5 Must-Eat San Francisco Treats

This week I am home in California and just like every time I return, I’m eating all of the things that I miss while living in France. San Francisco is perfect because it’s a city of treats. No, I’m not talking about rice-a-roni “the San Francisco treat”. I’m talking about a foodie’s paradise, full of endless things to devour. If you’re going to San Francisco, be sure to try these 5 tasty treats.

1. China Town Pork Buns

China town in SF is an iconic location that is filled with mysteriously cheap and yummy treats. My favorite china town staple is the steamed bun. Warm & soft steamed bread with fiery hot meat and veggie mixture inside. It’s bursting with flavor and the portability of it in bun form makes it a perfect fast food treat. Another little yummy treat is the crispy sesame ball. It’s covered in toasted sesame seeds and inside the breaded layer is a rice dough ball filled with red bean paste. Texture is where this one flies high. The crispy outside to the chewy rice dough and sweetness of the red bean is something you’ll come back for. 

What to order: #27 pork & veggie buns, sesame balls.

Price: Very cheap – These two items will only run you $2.20 total.

Where to go: Good Mong Kok Bakery – 1039 Stockton St. San Francisco.

*this place is cash only*

2. Bob’s Donuts on Polk Street

Classic donut shop open 24 hours. Yes, you heard me, open all night. Polk Street is known for it’s lively nightlife, so you can finish off your night with a yummy donut if that’s what you fancy. I certainly won’t judge you. I love this place so much that my friend once mailed me a box of fritters from Bob’s. Imagine my excitement when I saw that pink box full of donuts in my NY office.

What to order: My personal favorite is the apple fritter. Everyone has their preferred donut and they have all the classics here.

Price: Cheap – a donut is around $2 depending.

Where to go: Bob’s Donuts – 1621 Polk St. San Francisco.

3. Mexican in The Mission

You simply cannot go to SF and not try any taqueria style Mexican food. It’s something that I crave all the time and cannot find in Paris. In San Francisco, the Mission district is lined with several taquerias, all equally delicious. Some locals swear by their preferred taqueria but I’ve tried all of them and would eat at any of them.

What to order: I’m a wet burrito kinda gal. I get a loaded burrito with steak or carnitas and then have them pour enchilada sauce over it and top with sour cream. Tacos are always a good choice too!

Price: Inexpensive – order at the counter fast food and the portions are generous.

Where to go: Mission District

1)Taqueria Cancun – 2288 Mission St. San Francisco

2)La Taqueria – 2889 Mission St. San Francisco

3)Taqueria El Buen Sabor – 699 Valencia St. San Francisco

4. Monster sized deli sandwich

It’s the first thing I get after a long trip to the city. It’s a 10.5 hour direct flight to SF from Paris, so I save my appetite for these food baby sandwiches that are part of SFs unique food culture.

What to get: OK honestly, you’ll have a hard time choosing from the lists of incredible creations already dreamt up. You can build your own which is what I tend to do. I highly recommend the “dutch crunch” bread or sourdough because these are San Francisco staples.

Price: Inexpensive – A sandwich runs about $10+ and can hardly be finished. 

Where to go: The Boys’ Deli – 2222 Polk St. San Francisco (this is a deli in the back of a grocery store and is my personal favorite because you can get anything else you fancy at the store to eat or drink with your sandwich. Another location at 315 Montgomery St. San Francisco.

5. Homemade fro-yo at Loving Cup

What’s a foodie tour without ice cream? Answer: a sad one. Ice cream is one of those things that I feel just keeps getting better and better as I get older. We are making it all sorts of different ways these days. We are making it diet friendly using milk alternatives and natural flavorings. With new and inventive forms of creation and flavour pairings, it’s a great time to be alive! SF has numerous trendy ice cream spots and I recommend trying some of the more inventive ones. I personally enjoy Loving Cup. Everything is made in-house and with local ingredients. It comes out soft serve style which seems to be fro-yo but it’s close enough to ice cream for me. They also have rice pudding which is so so good.

Hungry yet?

By now these addresses should be in your Google Maps. You can learn how I use this feature and also download my weekend planner for free here. Though these are some of my top favorites, there really is so much more to discover in the world of food in a city like San Francisco. Even these 5 goodies might be hard to fit into your stomach in just one day. Every visit brings new discoveries and I can’t wait to add more to the list. Comment below with some of your personal favorite San Francisco treats and I’ll be sure to try them!

xo

Tamara ♡