Eats & Treats >>

• Readers' Poll Winners (3 Comments)
  Best Restaurant Pasta Pomodoro Best New Restaurant Kasa Best Chef Jamie Lauren at Absinthe Best Vegetarian restaurant Cafe Gratitude Best Seafood Restaurant Aqua Best Burrito Papalote Best Pizza Little Star Best Late-Night Eats Sparky’s 24-Hour Restaurant Best Romantic Restaurant Chez... More >>
• Best Breakfast Sandwich
  Emporio Rulli Caffè
  Emporio Rulli's breakfast panini is about as far from an Egg McMuffin as the Ferrari 212/225 Barchetta is from your old Dodge Dart. Start with the bakery's incredibly flaky and buttery brioche. Add several slender strands of salt-cured prosciutto cotto and a slice of frittata with the light,... More >>
• Best Scrambled Egg
  Tsar Nicoulai Caviar Cafe
  As you might guess, there's more to Tsar Nicoulai's scrambled egg than milk, butter, and a freshly laid ovum. First of all, it's absolutely moist and luscious (a rare feat in and of itself), ribboned with chopped chive, and infused with the earthy flavor of white truffle. Second, it's served in... More >>
• Best Brunch
  Nob Hill Grille
  There's a festive, special-occasion something or other surrounding brunch that separates it from other, lesser repasts, and the Nob Hill Grille prepares a weekend brunch worthy of its celebratory status. The place itself is cozy and friendly, with big sunny windows looking out on Pine Street,... More >>
• Best Patio Dining
  Arlequin
  From the outside, Arlequin looks like a pleasant small eatery, with counter ordering from a big wall-mounted blackboard menu, a refrigerated case full of drinks, and casual seating at a few simple wooden tables and chairs. But head back through the glass doors and you're Alice in Wonderland.... More >>
• Best Doughnuts
  Dynamo Donut and Coffee
  Dynamo is not a store per se, but a walk-up doughnut-and-coffee counter, offering just what the name implies: coffee (roasted a mere two miles away at Four Barrel Coffee), and artisanal doughnuts from husband-and-wife team Sara Spearin and Jonny Raglin. The classic Dynamo Donut is a raised yeast... More >>
• Best Big Space for a Small Cup o' Coffee
  Four Barrel Coffee
  If you're going to spring a few bucks for coffee these days, not only should the brew be made from the best possible ingredients, but the space it's served in should also invite you to linger. The massive, high-ceilinged, loftlike room that houses Four Barrel Coffee features long, sleek,... More >>
• Best Coffee Shop for Browsing Porn
  Coffee to the People
  There are plenty of places in the city for a decent cup of coffee, but if what you're really looking for is caffeine and free wireless Internet and a cozy spot to browse mature Web sites, Coffee to the People is your spot. Comfy couches along the walls allow customers (who can purchase standard... More >>
• Best New Tearoom
  Crown & Crumpet
  Crown and Crumpet is an exceptionally pleasant, bright, and cheerful place to enjoy a pot of tea (choose from among 38 types) and food ranging from light breakfasts (toast, pastries, boiled eggs) to Friday and Saturday night suppers (sausage rolls and sandwiches). The menu's strong suit is, of... More >>
• Best Sandwiches (1 Comment)
  Roxie Food Center
  You enter what looks like an ordinary, even unpromising, corner store that specializes in liquor, cigarettes, and a fridge full of soft drinks. But hidden behind a tall counter is a man — sometimes two — who keeps busy all day turning out big tasty sandwiches, made to order. Choices... More >>
• Best Gourmet Burgers
  Epic Roasthouse
  One of the best burgers we've ever eaten is the version served by chef Jan Birnbaum at Epic. And it ought to be, since the three-quarter-pound burger, called the Ultimate, is $25 at dinner, and the lunchtime half-pound version is $20. The big, chunky patties are made with meat that's ground... More >>
• Best New Burger Joint
  Pickles
  The old grungy location of Clown Alley has been completely transformed into the new upscale Pickles. The upgraded venue still offers burgers and dogs, but they're made from all-organic and sustainably farmed meats and poultry. The open patio is now enclosed, and rooms featuring booths and... More >>
• Best Hot Dog
  Happy Belly
