With the diverse ethnic mix and temperate coastal location San Francisco is home to a wide variety of excellent restaurants throughout the city. The region has first class vineyards with good wines, small farms and specialty cheeses to tempt diners.
Seafood is popular in San Francisco and one of the best restaurants is the Franciscan Crab Restaurant (Pier 43, 1.888.698.6782) with spectacular views of the Golden Gate Bridge. For an unusual dining experience visit Supperclub (657 Harrison Street, 1.888.255.4129) where guests recline on cosy white beds whilst dining and listening to live music.
One of the best Italian restaurants is Alioto’s on Fisherman’s Wharf (1.888.697.4707) where Sicilian style cuisine is on the menu. Ciopino’s on the Wharf is another well known Italian family restaurant on Fisherman’s Wharf serving first class seafood specialties Italian style (400 Jefferson Street, 415-775-9311).
Organic food forms the menu at Roots on 466 Bush Street (1.877.267.3086), a restaurant dedicated to fresh local meat and vegetables. Pier 39 has a variety of excellent places for snacks such as Aunt Fanny’s Hot Pretzels (4159860706) and the Bistro Boudin at 160 Jefferson St where sourdough bread is made on the premises.
Visit the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Restaurant and Market on Pier 39 which encapsulates the spirit of the film Forest Gump (415-781-GUMP). The Fiddlers Green Irish Bar and restaurant on 1333 Columbus Avenue (415-441-9758) is in the city centre and caters to Irish music and traditional Irish food and drink.
Chinatown is the largest community of its kind outside Asia and has a vast selection of good places to eat. There are many different sights, smells and tastes to absorb in this melting pot of cultures. Try the Pot Sticker (150 Waverly Place) which sells excellent Szechwan and Mandarin style dumplings.
The popular House of Nanking (919 Kearny) has a vast menu to choose from including stir fry and Nanking fried mushrooms. The simple rustic charm of Sam Wo (813 Washington) was once famed for having one of the rudest waiters around but the restaurant has been around for over 100 years and serves excellent food.
The Mission district of San Francisco is renowned for its Latin heritage. One of the best places to get a burrito is Taqueria Cancun (19th Street), and for huge fresh sandwiches go to the Lunch Club on the corner of 16th and Valencia Street.
Between Chinatown and the Financial district is Jeanty at Jack’s a classic French Bistro. Les Joulins Jazz Bistro is another well known restaurant with live music and classic dining at 44 Ellis Street. The legacy of French Colonial Vietnam is seen at Le Colonial at 20 Cosmos Street with a varied menu of Vietnamese and French tradition.
The Bubble Lounge at 714 Montgomery Street is the place to go for those who want to make an effort to dress and sip one of the many varieties of champagne on offer. San Francisco is bursting at the seams with excellent restaurants for visitors to try with such a variety of places to go. The only problem will be deciding which one to choose.
