Whether you're in the mood for fabulous fine dining, brilliant burritos or artisan hot chocolate, San Francisco has no shortage of excellent places to eat and drink. Hungry visitors can explore any one of the city's distinctive districts and stumble upon the perfect spot for fun vibes and outstanding food. But which ones are worthy of your bucket list? Join us as we explore the City of Fog through its eclectic food scene, counting down to the restaurant every visitor needs to try.

Click or scroll through our gallery to discover 15 of the best places to eat in San Francisco.

You can't miss the eye-popping red frontage of The Stinking Rose – and you can't mistake the glorious smell of garlic wafting out from inside, either. The tagline of this one-of-a-kind Italian restaurant is, "We season our garlic with food!" That should give you a good idea of what to expect from the menu: an ode to all things garlic. Don't worry if you're not a fan of the flavourful cloves, though, because The Stinking Rose has something for everyone.

The most impressive dish coming out of the kitchen is the whole brick oven–roasted Dungeness crab, which comes slathered in the joint's secret garlic sauce. But the 40-Clove Garlic Chicken is just as pungent, and the steaks, pizzas and pasta dishes are similarly crowned with the bulb. For those wanting to remain relatively garlic-free, look out for items that are listed 'sans garlic'. Whatever you do, though, save room for a taste of the love-it-or-hate-it garlic ice cream for dessert.

The Mission District is the place to head for some of the best Latin American flavours outside of Latin America. Residents here are proud of the community, and its authenticity hasn't been sacrificed to entice tourists to the area. This means the restaurants and stores that line its streets serve delicious food the same way they've done it for generations. One Salvadoran panadería is a staple of the Mission: Pan Lido Salvadoreno.

Pan Lido is the pride and joy of father-and-son owners Walter Varela Sr. and Walter Varela Jr. Customers come from all over the Mission and beyond to sample its pasteles, which are pastry pockets filled with sweet or savoury delights. We recommend opting for the semita poleada – a flaky wonder that features a scrumptious layer of sticky marmalade and a crunchy, sugary top.

The Beacon Grand was extensively renovated in 2022, but the hotel retains much of the charm and furnishings you'd expect from a place that opened in 1928. Rooms here start from $259 (£206) per night, and its location right in the heart of San Francisco makes it ideal for checking out the city's many attractions. For food and drink, The Post Room serves generous portions throughout the day – but the hotel's real highlight is on the top floor.

Take the elevator to the top of the Beacon Grand and alight at the Starlite. The views across San Francisco are glorious, and so is the menu of cocktails and bites. Both menus reflect everything San Francisco has to offer, including the impressive swaths of 'fog' that flavour the drinks and dishes inspired by Chinatown and San Francisco Bay.

When you're not sure what kind of cuisine you want to eat, Spark Social is the place to go. It's a food truck park that's perfect for hanging out and enjoying a taste of the area's many food and drink offerings. The owners, SoMa StrEat Food Park, work with hundreds of food vendors to deliver a constantly rotating selection of the best street eats in the area.

Expect a dizzying array of burgers, poke, coffee, burritos, and much more. Even four-legged friends are well catered for here, with a prime photo spot reserved for all the good boys in the area. The best way to keep up to date with which trucks are currently dishing up the grub at Spark Social is to check out the venue's social media. Some vendors even allow you to order your food ahead of time.

Small-batch chocolatier Dandelion Chocolate is proud to say its delicious chocolate is made from just two ingredients: single-origin cocoa beans and organic cane sugar. The result is award-winning chocolate, which is devoured by delighted customers in five locations around San Francisco (and one in Las Vegas). But if straight-up chocolate isn't your thing, we suggest trying Dandelion's range of chocolate drinks.

The refreshing frozen hot chocolate served at Dandelion's cafés will go down a treat on a hot day. To make it, single-origin chocolate flakes are blended, then served topped with cocoa whipped cream. But if the weather's not so kind, opt for the house hot chocolate. Served with a marshmallow and a cookie, the drink is light, sweet and vegan to boot. Dandelion also serves a Mission-inspired mix for those in the market for a hit of spice.

