The Top 100 Places to Eat and Drink in San Francisco
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Rank 1. Benu
Asian
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.
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Rank 2. Atelier Crenn
Contemporary French
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.
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Rank 2. Saison
Californian New American
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.
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Rank 4. Quince
Contemporary
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.
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- Sprudgie Awards 2025 · Honoree · Sustainable Cafe or Coffee Roaster
- Sprudgie Awards 2025 · Honoree · Sustainable Cafe or Coffee Roaster
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Rank 5. Gary Danko
Contemporary French
The dining room glows with the formality of another era: dark-suited servers, a towering cheese trolley, an wine list of serious depth. Chef Danko's prix-fixe menu lets you build your own path through French-inflected cooking with global detours—or surrender to his tasting menu. Since 1999, the place has remained a steady draw for occasions that call for ceremony and restraint.
- AAA Five Diamonds
- Forbes Travel Guide Forbes Four Star
- Wine Enthusiast The Wine Restaurant Hall of Fame
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Rank 7. Lazy Bear
Contemporary
A warehouse dressed as a hunting lodge stages nightly tastings that toggle between nostalgia and ambition—oysters arrive two ways, one bright with gooseberry, another charred and glazed; butter-soft A5 ribeye meets oxtail and sour cherry tart with architectural precision. The cooking trades subtlety for swagger, and it lands.
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Rank 8. Sons & Daughters
Contemporary
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
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Rank 8. 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
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Rank 10. True Laurel
Modern Cocktail Bar
- The Pinnacle Guide 2 Pins
- 50 Best 2025 · #64 · World's 50 Best Bars
- 50 Best 2026 · #14 · North America's 50 Best Bars
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Rank 11. Navio
Contemporary
Inside the Ritz-Carlton's clifftop perch, Chef Francisco Simón crafts polished coastal fare—Dungeness crab with apple and sourdough, duck with radicchio and pear—that balances classical precision with an unhurried sense of luxury. The room lives up to its setting: ocean views that flare gold at sunset, a dining experience that feels as much about ease as refinement.
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Rank 11. 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
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Rank 11. Commis
Contemporary
James Syhabout's calm neighborhood tasting room on Piedmont Avenue moves with the precision of someone drawing from Thai and Chinese traditions while sourcing obsessively local. A slow-poached egg yolk in malt cream, raw fish dressed with aged soy and fermented plum—each plate announces itself as both familiar and strangely refined.
- AAA Four Diamonds
- Michelin Guide 2 Stars
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · James Syhabout
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Rank 14. Californios
Mexican
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
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- Punch Industry Icon
- Food & Wine 2025 · The 10 Top Bars in the US
- 50 Best 2026 · #100 · North America's 50 Best Bars
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Rank 14. Mister Jiu's
Modern 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
- World Culinary Awards 2025 · Nominee · North America's Best Chinese Cuisine Restaurant
- Time Out The best Chinese restaurants in America
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Rank 14. The Progress
Nordic-Californian New American
Sunlit and wood-lined near the Fillmore Theater, The Progress marries California ingredients with Nordic sensibility in boldly seasoned, share-friendly dishes. Burrata arrives with fried butter beans and strawberries; seaweed noodles swim in brown butter and dashi. The Liberty Farms duck, crowned with crispy peanut fried rice, is a showstopper designed to turn heads.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
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- 50 Best 2026 · #41 · North America's 50 Best Bars
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Nominee · Outstanding Bar
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · Best U.S. Bar Team
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Rank 14. State Bird Provisions
Californian New American
At State Bird Provisions, carts wheel through a packed dining room while diners pluck small plates in real time—dumplings, liver mousse, savory pancakes—assembling their own sequence of California cooking. The choreography of choice matters as much as the thoughtful, shifting menu itself.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
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Rank 20. Spruce
Modern New American
Spruce pairs California's seasonal bounty with refined technique, as in roasted duck breast crusted with coriander and pistachio. Dinner elevates the experience with careful balance; lunch keeps things approachable, anchored by impeccable ingredients.
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Rank 20. 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
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Rank 20. The Village Pub
Contemporary New American
Behind a modest roadside name lies a polished dining room where the kitchen works with precision: a raviolo bursts with runny yolk and potato; duck breast arrives seared and austere. The wine list tilts toward serious French bottles, but the meal's true anchor is warmth—those Parker House rolls, buttered and golden, arriving at every table.
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Rank 20. 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
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Rank 20. Sun Moon Studio
Californian New American
Inside a modest Union Street unit, Alan Hsu and Sarah Cooper execute a seasonal tasting menu of technical precision and quiet personality, letting Californian products—Dungeness crab with yuzu kosho butter, silken tofu, wild mushrooms—speak first. The baked goods, from savory egg tarts to steamed brioche, are revelations. A destination that whispers rather than shouts.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- Bon Appétit 2025 · America's Best New Restaurants
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Best Chef: California · Sarah Cooper and Alan Hsu
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Rank 32. House of Prime Rib
Steakhouse
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Hospitality
- Esquire 2025 · Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Hospitality
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Rank 32. Viridian
Northern Californian
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Top 10 Nominee · Best U.S. Restaurant Bar
- Punch 2025 · Best New Bartenders · Kat Parsons
- Spirited Awards 2024 · Regional Honoree · Best U.S. Bar Team – U.S. West
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- James Beard Awards 2025 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurateur · Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski - Atomic Workshop
- The New York Times 2021 · The Restaurant List
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Rank 32. Burdell
Southern
Geoff Davis's Temescal restaurant, named for his grandmother, serves soul food refracted through a contemporary lens—collard greens spiked with berbere, fried chicken brined in pickle, halibut crudo with buttermilk and grapefruit. The wine list is notably thoughtful, the kind of place where fried chicken and champagne feel inevitable.
- Food & Wine 2025 · #1 · The Top 15 US Restaurants
- Food & Wine 2024 · Restaurant of the Year
- Food & Wine 2024 · Roast Duck · Best Dishes Our Editors Ate This Year
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Rank 32. Joodooboo
Hyper-Seasonal Korean
- Food & Wine 2025 · Steve Joo · Best New Chefs
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Emerging Chef · Steve Joo
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #41 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 37. 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.
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Rank 37. Eylan
Contemporary Indian
Chef Srijith Gopinathan's Menlo Park dining room marries regional Indian technique with California ingredients—a flatbread of Dungeness crab and fennel-poppy sauce announces the approach immediately. Wood-fired cooking lends char and smoke throughout, whether to gulf shrimp or whole sea bream, each plate balanced enough to stand alone.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Srijith Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #70 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 37. Quattro Restaurant and Bar
Modern Italian
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- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Bar Team – U.S. West
- Spirited Awards 2026 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
- Spirited Awards 2025 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
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Rank 37. Tony's Pizza Napoletana
Neapolitan Pizza
- 50 Top Pizza 2025 · #3 · 50 Top Pizza USA
- Sunset 2025 · Inspired Italian · Where to Eat and Drink
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
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Rank 37. Alexander's Steakhouse
American/Japanese
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Rank 37. Verjus
French
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
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Rank 37. The Happy Crane
Modern Chinese
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best New Restaurant
- Eater 2025 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
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Rank 37. Kiln
Nordic New American
Chef John Wesley's spare warehouse tasting menu channels Nordic preservation techniques—curing, drying, fermentation—into deceptively simple dishes of intricate craft. A puffed beef tendon or squab lacquered in burnt honey reveals the kitchen's balance of rusticity and refinement across each course.
- Michelin Guide 2 Stars
- Condé Nast Traveler 2024 · The best new restaurants in the world
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best New Restaurant
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Rank 47. Prelude
American
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
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Rank 47. 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
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Rank 47. Foreign Cinema
Californian New American
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
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Rank 47. Nari
Contemporary Thai
A dramatic room inside Hotel Kabuki sets the stage for Chef Pim Techamuanvivit's refined take on Thai cooking, where California ingredients meet intense aromatics and a deft hand with heat. A brick-red bumbai curry arrives with crispy fried eggplant and ethereal roti; grilled squid shares the plate with sticky-sweet pork jowl and chili-lime dressing. Family-style dining elevated.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- The Infatuation #14 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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- Time Out The best bakeries in America
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
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Rank 47. Minnie Bell’s Soul Movement
Southern
- Bon Appétit 2025 · America's Best New Restaurants
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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Rank 47. Reem’s
Middle Eastern
- Eater The All-Time Eater 38
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
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Rank 47. 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
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Rank 47. Noodle in a Haystack
Ramen Noodles
A narrow counter in the Richmond seats eight across from the open kitchen, where the chef builds each bowl as a composed tasting. The ramen here—broth calibrated across hours, noodles cut to order—arrives as something between comfort and ceremony.
- The Infatuation Infatuation’s Highest-Rated Restaurants In America
- Bon Appétit 2023 · America's Best New Restaurants
- The New York Times 2023 · The Restaurant List
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Rank 47. Mijoté
French
Chef Kosuke Tada simmers local ingredients with quiet French restraint at this Mission bistro, letting quality speak without fuss. The seasonal prix fixe and natural wine list feel less like ambition than honest neighborhood cooking.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Kosuke Tada
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Nominee · Best Chef: California · Kosuke Tada
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
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Rank 47. 7 Adams
Californian New American
Serena and David Fisher cook with unhurried confidence in this railway-style room, where a seasonal menu balances technique with restraint. Handmade pasta and carefully calibrated broths reveal a distinctly Californian sensibility, one that favors support over spectacle.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- Esquire 2024 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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Rank 47. Copra
Kerala Indian
Chef Srijith Gopinathan channels Kerala's coastal traditions in a lush Fillmore Street dining room designed for lingering. A shell-on Konkan crab curry glistens with tamarind and dried chiles; fried chicken carries the perfume of street-food memory. The food wears its nostalgia unselfconsciously, indifferent to the room's contemporary gloss.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Nominee · Outstanding Restaurateur · Srijith Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Srijith “Sri” Gopinathan
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
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Rank 47. San Ho Won
Korean
At this minimalist room where Corey Lee and Jeong-In Hwang command the grill, the crowd hums with the electricity of a place that's difficult to book for good reason. Refined technique marries Korean tradition with novelty—kimchi arrives with surpassing depth, beef with purity, pork jowl with the weight of home cooking.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- Eater 2022 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Jeong-In Hwang
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Rank 60. Mama’s Boy Pizza
NY-Style Pizza
- 50 Top Pizza 2025 · #7 · 50 Top Pizza Slice USA
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
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Rank 60. Tanzie's
Thai
- The New York Times 2025 · Khanom Krok · The Best Restaurant Dishes We Ate Across the U.S.
