249 Best Restaurants in San Francisco, California

The Liholiho Yacht Club team opened this concept driven by diversity, equality, and inclusion that emphasizes healthy working conditions and fair wages in an industry that unfortunately isn't known for either. The AAPI heritage–inspired menu is divided between starters like a chicken wing stuffed with egg roll filling, and larger courses meant for sharing.

At this line-around-the-corner, no-English-spoken bakery, the delicious dim sum is strictly to-go, so picnic at Woh Hei Yuen Park on Powell Street or Portsmouth Square.

The team behind French baking sensation Le Marais serves some of the greatest savory buckwheat galettes and sweet crêpes in the Bay Area at a kiosk on the water side of the Ferry Building. It's the perfect stop for breakfast, lunch, or a dessert snack. Fillings range from traditional ones like Nutella or ham and Comté, to more atypical choices such as cherry tomatoes and burrata.

Dine here, like President Obama did, for fresh, simply prepared Cantonese cuisine, especially the seafood—from tanks that occupy a corner of the main dining room—as well as kid favorites, such as stir-fried noodles, cashew chicken, and fried rice. Dim sum starts at 10 am, but there aren't any carts—you order off a paper sheet, and the dumplings come out of the kitchen piping hot.

Even as diet trends come and go, this vegetable-focused icon (opened in 1979) continues to be a steadfast favorite for carnivores and vegetarians alike. Despite the lack of meat, the hearty and creative dishes—such as griddle cakes with crimson lentils and spiced cashew cream—really satisfy, and floor-to-ceiling windows give diners a sweeping view of the Marina and the Golden Gate Bridge.

Enjoying the barbecue pork buns and curry chicken at this Chinatown icon dating to 1920 is a bite into both culinary history and San Francisco's past. Located on an alley, it's one of the smaller, more homey, and less frenetic sit-down dim sum choices in the city, with a small dining room simply decorated with pieces of Chinese art and a few Bruce Lee movie posters.

Red-meat connoisseurs will appreciate this old-school restaurant, home to some of the best dry-aged steaks in town, including Kobe-style Wagyu rib eye. Enjoy a generous martini or Manhattan and you'll feel transported back in time at one of the city's few lavish, wood-paneled classic steak houses. You can also pick up raw steaks to go at the well-stocked beef counter.

You'll snag a table if you arrive at this longtime (since 1979) standby just as music lovers are folding their napkins and heading off for a show at the nearby Opera House or SFJAZZ Center. Fresh, sustainable, often local seafood lures the faithful here, as well as peak seasonal produce from the nearby region. Much of the fish—yellowtail, salmon, swordfish—is grilled and served with a choice of sauces, from beurre blanc to lemon-and-caper butter. Brass coat hooks, white tablecloths, a long bar, and a mix of banquettes and tables define the traditional San Francisco look.

Sandwich lovers build up their appetite with a hike up the steep hill and then are greeted with some of the city's consistently excellent sandwiches at this small, friendly shop where the menu seems bigger than the actual space. If you're not in a sandwich mood, there are also a few other items like breakfast scrambles, fish tacos, and salads. Plan on taking your food elsewhere since seating is limited outside.

This handsomely outfitted spot will introduce you to the aromas and tastes of traditional Afghan cooking, with sauces and spices reminiscent of Indian cuisine and an emphasis on lamb. Highlights include aushak (leek-filled ravioli served with yogurt and ground beef) and kadoo (a sweet-savory dish of sugared pumpkin in a beef sauce). Basmati rice pudding, perfumed with cardamom and pistachio, is a wonderful way to finish. The calm restaurant, with white tablecloths and real Afghan rugs, also does a quick-paced delivery service.

