The Mission
Tartine Bakery - 600 Guerrero Street - http://www.tartinebakery.com
* Probably the best bakery in the whole Bay Area. It's a must visit! The line only takes 15 minutes at the most. They even serve Four Barrel Coffee. Remember, the bread comes out of the oven at 5pm.
Pizza Delfina - 3621 18th Street - http://www.delfinasf.com
* Next door to Tartine, it's my favorite pizza place in SF. Sooooo good! I like the Panna pizza and I have them add arugula to it. Trust me, it's good.
Bi-Rite Creamery - 3692 18th Street - http://biritecreamery.com
* On the same block, some of the best ice cream in San Francisco, for sure. If you want to skip the line, you can go in and buy something out of the cooler. Their ice cream sandwiches and pies are great too.
Mexican Food - Everywhere in the Mission
* Some of the best in the world. You can't go wrong just walking into any place in this neighborhood. Actually since we're talking about 18th street, Taqueria El Buen Sabor is great and its right there on the corner at Valencia Street. I love that place (but really, every mexican place in the mission is good).Flour + Water - 2401 Harrison Street - http://www.flourandwater.com
* Really good hand-made fresh pasta. This place is perfect for a nice night out. You might want to call for a reservation though
Aslam's Rasoi - 1037 Valencia Street - http://www.aslamsrasoi.com
* There are 3 great Indian food places in a row across the street from Ritual Coffee (another great local coffee roster), and although most people swear by DOSA, I really like this place too.
Big Lantern - 3170 16th Street - http://biglantern.com
* Looking for dim sum at 10pm? Kind of a hard thing to find isn't it. Well, here's a pretty great Chinese food place that also happens to serve dim sum all the way up until they close. If I'm not eating over at Sam Wo in China Town, Big Lantern is my go to spot.
AND... While you're over here, check out 5 & Diamond (510 Valencia Street), Paxton Gate (824 Valencia Street), The Pirate Store (826 Valencia Street), and The Curiosity Shoppe (855 Valencia Street). The bar Amnesia (853 Valencia Street) always has great local bands playing in the evenings, and Dolores Park (Delores Street between 18th and 20th) is my favorite place to hang out during the day when the sun is out!
Hayes ValleyBlue Bottle Coffee - 315 Linden Street - http://www.bluebottlecoffee.net
* Some of the best coffee in San Francisco. Between Ritual Coffee, Four Barrel, Sight Glass, and Philz, I think I might like Blue Bottle the best. Oh, what a horrible life we live in SF trying to choose between so much amazing, best in the world coffee!Smitten Ice Cream - 432 Octavia Street - http://smittenicecream.com
* My new favorite ice cream in San Francisco. Everything I've tried on the menu thus far has been truly amazing (except the Summer Herb which was fucken gross).
Suppenkueche - 525 Laguna Street - http://www.suppenkuche.com
* German food + Northern California + Beer the size of your head = Amazing! Expect to wait. This place is popular!
Smuggler's Cove - 650 Gough Street - http://smugglerscovesf.com
* Probably the best tiki bar in the fricken world. The drinks here are truly amazing, high quality, and a little pricey (but not over priced for what you're getting). If you enjoy Rum, you'll love this bar!
Boxing Room - 399 Grove Street - http://boxingroomsf.com
* Oh good, a great new Cajun food place! I've been looking for a yummy Cajun place ever since Cajun Pacific changed to such selective hours of operation. Woohoo!
AND... While you're over here, check out Flight 001 (525 Hayes Street), Timbuk2 (506 Hayes Street), and Dark Garden Corsetry (321 Linden Street).
Haight StreetCha Cha Cha - 1801 Haight Street - http://www.cha3.com
* Great Tapas! Great Sangria! This place is one of my favorites, for sure.