- Eater Restaurant Where We'd Want to Be Regulars
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
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Rank 60. Izzy's
Steakhouse
A San Francisco steakhouse that has preserved its original warmth while refining itself for a new era, with dry-aged beef cooked over open flame and a bar that anchors the neighborhood's social life. The dining room balances timber and brass against understated polish, though service can waver.
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Rank 60. Rintaro
Japanese
At Izakaya Rintaro, redwood and cedar enclose a kitchen that treats humble ingredients with reverence: crispy chicken wings dusted with sansho pepper, charcoal-grilled tsukune, soft tofu infused with bergamot. The approach is produce-centric and precise, each plate a small argument for restraint and care.
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · Sylvan Mishima Brackett
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
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- Sprudgie Awards 2024 · Finalist · Best New Cafe
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF
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Rank 60. Tacos Oscar
Mexican
Shipping containers painted in primary colors ring a courtyard strung with café lights where a chalk menu pivots daily between braised pork shoulder with avo-tomatillo salsa and charred broccoli tostadas with soy-cashew cheese. The kitchen treats vegetables and meat with equal ingenuity, as evidenced by a smoky baba ghanoush that competes on flavor alone. Arrive early with a beer and expect lines.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #11 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 60. Tarts de Feybesse
French Bakery
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker · Monique Feybesse and Paul Feybesse
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker · Monique Feybesse
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Rank 60. Kitchen Istanbul
Turkish
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program
- The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #55 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 60. 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.
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Rank 60. Jules
Sourdough Pizza
- Esquire 2025 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation 2025 · #3 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
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- Esquire 2025 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #56 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation 2025 · #9 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
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Rank 60. Madcap
Contemporary
Chef Ron Siegel's upscale dining room in San Anselmo trades pretension for precision across a prix fixe of small, carefully composed plates. A quenelle of tuna tartare yields to crisp rice; charred octopus sits over fermented pimentos; trout arrives skin-on with a tableside dashi pour. The cooking is restrained and Japanese-inflected, where each element earns its place.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #36 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Marin County Restaurants
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Rank 60. Ernest
Contemporary
Finding the entrance requires a scavenger hunt, but inside this Mission corner spot, Chef Brandon Rice's playful cooking rewards the effort: kaluga caviar crowns tater tots, oysters share a menu with snacks, mains pivot on seasonal ingredients. The kitchen's family-style format lets you taste nearly everything; the bar takes walk-ins for cocktails.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Brandon Rice
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #89 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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- 50 Top Pizza 2025 · #50 · 50 Top Pizza USA
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #13 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
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- 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
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Rank 60. Four Kings
Contemporary Cantonese Chinese
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
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Rank 60. Bombera
Contemporary Mexican
Housed in a former fire station, Bombera channels wood-fired intensity into refined Mexican cooking, with house-made blue corn tortillas and mole verde that reveals layers of nutty complexity. Chef Dominica Rice-Cisneros builds each dish from heritage techniques and local ingredients, never announcing either.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #25 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 60. 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
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Rank 60. Popoca
Salvadorian
- Bon Appétit 2024 · America's Best New Restaurants
- The New York Times 2025 · Guaca-mol With Tortilla and Asiento · The Best Restaurant Dishes We Ate Across the U.S.
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
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Rank 60. Dalida
Eastern Mediterranean
In the Presidio's leafy quiet, Laura and Sayat Ozyilmaz have built something unmissable: a restaurant where Istanbul's flavors—borek, short rib kebabs with sweetbreads, a rolling spread of olives and pickles—arrive at tables meant for sharing. The pita, baked to order in the hearth, arrives pillowy and toasty, a small daily miracle that sets the tone for everything that follows.
- Esquire 2023 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Laura Ozyilmaz and Sayat Ozyilmaz
- Spirited Awards 2025 · Regional Top 10 Honoree · Best U.S. Restaurant Bar – U.S. West
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- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #5 · U.S. Barista Championship · Circle Chan
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF
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Rank 81. The Laundromat
Pizza
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bagels in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #85 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. 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
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Rank 81. La Taqueria
Mexican
The line outside Miguel Jara's Mission Street counter never quite disappears, a mix of neighborhood regulars and Sunday families drawn by carne asada burritos that need no introduction. Order the off-menu Dorado taco—a corn tortilla crisped on the plancha, doubled with cheese, then loaded—and you understand why simplicity, when executed this well, requires no apology.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco
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Rank 81. Taquería El Farolito
Mexican
- The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco
- The Infatuation #5 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
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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
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Rank 81. Rich Table
Californian New American
A compact Hayes Valley room with distressed wood and farmhouse ease fills nightly without pretense. The kitchen moves Californian ingredients through global techniques—salmon tostada with avocado purée, lobster chow mein with charred corn—with the precision of fine dining and none of its stuffiness. Arrive at the bar if a table is gone.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #3 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Itria
Modern Italian
Chef Daniel Evers strips Italian cooking to its essence—dayboat scallops with preserved lemon, house-made mafaldine with pecorino—letting simplicity speak. A welcoming Mission spot where modern technique and classical restraint make each dish feel inevitable rather than fussy.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #72 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Prubechu
Guamanian
- The Infatuation #25 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #53 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Boulevard
American
-
Rank 81. Breadbelly
Bakery
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #8 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
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Rank 81. 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 2025 · #47 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Aziza
Moroccan
Chef Mourad Lahlou returns with pale interiors and a restless menu that folds California ingredients into Moroccan spices—the phyllo-wrapped basteeya with chicken and almonds proves some dishes need no reinvention. Bone-in chicken thigh arrives with crisp potato and house curry, a dish that tastes like a chef remembering what he does best.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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Rank 81. 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
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Rank 81. Outerlands
American
At the edge of the city, in a weathered wood room, Outerlands bakes sourdough that draws pilgrims from across San Francisco—mahogany-dark, thickly sliced, served with house-cultured butter. The seasonal kitchen keeps things simple: roasted chicken with market vegetables, ragu Bolognese with tagliatelle, weekend pastries—each dish a vehicle for ingredient quality rather than technique.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
-
- Wine Enthusiast 2025 · Top 50 New Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #73 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Ocean Subs
Sandwiches
- The Infatuation #24 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- The Infatuation 2025 · #2 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
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Rank 81. Outta Sight Pizza
Thin-crust Pizza
- The Infatuation #19 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
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Rank 81. Soba Ichi
Japanese Noodles
A noodle counter tucked into West Oakland's industrial stretches, where handmade soba in two buckwheat ratios arrives in austere bowls—cold tenseiro with gossamer tempura shrimp, or kamo nanban, its broth deepened by duck breast. The wait stretches past forty minutes most nights, but the garden drinking space and unhurried hospitality make the pilgrimage feel deliberate rather than punishing.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #16 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
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Rank 81. Good Mong Kok
Dim Sum
- 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
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Rank 81. 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
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 81. Flour + Water
Californian Italian
Handmade pastas marry California ingredients with Italian technique in this perpetually crowded Mission dining room. Each dish—sea lettuce chitarra, ginger-filled caramelle—demonstrates the kitchen's restless creativity within disciplined simplicity.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation #9 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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Rank 81. Wolfsbane
American
In a spare Dogpatch room, Chef Rupert Blease builds tasting menus that fold Nordic and Japanese touches into California's best ingredients: Dungeness crab with sweet potato and blood-orange sauce Maltaise, each dish balanced between richness and clarity. The work is precise and unhurried, letting pristine flavors speak through refined technique.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #71 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Snail Bar
Natural Wine Bar
The perpetually crowded natural wine bar trades pretense for precision: Chef Andres Giraldo Florez's concise, seasonal menu moves from raw bar to crudités with the restraint of fine dining. Snails arrive in their shells, glossed in garlic confit and cashew miso, crowned with kumquat—a dish that sums up the place's confident, unfussy intelligence.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #15 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
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Rank 81. Poppy Bagels
California-Style
- Bon Appétit The Very Best Bagels in the US (Yes, Outside New York)
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bagels in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #100 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. 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
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Rank 81. Hilda and Jesse
Modern New American
A modernist diner where brunch becomes an argument between restraint and excess, Hilda and Jesse serves a surprise tasting menu that pivots on bold flavor and fine technique. The cooking is brash and unmanicured—a riot of stellar ingredients in unexpected combinations—while the room maintains a disarming warmth that matches the hospitality.
- Michelin Guide 1 Star
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Kristina Liedags Compton
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #92 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Ippuku
Japanese
Low wooden tables and extensive sake selection conjure a Tokyo izakaya in downtown Berkeley. Yakitori emerges from the binchotan with smoky char—thighs, necks, hearts, gizzards—while Dungeness crab korokke and caramelized yaki-imo arrive golden and crisp. A discreet entrance rewards those who find it.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #91 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
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Rank 81. Zuni Café
California New American
A copper-barred corner institution where wood-fired chicken and Caesar salad draw San Francisco regulars, though the reputation sometimes outpaces the meal. The space—angular, art-lined, perpetually crowded—matters as much as what arrives from the kitchen.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #10 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 81. Madera
Contemporary
Madera's vaulted dining room overlooks the Santa Cruz Mountains while an almond wood-fired grill lends restrained smoke to ingredient-driven pastas and steaks. Silicon Valley's power brokers come here less for ostentation than for quietly confident cooking and the hotel's tranquil, mountain-lodge sophistication.
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Rank 81. Mandalay
Burmese
A narrow dining room on California Street fills nightly with the particular warmth of a place that has earned its regulars over four decades. Mandalay's kitchen moves through Burmese cuisine with the confidence of long practice, each plate arriving as proof of that steadiness.
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Winner · America's Classics: California
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- The Infatuation #4 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
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Rank 81. Fikscue Craft Barbecue
Barbecue
- The New York Times 2024 · The Restaurant List
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Fik Saleh and Reka Saleh
- Eater 2024 · The Best New Restaurants in America
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #5 · U.S. Barista Championship · Circle Chan
- The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco
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Rank 112. Nisei
Japanese
Chef David Yoshimura balances Japanese tradition with American invention—buckwheat tartlets with date miso, uni in almond dashi—with technical assurance and personality. Service is personable, sake pairings thoughtful, and the wagashi cart a delicate finale.
