The Ultimate San Francisco Food Guide for Foodies
By: Jasmine Cuza
California is known for incorporating the freshest local produce in their cuisines and giving food a new look with its international flair. However, the West Coast has something even more delicious cooking up in their very own backyard and has made a mark in the culinary world. San Francisco, Calif is known for the infamous Golden Gate Bridge and busy cable cars is also the home to a colorful community of food and ingredients. The city has a diverse cultural food scene with over 200,000 restaurants to choose from. On every corner, it’s guaranteed you’ll run into a restaurant with good food and long lines of people waiting to eat.
While on my food tour journey I had to stop in the Bay Area for some of their delicious international cuisines. While walking down the street near my hotel it was no surprise that I ran into restaurants on every block. Even with COVID-19 circling around it does not stop the people from waiting in line for good food. Though you can not dine in most of the restaurants some have adapted to seating outside and switched to take out.
The first stop on my food tour was a Filipino owned restaurant called The Craw Station located on 1336 9th Ave. This restaurant gave Filipino food a new look with its Cajun-Creole twist. The decor inside has a rustic feel with wooden chairs and tables and brick walls. They have the dim lighting inside and it is very comfortable and relaxing to sit and enjoy a comforting meal. They have an outdoor back patio which can be beautiful to sit at and enjoy a meal while watching the sunset in the city. They have a very large menu that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. One of their breakfast items includes Tapa which is pan-fried, thinly sliced, air-dried beef house-cured in salt, black pepper, garlic and calamari juice. Another breakfast favorite among their customers is their Longaniza which is a sweet pork sausage inspired by the Spanish jamo nada and Portuguese linguica. The most popular item on their menu is in the dinner section and that is their seafood boil. Customers flood their doors to get a taste of the fresh seafood caught from within the San Francisco ports and you can choose from several different seasonings such as their lemon pepper and their cajun spicy seasoning.
While there, I had to order their seafood boil with their cajun seasoning and mild spice; it was the one dishes that had many people talking. My order contained crawfish, mussels, shrimp, sausage and potatoes. For the sides, I ordered their fried pickles, sweet potato fries and white rice. Before diving into my meal they provided me with a bib and some gloves so I would not make a mess. My food was topped with gorgeous cajun sauce and sprinkled with parmesan cheese. The cheese was something new because I had never heard of a seafood boil with parmesan cheese on top, but it gave the sauce a sharp and nutty taste. The fried pickles was delicious and warm and the sweet potato fries literally melted in my mouth. The white rice paired up well with the seafood boil and I actually drizzled some of the sauce on top of the rice which gave it nice flavoring. For my drink, I ordered a mango cooler which was a nice compliment to the spicy dish and it cooled down my pallet and was very refreshing.
My next stop was at a Mediterranean Shop called Nobhill Pizza located on 1534 California St and definitely not far from my hotel. Pizza for breakfast might sound a little strange, but this place definitely had a line of people out their door. This restaurant is known for its Mediterranean style dishes and its menu contains pizza, shawarmas, paninis and babaganoush dishes. The inside looks like your typical pizza spot with soda machines lined along the walls and table and chairs on the inside and outside. It has a nice atmosphere and the staff there are incredibly nice and catering.
I ordered their thin crust pepperoni pizza along with their lamb falafel. Their pizza was really good and the cheese melted off and was very stringy. The crust of the pizza was crunchy and lightly toasted just how it should be. The one thing I was excited to taste was the falafel and the lamb was cooked to perfection and the cucumber and tomatoes inside complimented the lamb. There were also pickled onions inside which gave the falafel a nice crunch and vinegar flavor which I absolutely fell in love with.
While walking around San Francisco’s Japan Town Peace Center, I came across a restaurant unplanned and unexpectedly. For dinner, I ran into Kui Shin Bo a Japanese family-owned restaurant located on 22 Peace Plz fl 2. This place is home to Japanese cuisine and has a large menu filled with classic Japanese dishes. Inside, there is are Japanese window shades and an area where you can sit and watch the sushi chef make sushi. They also have outdoor seating which is very convenient due to COVID-19 restrictions.
I was seated outside and it was definitely a scenery to take in, just above my head were Japanese lanterns and cherry blossom trees. They have a very large menu and their ramen soups are one of their popular dishes among their customers. I ordered a Philadelphia roll along with salmon sashimi. My friend ordered a chicken teriyaki bowl with sweet potato, zucchini and shrimp tempura. The Philadelphia roll was very good and the cream cheese complimented the salmon and the cucumber brought in a fresh element. The salmon sashimi came with shredded white radishes and it tasted so fresh and had a touch of sweetness to it. The sweet potato tempura was my favorite because you had the sweetness of the potato and saltiness from the tempura batter. The chicken teriyaki had a thick sweet glaze on top and the plain white rice was there to cut the sweetness. The warmness of seasonal ingredients in each of these dishes made me feel as if I was in Japan.
My last and final destination before the airport was at this cute and cozy cafe located on 1601 Polk St called Toast Eatery. This restaurant is all about American comfort food serving dishes, such as pancakes and fluffy waffles for breakfast burgers and burritos for dinner. This place is always busy and there were plenty of people flooding its doors for the brunch rush.
I got a table outside due to COVID-19 restrictions, no-one is allowed to sit inside but can order their food inside. The interior of the restaurant looked like a classic American diner with booth seats and a counter that included spinning chairs. The walls were covered in artwork and it gave the restaurant life with its bright vibrant colors. I ordered pancakes and so did my friend; our sides consisted of turkey bacon, eggs and hash browns. My pancakes were very moist and had strawberries inside and on top of the stacks. The sides dripped with the incredible sweet juice from the strawberries I did not need to add a lot of syrup. I had some of their famous homemade lemonade which was a perfect balance of sweet and sour. My friend ordered blueberry pancakes topped with sweet bananas, strawberries and even more blueberries. The bacon and hashbrowns were not greasy at all and the hashbrowns especially were seasoned just right.
My food adventure in the Bay Area was an amazing experience, California is truly an incredible place for the culinary scene. Even though my journey was cut short, I enjoyed a wide variety of dishes from all different culinary backgrounds.