  Munching on a plump, juicy hot dog fresh from the steamer is one of the undying pleasures of urban living. From the Mission to the ballpark to Union Square, the fragrance of frankfurters, mustard, and sauerkraut is an irresistible contrapunto to the asphalt jungle's exhaust fumes and cheap... More >>
• Best Barbecue
  Baby Blues BBQ
  Wonderful, well-priced barbecue, served in a spacious, comfortable setting designed for lingering — that's something San Francisco has been missing, since most barbecue places here are set up for takeout. Baby Blues offers plenty of table seating in a big room that features art on the... More >>
• Best Burrito
  Taqueria Can-Cún
  It's one in the morning, you've been slamming a questionable mixture of drinks for hours, and you need to lay down a solid pavement of beans, cheese, and rice in your gut. Can-Cún not only stays open until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, it also serves an irrefutably delicious burrito. A... More >>
• Best Street Food
  El Huarache Loco
  The only problem at El Huarache Loco is deciding what to have. Everything on its extensive menu — whether the familiar tacos and quesadillas, or the less-known gorditas and pambazos — is extraordinary. But you must have at least one of the dishes the stand is named for: a big... More >>
• Best Pupusa
  Balompie Cafe
  For the uninitiated, a pupusa is a ball of corn-flour dough stuffed with a variety of savory ingredients, flattened into a disc, and grilled until warm, smoky, and luscious. Over the past decade or so, this age-old Salvadoran delicacy has become a locally popular snack item and can be found at... More >>
• Best Tamale
  Frontera Fresco
  Yeah, we know Frontera Fresco is in Macy's basement and not the sainted Mission, that it's part of a chain run by a guy from Chicago, that the portions are small and the prices are hefty, and that the service can be on the downright surly side. But the fact remains that the sweet corn tamales... More >>
• Best Dumplings
  Kingdom of Dumplings
  You don't come to this tiny Parkside spot for the nonexistent decor, but for the fresh handmade dumplings, which range from the familiar (Shanghai soup dumplings) to the not-so-familiar (pork and corn dumplings, pork and shrimp with chives, pork and Napa cabbage, lamb and chive). They come six... More >>
• Best Deviled Eggs
  Rossi's Delicatessen
  Rossi's, a tiny place across the street from the Castro Theatre, offers an amazing amount of good cheap food, especially considering its square footage. But among its best and cheapest comestibles are its superb deviled eggs. For $1.25, you get a fat whole egg, its still-tender white split and... More >>
• Best Crab Louis
  Tadich Grill
  Little encountered beyond the Pacific Coast, the "king of salads" is the best and simplest showcase for our favorite native crustacean, Dungeness crab. In its most classic state, crab Louis is composed of shredded romaine lettuce, big chunks of crabmeat, and a tureen of Louis dressing on the... More >>
• Best Cobb Salad
  Chow
  A great California tradition (it was invented by Bob Cobb, proprietor of the Brown Derby in Hollywood, during a midnight feeding frenzy through his kitchen's refrigerators and larders), the Cobb salad is a big, bountiful cornucopia of Golden State plenitude with an upscale élan that... More >>
• Best Teensy Takeout Restaurant
  The Sentinel
  Dennis Leary, not content with personally cooking every dish that feeds his clientele at Canteen, has opened an adorable little takeout-only place downtown in what was once a cigar stand. The daily-changing, seasonal menu (check the Web site) features a soup, perhaps half a dozen sandwiches and... More >>
• Best Blackboard-Menu Restaurant
  Bar Jules
  Chef Jessica Boncutter, veteran of London's famed River Cafe, chalks new menus on Bar Jules' blackboard twice a day, for lunch and dinner. (You can also see them on the Web site.) They won't take you long to read: At dinner there are usually four or five starters, three mains, and two desserts,... More >>
• Best New Restaurant
  Nopalito
  Brought to you by the swell folks at the popular Mediterranean-themed Nopa, Nopalito has colonized a large room and an adjacent enclosed patio in Falletti's Plaza, the foodie enclave tucked between Oak and Fell on Broderick. It serves traditional Mexican food, including such succulent... More >>