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Rank 112. Range Life
Californian
Range Life, a Livermore outpost from husband-and-wife team Bill and Sarah Niles, pairs rustic warmth and arched windows with a staff whose enthusiasm feels genuinely earned. The cooking—fig toast with olive oil, delicately fried squash, cod with flageolet beans—trades metropolitan pretense for straightforward pleasure.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Tri-Valley Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #4 · U.S. Coffee in Good Spirits Championship · Tim Tran
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
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Rank 112. Wakuriya
Japanese
Katsuhiro Yamasaki commands the counter at this eight-seat temple of kaiseki, where each monthly menu threads classical technique with California's seasonal bounty—a silver spoon might cradle lobster in dashi gelée, soft-boiled egg, crisp kombu. The steamed black cod arrives flawless, the sashimi course assured, each plate a studied conversation between tradition and the chef's singular vision.
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Rank 112. Abacá
Filipino
Chef Francis Ang channels Filipino tradition through a prism of California produce and playful technique—pork belly adobo with pineapple, lumpia with pear ketchup—in a sunlit dining room that feels less important than what arrives on the plate. The kitchen's confident hand, honed through years of pop-up work, suggests that restraint is not part of the vocabulary here.
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Nominee · Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker · Vince Bugtong
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
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Rank 112. Yank Sing
Cantonese
-
- The Infatuation 11 Of The Best Donuts In America
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Doughnuts in the Bay Area
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Rank 112. 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.
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Rank 112. Selby's
Classic New American
A wood-paneled room where old Hollywood lingers: Selby's conducts its modern American menu with genuine ease, from a butter-poached Maine lobster crowned with golden gnocchi to steaks of austere perfection. The kitchen draws from its own ranch, and even the popovers arrive warm from the oven, as if hospitality were still the point of dining out.
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Rank 112. Le Comptoir
Pescatarian French
At a marble counter beside Atelier Crenn, a handful of diners watch the kitchen plate delicate courses that weave French technique through California seafood and vegetables. The meal builds toward moments of studied refinement—caviar on buckwheat, brown butter on agnolotti—where restraint and precision feel like the entire point.
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Rank 112. Lokma
Turkish
- The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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Rank 112. Sandy's
Cajun & Creole
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #22 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 112. Sorrel
Contemporary
Chef Alexander Hong coaxes uncommon depth from pasta—smoky zlikrofi with plum mostarda, silken gnudi crowned with fried sage—using herbs from the rooftop garden. Duck breast arrives with crackling skin and kuri squash; the small plates show equal restraint and precision.
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Rank 112. Via Aurelia
Tuscan Italian
- Esquire 2025 · Via Aurelia Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #66 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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A sleek izakaya where every plate is vegan, yet the kitchen's technical command is unmistakable: tofuna rolls crackling with chili and topped with avocado arrive as compelling as their seafood predecessors, while tempura shiitake mushrooms stuffed with plant-based crab sing with umami depth. The place earns its seat at the table regardless of dietary conviction.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #99 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #99 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #3 · U.S. Barista Championship · Jason Yeo
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
-
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best New Bar
- Eater Best New Bar · The 2025 Eater San Francisco Award Winners
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Rank 112. Pizzeria Delfina
Neapolitan Pizza
- Sunset 2025 · California Classics · Where to Eat and Drink
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
- Time Out The 12 best restaurants in the Mission
-
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 112. Regalito El Mil Amores
Mexico City-style Mexican
- The Infatuation #21 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- The Infatuation 2025 · #12 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
-
-
Rank 112. Smuggler's Cove
Tiki Cocktail Bar
-
Rank 112. Thanh Long
Vietnamese
- The Infatuation #22 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
-
Rank 112. Beit Rima
Palestinian Middle Eastern
- The Infatuation #18 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
-
Rank 112. Bombay Brasserie
Indian
-
Rank 112. Kajiken
Japanese Noodles
A Nagoya import serving abura soba—noodles without broth, alive instead with housemade oil and sauce—where the springy strands taste compelling on their own, though nine topping varieties invite endless tweaking. Watch the noodles being pulled through the window while you adjust your bowl with house vinegars and hot sauces, the kind of small control that makes eating here feel like collaboration.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #35 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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- The Infatuation Our Favorite Bakeries In The Country Right Now
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
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Rank 112. Ken
Japanese
An unmarked door on Divisadero opens into Chef Ken Ngai's six-seat counter, where Hong Kong training meets Bay Area sensibility through nigiri topped with cured egg yolk and preserved plum alongside composed plates of silky chawanmushi and poached ikura in ume broth. The cozy intimacy here feels earned rather than affected.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation #6 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 14 Best Restaurants In The Lower Haight
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Rank 112. Vik's Chaat
Indian
A spare Berkeley canteen where chaat and tandoori chicken share counter space with a grocery market, each bite carrying authentic char and spice. Lunch specials offer serious value; the kitchen closes early, so arrive hungry and on time.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #62 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
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Rank 112. Ssal
Modern Korean
The Baes' tasting menu inhabits a middle ground between Korean tradition and French technique, moving deftly through dishes like sweet potato puffs crowned with caviar and scallop mousseline wrapped in cabbage with spiked beurre blanc. It's cooking that trusts restraint and clarity over elaboration, which in San Francisco's dining landscape reads as its own kind of statement.
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Rank 112. Cinderella Bakery
Russian Bakery
- The Infatuation Honey Cake · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 112. 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.
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Rank 112. Great China
Chinese
Great China appeals equally to students, families, and style-conscious diners with refined ingredients and generous portions at modest prices. The tea-smoked duck and mung bean noodle platters shine; arrive early or expect a wait.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
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Rank 112. Mazra
Jordanian
- James Beard Awards 2025 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Jordan Makableh and Saif Makableh
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #81 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 112. 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 112. Paper Son
Coffee
- 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
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Rank 112. La Ciccia
Sardinian Italian
A narrow Sardinian room in Noe Valley where the kitchen moves with unhurried precision, each dish arriving as though the chef has been considering it all morning. The handmade pasta here tastes of somewhere specific—sea urchin, guanciale, the weight of tradition—and demands a reservation weeks ahead.
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #33 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
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Rank 112. Yuanbao Jiaozi
Chinese
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
- The Infatuation #13 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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- Food & Wine 2025 · Les Eggs · Best Dishes Our Editors Ate This Year
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Bar Program
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Rank 151. Chicken Dog Bagels
Bakery
- Bon Appétit The Very Best Bagels in the US (Yes, Outside New York)
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bagels in the Bay Area
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Rank 151. Good Good Culture Club
American
Southeast Asian flavors collide with California ingredients in small plates like fried chicken wings stuffed with egg roll filling and mango-glazed. The open kitchen hums with energy, and a walk-in bar seat rewards early arrivals with creative cocktails and a version of halo halo topped with shiso ice.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- Bon Appétit 2022 · America's Best New Restaurants
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Rank 151. Tiya
Modern Indian
Tiya fuses seasonal California produce with contemporary Indian technique, turning squash blossoms and ramps into something genuinely unfamiliar. The elegant dining room and neighborhood-named cocktails elevate what could be gimmick into genuine sophistication.
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Rank 151. The Cultured Pickle Shop
Asian-Inspired
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #59 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
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- Esquire 2025 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
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Rank 151. Nightbird
Californian New American
Behind a carved wooden door in Hayes Valley sits a narrow dining room where Chef Kim Alter composes small plates with deliberate artistry—roasted duck breast arranged with summer squash and gooseberry compote, a spiced broth to follow. The menu pivots with the seasons; house-made breads arrive at strategic intervals, each one another small flourish in a meal designed to sustain surprise.
- James Beard Awards 2026 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Kim Alter
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
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Rank 151. 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
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Rank 151. Vientian Cafe
Lao/Thai/Vietnamese
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #95 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
-
-
Rank 151. Banh Mi Ba Le
Noodles
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
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Rank 151. Stoa
Cocktail Bar
- Punch 2024 · Best New Bars
- Spirited Awards 2024 · Regional Honoree · Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
- Eater Best New Bar
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Rank 151. Cafe Colucci
Ethiopian
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #82 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #2 · U.S. Latte Art Championship · Weian "Andy" Liang
- Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops
-
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Coffee in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #3 · U.S. Barista Championship · Jason Yeo
- The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF
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Rank 164. Anchor Oyster Bar
Old-School Seafood
Diners queue out the door of this bare-bones Castro seafront, where a stool at the counter remains the best seat in the house. The menu is small but precise: briny oysters need no mignonette, Dungeness crab arrives on a sesame bun, and the cioppino—rich, silken, paired with garlic bread—justifies the wait. A place that has earned its reputation through constancy rather than pretense.
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Rank 164. Zazie
French
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
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Rank 164. Bodega SF
Vietnamese
- The Infatuation #11 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation Mochi Pandan Bar · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
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Rank 164. Stonemill Matcha
Japanese
- The Infatuation Matcha Cream Pie · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
- The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco
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Rank 164. Saigon Sandwich
Vietnamese
- The Infatuation #8 · The 25 Best Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
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Rank 164. El Buen Comer
Mexico City Mexican
Isabel Caudillo's Mission outpost trades technique for the unhurried pleasures of Mexico City home cooking—pork ribs braised until they collapse into salsa verde, chiles rellenos, warm corn tortillas meant for mopping. The menu is small and deliberate; the chocoflan alone justifies the trip.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
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Rank 164. Original Joe's
Italian
- The Infatuation Zanze’s Cheesecake · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
-
Rank 164. Rose Pizzeria
Pizza
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
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Rank 164. Tur
Thai
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
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Rank 164. The Big Four
American
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The Best Martinis In San Francisco
-
In North Beach, Comstock Saloon carries the weight of a century with unhurried grace, its wood and brass worn into the shape of ritual. The brussels sprouts arrive blistered and salt-struck alongside a martini that tastes like gin remembering what it was meant to be.
