Tasty Bites in San Francisco

I have been lucky enough to spend some quality time in San Francisco over the last few months, and have discovered that this lovely little city seriously rivals NY in terms of exceptional dining. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t even attempt to eat the types of cuisine that NY excels at like Pizza or Bagels, but in terms of Mexican, seafood, sushi, and innovative farm-to-table, San Francisco has some good stuff.

Some of my recent favorite foodie spots:
Wexler’s: great Southern-influenced food in this new downtown spot; Loved the smoked manhattan and the Cornmeal-crusted skate stuffed with pork. The cocktails in general are out of this world.
Sushi Zone: I know its a cheesy name but this tiny joint has amazing sushi in the Mission. It was literally the best I’ve ever had. Plan to put your name in and wait for up to 2 hours (so do it in advance and go get a drink). Its worth it.
Swan Oyster: A classic little hole-in-the-wall seafood spot where you sit at the counter and eat the freshest seafood with a good draught beer. There is always a line out the door and they are only open for lunch. Arrive at 10:30 if you don’t want to wait in line. We went on our first day out there so 10:30 was lunchtime and it seemed like a perfectly appropriate time to eat oysters.
Gracias Madre: This is a new Mission vegan tacqueria (yes, you heard me right) opened by my friends Terces and Matt, who own the Cafe Gratitude Live Food Cafes in the Bay Area. I urge you to put aside any skepticism about concept; the words “vegan” and “tacqueria” may seem like odd bedfellows but the food here is fantastic. I went with a friend and we ate as much of the menu as we could: butternut squash quesadillas, posole stew with avocado and crema, empanadas with mole sauce, tacos with three different fillings…it was all so flavorful and not missing a single thing.
Philz Coffee: my favorite SF coffee spot. Their list of roasts looks like a wine list, but all that I’ve tried rock. They serve it with a mint leaf, which I was surprised that I really love. The caffeine level is not to be taken lightly, however. Its perfect coffee for afternoon jet lag.
The Ferry Building: I love going here for the terrific provisions, but also the view. Slanted Door is here, and it has fancy and tasty Vietnamese food but is always packed. You can sometimes squeeze into the bar. They have a great wine bar here too where you can order tastes of wine and then buy the bottle at the wine shop. There’s a coffee place called Blue Bottle that everyone loses their mind over.