GET YOUR GRUB ON AT THESE 9 DELICIOUS PLACES TO EAT IN SAN FRANCISCO

San Francisco goes deep on what it does best – FOOD! That means perfect pastas and pastries, the finest of fine dining, geeky-good coffee, incredible fermented things, and more. Wherever you end up eating, a visit to the farmers’ market at the Ferry Plaza building will make it beautifully clear why this city is so spoiled when it comes to good food: the ingredients, of course!

GRAB DINNER AT NARI

Pim Techamuanvivit’s statement restaurant, Nari, at Hotel Kabuki is unlike any other Thai spot in town. It’s more upscale with the artful plating and a gorgeous dining room to match. Nari’s most meaningful impact lies in the way the restaurant is bringing bold, unapologetic Thai flavors to a grand stage in San Francisco — and doing it in a way that showcases local ingredients. There’s nothing timid about the lime-bright mushroom laab, or the earthy Monterey Bay squid tossed with cubes of sticky caramelized pork jowl. You’ll absolutely want to snap some photos for the gram!📸

VISIT SAN FRAN’S NEWEST CONCEPT CHINA LIVE

George Chen’s massive, multi-venue complex is right down the street from Hotel Kabuki. Downstairs you’ll find a full menu Chinese specialties, including customer favorites like its crisp-bottomed sheng jian bao and its Peking duck sesame pockets, while the more upscale Eight Tables upstairs serves an incredible tasting menu. There’s also the trendy Bar for cocktail fans, and don’t forget to peruse the marketplace’s selection of homemade condiments and snacks on your way out.

BRUNCH AT AUNTIE APRIL’S CHICKEN

Don’t let anyone tell you there isn’t destination-worthy soul food in San Francisco — not when Auntie April’s has been dishing out a whole lot more than her restaurant’s namesake dish of fried chicken and waffles. Brunch-time customers will want to snag an order of those as well as the city’s best version of shrimp and grits — lush, oozy grits topped with rich, savory, chile-tinged gravy.

GET YOUR TACO ON AT EL BUEN COMER

Mexico City native Isabel Caudillo is serving family recipes at this Bernal Heights neighborhood restaurant, with a menu focused on guisados — slow-cooked meat and vegetable stews, like the wonderful, velvety pork mole verde, all served with big heap of rice and beans. The Tacos are an absolute must because of their handmade tortillas made with organic masa. They sure are pretty too — and everyone loves an aesthetic dish!🌮

ENJOY THE FRESHEST SEAFOOD AT SWAN OYSTER DEPOT

There’s never not a line at this no-frills raw bar in Nob Hill. But it’s worth the wait time to get super-fresh seafood in this authentic, untouched lunch counter where the décor consists of sports memorabilia, seafood posters, and a hand-painted menu tacked to the wall. The window case is filled with lobsters, crab claws, shrimp of all sizes, clams, squid, smoked salmon, and more, to be served as cocktails, salads, or straight up!🐟

EXPERIENCE A FOOD JOURNEY AT AL’S PLACE

Aaron London is the passionate young chef whose laser focus and immense creativity inform every element of this staggeringly impressive Mission spot. In the casual, sun-filled, brightly painted room, London deep-dives into the possibilities of vegetables. He matches blistered and smoked brassicas with burrata and “brocamole,” turns cantaloupe and sage into gazpacho, adorns baby lettuces and herbed avocado with pistachio crumble—and boldly moves most of the meat into the sides section of the menu. It’s truly an experience you’ll never forget!

SAVOR THE BEST CROISSANT IN SAN FRAN

What does it take to stand out in a city of sourdough savants? One, and only one, thing: a croissant that’s simultaneously so preposterously flaky it leaves you covered in crumbs, so impossibly tender and buttery on the inside that it tastes like brioche, and so deeply golden that the underside is nearly caramelized. The same holds true for both the almond and ham & cheese croissants, pastries that owner and baker Armando Lacayo handcrafts with painstaking care at Arsicault Bakery until they run out. Be prepared to get up early to experience a life changing croissant.🥐

SIP SOME COFFEE AT SIGHTGLASS

Regulars stake out seats at the SoMa flagship as if it were a high school cafeteria: The short-term visitors hang downstairs, while the lingerers (and people watchers from on high) camp on the second floor near the training lab. The stunningly designed Mission café and roastery is decidedly more chill, though the banquette seating discourages laptop hangouts because of the shop's popularity.

EXPERIENCE THE BEST VIEW IN SAN FRAN

If you’re looking for an incredible panoramic view of San Francisco, look no further than The View Lounge Restaurant. If you are passionate about food with traditional flavors, handcrafted cocktails, and wine, you will be amazed at the wonderful experience you’ll find here. It’s THE place for the most epic foodie photo for the gram!📸

From Mission-style burritos to soup dumplings to sourdough bread bowls the size of a small pool, there’s no shortage of incredible dining experiences to be had in this foggy city by the bay. San Francisco, with its long, storied food culture and equally colorful, indulgent history has no shortage of these places. Some have been around for decades, while others are new, fresh, and just as inextricable from the city’s flavor DNA.