San Francisco Restaurant Guide
Since breakfast is supposed to be the most important meal of the day, let’s start with it. There are many great breakfast places in San Francisco, but I’m going to list my favorite. In general, I prefer places that the locals enjoy and that tourists may not know about. However, Sears Fine Food is too good to pass up even if it is popular with tourists. There is always a line outside of Sears and it is there for good reason. Sears is an old school diner, located at 439 Powell Street next to Union Square, that serves up good food at a good price. While their meals and desserts are tasty, it is their 18 Swedish pancakes with warm maple syrup that the crowds come for. I’ve never counted them, so I can’t confirm that they give you exactly eighteen, but boy are they good.
After some sight seeing and a nice walk, how about some lunch? On a nice sunny day, a great place to go is North Beach, which is San Francisco’s Little Italy. You’ll find Italian restaurants, bakeries, cafes, and delis. Molinari Deli, located at 373 Columbus Avenue, has a large selection of imported items and serves up great sandwiches and antipasti. My favorite is the North Beach Special, which has prosciutto, provolone, sun dried tomatoes, and sweet bell peppers. You get to pick out your own bread from the fresh baked bread bin. There are a few tables on the sidewalk, but if they are full you can take your sandwich to nearby Washington Square Park.
If you like baseball, and the Giants are in town, I have another lunch option for you. For $10 to $12, you can get a standing room only ticket and check out AT&T park. They have some great food and the stadium is a great place to take in a game. The stadium is located right on the water, so you’ll have great views of the city and the bay. Once inside the stadium, I recommend some fries from Gilroy Garlic Fries and the 40 clove garlic chicken sandwich from The Stinking Rose. Both are very good, but I don’t recommend this if you are single and on a first date.
Okay, after lunch, maybe a ballgame, and a stop at the hospital to have your cholesterol checked, let’s grab some dinner. Do you want healthy Mexican food, pizza, or Chinese food? If it’s Mexican, head on over to Nick’s Crispy Tacos at the corner of Polk and Broadway. Nick’s shares its space with a nightclub next door, so the atmosphere is interesting. My favorite is the steak quesadilla and a side of tortilla chips covered in fresh diced tomato salsa. Their fish tacos and burritos are also very good.
If pizza is your thing, make your way to Village Pizzeria at 1243 Van Ness Avenue. I’m from New York originally, so I take my pizza very seriously and Village serves up the good stuff. I recommend ordering slices instead of a pie, so the crust comes out extra crispy. You can sit at the counter and watch them throw the pizza dough for extra entertainment if you’d like. I also enjoy their garlic knots which go great with any of their pasta dishes.
Well, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recommend a Chinese restaurant since San Francisco is home to great Chinese food. There is a vibrant Chinatown, near North Beach, that has many restaurants filled with both locals and tourists to choose from. I’m going to recommend a restaurant outside of Chinatown that the locals frequent. It’s called Eliza’s and is located at 2877 California Street in Pacific Heights. If the garlic fries and 40 clove garlic chicken sandwich for lunch were not enough, you can try Eliza’s garlic chicken which is my favorite dish. Eliza’s serves up a wide variety of tasty Chinese food without a lot of grease.
So, there you have it. If you are still alive and haven’t overdosed on garlic by now, perhaps a trip to the gym or maybe a liposuction is in order. I’d recommend some places to go for dessert in San Francisco, but I am too full just from writing this. Listed below are websites for some of the restaurants mentioned:
