfront where the fishermen and the kitchen are basically the same people. Order a crab sandwich or a cup of clam chowder, then take it to the cliffs overlooking the bay, where the wind and the smell of seawater do the rest of the work. Whole cooked crabs to go, too. The San Francisco Chronicle has named it among the best seafood spots in the Bay Area.

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Hog Island Oyster Company farms its oysters right here on Tomales Bay, which is about as close to the source as you can get without wading in. The retail counter sells those oysters alongside condiments and picnic supplies, so most people just load up and find a spot along the coast. The reservation-only oyster bar adds grilled preparations and small plates for those who'd rather sit. Marine biologists founded it, which explains why the conservation ethos feels less like marketing.

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There is no pool, no lake, not even a decorative fountain at this roadside seafood spot off Arnold Drive, which makes the name either a joke or a flex. White walls, a dog-friendly patio, and a long view of the Sonoma hills set the tone for a menu that plays casual but thinks clearly, with a tuna bowl leaning poke and a fried cod sandwich doing polished things to a fast-food classic. The wine list is longer than you'd expect from a place you can bring your dog to.

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Pork and duck puffs shaped like little black swans are the opening move at this upscale dim sum house inside Ghirardelli Square, where the room earns its own attention with colored lanterns, tiled murals, and candle tea warmers. Classics come with upgrades: lobster where shrimp usually goes, squid ink in the fried rice. The bay-facing patio fills up fast on Sunday mornings with people who planned ahead, and a few who got lucky.

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A San Francisco fish market that planted a second flag inside Proof Lab Beer Garden in Mill Valley, where the obvious move after a Marin hike is a fish taco. The fried rockfish comes out of the oil crackling, buried under a carrot habanero salsa that uses sweetness and acid to dial back the heat rather than just announce it. Order at the counter, find a sunny spot, and let the endorphins from the trail and the chile sort themselves out.

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The Baja-style fish taco is the reason people show up at this casual order-at-the-counter seafood spot in the Outer Sunset. Rockfish comes out of the fryer in a shattering crust, and the carrot habanero salsa is bright and sharp enough to keep things interesting without just torching your tongue. San Francisco Chronicle named them among the best tacos in the Bay Area, and the regulars here behave accordingly.

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The autographed headshots of old-school celebrities on the walls set the tone: this is a Fisherman's Wharf seafood restaurant that makes no apologies for being exactly what it is. Families from two hours outside the city have been cycling through for generations, and the wood-paneled bar and white-jacketed servers keep the scene feeling frozen in amber. The clam chowder is generous where it counts, and the cioppino comes in a "Lazy Man's" version with the shellfish already shelled.

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The facade is papered with photos of the original owner posing with Jackie Chan, Emeril Lagasse, and Jacques Pépin, which tells you most of what you need to know. This old-school Hong Kong seafood spot in Chinatown has been around forever and draws a late-night crowd that arrives hungry and slightly chaotic. The wok runs hot, the garlic-fried prawns arrive crunchy to the heads, and the salt-and-pepper calamari is what you order when the evening needs a proper ending.

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A cioppino so loaded with Dungeness crab, mussels, scallops, and clams that the bowl barely closes is the reason most people show up to this old-school North Beach seafood house. The parklet on Green Street buzzes like the neighborhood's living room, and the Boston clam chowder travels home in quart containers for those who plan ahead. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the Bay Area's top seafood restaurants.

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