Looking for a destination that has everything to peak the senses? San Francisco is the answer! Earning the nickname "Paris of the West" this city's views, diversity and culture are only matched by the culinary adventures that await around every corner and just over the next hill.
According to Yelp's reviewers we have gathered the top 10 restaurants in the area. Diverse options include the best seafood, the homeland of sourdough bread, and creatively inspired entrees fit for a king but created by true artists. For the wine connoisseur remember that Napa is extremely close by.
Bottega
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If you're craving Italian flavors in San Francisco, Bottega is the place to go! With its modern ambiance and authentic Italian cuisine, it offers an excellent dining experience. Bottega is perfect for treating your loved ones or celebrating a special milestone.
Comment Review: visited Bottega in the Mission District to celebrate a friend's graduation on Saturday night. We made a reservation and got seated shortly after. The ambiance was impressive and the vibes were great. This spot is decorated nicely with florals and neon signs.
The portions are not too small and I thoroughly enjoyed my pasta. We also ordered cocktails but they were on the sweeter side. Definitely one of my favorite Italian restaurants in SF!
Click here to know more about Bottega
Fog Harbor Fish House
Enjoy the beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge from the Fog Harbor Fish House in San Francisco, California. This place is perfect if you love fresh fish and sourdough bread. You can also spend your wine night at the Fog Harbor Fish House, they have California premium wines complementing their tasty dishes.
Comment Review: Omg how could I forgot to add my surf and turf plate on my last review, again highly recommend coming here any chance you can everything was so delicious!
Click here to know more about the Fog Harbor Fish House
Sotto Mare
Sotto Mare is a "heaven is a place on earth" for seafood lovers. Their Crab Cioppino is one of the best in San Francisco! They also have pasta, which tastes like authentic Italian flavors. Sotto Mare is an excellent place to make more beautiful memories while enjoying good food.
Comment Review: The Birthplace of Cioppino.
Warning
Unfiltered photos and honest review.
I was so excited to try this place, I'm glad they take reservation for 3+ people.
Went on a casual dinner with friends, the both live in the east bay but want to hangout in the city. As a local, I decided for us to try this place because of its history, location and its amazing reputation.
We ordered the following:
1.) The "Best Damn Crab Cioppino" - This is really amazing, I get the hype of this, however, the best cioppino I had was in one of the local restaurants in the city. Don't get me wrong, it's still great and a must try! Am I going to order this again? Definitely!!!
2.) Smoked Salmon Fettucsine Pasta - Oh, this is heaven!!! Probably what we loved the most of what we ordered. Will surely order this again.
3.) Seafood Linguine Pasta - This is good too but again, I had the same pasta(just different name) in one of the local restaurants in the city and I liked the other one better. Would I order this again? Of course!
Overall, amazing ambiance, very hospitable people. I'm amazed as to how efficient and effective the staffs were given that it's hella busy. Kudos to you guys!!!
This place is a must visit and try in the city, tourists or locals.
Click here to know more about Sotto Mare
Hog Island Oyster
If you love oysters, Hog Island Oyster is the place to be! They raised and farmed oysters on their farm on Tomales Bay with other shellfish. At Hog Island Oyster, you'll be served fresh local seafood, which you can enjoy in different dishes with fresh botanicals and herbs.
Comment Review: It's not become our family tradition of heading to Hog Island as soon as we arrive to SF and it was a beautiful day before the rain so we sat outside, enjoyed the amazing views and some great food !!
We enjoyed a dozen oysters - this time sticking with Hog Island varieties and some of their grilled oysters. Their Chipotle Bourbon variety is out of this world.
The grilled cheese sandwich is one of the absolute best anywhere along with the delicious pickled vegetables side!
Washed it all down with Black Hammer's Cuddle Puddle IPA and enjoyed fantastic service throughout the meal!
Always a great time - fantastic spot to enjoy a good meal, great views and superb oysters!
Click here to know more about the Hog Island Oyster
Nopa
Enjoy fresh produce at Nopa, where beautiful dishes are made with seasonal ingredients from local purveyors and farms. Dishes are cooked in an organic wood fire. Nopa has a great ambiance, perfect for enjoying their good food. It's a place you can enjoy with the people you love.
Comment Review: I have an unreal backlog of new restaurants I've tried, so here we go again--starting with Nopa!
Nopa genuinely surprised me. Despite its lower Yelp ratings, everything exceeded my expectations.
We were seated upstairs, which helped with the medium-loud atmosphere and noise level. Service was wonderful, even with a small snafu - still absolutely no complaints.
To start, we had the soup--perfect for the chilly night. Then came the smoked trout latke, hands down the best thing I've had in a while. If you order just one thing here, let it be the latke. Trust me.
Next up was the roasted lamb. Cooked beautifully, but the small potato chips on the side? Not a fan. They felt out of place and took away from the dish.
For mains, we debated between the pork chop, steak, and cheeseburger. But when you see nearly everyone in the restaurant ordering the burger, you kinda have to. And let me tell you, it was the right call. A hefty beef patty, and the cheddar cheese they used was incredible. I could eat pounds of that cheese on its own - as someone who rarely eats dairy.
We also ordered the chicory salad, which was supposed to replace the fries. But the kitchen forgot our request, so we ended up with both--no complaints there.
Parking is nonexistent in SF. Save yourself the headache and just Uber. Thankfully, my girl friend lives nearby, so we found a spot and walked over.
Good vibes, great food--9.5/10. Would definitely return.
Click here to know more about the Nopa
Four Kings
Craving Asian flavors isn't a problem in San Francisco, California. Four Kings has your back! They offer mouthwatering Cantonese cuisine that can be paired with wine and other drinks in their wine bar. They do not offer take-out, so it might be a good reason to keep your loved ones out.
