Find Your Food Tour in San Francisco, Best Companies Ranked & Reviewed for 2025
March 25, 2025
Looking for a San Francisco food tour? We’ve reviewed and ranked the best Food Tours in San Francisco for locals and travelers, including Secret Food Tours, Sidewalk Food Tours, Avital Food Tours, and more.
Our Top Picks
Quick guide to the best food tour companies in San Francisco. There’s also detailed reviews on each tour below.
Why trust us?
We’re passionate about providing honest, well-rounded reviews of the best food tours in San Francisco. With over a decade of experience curating unique food and drink experiences, we’ve explored the city’s restaurant and tour scene extensively. Our team of foodies and SF locals have evaluated each of these tours based on guest reviews and personal experience.
Full transparency — we’ve included our own San Francisco food tours in this comparison. While we’re proud of what we offer, our goal is to help you find the perfect fit for your palate and preferences, whether that’s with us or another fantastic company. You can trust that our reviews are fair, detailed, and focused on helping you make an informed decision.
Why book direct?
If you’re browsing for food tours in San Francisco, you’ve probably come across platforms like Get Your Guide, Cozymeal or Trip Advisory with loads of listings for different tours. These are resellers, not tour operators. While it’s completely fine to book a tour through one of these platforms, they do take a commission from the tour company. So whenever possible, it’s best to book directly with the company.
The best San Francisco food tour companies of 2025 are:
- Best overall: Avital Food & Drink Experiences – Starting at $115, avitalexperiences.com
- Best for travelers: Secret Food Tours – Starting at $79, secretfoodtours.com
- Best for locals: Edible Excursions – Starting at $89, edibleexcursions.net
- Best combo tour: Local Tastes of the City – Starting at $79, sffoodtour.com
- Best storytelling: Stretchy Pants – Starting at $99, stretchy-pants.com
- Best budget tour: Sidewalk Food Tours – Starting at $75, sidewalkfoodtours.com
1. Avital Food & Drink Experiences
Avital Food & Drink Experiences (formerly Avital Food Tours) has been hosting culinary experiences since 2011. All of our tours include at least 4 tastings at 3-4 different restaurants, plus a sprinkling of storytelling and iconic landmarks in between. What really sets our food tours apart from the rest is that we believe in sharing what restaurants we visit publicly on our website (instead of hiding them like a lot of other companies do). We are proud of our restaurants partners because they are truly the best—think James Beard Nominees, Michelin Plate, and Eater’s Top 38. Plus all of the tastings are served seated at reserved tables, just for Avital guests.
Avital’s tours are great for travelers visiting the city for the first time, locals who have lived in SF their whole life, and even for large groups. Although our tours are a bit more expensive, the value is also much higher. Perfect for those looking for a curated, special, and delicious experience.
Why we love it
- Tours visit the best, award-winning restaurants (no tourist traps)
- Seated experience, no tiny toothpick bites on the sidewalk
- Woman-owned and operated
- Accommodates all dietary restrictions
Things to note
- More expensive than other tours
Best overall
Starting at $115
North Beach, Mission District
Image Credit: secretfoodtours.com
2. Secret Food Tours
Secret Food Tours runs tours in 80 cities around the world! They’ve been in business since 2013 and have really mastered the art of bringing a consistent, high-quality tour no matter where you are in the world. That’s why this is our top pick for travelers—whether you’re in San Francisco or Singapore, Secret has a fabulous experience for you. Their tours include 5 tasting stops, one of them is always a secret. On one hand this is fun, everyone likes surprise! On the other hand, it’s nice to know where and what you’ll be eating.
Why we love it
- Tours all over the world, great for travelers who want a consistent experience
- Affordable tour options
Things to note
- Not a local company
- The final tasting is a secret
- Can’t accommodate dietary restrictions
Best for travelers
Starting at $79
North Beach/Chinatown, Mission District
Image Credit: edibleexcursions.net
3. Edible Excursions
Edible Excursions is one of our favorite food tour companies in San Francisco, especially for locals. Instead of only offering tours in the most famous SF neighborhoods (Mission, North Beach, Chinatown), they branch out and highlight some really unique areas. For example, their Japantown tour is one of the only available in San Francisco and does an amazing job highlighting one of the last remaining Japantowns in the US. They also offer unique tours in Oakland and Berkeley.
Why we love it
- Offer unique tours and neighborhoods
- Woman-owned
- Can accommodate most dietary restrictions
Things to note
- Have been operating since 2004 but limited guest reviews
Best for locals
Starting at $89
North Beach, Ferry Building, Japantown, Mission District, Berkeley, Oakland
Image Credit: sffoodtour.com
4. Local Tastes of the City
Local Tastes of the City is a San Francisco company operating tours in the most popular neighborhoods of San Francisco. Their North Beach/Chinatown tour is our top pick for the best combo food tour—a great options for those short on time but want to see as much as possible. This tour also includes a complimentary glass of wine which is fun bonus.
Why we love it
- Specific to San Francisco
- Same-day reservations available
Things to note
- Reviews note that the tastings were small and tour didn’t feel cohesive
- Dated website
- Dietary restrictions can only be accommodated on private tours
Best combo tour
Starting at $79
North Beach, Chinatown, Mission District
Image Credit: stretchy-pants.com
5. Stretchy Pants
Stretchy Pants is one of the newest tour operators in SF, but they are already building a great reputation for delicious experiences. Their storytelling is particularly awesome. Many of their tours are themed to really highlight the stories of the neighborhood—like North Beach paired with ghost stories and Mission paired with street art history. They have 5-stars on Google, so guests agree this is a fantastic option!
Why we love it
- Themed food tours with great storytelling
- Woman-owned
Things to note
- 11 different food tours, only 3 of them available to the public
- All food tours can be vegetarians, but other dietary restrictions may not be accommodated
Best storytelling
Starting at $99
North Beach, Chinatown, Fisherman’s Wharf
Image Credit: sidewalkfoodtours.com
6. Sidewalk Food Tours
Sidewalk has been hosting food tours in San Francisco since 2013. They are a larger company that also offer tours in 12 other cities around the US. This is a double edged sword—they’re an established, professional company, yet their tour in SF may not feel as catered to a local audience. Sidewalk tours are great if you want to try lots of different things at a lower price point.
Why we love it
- One of the most affordable food tours
Things to note
- Small tastings, many served standing on the sidewalk
- Restaurants on tour are mediocre
- Big company, not specific to San Francisco
Best budget tour
Starting at $75
North Beach, Chinatown, Mission District
Book the best food tour San Francisco has to offer
When booking a food tour in San Francisco you have a lot options! We hope this guide help you narrow down which food tour company to choose based on your preferences. If you want to experience SF like a local and eat some of the greatest food the city has to offer, check out our walking food tours.
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