San Francisco’s Elite Eats: The 10 Best Restaurants You Must Try in 2025
Searching for the best restaurants in San Francisco? You’re not alone. San Francisco has one of the richest restaurant scenes in the United States, a sprawling culinary universe packed with Michelin-starred temples of gastronomy and legendary, century-old institutions. Navigating the options can feel like a full-time job.
This is the definitive list of the 10 essential dining experiences in San Francisco right now, balancing world-renowned fine-dining destinations with cherished local classics. This curated analysis of the most famous and must-try restaurants in SF is defined by unforgettable vibes, history, and culinary prestige. Get ready to update your bucket list.
| Restaurant | Neighborhood | Cuisine | Price Guide | Vibe / Perfect For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Benu | SoMa | Contemporary Asian-American | $$$$ | A World-Class, 3-Michelin-Star Splurge |
| Quince | Financial District | Italian-Inspired Californian | $$$$ | An Elegant, Farm-to-Table Tasting |
| Atelier Crenn | Cow Hollow | Modern French Pescatarian | $$$$ | A Poetic & Artistic Culinary Journey |
| Lazy Bear | Mission District | New American Tasting Menu | $$$$ | A Communal Fine-Dining Party |
| State Bird Provisions | Fillmore District | American / Asian Fusion | $$$ | Fine Dining, Reinvented & Fun |
| House of Prime Rib | Nob Hill | Classic Steakhouse | $$$ | An Iconic, Old-School Celebration |
| Zuni Café | Hayes Valley | California-Mediterranean | $$$ | The Quintessential SF Lunch Spot |
| Swan Oyster Depot | Polk Gulch | Seafood / Raw Bar | $$ | A Historic, No-Frills Seafood Counter |
| Outerlands | Outer Sunset | New American / Comfort | $$ | A Beloved, Rustic Brunch Destination |
| Angler | Embarcadero | Seafood & Hearth Cooking | $$$$ | Upscale Seafood with the Best Views |
1. Benu
📹 Video Source: Alexander The Guest
1. Benu
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Cuisine:Contemporary Asian-American
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Neighborhood:SoMa
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Price:$$$$
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Vibe:A World-Class, 3-Michelin-Star Splurge
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Location: 22 Hawthorne St, San Francisco, CA 94105
Benu is Chef Corey Lee’s flagship restaurant and one of the most celebrated fine dining restaurants in the world. The Michelin Guide calls it an “oasis” where patience and technical mastery shape a 15-course tasting menu that fuses Korean, Chinese, and Californian influences. Diners start with a parade of precision-crafted small bites, followed by innovative signature dishes like faux-shark’s-fin soup and xiao long bao accented with XO sauce.
Foodie Quote: The kitchen produces “highly technical small bites and signature dishes like faux-shark’s-fin soup and barbecued quail with XO sauce.”
Why is it our top choice? Its status as one of only a handful of three-Michelin-starred establishments in the Bay Area places it at the absolute pinnacle of global culinary artistry.
2. Quince
📹 Video Source: Alexander The Guest
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Cuisine:Italian-Inspired California Cuisine
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Neighborhood:Financial District
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Price:$$$$
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Vibe:An Elegant, Farm-to-Table Tasting
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Location: 470 Pacific Ave, San Francisco, CA 94133
After a major renovation for its twentieth anniversary, Quince showcases Chef Michael Tusk’s refined Italian-influenced cuisine. The restaurant holds three Michelin stars and a Green Star, sourcing much of its produce from its own Fresh Run Farm, which uses regenerative agricultural practices. The tasting menu is a true celebration of seasonality, featuring dishes like delicate white-asparagus agnolotti or lamb cooked in a fireplace with edible blossoms.
Foodie Quote: The tasting menu celebrates seasonality with “first-of-the-season peas in a flavorful broth, white-asparagus agnolotti and lamb cooked in a fireplace.”
Why is it our top choice? Its three Michelin stars, prestigious Green Star, and James Beard Award recognize its unwavering commitment to both culinary excellence and sustainable, farm-direct sourcing.
3. Atelier Crenn
📹 Video Source: Bon Appétit
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Cuisine:Modern French Pescatarian
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Neighborhood:Cow Hollow
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Price:$$$$
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Vibe:A Poetic & Artistic Culinary Journey
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Location: 3127 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94123
Dominique Crenn’s poetic restaurant presents a pescatarian tasting menu that draws from her Brittany childhood and celebrates California’s coast. The Michelin Guide notes that produce from her own Bleu Belle Farm and imaginative sauces deliver dishes that feel indulgent yet nourishing. It’s a truly artistic experience from one of the world’s most acclaimed chefs, and one of the top 10 best restaurants in the city.
