The Best Places in San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Fried Chicken Sandwiches In SF

A West Oakland coffee shop where the jollof rice is serious business: sharply spiced Nigerian rice with heat that keeps building, served with caramelized plantains and your choice of stewed chicken, oxtail, or goat. Okra and egusi soups arrive with fufu. Seating is tight and the wait can stretch, so bring patience and a friend you want to impress with how good Oakland gets. The San Francisco Chronicle put it on their best Oakland restaurants list.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Oakland

1. The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best French Fries In San Francisco

The sweet potato brulée, a potato starch custard torched to a glassy crust, gives you a sense of how this Berkeley izakaya operates: familiar enough to land, unexpected enough to stay with you. The menu shifts constantly around a core of Japanese small plates, with daily specials that swing from nigiri to okonomiyaki depending on the chef's mood. The San Francisco Chronicle named it among the best restaurants in Berkeley.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best Berkeley restaurants

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

Kogi Gogi is an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue spot in the Sunset, where the grill sits at your table and the dress code is whatever you already had on. The long, easygoing room suits big groups and weeknight stragglers alike, and the pork belly and bulgogi arrive thin and sweet-salty. Monday to Thursday, a flat per-person price covers four meats and three sides, so nobody has to do math over the smoke.

1. The Infatuation The 6 Best Korean BBQ Restaurants In SF

This is a neighborhood Iranian wine bar in Bernal Heights where the big round tables were clearly built for spreading out. Parents graze through mazze platters with a glass of something cold while kids tally the decorative pots behind the bar, and nobody needs a sitter or a reservation strategy. The sweet and sour chicken stew is soft enough for the teething set, which is more than most wine bars can say.

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF

1. The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Mexican Bakeries In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Mexican Bakeries In SF

1. The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Mexican Bakeries In SF

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Sandwich Spots In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation Gnocchi · The Best Potato Dishes in SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Mexican Bakeries In SF

A marinated pork spit spinning in the window pulls in foot traffic on MLK Way, which is basically the oldest form of advertising. This Chiapas-style taqueria in Berkeley orders you outside to pick up your al pastor, the ruby meat sweet and charred, with pineapple and a green oil salsa alongside. The chicken mole is a serious plate when you want it. Noah's Ark animals frolic across a mural on the wall, keeping things cheerful.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best Berkeley restaurants

1. Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco

1. The Infatuation Potato Dumplings · The Best Potato Dishes in SF

A wall in the back pulses with colored light synced to the reggaeton, which tells you exactly what kind of restaurant this is. Lita does modern Caribbean in a Walnut Creek setting that leans hard into Miami energy, with a marble bar, gold trim, and ferns hanging over the dining room. Fish fritters, coconut curry chicken empanadas, and spit-roast jerk chicken shaved into tacos carry the menu. The cocktails keep up.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Walnut Creek

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Warm tortillas pressed at a kiosk just inside the door set the tone at this San Rafael Mexican restaurant, where the kitchen takes mole seriously enough to run seven housemade versions on the weekend buffet. The mole poblano and a red guajillo version called Mama Luisa are the ones to pace yourself toward. Cabeza de res, menudo, and pozole rojo round things out. Order a michelada; it isn't included, but it's the move.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Marin County: Sausalito, Novato and San Rafael

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

Open rafters, pale pink tiles, and bright teal accents set the tone at this casual Chinese spot on Clement Street, where Brandon Jew runs a room that looks like it was designed on purpose, because it was. The sweet-and-sour chicken, rice-battered and stuffed into a homemade pineapple bun, is the kind of thing people come back for. Housemade sodas round out a menu that treats the nonalcoholic drinks as a feature rather than an afterthought.

1. Condé Nast Traveler The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco for Casual Diners, Twelve-Course Tasting Counters, and Late-Night Eats

1. Condé Nast Traveler The 25 Best Restaurants in San Francisco for Casual Diners, Twelve-Course Tasting Counters, and Late-Night Eats

1. The Infatuation Gelato · The San Francisco Dessert Bucket List

1. The Infatuation The 16 Best Burgers In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland

1. The Infatuation The 13 Best Breakfast Burritos In SF

The Italian sub here is stacked with salami, hot coppa, mortadella, and provolone on a flour-dusted ciabatta, and the bread does at least half the work. Morucci's is an old-school deli that's been a Walnut Creek fixture long enough that regulars actually comment when the line isn't out the door. A few seats inside, more outside, and the counter crew keeps things moving faster than the crowd suggests.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Walnut Creek

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 16 Best Burgers In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

This is a counter-service burger joint in Lower Nob Hill where napkins sit on every table, which is less hospitality than a warning. The patties come in beef, turkey, chicken, or veggie, and the bigger plays involve hot dogs or housemade chili stacked on top. Dress for sauce, because the barbecue pineapple one tends to travel down the wrist. White shirts are a bold choice here.

1. The Infatuation The 16 Best Burgers In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 13 Best Pasta Restaurants In SF

A chalkboard behind the counter maps exactly which farm each cut of meat came from, which tells you most of what you need to know about this counter-service BBQ shop tucked inside a Corte Madera mall. The ribs arrive with an obsidian crust and pink flesh underneath, the pulled pork is rich and salty, and a lineup of ten house condiments covers everything from Alabama white sauce to chow chow relish. It holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand, suburban strip mall and all.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Marin County: Sausalito, Novato and San Rafael

1. The Infatuation The 19 Best Pizza Places In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF

1. Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops

1. The Infatuation The Best Turkish Restaurants In SF

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Marin County: Sausalito, Novato and San Rafael

1. The Infatuation Patatas Bravas · The Best Potato Dishes in SF

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Sandwich Spots In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 16 Best Burgers In San Francisco

1. Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops

The yeasted waffle is what people come back for at this daytime diner on Macarthur, light enough to make the standard griddle version feel like a practical joke. Sequoia keeps the American breakfast plate honest while also running a loco moco where the gravy soaks into Koda Farms white rice in a way that feels earned. They cure their own pork belly, make three hot sauces in-house, and generally behave like a diner with something to prove.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Oakland

1. Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops

1. The Infatuation Papas a la Huancaína · The Best Potato Dishes in SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF

Four styles sit behind the glass at this casual slice shop from celebrity pizzaiolo Tony Gemignani: New York thin, Sicilian, grandma, and Detroit. You point, they reheat, you fold. The New York slices have that stiff-but-pliable thing that makes eating while standing feel like a skill. The grandma squares come thick, with ricotta pooled on top. Everything is straightforward, no reservations, no ambiance to speak of, just good pizza by the slice.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Walnut Creek

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland

1. The Infatuation The Best Coffee Shops In SF

The pressed French bread announces itself before you even bite down, cracking loud enough to turn heads. Sol Food is a casual Puerto Rican spot in San Rafael with outposts around Marin, built around hot-pressed sandwiches that pull serious lunch crowds. The Paraíso swaps the expected cheese-steak script by folding in ripe plantains, and the Cubano is one of the few worth seeking out in the county.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Marin County: Sausalito, Novato and San Rafael

Spark Social is a food truck park in Mission Bay, bigger than a football field, with picnic tables and enough grass for small people to run themselves into a nap. The trucks rotate daily, so the lineup is a surprise, though pizza and noodles tend to turn up. Strollers outnumber everything else, which means nobody will notice your toddler. It splits into two areas, so scout both before you commit to a truck.

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

1. The Infatuation The Best Matcha Lattes In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 13 Best Breakfast Burritos In SF

1. The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 11 Best Burritos In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF

1. Eater The Absolute Best San Francisco Coffee Shops

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

The Boys' Deli is a sandwich counter tucked into the back of Polk Street Market in Russian Hill, and the rotisserie chicken turning near the entrance does most of the recruiting. It's an order-at-the-counter, wrapper-and-napkin lunch where the Spitfire pairs chicken with bacon, jalapeños, and sriracha mayo. The specials rotate, so the menu changes while the faint smell of chicken on your jacket does not.

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The Hornet is a takeout sandwich counter tucked inside London Market in Pacific Heights, which is less a restaurant than a very well-organized errand. The menu of sandwiches and wraps changes daily, so you pick from a handful of options and hope nobody beat you to it. Ordering online helps, since the good ones sell out early and standing in a corner market staring at an empty chalkboard is a bleak way to spend lunch.

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Sandwich Spots In San Francisco

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The Rabbit Hole is a casual Taiwanese spot on the Mission-Bernal border, and its burger is the reason a lot of people show up. It arrives piled with pickled carrots, cucumbers, and peppers under a shimmering brioche bun, with a cheddar crust on the smashed patties that crunches against all that vinegar. The fries come dusted with nori and a side of gochujang ketchup, so the burger is doing a very specific kind of cultural crossover.

1. The Infatuation The 16 Best Burgers In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Restaurants In Oakland

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1. The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

1. The Infatuation Aloo Tikka Chaat · The Best Potato Dishes in SF

The Tonga Room is a tiki bar and restaurant built around the Fairmont's old indoor pool, which now holds a floating stage where a band plays through the thunderstorms. Every fifteen minutes the ceiling rains on the lagoon, complete with lightning and thunderclaps, and grown adults rise from their seats to film it. The mai tais are strong, the kids get a layered blue-and-pink mocktail, and the pork belly bites help the whole thing along.

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

1. Eater The 38 Essential Restaurants in San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 20 Best Kid-Friendly Restaurants In SF

The marinara here is just tomato, olive oil, and blistered basil, and it doesn't need a single thing more. Vesta is a wood-fired pizza shop in downtown Redwood City where the oven does the heavy lifting, scorching pies to a proper, crackling crisp. The sausage and honey pie, mascarpone folded in, is the crowd favorite if minimalism isn't your move. The San Francisco Chronicle put it on their Peninsula and South Bay best list.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Palo Alto, San Jose, the Peninsula and South Bay

1. The Infatuation The Best Martinis In San Francisco

1. The Infatuation The 6 Best Korean BBQ Restaurants In SF

1. The Infatuation The 21 Best Outdoor Dining Spots In SF

Hundreds of flags and string lights cover the ceiling, CRT TVs along the bar counter are loaded with old-school video game consoles, and a mural of Walnut Creek landmarks greets you before you even open the door. This hot chicken shop does Nashville-style fried chicken and sandwiches, with heat levels that go from polite to genuinely humbling. The outdoor picnic tables are there when you need air, or perspective.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in Walnut Creek

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

A Chinatown noodle shop where the soup comes piled with roast duck, wontons, and springy yellow noodles, all for around eight dollars. The move, though, is the brisket version, where the braised beef melts into the broth and makes the whole bowl taste twice as serious. Add a side of slow-cooked beef tendon and stir it in as you go. Named among the San Francisco Chronicle's picks for Chinatown, and the line out front tends to agree.

1. San Francisco Chronicle Best restaurants in San Francisco's Chinatown

1. The Infatuation The 25 Best Meals For Under $15 In SF

Zajang Grill is an all-you-can-eat Korean barbecue spot on Clement, where the overhead hoods are painted like mountain ranges, which feels fitting for the amount of meat involved. Walk-ins are easy, so it works when a group decides on dinner an hour ago. You get 90 minutes at the tabletop grill, soju on the side, and a scoop of ice cream at the end, a gentle nudge toward the couch you'll be horizontal on by nine.

1. The Infatuation The 6 Best Korean BBQ Restaurants In SF

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