San Franciscans are spoiled with an incredible abundance of cuisines and restaurants specializing in niche dishes—but yakitori (Japanese grilled meat skewers) remained elusive until the Ju-Ni team and chef Tommy Cleary opened this upscale omakase destination near Alamo Square Park, focused on chicken yakitori. The binchotan (Japanese charcoal) grill adds the pivotal smoky touch to the skewers that hold all parts of the chicken and make up the heart of the tasting menu. It's an exciting mix of traditional and contemporary skewers, plus captivating small plates, served to the lucky 10 guests at the counter during each seating.

It's impossible to miss this Stockton Street Cantonese barbecue butchery icon—just look for the air-drying ducks and pigs hanging from above and the sign in the window that reads "Go duck yourself," the name by which many locals know this to-go favorite. Roast duck, crispy roast pork, and succulent honey barbecue pork are the marquee items on the concise menu, and must-try signature tastes of Chinatown history. This isn't a café or an eatery—order a half pound of a few meats with rice and braised greens and enjoy it as a snack on the go or to bring back to the hotel/condo for dinner.

Everything feels like a Roaring '20s party at the FiDi's go-to glamorous restaurant-bar for power lunches and celebratory happy hours (there are switches at each table to summon champagne and martini carts), except it actually only opened in a different '20s decade (2023). The food could coast in mediocrity because of the elegant, eye-catching environs; but thankfully it doesn't, thanks to sharp dishes like a fantastic petrale sole with hazelnut brown butter that will win over any skeptic of that oft-ignored flaky fish. The adjacent glass-ceiling atrium, known as the Conservatory at One Sansome, is utterly spectacular and often used for extra seating.

This quaint, family-run Korean fried chicken–focused establishment serves quite possibly the leading wings in the city. Cover the crispy, tender wings with your choice of more than a dozen sauces, from tangy lime-fish to fiery habanero-mango, and take them to go.

Van Ness's temple to a British Sunday roast is one of San Francisco's most timeless dinner experiences. Waiters continuously wheel prime rib carving stations around a sprawling complex that feels like the vast dining hall of a Cotswolds manor, complete with fireplaces and chandeliers. The prime rib dinners, including potatoes, creamed spinach, and Yorkshire pudding, are bountiful and consistently excellent. Meanwhile, the martinis are reliably large and stiff, adding to the whole mystique.

Francesco Covucci brings his concept for a modern, casual Italian pizzeria with quality-driven imported Italian ingredients to storied North Beach. Although hailing from Calabria (an agricultural region of Southern Italy neighboring Campania, Italy's pizza bastion), he has created an authentic Neapolitan-style pizzeria. Also look for appetizers involving imported buffalo milk mozzarella and burrata. There's a second location in the Castro.

Serving pizza, café staples, and some grab-and-go options, Il Parco is a newer spot with incredible views in the Tunnel Tops park. The faster items are also among the more tasty. The pizza is not a traditional style and feels closer to bread than crust. The desserts and bakery items are fresh and delicious.

One of North Beach's last blue-collar eateries has immense character, as if a rosticceria (a type of casual roast meat eat-in or take-away) was plopped here from a small quarter of Rome. This is a simple spot to get classic, hearty meals like half a roasted chicken and sides. Known as a beacon for chicken, Il Pollaio also does roast rabbit, lamb, pork, and rib eyes. They have a few simple wine options but allow BYOB in case you have a bottle snagged from a day of browsing among the neighborhood's independent food and bottle shops. There's another location in the Mission.

Ayesha Curry teamed up with the city's most prolific chef/entrepreneur, Michael Mina, on this hip spot inside the glitzy Millennium Tower. Don't call it a barbecue restaurant—it's more of an open flame, smoke-driven style of cooking inspired by various global cuisines. Every table has an order of Curry's freshly baked cornbread (SF's best) and one of the different smoked ribs offered.

In Italy, the bastion of fresh pasta is Emilia-Romagna, and a trio of entrepreneurs hailing from the region give respect to its claim to carb fame in a mini-empire of fast-casual pasta eateries, with the one in North Beach as its flagship. Come for treats like slabs of lasagna that fool you into thinking you're calorie-loading in Bologna, as well as stuffed ravioli and gnocchi. The space itself is nothing fancy and looks like a deli, but grab your cutlery and a seat and enjoy your feast. While much of North Beach's Italian identity has eroded over the years, new-generation businesses like this one are bringing some of that soul back.

