San francisco Restaurant Recommendations

High-level thoughts on the SF food scene:

  • Southeast asian food (Burmese, Thai, Vietnamese, etc) is very good in SF.
  • Russian food is quite good in SF - if you go nowhere else, go to Cinderella Bakery. Much better than NYC :)
  • SF coffee shops are something special - tons of natural light, a relaxing atmosphere, the smell of coffee. Many of them have outdoor patios, and you'll probably overhear conversations about tech and startups.

Here's what I recommend for non-asian restaurants that takes reservations for big groups. I recommend using Uber or Lyft when you're in SF if you don't have a car, or if you have time, to walk.

  • Pazzia - one of the best italian restaurants in SF, and feels very homey. The Italian owner is always there welcoming guests into his home. Andy's favorite pizza is the Napoletana pizza with anchovies. My favorite pasta is the rigatoni.
  • 1760 - New American food. This is my favorite non-asian restaurant in the city! It's a bit more expensive. Very unique dishes like crab fat congee, fried duck sandwich, uni with duck cracklings, etc.
  • Zero Zero - also a great italian restaurant, it's a bit bigger. They have pasta and pizza and dessert. Pazzia and Zero Zero are our favorite Italian restaurants here.
  • Aina - unique hawaiian food like portuguese donuts with guava custard and kalbi loco moco
  • NOPA - american food, one of the best. needs reservations

Southeast asian food (Thai, Viet, etc) is very good in SF. Note these are in the Tenderloin. Service is fast and efficient, but don't expect anything fancy. 

Other great places:

  • Cinderella Bakery - the best Russian bakery and comfort food ever. It's a bit of a trek but entirely worth it - if you don't have a car, an uber/lyft is probably your best bet.
  • Salumeria for casual lunch - they have a gorgeous outdoor patio in the Mission. Go on Mondays for their meatball sandwich. Try their gazpacho in the summertime. Their menu is seasonal - in the fall I've had their massive porchetta for lunch and proceeded to food coma all afternoon.
  • La Taqueria - the best burrito in the country. Expect crowds but the line is usually reasonable, last I checked..around 30 mins.
  • Tartine Bakery - one of the most famous and best bakeries in the city
  • Saint Frank Coffee - one of my favorite coffee shops in the city - they make their own macadamia milk
  • Burma Love - the sister restaurant of the best Burmese food in SF (the original, Burma Superstar, is too far from you and requires a car & ~25 min drive). This one requires a 30 min walk or 7 min drive.
  • Philz Coffee - a favorite coffee chain only in the Bay Area. Must get the “mint mojito iced coffee”