• Best Reinvention
  Sutro's at the Cliff House
  Once upon a time, the Cliff House was regarded as the quintessential San Francisco tourist trap: a badly run, badly maintained place with nothing to recommend it save its matchless ocean view. But since the arrival of famed multistarred chef George Morrone, former opening chef at Aqua and Fifth... More >>
• Best Second-Story Restaurant
  Poesia
  Second-story restaurants are rare in this town, and Poesia's location, on a noisy, grungy block just below the busy Castro, is not renowned as a gastronomic destination. But ascend the stairs and you'll be greeted by calm: rooms painted warm gold, an upholstered banquette, and tables covered in... More >>
• Best Organic Restaurant
  Roots
  The term "organic restaurant" may conjure up images of spindly hippies poking at bowls of wheatgerm and mung beans, but at Roots the atmosphere is elegant, the foodstuffs are tempting, and there's nothing wrong with a pre-dinner cocktail, especially if it's made with organic vodka. Located off... More >>
• Best Vegetarian Restaurant (1 Comment)
  Burma Superstar
  As Burma Superstar's extensive and alluring menu states: "Please note, most dishes can be prepared vegetarian — please ask your server." Even nonvegetarians often find themselves ordering an entire vegetarian meal here, right off the menu. We suggest starting with the famous — and... More >>
• Best New Chinese
  Bund Shanghai
  Bund Shanghai is not just a wonderful Shanghai-style restaurant, but also a wonderful Chinese restaurant in, of all places, Chinatown. Subdued modern decor (flying-saucer-like light fixtures, pale contemporary framed flower prints on the yellow walls) puts the emphasis on the food. You should... More >>
• Best New Thai
  Lers Ros
  Some of the best Thai food San Francisco has ever known is being served at Lers Ros, whose clean, modern room is an inviting setting for its sophisticated, freshly prepared dishes. Everything is good, but favorites include succulent pork dishes, including kao kha moo, pork leg stew perfumed with... More >>
• Best Pho
  My Cahn
  As veritable pho-natics, we've sampled most of the fancy pho this city has to offer, which led us to the conclusion that pho shouldn't really be fancy at all. South Vietnam–style pho is already packed with delicious ingredients and doesn't require much spicing up, so to all you pho... More >>
• Best Traveling Sushi (1 Comment)
  Ichi Catering
  High-quality sushi isn't normally the kind of food you expect to arrive on your doorstep, and definitely not in bulk. Ichi Catering does the Bay Area a great service by offering delicious Japanese creations at reasonable prices for all occasions — well, all occasions that call for avocado... More >>
• Best Tandoori Chicken
  Punjab Kabab House
  Chicken is at its moist and smoky best when it's marinated in yogurt, garlic, ginger, and spices and baked in a clay oven over a layer of glowing charcoal. Nobody works the whole tandoori process better than the folks at Punjab. Their tender, succulent chicken is fragrant with smoke and spice,... More >>
• Best Bread
  Acme Bread Co.'s Sweet Batard
  The first indication comes from your teeth, not your taste buds. Your incisors eagerly break the shatteringly crisp crust. The toasted flavor then hits your tongue, and soon you feel the soft pillow of bread inside. The climax comes when the sweetness of the batard fills your mouth. To us, good... More >>
• Best Feijoada
  Bossa Nova
  Brazil's national dish is a delectable yet overwhelming extravaganza of Latin soul food (stewed beans, variety meats, collard greens) that's guaranteed to put you into a siesta-friendly food coma. So it's nothing short of a miracle that Bossa Nova's version is not only hearty and luscious, but... More >>
• Best New Mexican Hole-in-the-Wall
  La Oaxaqueña
  This tiny storefront has a few Formica-topped tables in blue and green with wooden chairs, four counter seats, and lots of Oaxacan crafts (shawls, dresses, paintings, pottery) adorning its walls and shelves. You can get better soft tacos at any taqueria or truck in the neighborhood, so... More >>
• Best New Dish
  Warm Sea Urchin at Anchor and Hope