Zazie - 941 Cole Street - http://www.zaziesf.com
* Technically Zazie isn't in the Haight, it's in Cole Valley, but it's an easy walk and it's my favorite breakfast place in San Francisco (8am - 2:30pm). I've never been there for dinner. I should go sometime.Ice Cream Bar - 815 Cole Street - http://www.theicecreambarsf.com
* If you're gonna get over to Cole Valley, you have to check this place out! This might be my new favorite spot in the City. Hand made ice cream and hand made soda. Yes that's right, soda! It's like you're at at fancy mixologist bar only they're making you milk shakes and sodas. Apparently, they make milk shakes like they did back in the '50s: pre-refrigeration and without ice cream! It's really neat. Just by chance we skipped the line, went to the back, and sat down at the soda fountain. The bartenders, um I mean soda jerks, really are amazing.
Little Chihuahua - 292 Divisadero Street - http://thelittlechihuahua.com
* The best horchata I've had in SF. When this mexican rice drink is done right, it's amazing. The food here is all free range and high quality. This is my roommates' favorite mexican place in the city.
Toronado - 547 Haight Street - http://www.toronado.com
* Looking for great beer? You've found your mecca in San Francisco here, my friend. They have an astonishingly large selection of beer on tap from all over the Bay Area and around the world. Try something from the Russian River Brewing Company. They're my favorite local beer.
Rosamunde Sausage Grill - 545 Haight Street - http://rosamundesausagegrill.com
* This is how Northern California does hot dogs. Wow, even their vegi-dog is amazing!
AND... While you're over here, check out every single used clothing store on upper Haight. There's like 7 of them or something, and they're all really good. And when you get to the end, there's Amoeba Music (1855 Haight Street). It's like you've died and gone to record store heaven!
Inner Sunset
Park Chow - 1240 9th Avenue - http://www.chowfoodbar.com
* Aaahhh, real dinner. You know, pork chops with grilled asparagus. Ginger cake with pumpkin ice cream. The kind of food you grew up with if you were born and raised in Northern California.
Soi Gow Thai - 1319 9th Ave - http://www.soigowthai.com
* This is one of my favorite Thai places in San Francisco. Not the fanciest or most expensive Thai place either. Just good Thai food.
Pluto's - 627 Irving Street - http://www.plutosfreshfood.com
* I always forget to recommend this place. If you're looking for a kick ass salad or a Thanksgiving dinner, this is the place to go!Thanh Long - 4101 Judah Street - http://goo.gl/PbrmX
* Not at all in the Inner Sunset. Thanh Long is in the Outer Sunset almost at the beach. Just hop on an N-Judah outbound train and you'll be there in no time. Apparently it's the best place to get crab in San Francisco.
Under Dog Sports Bar & Grill - 1824 Irving Street - http://www.tacoshopsf.com
* Again, not really in the Inner Sunset, but as long as you're hopping N-Judah trains, just get off at 19th. Nick's Crispy Tacos was home to some of the yummiest salsa and tacos in San Francisco, and this noisy inconveniently-located sports bar is one of the new shops Nick Fasanella has opened to continue selling his awesome tacos. And if you're drunk and tired, they'll drip you a fresh cup of Blue Bottle Coffee!
COMING SOON
Union Square and Fisherman's Warf
No, there aren't a lot of great places in both of these areas, but that's where all the hotels are and there are some gems to be found within walking distance to your bed. If you're in Union Square, though, check out the Half-Priced Ticket Booth (336 Powell Street - http://www.tixbayarea.com) for theater tickets. The Un-Scripted Theater Company always has tickets on sale there, every time we have a show.
PS: I haven't gotten around to it yet, but here's a list that I've been wanting to work my way through as a vegetarian. http://www.7x7.com/the-big-veg I've only tried something like 5 things off this list and they've all been great, and some of these veggie burgers look amazing. They've also got a nice list of fancy brunches that I want to check out. http://www.7x7.com/eat-drink/rise-and-dine-brunch-comes-citys-best-restaurants Man, I'm getting hungry!