A former chef from the Mission District's acclaimed Al's Place (which sadly closed in 2022) is the culinary talent at this fantastic, dimly lit oasis near the hectic 24th St.-Mission BART station. The menu's focus is on two trendy Italian cuisine items—pasta and fish crudo—that might be hip clichés now, but this kitchen does them as well as anyone in town and always with a unique spin.

Stop into this bright spot for their famous avocado mash, homemade baked goods and cookies, and coffee from beans roasted in-house. Look for other Janes around the city, including on Larkin Street in the Tenderloin and Jane the Bakery on Geary Street in Japantown.

This excellent, festive restaurant (part of celebrity chef Gastón Acurio's global group) presents a concise menu of Peru culinary staples like ceviche and flaky empanadas. You won't miss the obligatory pisco sour (Jaranita doesn't have a full liquor license), because the "Nikkei Sour" with citrus sake is just as special.

Come to the Japan Center early to pick up Jina's innovative French-Korean pastries, savory like the kalbijjim short rib croissant or slightly sweet like the mochi-filled injeolmi croissant dusted with soybean flour. The bakery's popular cream puffs are only available Friday to Sunday, and it's strictly takeout every day.

With just a dozen counter seats—its name means "12" in Japanese—this NoPa (North of the Panhandle) omakase sushi favorite is one of the Bay Area's most exquisite sushi experiences. Diners sit in pods of four at the sushi bar, with one sushi chef serving each quartet in the serene-meets-modern room. It's no doubt one of the most intimate dining rooms anywhere in San Francisco. After the first sake is poured, the lucky dozen diners at each seating get treated to an array of pristine fish and a few splashy Californian-Japanese bites prepared by chef Geoffrey Lee and his small team behind the bar.

Whether you're looking for a New Orleans-, Mexican-, or California-inspired breakfast or lunch, this beloved café is the place for you. The signature pillowy beignets deserve all the considerable hype and people drive an hour just to try them. But there's no going wrong on the extensive menu, served in a warm, welcoming space that feels like a modern diner. Weekends get quite festive when the pint-sized mimosas are flowing.

San Francisco has a handful of Peruvian restaurants, but this uber-hip Union Street spot is the first Nikkei (Japanese-Peruvian) restaurant. Skip the pedestrian appetizers and have fun sampling around the tiraditos (dishes with raw fish) and sushi rolls. Much of the seating is at the bar or on the sidewalk terrace, so be prepared for some high decibels.

Satisfy your craving for outstanding Greek taverna food—albeit at luxe steak-house prices—from a dizzying selection of mezethes such as stuffed grape leaves to main courses that showcase Athenian standards like moussaka, lemon-oregano chicken, and grilled lamb chops. There’s a lively after-work scene in this chic farmhouse setting with wood-beamed ceilings, a roaring wood oven, and candlelight. Service is doting for its many well-heeled regulars (but tends to be less so for other guests).

Right on the water's edge, this perpetually popular destination courtesy of global mega-chef Gastón Acurio imports the signature flavors of his home country, Peru, to San Francisco. Fresh seafood is a big draw here, including a long list of ceviches and the can't-miss causas (whipped potatoes topped with a choice of Dungeness crab, chicken, or vegetable salads). Even though Acurio has many restaurants around the world, this one always feels extra special since it was his first to open in the U.S. back in 2008.

The most well-known—and quite possibly the best—of the burrito choices around town forgoes rice in the filling (almost all burritos in the Mission include rice) to focus on tender meats. The carne asada is the house favorite, but you can't go wrong with the carnitas either. While the burritos deservedly get the hype, the tacos and quesadillas are also worth trying.