  This looks dangerous, but tastes rich and sweet: a whole, hairy, spiky sea urchin shell is filled with creamy mashed potatoes mixed with sea urchin roe, Dungeness crab, and subtle aromatics. More >>
• Best Seafood
  Ame
  At Ame, owners Hiro Sone and Lisa Doumani say their personal cuisine blends local ingredients with the flavors of southern France and northern Italy and Sone's Japanese sensibilities, resulting in meals that give fusion cooking a good name. Other ingredients are beautifully handled, too, but the... More >>
• Best Steamed Mussels
  Mocca
  You wouldn't think that anything as pure and simple as a bucket of vapored bivalves could be any better or worse than any other, but we've had enough dry, stringy, coppery, mean-spirited moules in drippings devoid of any fragrant succulence to deeply appreciate the ne plus ultra served at Mocca.... More >>
• Best Joe's Special
  Polkers Gourmet Burgers
  The Joe's Special is one of those last-minute what's-in-the-cupboard culinary concoctions that has transcended its erratic origins and entered the standard restaurant repertoire. Conceived out of desperation at (the now-defunct) New Joe's in North Beach to sate the early-morning appetites of a... More >>
• Best Savory Bread Pudding
  Serpentine
  A signature starter at Serpentine, a chic eatery housed in an industrial space in the Dogpatch neighborhood, is its savory bread pudding, a crusty hillock that tastes better than it looks (trust us). Under its browned exterior hides a frequently changing amalgam of seasonal ingredients (perhaps... More >>
• Best Dessert Pizza
  Giovanni's Pizza
  This place has been freshened up by a new family of young owners, who've continued the tradition of affordable Italian specialties (pastas, pizzas, salads served family-style) and added a few new variations of their own. Even if you think you've eaten your fill of entrées like the Organic... More >>
• Sweetest Food Fair
  S.F. International Chocolate Salon
  First things first: Why is it called a salon? Because it is not enough to simply like chocolate — you can go to a supermarket candy aisle for that. The vendors here are artists, and you are a connoisseur. Tip: If you can't talk properly about chocolate, say, "Mmmm." Everyone does. You get... More >>
• Best New Ice Cream Store
  Humphry Slocombe
  Imaginative and inventive ice cream flavors made from the finest ingredients are the irresistible draw at Humphry Slocombe, owned by Jake Godby, 15-year veteran of San Francisco's best restaurants (including Fifth Floor, Boulevard, and Coi) and proud bearer of ice-cream-cone tattoos. Ten or 12... More >>
• Best Rice Pudding
  Loving Cup
  Comfort food has seldom been as indispensable as on planet Earth circa 2009, and few comfort foods are as pacifying as soft, sweet, lumpy rice pudding. Loving Cup, a sort of 21st-century Polk Gulch soda fountain, dispenses delectable smoothies, coffee drinks, and frozen yogurt, but its specialty... More >>
• Best Late-Night Greasy Spoon
  Sam's
  Sam's looks like the sort of a place a private eye would repair to for a cup of joe while a seen-it-all counterman flips burgers on the grill and Edward Hopper lingers on the fringes. Located near the strip joints, blues bars, and mean streets of the old Barbary Coast, Sam's is a fine place to... More >>
• Best Natural Foods Store
  Golden Natural Foods
  If you're still braving the produce section at the Safeway on Market, then you might not be aware of a not-so-well-kept neighborhood secret: There's a family-owned produce stand just across the street at 172 Church with a better selection, more organic options, and competitive prices. It's... More >>
• Best Charitable Chef
  Anthony Myint
  Thursdays and Saturdays, ex-Bar Tartine line cook Anthony Myint transforms into the Batman of guerrilla catering, turning a humble Chinese restaurant on Mission Street into a showcase for some of the most interesting food in the city. Those in the know form long lines for a menu that... More >>
• Best Resource for Chefs
  Le Sanctuaire
  San Francisco chefs and foodies have a semisecret resource: a tony, chic, and expensive spot on the fifth floor of a downtown office building, which Le Sanctuaire's Web site refers to as its showroom. The showroom is open Mondays through Fridays from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and reportedly by... More >>
• Best Cookbook Store