For a truly special trip to the City of Fog, consider staying at the Ritz-Carlton San Francisco. The hotel's location makes it ideal for hopping on one of the city's iconic cable cars, but it also offers an abundance of delectable food and drink options. You can enjoy a hearty American breakfast in Parallel 37 or relax in the sumptuous Lounge after a busy day of sightseeing and feast on coastal Californian cuisine for dinner.

Guest room rates at the Ritz-Carlton San Francisco start from $654 (£522) per night, or you could go all out and upgrade to Club Deluxe, starting from $804 (£641) per night. Those staying in Club get access to the Club Lounge, where food and drink presentations are made throughout the day – not to mention upgrades such as a turn-down service and coffee machines in the rooms.

Incredibly, San Francisco's Chinatown is the oldest in North America and the largest outside of Asia. There's no place like it to experience a thriving community inside a major metropolitan city – and it naturally has an overwhelming number of special places to eat. One of those is Mister Jiu's, a Michelin-starred restaurant inside a historic Chinatown building. If you can't stretch to Mister Jiu's prices, however, head upstairs to Moongate Lounge.

Moongate Lounge was opened by the same team as Mister Jiu's, but here it's all about the cocktails. The menu includes half a dozen house cocktails and six rotating specials that are all inspired by the Chinese lunar calendar. Expect exotic combinations of fruits and spices that'll stay with you for days. The Insta-worthy décor is quite something, too.

Take a short trip out of San Francisco – or better yet, walk or cycle across the Golden Gate Bridge – and stop by the artistic city of Sausalito. Once you've exhausted the quaint stores and admired the view, you'll no doubt have worked up an appetite that'll need to be satisfied before taking the ferry back to the city. Our choice for a fine meal (and even finer wine) is the Italian restaurant Poggio Trattoria.

Executive chef Benjamin Balesteri grew up with a love of fishing and has learnt first-hand from Sicilian family members how to bring out the best in freshly caught fish. His kitchen is guided by the seasons, and the menu reflects the bountiful produce available in San Francisco's gardens and waters. Expect fresh pasta, house-cured charcuterie and only the freshest seafood. The tiramisù is pretty great, too.

Not satisfied with winning a Michelin star for his Japanese American restaurant Nisei, chef-owner David Yoshimura opened Bar Iris right next door. It's a walk-ins-only joint where the focus is on Japanese cocktails, with a 20-page menu offering endless tempting options. But, as you can imagine with having a Michelin-starred sister restaurant, Bar Iris's food menu is just as exciting.

Bar Iris claims the best way to explore its menu is by going for the omakase, but we'd argue that anything you select is going to be off-the-charts good. Favourites include the wagyu tartare, with A5 wagyu, cured jidori egg yolk, awase miso, sea urchin and lotus root chips, and the karaage – Japanese fried chicken with fermented chilli aioli and lemon. It's a great way to enjoy Michelin-starred food without plumping for a tasting menu.

Saison is a fine dining institution in San Francisco, with its open wood-fire kitchen earning two Michelin stars and all the praise it could hope for. The group behind Saison also opened Saison Cellar and Wine Bar just up the street, and its French-focused food and wine menus are equally droolworthy. Wine can be enjoyed by the glass, bottle or flight, and food is best served in the middle of the table for all to savour.

French cheese, French bread and French charcuterie take centre stage, and all are perfect accompaniments to the drinks menu. The truffle fries – with white truffle aioli, black truffles, Parmesan​ and chives – are also a must-have, as is the excellent croque monsieur. For those who love to indulge, there's caviar to sample and oysters to devour.

Chef Marc Zimmerman learnt about Japan's unique listening bars while living and working in Tokyo in 2016. He became obsessed with these top-tier bars with immense audio systems and vinyl collections, where customers got to immerse themselves in great food and great music. Zimmerman thought the concept might play in the US, and it eventually led to the opening of Yokai in San Francisco in 2023.