Comment Review: A lot of reviews have focused on the nostalgia - this isn't necessarily the most technically-impressive meal in San Francisco (though there's quite a bit of impressive skill in that kitchen, and there are some wonderful decisions that elevate dishes far beyond what they should be). But the setting, the conviviality, the casual wait staff that still knows how to make you feel at home, it's working all so well that you just want to sit back and enjoy the 1980s/90s Cantopop blaring through the speakers. I walked in while Beyond was playing - it had been years since I heard them, and it just took me back to living in Hong Kong and getting lost and finding good food in strange places.
I don't know what memories they'll unlock in you, but you'll feel something. And if not, the food is still great. Highlights for me included the spectacular claypot rice with sausage and bacon, the mapo spaghetti, and the lamb skewer. The quail was fine, with a Peking-duck-like flavor - but it wasn't necessarily for me. I enjoyed looking around and seeing what else people were getting, and it all looked great - like maybe this is a restaurant I want to go back to, even though reservations are nightmarish (later reservations are easier).
Click here to know more about the Four Kings
Sweet Maple
Enjoy American flavors through breakfast or brunch at Sweet Maple. They have excellent foods, especially if you are a breakfast staple lover! The ambiance is cozy and relaxing, perfect for a peaceful meal with your loved ones or your "me" time.
Comment Review: Sweet maple is serving up some delicious food. Expect a wait on the weekend after 10a. There was no line prior to that.
They were kind enough to seat us even before our full party arrived, and we all really enjoyed our food. Service continued to be wonderful throughout the meal.
Benedicts - each Benedict I've tried here is so tasty. Hollandaise is perfect and even the veggie (florentine) version has lots of flavor. For me the eggs could be cooked a minute longer (they serve their whites slightly runny) but overall it's great.
House potatoes - need to give a shoutout here. They are doing some black magic with these potatoes. It's creamy to the point of mashed potatoes on the inside with a perfect soft crisp on the exterior. YUM.
Soufflegg - a fun and unique menu item that we all appreciated. Nice fluffy egg reminiscent of Korean steamed eggs.
One note - they have a limit of 2 credit cards when splitting the bill.
Click here to know more about the Sweet Maple
Liholiho Yacht Club
Lihilo Yacht Club might be an excellent choice for a group dinner or a party of two. With their flavorful and mouthwatering heritage-driven food, you'll get to experience the best of both worlds since they have a cozy and excellent ambiance to enjoy good food.
Comment Review: I LOVED this restaurant.
Walked in on a weekday night without a reservation. I've known of this restaurant for a while but only recently had a chance to go. Was able to be seated right away for a party of two, but it seemed that the main choices for walk ins were sitting at the front bar or at the community table (big table where you might be seated with other parties).
I came for the Baked Hawaii (was on a long time craving for Baked Alaska, and this helped satisfy that craving!) which had POG sorbet rather than ice cream.
Here's the ranking of what I ate:
1. Swordfish katsu: perfect crispiness of a traditional katsu but great flavor of the swordfish without being too fishy! Would order this one again.
2. Chips and dip: an unassuming dish with a great level of furikake seasoning on the chips. The dip was surprisingly creamy in the best way possible.
3. Baked Hawaii: like the toastiness of the outside and the flavor of the POG, although the nature of this dish always makes the inside harder to eat because it's so frozen.
4. Tuna poke: one of the two "single portion" bites, but I'd argue it's two bites (so shareable if you wanted it to be!). Was craving poke so this hit the spot + the nori cracker was sturdy so it doesn't fall apart while you eat despite looking fragile.
5. Celery Root: pleasantly surprised because it reminded me of a potato dish but with celery root (firmer) instead of potato
6. Duck liver moose: not my pick so not surprised I wasn't surprised I didn't love this one. It was fine but the 5-spice overpowered some of the other flavors like the banana bread the mousse is on.
The interior of the restaurant was great. There's an open kitchen in the back half that I'd want to sit by next time I dine here.
Click here to know more about the Liholiho Yacht Club
U : Dessert Story
Sweet treats are a comfort for others, and if you have a sweet tooth in San Francisco, California, you might want to indulge yourself with mouthwatering desserts at U: Dessert Story, where desserts are Asian flavors inspired by Thai, Japanese, and Korean flavors fusion. So, if you want to add sweetness to your day, U Dessert Story is the place to be!
Comment Review: SF has no shortage of aesthetic desserts and U:Dessert Story lives up to its hype.
The Young Coconut Pandan Crepe Cake is phenomenal, I have had many other flavored crepe cakes but the coconut was my first and I loved it!
Ube Biscoff Bingsu is so photogenic! I am glad it tasted as good as it looked, was creamy yet light.
The Thai Tea Crepe Cake was my least favorite so I wish I had ordered something else instead- like their Ube mochi waffle. I guess that leaves some excitement for next time?
Click here to know more about U : Dessert Story
Sixth Course
You deserve one of San Franciso, California's most indulgent desserts any season. Sixth Course offers flavorful and mouthwatering desserts showcasing seasonal and fresh ingredients, making delicious, uniquely sweet treats. They also have dairy—and gluten-free desserts, making them an excellent choice whatever your diet.
Comment Review: Popped in to check out this place while exploring the Mission district. My friend expressed his love for it several times and mentioned they change their flavors by season. They sell a variety of eye catching items including icecreams, pastries, macarons, and truffles. We ended up trying a cranberry curd, cranberry orange relish filled vanilla tart shell topped with meringue. At first, I thought it was a bit pricey (~$12) but the quality is well worth the price. The tart shell was surprisingly soft and moist, the meringue was airy and snappy, and the curd was super smooth and tart. I would have tried all of their items but we were saving room for dinner reservations.
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