- The Infatuation The Best Martinis In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
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Rank 164. Mission Chinese Food
Chinese
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Rank 164. Z & Y Peking Duck
Sichuan Chinese
A narrow Chinatown dining room where the cooking announces itself before you sit down: dried chilies heap atop fried chicken; chili oil slicks bean jelly noodles alive with numbing pepper. The space wears its age without apology, service moves at its own pace, but every plate arrives calibrated and uncompromising. Come hungry for heat.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #72 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 164. Piccino Presidio
Italian
-
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
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Rank 164. Friends Only
Sushi
A sushi counter still wrapped in exclusivity despite open reservations, where the steep price tag underscores relentless attention to sourcing and technique. House-aged fish meets inventive touches—cherrywood-smoked eel, grilled spot prawn with ramp butter—that feel earned rather than showy.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #27 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 164. Spinning Bones
Californian American
An industrial rotisserie in Alameda where koji-marinated meats spit over flame to a rosy finish, flanked by Napa slaw and corn fritters with strawberry jam. The counter kitchen and indigo ceiling set a casual stage for umami-forward cooking that draws equally from California, Hawaii, and Japan—desserts like butter mochi cake arrive featherlight, almost apologetically so.
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Rank 164. Routier
French
On California Street, Routier marries French bistro traditions with what the Bay Area grows best: Dungeness crab atop buttery potato pavé, pork cheeks on creamy lentils with mustard greens and apple. Chef JP Carmona's cooking is casual yet precise, the room welcoming, and the desserts—sourced from neighboring B. Patisserie—deserve their own reservation.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation Chocolate Mousse · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
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Rank 164. Pig in a Pickle
Barbecue
Damon Stainbrook's suburban barbecue counter takes sourcing seriously—each humanely raised cut traced on a chalkboard—and executes with equal conviction: pulled pork that dissolves on the tongue, brisket after eighteen hours of smoke, ribs with a precise dry rub. Even the mac-and-cheese arrives tended rather than tossed aside, its richness balanced by bite. Worth the drive.
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Rank 164. Restaurant Naides
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
-
- US Coffee Championships 2025 · #3 · U.S. Barista Championship · Jason Yeo
- Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops
-
Rank 164. Holy Nata
Portuguese
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
- The Infatuation Pastel de Nata · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
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Rank 164. FOB Kitchen
Filipino
Janice Dulce's Filipino restaurant commands a narrow Temescal space with whimsical wallpaper and an island ease, where a cocktail at the bar softens the wait. The menu pivots between steady keepers and specials like coffee-rubbed ribs with banana ketchup and sinigang that justify the crowds.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #97 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
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Rank 164. 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
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Rank 164. Octavia
Elevated New American
Melissa Perello's restaurant sits among Victorian storefronts in Lower Pac Heights, all cream-colored walls and neighborhood warmth that belies its ambition. She works with pristine local ingredients—crispy fried artichokes, hand-rolled pasta with morels, quail balanced with grapefruit—each dish spare but considered, letting the raw material speak. The bread alone justifies a reservation.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Melissa Perello
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Rank 164. Insalata's
Mediterranean
Lemon-yellow walls and paintings of abundance frame a Marin restaurant honoring its namesake founder through Mediterranean-inflected cooking. Watercress potato-leek soup arrives velvety and vivid; grilled lamb skewers rest on crisp salads with cumin yogurt. A casual kitchen turns out boxed lunches and house-baked bread with the same care as its dining room.
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Rank 164. Mama Oakland
Italian
A husband-and-wife venture with dark green walls and brass chandeliers offers a three-course prix-fixe without reservations, each course a binary choice leading to house-made pasta. The kitchen returns often to braised pork and beef in tomato sugo—the dish that inspired the restaurant—paired with a wine list curated by the owners' adjacent shop.
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Rank 164. Sushi Ran
Sushi
In a cottage tucked into Sausalito's quieter streets, Sushi Ran's counter glows with the understated confidence of a place that has earned its regulars. Fresh hamachi and toro arrive without fuss, their flavors speaking plainly; a thoughtful sake list and steady hand on technique sustain the meal without spectacle. This is sushi that knows what it is—dependable, unadorned, honest.
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Rank 164. Village Sake
Japanese
Village Sake brings Tokyo's cramped-table energy to Fairfax with takoyaki, okonomiyaki, and silky hamachi tataki that taste like they were made to be eaten standing up. The live-edge counter and Japanese staff set the scene; the shima aji nigiri seals the argument.
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Rank 196. Manakish Oven & Grill
Mediterranean
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Walnut Creek Restaurants
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
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- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Marin County Restaurants
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Kao Saelee's Oakland restaurant marries Thai fundamentals with playful irreverence—drunken noodles meet barbecue brisket, laab seasons a pork burger. The kitchen calibrates heat levels while the cocktail program matches the kitchen's creative ambition.
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Intu-on Kornnawong
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
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Rank 196. Loquat
Jewish
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker · Kristina Costa
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
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Rank 196. Loló
Californian Mexican
- Esquire 2024 · Mandarini · The Best Martinis in America
- Spirited Awards 2024 · Regional Honoree · Best U.S. Restaurant Bar – U.S. West
- Time Out The 12 best restaurants in the Mission
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Rank 196. Piglet & Co
Taiwanese
A narrow Mission storefront conjures the clatter and steam of a Taipei night market, serving reimagined Asian comfort food that tastes both familiar and surprising. The brunch menu, studded with house-made dumplings and tender braised pork, arrives in quick succession, each plate a small vindication of nostalgia.
- Eater 2023 · The Best New Restaurants in America
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 196. Alem’s Coffee
Ethiopian
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #90 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
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Rank 196. Besharam
Vegetarian Indian
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #83 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Heena Patel
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Rank 196. La Vaca Birria
Mexican
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #40 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
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Rank 196. Nopalito
Mexican
A tiny, no-reservation spot on Broderick where locals queue for blue-corn tacos of spicy-smoky marinated fish and corn tortillas wrapped around melting pulled pork. The reclaimed-wood room glows with bright green accents, the menu moves through chilaquiles verdes and empanadas with equal ease, and the kitchen approaches its ingredients with visible care. Expect to wait, and to be grateful for it.
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Rank 196. Bon Délire
French
- Sunset 2025 · Fabulous French · Where to Eat and Drink
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
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Rank 196. La Marcha Tapas Bar
Spanish
The team behind Ñora Cocina Española brings paella and tapas to a lively San Pablo Avenue room where head-on garlic shrimp and salt cod croquettes arrive alongside inventive rice dishes like pork-heavy "tres cerditos." Groups congregate around sizable pans while solo diners work the L-shaped bar, each finding their angle on Spanish food executed with clear technical skill and generosity.
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Rank 196. Chez Panisse
Californian New American
The open kitchen and wood-burning oven anchor a dining room where the four-course menu shifts daily, its dishes tethered entirely to what the Bay Area's markets offer that season. Waters' foundational principle—that ingredient purity and timing matter more than technique—remains the throughline, whether you're eating spring peas or August figs.
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Rank 196. Hed 11
Thai
In a corner of the Kimpton Hotel Enso, Chef Saint Boonprasan orchestrates an eleven-course Thai tasting that weaves regional tradition with contemporary technique, sweet against savory in disciplined succession. Coconut pancakes with caviar and lime, scallop-crowned rice noodles, Thai cheesecake with fried onions—each course arrives as part of a deliberate whole, never indulgent, always precise.
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Rank 196. Mingala Restaurant
Burmese/Malaysian
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #58 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
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Rank 196. Mrs Khan Uyghur Cuisine
Uyghur Middle Eastern
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #94 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Peninsula and South Bay Restaurants
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Rank 196. Scoma's
Seafood
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #78 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 196. Esin Restaurant & Bar
American/Mediterranean
-
Rank 196. Maillards
Burgers
- The Infatuation The Hit List: New San Francisco Restaurants To Try Right Now
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 196. Arizmendi Bakery
Bakery/Cafe
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 196. The Marshall Store
Coastal Californian
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Marin County Restaurants
- The New York Times 2021 · The Restaurant List
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- The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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The modest storefront in NoPa fills with the smell of wood smoke and yeast by seven in the morning, its counter lined with bagels and challah pulled from an in-house oven. Nearly everything arrives from the kitchen—the bacon, the butter, the ambition—which gives the place the feeling of a breakfast operation that refuses to outsource its care.
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Rank 196. Lou's Cafe
Sandwiches
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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Rank 196. Volcano
Japanese
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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Rank 196. Waterbar
Seafood
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
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Rank 196. XICA
Mexican
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
-
- San Francisco Chronicle 2026 · #60 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Marin County Restaurants
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Rank 196. Elena's
Mexican
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Rank 196. Cordon Bleu
Vietnamese
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 196. Pizzetta 211
Pizza
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
-
Rank 196. Arsicault Bakery
Bakery/Cafe
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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Rank 196. Pineapple King Bakery
Chinese
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
-
Rank 196. Taqueria Cancún
Mexican
- The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 196. DAMNFiNE pizza
Pizza
- The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 196. La Mar
Peruvian
- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
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- The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 18 Best Restaurants In NoPa
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Rank 196. Hong Kong Lounge
Dim Sum
- The Infatuation The 20 Best Brunch Spots In SF
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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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
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Rank 196. Turquaz
Turkish
- The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF
- The Infatuation 2025 · #11 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
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Rank 196. Masa's
Sushi
Chef Takatoshi Toshi works the counter at this spare sushi shop in downtown Novato, breaking down whole fish while chatting with neighbors across the worn wood. Lunch brings affordable chirashi bowls and nigiri sets; the evening omakase reveals nigiri tastings, albacore rolls, and kinmedai smoked over cherry wood. A neighborhood place that feels like one, unhurried and unpretentious.
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Rank 196. Pearl 6101
Cal- Italian
A lively neighborhood spot housed in a vintage drugstore, Pearl 6101 pairs an airy dining room and warm service with a sharp Italian wine list and Cal-Italian cooking. Handkerchief pastas swim in creamy Bolognese, caramelle burst with crescenza, and roasted sweet potato arrives dressed in miso tahini—each plate feels both rustic and considered.
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Rank 196. 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
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Rank 196. 3rd Cousin
New American
Greg Lutes's Bernal Heights dining room sits quietly uphill from the city's noise, where hand-rolled pastas and unexpected luxuries—uni crème brûlée with caviar, Wagyu with maitake—signal a chef uninterested in convention. The intimacy here feels earned, built on the steady work of someone who knows how to close a meal, whether with truffle ravioli or pistachio cake.