  Omnivore Books on Food
  For cookbook fanciers who yearn for not just the hottest new restaurant or James Beard–nominated works, but also beautiful old bindings, amusing recipe collections from decades past, and witty dustwrappers that beg to be displayed like the works of art they are, Omnivore Books on Food is... More >>
• Best Rebirth
  Washington Square Bar & Grill
  San Franciscans were shocked when the Washington Square Bar & Grill, a fixture in North Beach since 1973, disappeared on January 1, 2008 (after a brief "blue period" during which it was known as the Cobalt Tavern). Its regulars entered a period of mourning, now happily ended, as restaurateurs... More >>
• Best Barbecue (Outdoor)
  Ironwood BBQ
  On a sunny day, dining on good, inexpensive barbecue in an unexpected and hidden location can truly feel like the Best of S.F. Above a spacious (and free!) parking lot is a modest pro shop that hides a food counter, where you can order from a reasonably priced menu featuring pulled pork,... More >>
• Best Southern-Style Cookin'
  John Akins
  Heart of the City Farmers' Market, U.N. Plaza (near the corner of Fulton and Hyde) There's a surprising abundance of soul food in San Francisco, a testament to a culinary resistance to the rising clout of the organic food movement, which hasn't entirely captured the breakfast crowd that drizzles... More >>
• Best Venerable Tea Room
  Lovejoy's Tea Room
  Open since 2000 (which counts as venerable in these parts and in this economy), Lovejoy's looks as if it's been in existence forever — or at least since Victorian times — thanks to its eclectic, cozy decor, featuring overstuffed upholstered furniture, mismatched china and silver, and... More >>
• Best Place to Get Buzzed at Brunch
  Axis Cafe and Gallery
  We sort of hate to tell you about this place, because it's oh-so-easy to get a Sunday brunch table at the moment. But this industrial-chic Potrero Hill cafe, complete with fireplace and sun-drenched (and otherwise heated) patio dining, is bound to be discovered. With a spacious dining area,... More >>
• Best Popovers
  The Bistro at Cliff House
  Popovers are eggy, light, almost hollow soufflélike rolls, with a fragile and glossy crust, and best when served fresh. Practice makes perfect, but most restaurants don't even attempt to bake the steam-leavened treats. In San Francisco, reliable beauties are available at the Bistro. The... More >>
• Best Jelly Doughnut
  I Preferiti di Boriana
  Italy loves gobs of sugary dough fried in deep fat (and who doesn't?), offering a boot-wide abondanza of Neapolitan zeppole, Sicilian sfinci, Bolognese sfrappole, and Tuscan bombolini, perhaps the fairest of them all. Bigger and fluffier than your standard doughnut hole, these toothsome clouds... More >>
• Best Butcher
  Prather Ranch Meat Company
  That rich, tender beefsteak you've been enjoying at Jardinière, the Slanted Door, Tartine, and other culinary hotspots comes from Prather Ranch, a 34,000-acre spread near Mount Shasta where humanely raised livestock graze on an organic diet of hay, barley, and rice. The resulting beef is... More >>
• Best Fried Food
  Fried Chicken at Magnolia Pub and Brewery|Salt-and-Pepper Frog at Taishan Cafe|Shrimp Kushi Katsu at Halu
  Fried Chickenat Magnolia Puband Brewery 1398 Haight (at Masonic), 864-7468 www.magnoliapub.com Would Magnolia's peppery fried chicken taste as good if it were available every night of the week, instead of only on Thursdays? It's something to ponder as you address your crisp, golden half-bird,... More >>
• Best Salumi
  Incanto|Uva Enoteca|Bar Bambino
  A plate of cured meats, served with bread and perhaps some olives or a relish made from fruit or marinated vegetables, is a fine way to start a meal — or serve as a meal in itself. Incanto 1550 Church (at Duncan), 641-4500 www.incanto.biz You might say Incanto chef Chris Cosentino and... More >>
• Best Cookies
  California Golden Cookies|The House|Kika's Treats|Mara's Italian Pastry
  Ginger snaps, snickerdoodles, tea cakes, rum balls, shortbread, pfeffernüsse, madeleines, biscotti: So many cookies, so little time. Whether it's dropped, rolled, pressed, molded, refrigerated, fried, or sandwiched, there's a cookie out there for you. Following are some particularly yummy... More >>