Foodie Quote: The experience is finished with creative desserts like “matcha-and-seaweed ice cream served in a nori cone.”
Why is it our top choice? With three Michelin stars and a spot on the 2019 World’s 50 Best list, Atelier Crenn is celebrated globally for its unique, poetic, and meat-free approach to fine dining.
4. Lazy Bear
📹 Video Source: NBC California Live
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Cuisine:New American Tasting Menu
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Neighborhood:Mission District
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Price:$$$$
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Vibe:A Communal Fine-Dining Party
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Location: 3416 19th St, San Francisco, CA 94110
What began as Chef David Barzelay’s series of underground dinner parties has evolved into a two-Michelin-starred sensation. Lazy Bear retains its convivial, dinner-party feel, where diners enjoy about a dozen courses of inventive New American food. A meal includes creative dishes from whipped scrambled eggs and house-cultured butter to seasonal plates with mushrooms and duck. Securing a seat requires a ticketed reservation, making it a famously tough table to book.
Foodie Quote: The restaurant retains a “convivial feel,” where diners enjoy “~12 courses… served at an upstairs-mezzanine dinner party.”
Why is it our top choice? Its two Michelin stars recognize a unique and brilliant concept that transforms a fine-dining tasting menu into a fun, communal, and unforgettable dinner party.
5. State Bird Provisions
📹 Video Source: Jenny Dang
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Cuisine:American/Asian Fusion
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Neighborhood:Fillmore District
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Price:$$$
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Vibe:Fine Dining, Reinvented & Fun
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Location: 1529 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA 94115
Known as “fine dining reinvented,” this lively spot from chefs Stuart Brioza and Nicole Krasinski upends convention with a dim-sum-style service. Guests pick incredible, inventive seasonal small plates from rolling carts and trays as they circulate the dining room. Dishes might include pan-seared guinea-hen dumplings or crispy black cod tail. The constant energy and surprise make it one of the hottest restaurants in San Francisco.
Foodie Quote: This lively restaurant serves “dim-sum-style carts of seasonal small plates like guinea-hen dumplings and fried black cod tails.”
Why is it our top choice? Its wildly inventive approach earned it both a Michelin star and a James Beard Award for Best New Restaurant, cementing its status as a modern classic that changed how people think about fine dining.
6. House of Prime Rib
📹 Video Source: Eater
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Cuisine:Classic Steakhouse
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Neighborhood:Nob Hill
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Price:$$$
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Vibe:An Iconic, Old-School Celebration
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Location: 1906 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94109
Opened in 1949, this old-school steakhouse is a beloved San Francisco institution. The 1950s-style hofbrau features red-leather booths, massive silver carts, and carvers in tall hats who slice your preferred cut of USDA prime rib right at your table. Salads are famously spun in front of you, and baked potatoes arrive loaded with all the fixings. It remains a cherished spot for special occasions, serving over 500 diners nightly.
Foodie Quote: Guests “choose cuts of USDA prime rib carved tableside with salads spun in front of them.”
Why is it our top choice? It’s an iconic 1949 institution that has perfected the classic steakhouse experience, earning unwavering loyalty from generations of San Franciscans.
7. Zuni Café
📹 Video Source: The SanFrancisco Standard
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Cuisine:California-Mediterranean
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Neighborhood:Hayes Valley
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Price:$$$
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Vibe:The Quintessential SF Lunch Spot
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Location: 1658 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94102
Since 1979, Zuni Café has been a quintessential California restaurant, transformed into an icon under the late Judy Rodgers. Its airy, triangular room is ideal for long lunches and lingering dinners. The menu is legendary, featuring a perfect Caesar salad, one of the city’s best burgers, and the renowned wood-oven roast chicken for two with bread salad that has become a rite of passage for food lovers.
Foodie Quote: Dishes include the “legendary Caesar salad, wood-oven roast chicken for two with bread salad and one of the city’s best burgers.”
Why is it our top choice? As a James Beard Award winner and a beloved SF classic, Zuni Café defines the very essence of California cuisine and has remained a vital part of the city’s identity for decades.