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Rank 196. Juanita & Maude
Seasonal New American
Scott Eastman's debut in downtown Albany mixes sculptural charm and craft cocktails with a deliberately unfussy communal spirit, the room itself as welcoming as the seasonal cooking. Veal Bolognese carries the weight of his Corso years, while summer squash and halibut sing without pretension, trailing into creamy banana custard that tastes like restraint finally rewarded.
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Chef Asuka Uchida's modern izakaya dispenses skewers, karaage, and sando with equal precision from a sleek blue storefront. Green bean fritters dusted with sansho and silken tofu ginger showcase technique that extends across every corner of the menu.
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Berkeley Restaurants
- Esquire 2021 · #38 · The Best New Restaurants in America
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- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #89 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Oakland Restaurants
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Rank 196. Devil’s Teeth Baking Co
Bakery/Cafe
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Doughnuts in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 196. jū-ni
Omakase Sushi
Chef Geoffrey Lee's twelve-seat omakase delivers pristine nigiri with precise flourishes—sakura masu crowned with salt-cured cherry blossom, buttery scallop, ikura finished with frozen monkfish liver. The meal unfolds with studied restraint, from vegetable courses to a gentle mochi finale.
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Rank 196. Sushi Yoshizumi
Edomae Sushi
Eight cypress-lined seats, a silent chef, and the methodical construction of Edomae sushi—each piece a small argument for restraint. Chef Akira Yoshizumi's nigiri arrives barely dressed, the fish doing the talking: tender bluefin, creamy ankimo, seasonal buri finished with a brightness of green onion. This is sushi for people who've thought about sushi.
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Akira Yoshizumi
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- Los Angeles Times 2025 · The 101 Best Restaurants in California
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Rank 255. Sfizio
Italian
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Rank 255. Excelsior Coffee
Coffee Shop
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Rank 255. Gumbo Social
Soul Food Cajun & Creole
- San Francisco Chronicle Top San Francisco Restaurants
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
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Rank 255. The Halfway Club
Midwestern
-
Rank 255. Kiraku
Japanese
-
Rank 255. JollyJolly Coffee & Kitchen
Caribbean/African
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Rank 255. Cenaduria Elvira
Traditional Mexican
-
- San Francisco Chronicle The Best Classic Restaurants in San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 17 Best Restaurants Near The Embarcadero & Ferry Building
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Rank 255. Old Mandarin Islamic Restaurant
Northern Chinese
- Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 255. Lily
Vietnamese
- San Francisco Chronicle 2025 · #45 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Richmond
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Rank 255. Caché
Seafood French
- The Infatuation 2025 · #7 · San Francisco’s Best New Restaurants
- The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In The Sunset
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Rank 255. Marigold
Coffee
- Wine Enthusiast 2024 · Forward 50 Restaurants
- The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco
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Rank 255. El Tacostao
Mexican
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Rank 255. Che Fico
Italian
An airy, stylish room on Divisadero where reservations vanish fast and the bar proffers cocktails spiked with green walnut and basil. The kitchen balances rustic instinct with refinement: house-made salumi, saffron spaghetti with 'nduja, pizzas with blistered crusts, whole fish from the wood-fired oven. Smart cooking that tastes like it's having fun.
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Chef · David Nayfeld
- Michelin Guide Selected Restaurant
- The Infatuation The 18 Best Restaurants In NoPa
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Rank 255. Mujiri
Japanese
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Rank 272. 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.
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Rank 272. Teni East Kitchen
Burmese
At Tiyo Shibabaw's bright Temescal cafe, Burmese classics meet California ingredients—tea leaf salads arrive with kale, coconut curries steam over rice noodles, and flaky roti arrives in generous piles. The lunchtime specials trade fuss for flavor at prices that feel like a bargain, each plate generous enough to justify the wait.
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Rank 272. Pizzeria Delfina
Neapolitan Pizza
-
Rank 272. Little Original Joe's
American Italian
-
Rank 272. Pizzeria Delfina
Neapolitan Pizza
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Rank 272. Dumpling Home
Chinese
At a corner spot in the Theater District, chefs hand-fold soup dumplings with supple skins and clear, concentrated broth—pork, chicken, beef, or a Sichuan-spiced numbness that lingers on the tongue. Pan-fried baos and hand-pulled noodles round out a casual menu where bamboo steamers stack higher than ambition.
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Rank 272. Flores
Mexican
Patterned tiles and bright murals set the scene at this Cow Hollow mainstay, where young families and Marina regulars crowd in for handmade corn tortillas wrapped around tender carnitas and oozy huitlacoche quesadilla. The kitchen treats Mexican cooking with seriousness—generous portions and modest prices suggest ambition beyond the usual neighborhood cantina.
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Rank 272. Horn Barbecue
West Coast Barbecue
Matt Horn's warehouse outpost channels West Coast barbecue through a lineage of family smoking traditions: brisket and pulled pork arrive unfussy and rich, anchored by pit beans and Granny's potatoes. The industrial room—all exposed brick and a defiant steer mural—moves fast, but the wait rewards those hungry enough to endure it.
- Michelin Guide Bib Gourmand
- James Beard Awards 2022 · Nominee · Best New Restaurant
- Esquire 2021 · #5 · The Best New Restaurants in America
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Rank 272. New Dumpling
Chinese
Dumplings arrive from an open kitchen at this cheerful shop where the chalkboard menu pivots between traditional fillings and offbeat pairs—sweet corn and chicken, scrambled egg and tomato—each parcel a complete meal. The peanut salad crackles with celery and carrots, but it is the dumplings themselves, bursting and abundant, that justify the trip and spare your wallet.
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Rank 272. Wood Tavern
Italian-inflected New American
At the heart of Rockridge, Wood Tavern draws a mixed crowd to its copper bar for wine and conversation amid the organic grocers and bookstores. Seasonal California cooking with Italian inflections—a butcher block of house charcuterie, bucatini bolognese, pan-roasted chicken with fingerlings—arrives without pretense, while crème brûlée cheesecake with yuzu curd offers a graceful close.
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Rank 272. Trestle
Contemporary
At Trestle, three courses rotate through the seasons at a price that rewards restraint: creamy tomato soup with thyme oil might yield to fork-tender short ribs on parmesan polenta, finished with frozen chocolate parfait and crushed cashews. The dining room hums with energy, and staff move with genuine warmth, making the whole enterprise feel less like a bargain than like being let in on something.
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Rank 272. Daytrip Counter
Californian
- James Beard Awards 2024 · Semifinalist · Best Chef: California · Finn Stern
- San Francisco Chronicle Top East Bay Restaurants
- Bon Appétit 2022 · America's Best New Restaurants
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Rank 272. Comal
Mexican
Comal's open kitchen showcases wood-fired tortillas and bold Mexican cooking built on pristine ingredients, anchored by smoky rock cod tacos with avocado aioli. An excellent cocktail program and extensive agave selection keep the industrial-chic Berkeley dining room perpetually packed.
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Rank 272. Wildhawk
Cocktail Bar
- Spirited Awards 2024 · Regional Honoree · Best U.S. Cocktail Bar – U.S. West
- The Infatuation The Best Martinis In San Francisco
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Rank 272. China Village
Sichuan Chinese
A bright, modernized dining room with contemporary art and a sleek bar sets the stage for incendiary Sichuan cooking. The dry-fried chicken arrives crackling with chilies and numbing peppercorns; the five-spice pork shoulder, a house specialty, sits fork-tender in fiery chili oil alongside bok choy and scallions. A casual neighborhood favorite that takes its heat seriously.
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Rank 272. Los Carnalitos Restaurant
Mexico City Mexican
Two brothers transformed their food truck into a Mexico City outpost, where house-made tortillas wrap squash blossoms and huitlacoche, and a guajillo-soaked pambazo arrives seared to gilded perfection. Bright Aztec murals frame the dining room as $2 tacos of suadero and al pastor arrive with the quiet confidence of people who know exactly what they're doing.
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Rank 272. Bansang
Korean
At Bansang, a centuries-old Korean communal dining tradition meets an unapologetic contemporary sensibility—parmesan and chorizo slide alongside kimchi fried rice and mulhwe, a raw seafood broth of chilled fermented chili. The soy-lime glazed fried chicken arrives with a craggy, shattering crust and juicy meat so compelling you'll want to abandon all pretense of sharing.
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Rank 272. Playa
Mexican
Playa transports Mill Valley diners to a Baja state of mind with margaritas and mezcal served beneath blown-glass lights and colorful tile. The al pastor tacos—layered with caramelized pineapple and charred meat—and crispy chorizo empanadas confirm the kitchen takes its Mexican cooking seriously.
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Rank 272. Pausa
Venetian Italian
A bright, late-lit room overlooks the charcuterie aging behind glass while Chef Andrea Giuliani's Venetian cooking—porchetta pizza with gorgonzola, house-cured guanciale in the amatriciana—arrives with the confidence of someone who knows his region inside out. The salumi boards and wood-fired pizzas suggest a place built on a few things done very well, without pretense.
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Rank 272. Top Hatters Kitchen & Bar
Vietnamese-Californian New American
In a San Leandro suburb far quieter than the freeway it borders, this former hat shop channels its name into millinery-themed cocktails and a kitchen that merges Vietnamese and Californian sensibilities. Chef Vu's crunchy rice cakes and braised oxtail over creamy grits possess an uncommon depth, settling toward lemon-ricotta zeppole that lands like a pillow.
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Rank 272. A16
Italian Pizza
A16's wood-fired pizzas and seasonal pastas draw crowds eager to watch cooks work the open kitchen, with the smoky Vesuvio and maccaronara with ragu napoletano worth the reservation fight. The wine list roams Italy's lesser-known regions, while desserts—fig crostata, house-made gelato—finish the meal with care.
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Rank 272. Bake Sum
Cantonese Bakery
- The New York Times 2024 · Croissubi · The Best Restaurant Dishes We Ate Across the U.S.
- San Francisco Chronicle Top Bakeries of the Bay Area
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Rank 272. Little Original Joe’s
Italian
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Rank 296. Oken
Japanese/Korean
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Rank 296. Kopê House
Asian-Influenced
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Rank 296. Masterpiece Coffee
Chinese
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Rank 296. Yo También! Cantina
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Hella Bagels
NY-Style
-
Rank 296. b. Patisserie
French
-
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Rank 296. Kantine
Scandanavian-Inspired
-
Rank 296. Maison Nico
French
-
Rank 296. Tutuli
Sonoran
-
Rank 296. SHOWA
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Bix
American
-
Rank 296. Ararat Kebab & Gyros
Mediterranean
-
Rank 296. Angie’s Pizza
Pizza
A narrow storefront on 16th Street holds the kind of casual Mission romance that unfolds over thin crust and wood smoke. The pizzas arrive properly charred, the sundaes arrive properly cold, and the whole affair feels engineered for the particular pleasure of two people sharing.
