The Best Bagel Shops in San Francisco

A bagel shop in Temescal that quietly reframes the whole New York-versus-everywhere-else argument by not entering it. Poppy turns out the classics, lox, whitefish, schmears of every persuasion, but the open-face seasonal veg sandwich is the point: California produce stacked on a proper bagel, finished with salsa macha for heat. Bon Appétit named it among the very best bagels in the country, New York included.

1. Bon Appétit The Very Best Bagels in the US (Yes, Outside New York)
2. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area
3. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Oakland

1. Bon Appétit The Very Best Bagels in the US (Yes, Outside New York)
2. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area

Bagels hang in metal racks draped with white sheets, a nod to the coin-operated laundry this place used to be. Now it's an all-day pizza and bagel shop on Balboa, mornings given over to coffee from Grand Coffee and a solid bagel lineup that runs from egg to rye, with schmears folded through green onion or spiked with Calabrian chiles. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the top bagels in the Bay Area, and a Top 100 restaurant pick followed.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area
2. San Francisco Chronicle #85 · Top 100 Restaurants in the Bay Area
3. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

The salmon here gets cured and smoked in-house, which tells you most of what you need to know about how seriously this bagel shop takes itself. Schlok's sits just off the Panhandle, turning out traditional malty bagels with a thin, crisp crust and a caper schmear that leans hard into brine. Co-founded by a chef with Michelin-starred kitchen time, it punches well above the cream-cheese-from-a-tub competition.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area
2. The Infatuation The 18 Best Restaurants In NoPa

The line outside this Berkeley bagel shop has been there since day one and shows no sign of leaving. Boichik turns out chubby, chewy, malty New York-style bagels, kosher and done traditionally: salt bagels heavy with big sea-salt flakes, pumpernickel baked nearly chocolate-dark. The San Francisco Chronicle named them the Bay Area's best. Cream cheese runs from plain whipped to Hatch chile, and the house-made whitefish salad sandwich makes a strong case for staying.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area

A bagel shop that graduated from popup to a proper Albany storefront, Hella Bagels turns out rounds with the kind of chew that makes you feel like your jaw is doing something worthwhile. The patio, ringed in beige and rust tones that happen to match the bagels, is a nice place to work through a sandwich. The San Francisco Chronicle named them the Bay Area's best.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best bagels in the San Francisco Bay Area