8. Swan Oyster Depot
📹 Video Source: Mark Wiens
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Cuisine:Seafood / Raw Bar
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Neighborhood:Polk Gulch
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Price:$$
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Vibe:A Historic, No-Frills Seafood Counter
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Location: 1517 Polk St, San Francisco, CA 94109
This tiny, 100-plus-year-old seafood counter is a San Francisco rite of passage. The counter-service seafood market and raw bar has drawn huge crowds for over a century, with long lines forming for its lunch-only experience. Patrons cram in for fresh Dungeness crab, clam chowder, raw oysters, and the famous “Swan Special” (shrimp cocktail with a beer).
Foodie Quote: The tiny counter-service seafood market and raw bar serves “fresh Dungeness crab, clam chowder and the ‘Swan Special’.”
Why is it our top choice? It’s an over-100-year-old landmark and was a favorite of Anthony Bourdain, cementing its status as an unmissable, no-frills institution for the best seafood in San Francisco.
9. Outerlands
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Cuisine:New American / California Comfort
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Neighborhood:Outer Sunset
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Price:$$
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Vibe:A Beloved, Rustic Brunch Destination
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Location: 4001 Judah St, San Francisco, CA 94122
Located just blocks from Ocean Beach, Outerlands is a beloved brunch destination and an Outer Sunset classic. It became famous for its rustic, driftwood-clad interior and its incredible weekend brunch, featuring staples like huge Dutch baby pancakes and cast-iron grilled cheese sandwiches made with house-baked bread. Special burger nights and Southern-style Monday dinners keep locals returning.
Foodie Quote: Famous for weekend brunch featuring “Dutch baby pancakes and grilled cheese sandwiches with housemade bread.”
Why is it our top choice? It is the definitive beloved brunch destination in the Outer Sunset, capturing the neighborhood’s rustic, coastal spirit perfectly.
10. Angler
📹 Video Source: Sound Bite Studios
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Cuisine:Seafood & Hearth Cooking
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Neighborhood:Embarcadero
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Price:$$$$
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Vibe:Upscale Seafood with the Best Views
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Location: 132 The Embarcadero, San Francisco, CA 94105
Created by Joshua Skenes of the three-star Saison, Angler is a spectacular seafood restaurant in a lodge-like space on the Embarcadero waterfront. Everything—from spot prawns to antelope ribeye—is cooked over a massive 32-foot open hearth. The signature Parker House rolls with seaweed butter are a must-order, and the panoramic bay views make it one of the best restaurants with a view in San Francisco.
Foodie Quote: Occupying an Embarcadero waterfront space, Angler is a lodge-like seafood restaurant where everything… “is cooked over a 32-foot open hearth.”
Why is it our top choice? It combines the pedigree of a world-class chef with spectacular hearth-cooked seafood, stunning panoramic views of the bay, and one Michelin star, making for an unforgettable downtown dining experience.
People Also Ask (FAQs)
The city is home to several of the world’s best restaurants. This list includes three establishments with the highest honor of three Michelin stars: Benu, Quince, and Atelier Crenn.
For a classic steakhouse, House of Prime Rib (1949) is a beloved institution. For a historic seafood experience, Swan Oyster Depot has been serving San Francisco for over 100 years.
Angler, located on the Embarcadero, offers stunning panoramic views of the bay to go along with its spectacular hearth-cooked seafood.
Zuni Café is legendary for its wood-oven roast chicken for two, served with a delicious bread salad. It’s considered a quintessential San Francisco dish.
Lazy Bear offers a tasting menu in a lively, communal dinner-party setting. State Bird Provisions reinvents fine dining with its exciting dim-sum-style cart service for small plates.
Outerlands in the Outer Sunset is a beloved brunch destination, famous for its rustic interior and dishes like the Dutch baby pancake and grilled cheese on housemade bread.
Anthony Bourdain was a fan of Swan Oyster Depot, calling the over-100-year-old landmark his favorite restaurant in the city.
House of Prime Rib has been the undisputed king of prime rib since 1949, offering a classic, tableside carving experience in a timeless setting.
Yes, Atelier Crenn is one of the world’s best restaurants and features a poetic, three-Michelin-star tasting menu that is entirely pescatarian.
For ticketed restaurants like Lazy Bear, you often have to book weeks or months in advance online. For popular spots like State Bird Provisions, it requires planning ahead, being flexible with dates, or looking for last-minute openings.