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Rank 296. Perbacco
Italian
-
Rank 296. Taqueria El Buen Sabor
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Panchita’s #2
Salvadoran
-
Rank 296. Asha Tea House
Japanese
-
Rank 296. All Good Pizza
Pizza
-
Rank 296. Poesia
Italian
-
Rank 296. ATWater Tavern
American
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Rank 296. Parche
Colombian
A riot of Latin music and saturated color announces Parche before you cross the threshold, but the real draw is cooking that honors Colombian tradition while threading in African and Lebanese threads—labneh with yuca buñuelos, tahini-spiked leche de tigre. It's loud, convivial, and uninterested in restraint.
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Rank 296. Chuan Yu
Sichuan Chinese
A narrow second-floor room in Pacific Renaissance Plaza serves serious Sichuan cooking from a stripped-down space where a bottle wall glows and white booths line the right. The lotus root salad arrives bright with ginger and garlic; the mapo tofu and chongqing chicken deliver the heat and numbing spice the menu promises. Portions demand company, and the food rewards the trip upstairs.
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Rank 296. 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.
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Rank 296. GADA
Sandwiches
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Rank 296. Belotti Ristorante e Bottega
Piemontese Italian
A neighborhood enoteca on Rockridge's main stretch where the owner holds court in Italian and regulars claim bar stools like reserved seats. House-made pastas anchor the menu—spaghettini with tomato and burrata, brasato over polenta finished with nebbiolo—alongside smaller surprises: butter lettuce with pine nuts, a truffle-touched spinach flan. Casual and convivial, built for lingering.
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Rank 296. SPQR
Italian
A narrow room with skylights and open kitchen hums with the energy of a packed house. Chef Matthew Accarrino marries Italian technique and California produce—crespelle with pork belly and persimmon, squid ink pasta with octopus cream—in a five-course menu that moves between kitschy charm and genuine culinary ambition.
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Rank 296. Picco
Italian
A hilltop dining room with exposed brick and soaring ceilings sets the stage for Bruce Hill's Italian cooking rooted in Marin's produce: duck tortelli studded with fresh turnips, risotto made to order, kale salad brightened with Meyer lemon yogurt. The service moves with practiced grace, the atmosphere warm without pretense, a place where locals and visitors alike feel equally at home.
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Rank 296. Sushi Shin
Omakase Sushi
Chef Jason Zhan works the counter at this understated Redwood City spot with the focused grace of someone who knows exactly what he's doing. His omakase unfolds through carefully sourced seasonal fish—tempura greeneye dusted with matcha, soy-marinated snail, pristine nigiri—each piece a small argument for restraint and precision over spectacle.
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Rank 296. Tony's Seafood
Seafood
Tomales Bay spreads out beyond the windows of this sun-soaked oyster bar, where Hog Island's daily catch—briny shells, steamed mussels in spicy tomato, a silken clam chowder—arrives still tasting of local water. Grilled oysters wear barbecue char or garlic butter with equal grace. The setting does half the work; the seafood does the rest.
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Rank 296. Barcote Ethiopian Restaurant
Traditional Ethiopian
The chef-owners at Barcote layer spice and warmth into their Ethiopian cooking with the ease of people who've cooked this way their whole lives, whether you're eating kitfo or misir wot under the front patio's trees. The food lingers—not because it's slow, but because each dish asks you to stay awhile.
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Rank 296. La Viga Seafood & Cocina Mexicana
Seafood Mexican
A cheerful room wedged between industrial Redwood City and downtown serves seafood with the urgency of a market stall. Fried snapper tacos arrive with chipotle crema; tallarines con mariscos pile al dente noodles, pristine shellfish, and spicy tomato into something generous and cheap. The kitchen trades precision for volume and heat—a philosophy that works.
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Rank 296. Saru Sushi Bar
Sushi
A narrow Noe Valley sushi counter where the energy builds as you squeeze in: nigiri of kampachi and snow crab, seared ankimo with scallions, a tempura-fried seaweed cracker topped with spicy tuna. The kitchen respects Japanese foundations while slipping in a grilled shishito with ponzu, the kind of small gesture that suggests confidence rather than confusion about what it is.
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Rank 296. Bardo Lounge & Supper Club
Supper Club Cocktail Bar
Bardo wraps you in mid-century alcoves and punch bowls while a capable kitchen updates retro comfort—broccolini casserole spiked with lemongrass vinegar, porcupine meatballs finished with mint aïoli. Earnest service and potent cocktails complete the time-slip, leaving you content to surrender to the "Dinner Party Menu" and let the kitchen decide.
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Rank 296. wonderful
Hunanese Chinese
A cramped Hunanese spot where carved wooden booths face the open kitchen, revealing the work behind dishes of aggressive flavor: smoked pork with leeks, hand-cut noodles topped with fermented black beans and pickled chilies, a whole fish braised in red chili sauce so bright it seems alive. This is Chinese cooking that doesn't whisper.
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Rank 296. Holbrook House
American
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An industrial warehouse outfitted with live tanks and hanging buoys serves as both fish market and restaurant, where the lobster roll arrives in three iterations—mayo-dressed, butter-naked, or seasonal with avocado and bacon—but the main event is the whole lobster plate, available from one to four pounds, preceded by creamy lobster-corn chowder that devotees buy frozen by the quart.
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Rank 296. Cafe Reyes
Wood-Fired Pizza
Two wood-fired ovens turn out crusty pies named for local landmarks—the Farallon arrives layered with roasted garlic, crisp pepperoni, and melted mozzarella—in a barn-like room stacked high with seasoning wood. This Point Reyes Station fixture suits day-trippers and groups equally, its rusticity offering no pretense, only honest cooking.
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Rank 296. Geelou
Bar
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Rank 296. Sorella
Northern Italian
The younger sibling to Acquerello trades formality for exuberance, its kitchen channeling Northern Italy through a Californian lens. A gem lettuce salad might showcase Dungeness crab with anchovy dressing; house-made pasta arrives in intricate forms like beef-and-Comté timballo. The bar hums with cicchetti and cocktails, though the dining room is where the kitchen's ambitions fully unfold.
-
-
Rank 296. Kapari Restaurant
Turkish
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A sourdough pizzeria in the Dogpatch that treats its dough with the gravity of a baker's craft, not a shortcut. The pies emerge from the oven with the kind of restraint and care that makes simplicity feel like an achievement.
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Rank 296. Damansara
Malaysian
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Rank 296. Pasta Moon
Italian
A lively room with vaulted ceilings and views of creek and garden, Pasta Moon trades pretense for the straightforward pleasures of house-made pasta, crisp thin-crust pizza, and layered eggplant Parmesan that knows exactly what it is. The kitchen's commitment to artisanal products shows in its soppressata pie and in desserts finished with restraint—vanilla affogato crowned with candied peel.
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Rank 296. Palette Tea House
Chinese
Palette Tea House occupies Ghirardelli Square with a dining room alive in colored light and tilework, where dim sum arrives as theater—pork and duck puffs sculpted into swans, silken rice rolls with XO sauce. The kitchen moves beyond Instagram spectacle with dishes like cognac-glazed Ibérico char siu that justify the elegance of the room.
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Tucked into a Japantown mall corner, this sushi counter barely interrupts the foot traffic, yet the nigiri here—silky fish, clean technique—competes with more visible operations. A lightly torched wild star butterfish dissolves on the tongue; a handroll of chopped bluefin and pickled daikon crackles with nori. Five to twelve pieces, reasonable prices, no pretense.
-
-
Rank 296. Constanso's
Sandwiches
-
Rank 296. Delfina
California Italian
-
Rank 296. Kissaten HiFi
Coffee
-
Rank 296. Super Mira
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Kiss of Matcha
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Yo Yo's
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Maruwu Seicha
Japanese
-
-
Rank 296. Barberio Osteria
Californian Italian
-
Rank 296. World Famous Hotboys
Nashville
-
-
Rank 296. Penny Roma
Italian
-
-
Rank 296. Baklavastory
Turkish
-
-
Rank 296. Pâtisserie Rotha
French
-
Rank 296. 88 Bao Bao
Chinese
-
Rank 296. Patio Filipino
Filipino-Spanish
-
Rank 296. Patisserie by Simone
French-Inspired
-
-
-
-
Rank 296. Taishan Cuisine
Cantonese Chinese
-
Rank 296. Kan Kiin
Modern Thai
A strip-mall Thai restaurant in Daly City where brunch turns out hat yai fried chicken alongside waffles and the dinner menu pivots to spicy clay pot catfish and hand-made curry puffs with gossamer crusts. Bold seasoning and careful technique elevate what could have been routine into something worth the drive.
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-
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Rank 296. Utzutzu
Omakase Sushi
An unmarked staircase in Alameda leads to an eight-seat counter where the kitchen orchestrates an omakase of quiet precision: blanched vegetables in dashi, delicate nanbanzuke, seared whitefish. A humble fried eggplant, crowned with bonito flakes and finished with black sesame ice cream, announces the chef's willingness to let technique serve surprise rather than spectacle.
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Rank 296. Fiorella Sunset
Italian
-
-
Rank 296. Flea St. Cafe
Farm-to-table New American
A converted house in Menlo Park where chef Jesse Dunford Wales sources vegetables from nearby farms for unfussy, ingredient-driven cooking. The small rooms and eclectic artwork preserve the intimate feeling that has defined the place since 1980.
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Rank 296. 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.
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Rank 296. Presidio Kebab
Mediterranean
-
Rank 296. Gialina
Pizza
-
-
Rank 296. Fu Hui Hua
Chinese/Japanese/French
-
Rank 296. Fable
American
-
Rank 296. Anomaly
Contemporary
An unmarked door on a quiet residential stretch opens onto a hushed, clandestine dining room where Chef Mike Lanham composes tasting menus built on seasonal produce and precise technique—halibut crudo with yuzu bavarois, asparagus in multiple preparations—without descending into modernist affectation. The plates arrive exquisitely plated, each one a study in texture and restraint.