Yokai's menu combines prime Japanese and Northern Californian ingredients with live-fire cooking to deliver a celebration of Japanese culture, all inspired by chef Zimmerman's travels. Bigger plates such as the burger, steak and baby back ribs are good for hungry diners, but the best bet is to order a selection of smaller plates to share. Everything is good, but the scallop, duck and salmon skewers are the pick of the bunch.

La Corneta Taqueria has four locations in San Francisco, and you'd be advised to check out at least one during your visit. The dishes here are based on authentic Mexican recipes – the kind that the chefs and owners would be happy to feed their families at home. Expect a line if you're arriving at peak times, but that just gives you more time to study the extensive menu of Mexican favourites.

If you've only got time for one meal at La Corneta Taqueria, the go-to order has to be the burrito. This mammoth wrap sticks to the essential four fillings – meat, rice, beans and salsa – and forgoes the mounds of guacamole and sour cream to allow the quality of the ingredients to speak for themselves. Come hungry, though, because even the Baby Burrito is enough to have you rolling out of the door.

John's Grill has been part of San Francisco's history since 1908, and it shows no signs of changing any time soon. That's good news for those who love meat and seafood, because John's Grill is famous for both. The joint has a beautiful throwback vibe, complete with 1930s glamour and a jazz band accompanying dinner. The signature dish is Sam Spade's Lamb Chops, served with a baked potato and sliced tomatoes, and named after the fictional detective from The Maltese Falcon.

If lamb chops aren't your thing, the steaks should be your next port of call. Choose between New York strip, rib-eye or filet mignon – or go all out and get the surf and turf, which is the New York strip with three fried jumbo prawns. The steaks are served with a baked Idaho potato and seasonal vegetables, and you can add a sauce, too. It's the perfect way to end a classic San Francisco night.

Little about the exterior or interior of La Vaca Birria lets you know that you're about to have the best tacos of your life – but that's exactly what'll happen. We're sure everything on the menu is great, but the reason to come here is the quesabirria with consomé – birria-style beef folded into a tortilla with melted cheese and a bowl of broth on the side. Owner Ricardo Lopez developed the recipe for the dish from one his grandfather used to serve, and it's been wowing customers ever since the restaurant opened its doors.

The taqueria made headlines early in 2024 when people noticed that the cost of its burrito went up to $22 (£17.55) after being named the best burrito in the Mission District by the San Francisco Chronicle. But Lopez's detailed response revealed how much love and attention goes into his food, as well as how shocking price increases across the board were strangulating small businesses. Needless to say, you're getting plenty of bang for your buck at La Vaca Birria.

Atelier Crenn is a three-Michelin-star restaurant with a tasting menu that'll set you back $395 (£315) per person, plus add-ons. But next door to Atelier Crenn is Bar Crenn, serving cocktails and bar bites that reflect the sheer brilliance of Dominique Crenn's kitchen in a relaxed, refined setting. The lounge at Bar Crenn centres around a record player and vinyl collection that delivers intimate vibes and good times. But the food is what everybody is talking about.

The bar bites menu includes iconic mouthfuls such as the Nutty Nori, with lime and basil, the eggplant roll, with smoked cream and wakame, and the scallop carpaccio, with XO sauce and yuzu. But if you can't decide what to go for, there's also the option of ordering the Greatest Hits, which is the Nutty Nori, the eggplant roll, an oyster, an onion turnover and a Brandade beignet pastry. You won't regret it.

United Airlines offers daily nonstop flights to San Francisco, California from London Heathrow. Return economy fares start from £572.29 per person including taxes*. Luckily, too, San Francisco International Airport (SFO) was voted the best airport for food in the US by readers of Food and Wine, so you can start and end your trip as you mean to go on. Plus, anxious flyers shouldn't miss out on a chance to meet the WAG Brigade, a group of calming volunteer animals that passengers can pet and swoon over before their relaxing journey home.

*Prices correct at the time of issue, subject to change and availability.

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