I’ve been to San Francisco for vacation several times – each time, I try to hit up spots I didn’t previously go to and try tons of food/coffee (what’s new). I just thought I’d share the spots I visited! Some of them, I definitely would LOVE to visit again another time!
I was in San Francisco June 2 – June 6, 2018. It was a total of 5 days and 4 nights. It was a good amount of time where I got to visit various touristy spots and try many restaurants I’ve had on my go-to list! Keep reading for the breakdown of my trip!
Instead of driving (~6 hours from Los Angeles), I flew (1.5 hours).
I left on Saturday morning! I prefer early flights so when I get to my destination, I still have time to explore, eat and settle in instead of just going straight to bed.
If you enjoy fusion food, you will love this place. The menu here is a mix of korean and mexican. I ordered the beef bulgogi burrito which had brown rice, kimchi, kiwi, daikon and sour cream. I opted out of the sour cream but it was still AMAZING without it. The beef was sweet, soy marinated grilled tender beef. It packed SO much flavor and portions were generous.
I’ve had this restaurant in my Yelp bookmarks for the LONGEST time. I’m someone who loves fusion food, so this spot was spectacular. Probably one of my favorite spots in SF to grab quick food. It’s not too far from the SFO airport if you ever wanted to try it as your first meal in SF!
THE famous dry fried chicken wings. I needed to try them so I would know what the hype was all about. We ordered 1 order of 10 wings and let me say, we HAD to order another plate even before we finished the first plate. They’re amazing! The sauce is pretty sweet but overall, it’s worth trying. However, get ready to wait because this restaurant is always packed.
We also ordered a snow pea stir fry with pork and steamed dumplings. They were standard for a chinese restaurant! Chicken wings are a must though. I personally really like dumplings so I’d get that again too.
3. Turtle Tower
After yelping multiple Vietnamese restaurants in SF and watching youtube videos, I decided on this place. The Pho Ga (highly recommended) was strongly flavored with cilantro and the broth contained a lot of flavor. The chicken is free-range chicken and the noodles are always freshly made. This restaurant is representing Northern Vietnam so the soups are not served with bean sprouts, basil or hoisin sauce. This is called the Ha Noi tradition. At first, I thought they forgot to give it to our table so I called a server over to ask for bean sprouts, oops. Also, the shrimp spring rolls are a great appetizer! They are super refreshing and have vermicelli, lettuce, pork, shrimp and carrots wrapped inside.
I love burritos. I love sushi. Can it get any better than this?! Sushirrito makes sushi burritos with Asian and Latin flavor combinations. The order on the left is Geisha’s Kiss. It has yellowfin tuna, tamago, piquillo peppers, lotus chips, pickled cucumbers, green leaf lettuce, ginger guacamole and sesame white soya. The fish and veggies give it a fresh flavor. The lotus chips give it the PERFECT kick of adding some crunch and extra flavor. The Geisha’s kiss is one of the most popular picks here. The order on the right is the Sumo Crunch. It has shrimp tempura, surumi crab, cucumber, ginger guacamole, red tempura flakes and sriracha aioli. This one is more heavy on the flavor but definitely a must try!
This is a great location near Dolores Park, Tartine Bakery and Birite Creamery. You order at the counter, grab and number and find your own table. I ordered the chicken tikka masala, chicken tandoori, naan and basmati rice. The chicken tikka masala was AMAZING. Rich in flavor and pairs perfectly with the basmati rice which was light and fluffy. The tandoori chicken was a bit spicy but contained great flavor! It wasn’t try which can happen easily with roasted chicken! I highly recommend this place if you’re in the area and craving Indian food.
Ice cream, soft serve, sundaes and baked goods? You know I’m there. There is usually a line but it goes by quickly. I ordered the chocolate coconut ice cream (vegan) in a cone! This is one of the MOST popular ice cream shops in San Francisco for a reason, so please do yourself a favor and come here.
I came here for the big donut and apple fritter. The apple fritter is apple filled and frosted. It’s one of their most popular picks here. The big donut is $12 and needs to be shared between a large group. It’s bigger than my face (size reference below). They have 3 flavors to pick from – chocolate frosting, crumbs, sprinkles, maple, or just plain glazed. I ordered the crumbs! You can preorder the day before and pick up the next day because they only make limited quantities everyday and sell until they run out.
If you’re craving an Acai bowl and close to the city in SF, this is a great spot to stop by. They also sell Poke if you wanted! I just came here to get a classic acai bowl – topped with bananas, berries, granola & honey.
Have you heard of this bakery? It’s got thousands of review on Yelp so it’s a must visit if you are in the area. They’re known for their pastries – especially the banana creme tart and morning buns. However, I went 1 hour before closing so they sold out on all their most popular items. I ended up ordering the Frangipane tart ($6.60). It had a light almond-cream filling baked in a flaky pastry shell with seasonal fruit. It was topped with sliced almonds, almond creme and raspberries. At first, I was skeptical. After trying it, I changed my mind and couldn’t stop taking bites. Looks like I’ll be back!
Most known for their cruffins (croissant + muffin), this bakery has a wide variety of delicious specialty pastries. The cruffin flavors change daily. They day I went, they have a guava cheesecake cruffin which was light and flaky. I was also able to try the blueberry filled donut. Both are worth trying. The donut flavors also rotate. Overall, you will be guaranteed a pastry you like here because they have a wide variety. It’s hard to even pick so… I recommend to pick a few!
I’m a huge lover of coffee, lattes and hitting up spots with housemade nut milk. Photographed below is their almond macadamia nut milk latte. The macadamia nut taste is very strong and it’s a bit more grainy so it’s flavor isn’t for everyone. I enjoyed it though! This coffee shop has downstairs and upstairs seating so it’s a great place to just chill for a bit or even just for a quick coffee run.
These are just a few of the spots I enjoyed but as I make more trips to SF, I will update with more recommendations! 🙂
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