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Rank 296. Gioia Pizzeria
Pizza
-
Rank 296. Causwells
American
-
Rank 296. Hi Hat
Pizza
-
Rank 296. The Front Porch
Southern
-
-
Rank 296. Three Star Restaurant
Chinese
-
Rank 296. Hamburguesa Bar
Burgers
-
Rank 296. um.ma
Korean
The patio at Um.ma, tucked into the Inner Sunset, hums with the kind of casual energy that makes strangers feel like regulars. Korean classics arrive with the confidence of a kitchen that knows what it's doing, each plate a small argument for why this corner matters.
-
-
Rank 296. Goldenette
Diner
-
-
-
Rank 296. Arsicault Bakery
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 296. Mymy
American
In a Nob Hill corner thick with weekend crowds, Mymy pulls off the trick of casual brunch without the rushed feel that usually comes with it. Lemon pancakes arrive puffy and sharp, corned beef hash arrives crisp, and the whole thing tastes like someone actually wanted to cook for you.
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Rank 296. Caffè Macaroni
Italian
-
Rank 296. House of Pancakes
Chinese
-
Rank 296. Hawaiian Drive Inn
Hawaiian
-
Rank 296. Balboa Cafe
American
Balboa Cafe trades in the currency of Cow Hollow visibility, a room where the crowd matters as much as what fills the glass. The espresso martini arrives with the confidence of a drink that knows exactly what it is.
-
-
Rank 296. Tadich Grill
Seafood
-
Rank 296. Barcha
Mediterranean
-
Rank 296. Zevi Cafe
Turkish
-
Rank 296. Maria Isabel
Mexican
-
Rank 296. RT Bistro
American
-
Rank 296. Anatolian Table
Turkish
-
Rank 296. El Metate
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Hillstone
American
-
Rank 296. La Corneta Taqueria
Mexican
-
-
Rank 296. Don Chuys Mexi-Mercado
Mexican
-
Rank 296. TBD izakaya
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Rice Roll Express
Chinese
-
Rank 296. Super Star Restaurant
Filipino
-
Rank 296. Taqueria Guadalajara
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Stella Pastry
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 296. Charm Coffee
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 296. Komeya No Bento
Japanese
A narrow Japanese counter in the Marina where matcha arrives as a ritual and bento boxes are packed with the care of someone who learned the practice decades ago. The place fills quickly before people head to Fort Mason, which tells you something about what locals trust to carry across a park.
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Rank 296. Tadaima
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Joujou
French
-
Rank 296. The Brazen Head
American
-
Rank 296. Thorough Bread & Pastry
Bakery/Cafe
-
-
Rank 296. Blue Plate
American
-
Rank 296. Khao Tiew
Thai
-
Rank 296. Nagomi
Japanese
-
Rank 296. El Castillito
Mexican
-
Rank 296. York Street Collective
South Asian
-
Rank 296. Marco Polo Italian Ice Cream
Ice Cream
-
Rank 296. Mộng Thu Cafe
Vietnamese
-
Rank 296. 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.
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Rank 296. Taksim
Turkish
-
Rank 296. Yamo
Burmese
-
-
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Picnic tables draped in bright plastic and unhurried service conjure a Thai roadside kitchen, where grilled meats and fiery green papaya salad arrive with uncompromising punch. The curries and drunken noodles respect your heat tolerance, but the mango sticky rice—coconut-sweet, gently cooling—suggests the kitchen knows when restraint matters most.
-
Rank 296. Capital Restaurant
Cantonese
-
Rank 296. Third Wheel Coffee
Coffee
-
Rank 296. Brenda's French Soul Food
Soul Food
-
Rank 296. Nieves Cinco De Mayo
Ice Cream
-
-
-
Rank 296. La Palma Mexicatessen
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Origin Lab
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 296. Woods Cole Valley
Brewery
-
Rank 296. Best Boy Electric
Coffee
-
Rank 296. Do-Re-Mi
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Montesacro
Pizza
-
Rank 296. Heartwood SF
American
-
Rank 296. Plow
American
-
Rank 296. Black Bird Bookstore and Café
Bakery/Cafe
-
-
Rank 296. Basa Seafood Express
Seafood
-
Rank 296. Neighbor's Corner
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 296. Sato Omakase
Sushi
A serene counter where butter-poached lobster and soy-marinated tuna demonstrate the chef's command of both luxury and restraint. The hamachi nigiri, touched with yuzu, and the wasabi-crowned sashimi suggest that true indulgence lies not in abundance but in precision—each ingredient allowed to speak, each technique invisible until you taste it.
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Rank 296. Frances
Californian New American
Melissa Perello's neighborhood spot moves with the seasons, serving California produce in Mediterranean-leaning dishes—roasted beets with chickpea dukkah, whole wheat pasta with ramp pesto—that favor rustic satisfaction over technique for its own sake. The cozy room fills nightly with families and couples alike, drawn to food that tastes like careful cooking rather than ambition.
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Rank 296. Hamano Sushi
Sushi
At Hamano, a neighborhood sushi counter in Noe Valley splits into two distinct experiences: casual diners order à la carte maki and sashimi in the open room, while omakase devotees at the front bar watch Chef Jiro Lin dress salt-cured tile fish and aged hamachi with assertive wasabi and chili. Both tiers demand respect for their ingredient quality, though only one asks for boldness in return.
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-
-
Rank 296. Fikscue
Indo-Tex Barbecue
-
Rank 296. Genova Delicatessen
Italian
-
Rank 296. Pena's Bakery
Mexican Bakery
-
Rank 296. Guesthouse
Contemporary New American
Chef Jared Rogers brings polished Marin sensibilities to his Kentfield neighborhood spot, where grilled king salmon and flourless chocolate cake arrive in a barn-turned-luxury-lodge setting. Soft leather booths, jewel-toned wallpaper, and tropical cocktails complete the cavernous, convivial retreat.
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Rank 296. Dingles Public House
Gastropub
Tucked into a Hayes Valley hotel, this pub trades nostalgia for precision, plating beer-battered fish and chips alongside a Scotch egg with a jammy center and panko crust that arrives with the care of a composed dish. The beverage program moves with equal restraint—draughts, wines, cocktails—each chosen rather than exhaustive, setting a tone that feels both convivial and intentional.
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Rank 296. Saffron
Indian
The dining room opens like a familiar refuge—all breezy ease and quiet style—while the kitchen draws from across India's regions with dishes both rooted and restless. A slow-braised lamb curry spiked with two dozen spices, or kale pakoras in chickpea batter with chutneys, suggest cooks who respect tradition while reaching for texture and surprise.
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Rank 296. 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.
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Rank 296. Rêve Bistro
French
A gated patio strung with lights and greenery opens onto a spare dining room where exposed brick and chandeliers strike an easy balance. Chef Paul Magu-Lecugy's bistro menu moves from delicate house-made gougères to venison in puff pastry, each plate executed with the confidence of someone who understands French tradition without feeling bound by it.
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Rank 296. Donaji
Oaxacan Mexican
Chef Isai Cuevas brings his farmer's market tamales into a cheerful brick storefront, where masa-forward Oaxacan cooking unfolds with the precision of a man who has mastered his craft over years. The handmade tortillas and deeply layered mole negro that bind the enchiladas together suggest a kitchen that understands restraint and flavor as the same thing.
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Rank 296. Havana
Miami-Cuban
-
Rank 296. La Cigale
French
Chef Joseph Magidow runs this Glen Park kitchen solo, sourcing whole animals with Southwest French technique and restraint. A daily prix fixe might offer rabbit saddle stuffed with pork belly, cooked with the precision of someone who learned to respect ingredient.
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Rank 296. Breakwater Barbecue
Barbecue
Inside a repurposed railroad station north of Half Moon Bay, Breakwater Barbecue channels coastal cowboy swagger with smoke-heavy conviction. The Texas Trinity—brisket, ribs, and spicy sausage links served on thick bread—arrives as the kitchen's plainspoken argument for why tradition still matters.
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Rank 296. La Costanera
Peruvian
Half Moon Bay's coastal charm extends to this Peruvian dining room, where Chef Carlos Altamirano channels tradition and invention through boldly seasoned plates: avocado halved and stuffed with crispy chicken, ceviche singing with aji rocoto heat, seafood-studded rice that satisfies without pretense. The cocktails matter here, though a glass of chicha morada works just as well.
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Rank 296. Pomet
New American
A farmer-chef's appreciation for ingredient quality shapes every plate at this Oakland fine-dining spot, where oysters meet Niitaka pear and cider mignonette, and pasta cradles mushroom puree in celery root miso butter. Aomboon Deasy's sourcing—drawing from his own orchards and a web of local growers—permits a cooking style of deliberate restraint, letting seasonality speak louder than technique.
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Rank 296. Sabio on Main
Californian New American
The dining room glows with arched wood panels and backlit wine, a theatrical setting for cooking that pivots sharply with the seasons. Dishes like spring garlic velouté with Livermore olive oil and za'atar-roasted romanesco show a hand attuned to local produce and regenerative sourcing. The food arrives with clarity and restraint, letting ingredients speak rather than overwhelm.
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Rank 296. Yuji
Japanese
A nine-seat counter in Japantown where punctuality matters—the meal starts without stragglers. Yuji moves through a twelve-course kappo progression of delicate, seasonal bites: pristine sashimi, crispy fried tilefish, rice enriched with hairy crab, finishing with silky matcha custard. Intimate enough that you watch the work unfold mere inches away.
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Rank 296. Tacubaya
Mexican
A Berkeley counter-service taqueria animated by locals streaming in for breakfast chilaquiles and limeade, its festive dining room and front patio hung with pink papel picados. The enchiladas arrive draped in smoky guajillo-tomatillo sauce, the quesadillas stuffed with kabocha squash and pecan cream—food that tastes like it has earned its perpetual line.
-
Rank 296. Tacos Mamá Cuca
Sonoran
-
Rank 296. 3 Bottled Fish
Vietnamese
-
Rank 296. Star Chaat Cuisine
Indian
-
Rank 296. 11th Tiger
Thai
-
-
Rank 296. Babushka Market, Deli & Cafe
Eastern European
-
-
Rank 296. Burma! Burma!
Burmese
-
Rank 296. Boichik Bagels
NY-Style
-
Rank 296. La Espiga De Oro
Mexican
-
Rank 296. Iyasare
Japanese
Japanese technique meets California produce in a buzzing Berkeley room where small plates—grilled vegetables with black garlic, hamachi with wasabi snow, clams in sake broth—shift seasonally but never disappoint. The wine and sake lists anchor an evening built for sharing.
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Rank 296. All Spice
International
All Spice strings together colorful dining rooms and seasonal tasting menus with theatrical flair, favoring polished technique over novelty. A strip loin arrives surrounded by confit mushrooms and smoked kale, the kind of assured execution that justifies the prix-fixe format.
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Rank 296. Amakara Sushi
Japanese
-
Rank 296. Bun Appétit
French
-
Rank 296. Camper
Californian New American
Corner windows flood this Menlo Park kitchen with light while it pursues Californian cooking with real depth—a ten-hour ragù, potato soup with green garlic pesto, buttermilk fried chicken. The caramelized milk jam pudding finishes what the buzzing room and open kitchen promise.
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Rank 296. 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 296. Smoke Soul Kitchen
Soul Food
-
Rank 296. Tato
Mexican
-
-
Rank 296. Delage
Omakase Japanese
Delage occupies a modest counter near Swan's Market where an omakase chef moves through eight seasonal courses with unhurried precision, pivoting between nigiri and kaiseki. The cooking pivots on contrast—grilled apricot against sashimi, miso against seared duck—and the result feels less like performance than intimate conversation.
-
Rank 296. Keeku da Dhaba
Indian
-
Rank 296. Lita
Caribbean-Latino
-
Rank 296. Oyo Restaurant & Jive Bar
South American
-
-
-
Rank 296. Yafa Hummus
Mediterranean
-
Rank 296. Yeobo, Darling
Korean Contemporary
In a Menlo Park storefront, Meichih and Michael Kim channel Korean and Taiwanese influences through small plates designed for sharing: a crisp potato jeon crowned with uni and prosciutto, lasagna layered with soy-braised pork, wagyu kalbi with house-made banchan. The cooking is precise and playful, comfort and technique in constant conversation, finishing with creamy soft serve and seasonal fruit.
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Rank 296. Burmatown
Burmese
A bright-orange bungalow in Corte Madera serves authentic Burmese cooking that sidesteps fusion platitudes. Tea leaf salad arrives nutty and crunchy; potato samosas and egg noodles with barbecued pork and fried garlic sustain across seasons. Local families pack the tables nightly, tended by warm staff—the laid-back charm rewards a pilgrimage north.
-
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 296. Mägo
Colombian/S. American
-
Rank 296. Tacos Mama Cuca
Sonoran Mexican
-
Rank 296. Ok's Deli
Asian-American
-
-
Rank 526. Mensho
Noodles
-
Rank 526. John's Grill
San Francisco
-
Rank 526. Sam Wo Restaurant
Chinese
-
Rank 526. Diamond Head General Store
Hawaiian
-
-
Rank 526. Shugetsu
Japanese
-
-
Rank 526. Carnitas Poblanas El Canelo
Puebla-Style
-
Rank 526. Avatar's Restaurant
California-Indian
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 526. Hayes Street Grill
San Francisco
-
Rank 526. Annachi Kadai
Chettinad-Style
-
Rank 526. ID Cafe
Southern Indian
-
-
Rank 526. FAVA
New American
-
Rank 526. Grégoire
French
-
Rank 526. Kaokao Grill
Chinese-American
-
Rank 526. Las Cabañas Mexican Grill & Taqueria
Chaipas-Style
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 526. Kopiku Coffee
Indonesian Coffee
-
Rank 526. Smelly’s
Cajun & Creole
-
Rank 526. Benchmark Pizzeria
Neo-Neopolitan
-
Rank 526. El Burro Veloz
Guadalajara-Style
-
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 526. Chibog
Filipino
-
-
Rank 526. Rasa
South Indian
-
Rank 526. Parekoy Lutong Pinoy
Filipino
-
Rank 526. Lemat Restaurant
Ethiopian
-
Rank 526. Swan Oyster Depot
San Francisco
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 526. Tacos Mi Reynita
Mexican
-
-
-
Rank 526. Sol Food
Puerto Rican
-
Rank 526. Beit Rima
Middle Eastern
-
-
Rank 526. El Paisa
Mexican
-
Rank 526. Pupuseria Blankita
Salvadoran
-
-
-
Rank 526. Le Soleil
Contemporary Asian
-
Rank 526. Emilia's Pizzeria
NY-Style
-
Rank 526. Delah Coffee
Yemeni Coffee
-
Rank 526. Turtle Tower
Northern Vietnamese
-
Rank 526. Aman Cafe
Malaysian
-
Rank 526. World Famous Hotboys
Nashville Southern
-
Rank 526. Shandong Restaurant
Chinese
-
Rank 526. Lucky Three Seven
Street Food Filipino
-
Rank 526. Le Garage
French
-
Rank 526. The Salty Pearl
Seafood
-
Rank 526. Moya
Ethiopian
-
Rank 526. Dosa Express
Southern Indian
-
Rank 526. Gold Mirror
Italian
-
-
Rank 526. Han Sang
Korean
-
Rank 526. Los Moles
Mexican
-
Rank 526. Sam's Grill and Seafood Restaurant
San Francisco
-
-
-
- James Beard Awards 2023 · Semifinalist · Outstanding Bakery
- The Infatuation Coffee Crunch Cake · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List
-
Rank 526. Hon’s Wun-Tun House
Cantonese
-
Rank 526. Tommy’s
Mexican
-
-
Rank 526. El Mono
Peruvian
-
- Bon Appétit 2023 · America's Best New Restaurants
- The New York Times The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco Right Now
- Esquire 2022 · #34 · The Best New Restaurants in America
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Rank 526. Lana's
American
-
Rank 526. Hawking Bird
Southeast Asian
-
Rank 526. Pucquio
Contemporary Peruvian
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-
Rank 615. Dabao Singapore
Singaporean Hawker Food
-
-
Rank 615. Choux
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. Katsuo + Kombu
Japanese
-
Rank 615. Mini Potstickers
Chinese
A narrow Sunset storefront where pan-fried pork buns arrive no bigger than a thumbnail, each one a vehicle for rendered fat and ginger-forward filling. The dumplings here—steamed, boiled, fried—suggest a kitchen that has spent decades perfecting pleats and ratios rather than chasing trends.
-
Rank 615. Dragon Beaux
Dim Sum
-
Rank 615. Parachute
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. Sol Bakery
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. Tarragon Cafe
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. Lucinda's Deli & More
Sandwiches
-
-
Rank 615. Manna
Korean
-
Rank 615. Hook Fish Co
Seafood
The counter at Hook Fish Co glimmers with the casual precision of a neighborhood spot that knows what it does—poke bowls and fish tacos executed without fuss or pretense. What emerges is the kind of eating that feels both immediate and considered, a reminder that restraint and freshness need no ceremony.
-
Rank 615. My Tofu House
Korean
-
Rank 615. Purple Rice
Korean
-
Rank 615. Manitas Cafe
Salvadoran
-
Rank 615. Base Camp
Nepali
-
Rank 615. Moku Yakitori-Ya
Japanese
-
Rank 615. Han Il Kwan
Korean
-
Rank 615. Palm City
Sandwiches
A wine-forward sandwich shop tucked into the Outer Sunset where the counter service feels like catching up with a friend who knows what you need. The arm-length hoagies arrive with the casual confidence of something that has earned its reputation through repetition, not fuss.
-
Rank 615. Eddie's Cafe
American
-
Rank 615. Wako
Japanese
-
-
Rank 615. Burger Littles
Burgers
-
-
Rank 615. Dumpling Union
Dim Sum
-
Rank 615. Kibatsu
Sushi
-
Rank 615. Otra
Mexican
-
Rank 615. Palmyra
Syrian
-
Rank 615. NARA
Japanese
-
Rank 615. Nopa
American
A corner restaurant on Divisadero that shifts its menu with the seasons, Nopa manages the difficult trick of feeling both casual and considered. The cooking—roasted meats, vegetable-forward plates, the occasional inspired flourish—suggests a kitchen that knows what it does and doesn't second-guess itself.
-
Rank 615. Bar Crudo
Seafood
-
-
Rank 615. Thai Nghiep Ky Mi Gia
Vietnamese
-
Rank 615. Toyose
Korean
A converted garage in the Outer Sunset holds a Korean kitchen that rewards groups arriving late, when the energy shifts from polished to pleasantly rowdy. The food won't astonish you, but the informal joy of it—the sense that everyone's here for the same uncomplicated reason—makes the place work.
-
Rank 615. Day Moon
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. The Mill
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. Lung Fung Bakery
Chinese
-
Rank 615. Kevin & Chris’s Noodle House
Vietnamese
-
Rank 615. Cielito Lindo
Mexican
-
Rank 615. Cantina Los Mayas
Mexican
-
Rank 615. Banh Mi Crunch
Vietnamese
-
-
Rank 615. Good Luck Dim Sum
Dim Sum
-
Rank 615. San Tung
Chinese
-
-
-
Rank 615. Rusty Ladle
American
-
Rank 615. SAIGONESE CAFÉ
Vietnamese
-
Rank 615. Teranga
Senegalese
-
Rank 615. Beretta
Italian
-
Rank 615. Hahdough
Bakery/Cafe
-
Rank 615. The Yellow Submarine
Sandwiches
-
Rank 615. Zentarou
Sushi
-
Rank 615. Limón
Modern Peruvian
-
Rank 615. New Eritrea Restaurant
Eritrean
-
- Esquire 2023 · Martini · The Best Martinis in America
- The Infatuation The Best Martinis In San Francisco
-
Rank 615. Koi Palace
Cantonese Chinese
-
Rank 615. Prik Hom
Thai
Siblings run this quiet Geary Boulevard newcomer with a compact menu that distills Bangkok fine-dining technique into vibrant, approachable Thai food. Hand-pounded curry pastes and a smoke-finished coconut ice cream signal a kitchen attuned to aroma and detail.
-
Rank 615. Koi Palace
Cantonese Chinese
-
Rank 675. China Live
Chinese
-
-
-
-
-
Rank 675. Painted Leopard Coffee
Salvadoran
-
Rank 681. Rise Over Run
Rooftop Cocktail Bar
-
Rank 682. Cafe Ohlone
Ohlone
-
Rank 682. Cassava
Japanese-California
-
Rank 684. Bar Sprezzatura
Italian
-
-
-
-
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