Visit 4 of the Best North Beach Restaurants
During our North Beach Food Tour, we’ll take you to the best restaurants in Little Italy where you’ll enjoy appetizers, entree, and dessert, all served at a different restaurant.
Local’s Guide to the Best Restaurants in North Beach in San Francisco
October 2, 2025
North Beach is a fabulous food neighborhood, especially if you’re looking for Italian restaurants in North Beach San Francisco. Although this neighborhood is best known for its Italian food, there are many other types of restaurants in Little Italy that deserve a spot on this list as well.
In this guide, we’ll be breaking down good restaurants in North Beach San Francisco, and the best Italian restaurants in North Beach San Francisco by price, cuisine, and what occasion they’re best for.
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We have been eating for a living since 2011. It is literally our job to try all the restaurants in San Francisco, and pick the best of the best for our award-winning food tours and interactive meals. We’ve hosted thousands of 5-star dining experiences in SF and can confidently call ourselves experts.
Best North Beach Restaurants
North Beach is known for it’s excellent Italian food. But it’s also home to some other fantastic cuisines and restaurants. With it’s proximity to Chinatown, North Beach also has excellent Chinese food and cool fusion concepts.
1. Rintaro
Rintaro describes its cuisine as “Japanese Izakaya by way of California.” Izakaya is a type of Japanese pub-style dining where drinks and small snacks are shared. Rintaro’s menu takes these “small snacks” to the next level by serving dishes like chrysanthemum greens with duck breast, pork gyoza with chicken foot jelly, and Bigeye tuna with raw egg yolk. You can sit at the bar and watch the chefs grill chicken on the binchotan-burning Yakitori Grill or enjoy the good weather by snagging a seat in the scenic courtyard.
Japanese
$$
Taking a group of friends to celebrate your birthday.
2. Hilda and Jesse
Hilda and Jesse is one of our favorite Michelin Star restaurants in San Francisco. It is a unique queer-owned restaurant that prides itself on cultivating an atmosphere of “fun-luxury.” Just last year, they earned their first Michelin star, proving this spot just keeps getting better with time. They originally made a splash by offering “brunch for dinner,” so their brunch is definitely worth indulging in. Or come around dinner time to experience the chef’s tasting menu that has historically featured dishes like aged duck breast, Mediterranean spicy cucumbers, and dandelion chocolate lava cake.
American
$$$
A phenomenal Sunday brunch experience, or an eclectic date night.
3. Sam’s
If you’re in the mood for a no-frills classic burger cooked to perfection, why not try the burger Anthony Bourdain called “a good motherf*cking burger! Top 3 in the world.” The best part is that you can get an exemplary burger and fries here until 2 am. It’s the perfect post-bar hangout, because everyone knows the best hangover prevention is a big, greasy meal before you hit the hay. The space is small, but you won’t need a table for long to shove down your Sam’s double cheeseburger, a plate of thick cut crispy onion rings, and a 12oz. coke!
Burgers
$
Late-night indulgences.
4. Red Window
Stepping into Red Window is like entering a brightly colored cartoon. Neon multi-media artworks by local artists cover every available inch of wall, both inside and outside the restaurant. The dishes perfectly complement the decor by being bright and exciting takes on popular dishes from all over Europe. Start your travels in Spain, via the Patatas Bravas, then head over to Italy and enjoy grilled octopus with a fresh fennel salad. Whether you choose to order your entree from their seafood or pasta menu, you are sure to be impressed by your dishes’ high-quality ingredients, developed flavors, and inspired presentation.
European
$$
Hosting a fun birthday party or catching up with friends.
5. Osmanthus Dim Sum Lounge
It turns out you can get phenomenal Chinese food in San Francisco outside of Chinatown. Osmanthus Dim Sum Lounge is primarily a Dim Sum restaurant, but don’t overlook the other delicious dishes on their menu, like the fiery Szechuan Fire Cracker Chicken or the sweet and spicy Volcano Ribs. And the garlic noodles sold at the bar in the back are addictive! For a casual night out, we’d recommend hanging in the bar area, where you can watch horse races as you sip Suntory Toki and yuzu highballs while slurping down fragrant noodles.
Dim Sum
$
A chill meal with friends or visiting out-of-towners.
6. Bodega North Beach
Bodega North Beach is an intimate wine bar serving delicious small plates and killer burritos. It’s a popular date night spot because you can share everything and drink good wine steadily into the night. And it’s a popular breakfast spot because the breakfast burrito is absurdly delicious. If you’re going the small plates route, we have to recommend the Figgin’ Burrata, homemade hummus duo, and the maple roasted brussel sprouts.
Small Plates
$
Date night or breakfast with friends.
Best Italian Restaurants in North Beach, San Francisco, CA
If you’re looking for some of the best pizza, pastas, and gelato, San Francisco’s Little Italy is where you need to be. This neighborhood is home to some of the best Italian restaurants in the city.
7. Sotto Mare
Sotto Mare was featured prominently on our Best Restaurants San Francisco post because it is unequivocally one of the best seafood restaurants in all of SF. They are best known for their mastery of the Italian seafood stew dish called Cioppino, which is aptly called “‘The Best Damn Crab Cioppino’ with seafood enough for two” on the menu. But any dish featuring seafood is sure to be a hit at this restaurant. We also highly recommend trying their fresh seafood pasta, New England clam chowder with bacon, or a good ‘ole fashioned baccala.
Get the Cioppino
$$
Sipping comforting bowls of cioppino with your family and friends.
8. Golden Boy Pizza
There are a couple of top-notch contenders for best pizza in the North Beach area, and Golden Boy brings some fascinating flavors into the debate. Enjoy the sights and sounds of North Beach while waiting under Golden Boy’s iconic neon sign. Any pizza you order up at this spot is going to be a delight, but if you want something extra special, you have to try their clam & garlic pizza. The crust is on the thinner side, but just thick enough to support the saucy garlic-y clam mixture —it’s truly a beautiful thing to behold.
Get Clam and Garlic Pizza
$
Catering for an office party, or grabbing a slice before a fun night out.
9. Tomasso’s
And the next contender for best pizza to step up to the plate is Tommaso’s. They have been serving up wood-fired pizzas to denizens of North Beach since 1935. The murals on the walls were painted almost a century ago by an Italian artist, and the wood-fired grill at the heart of their menu was once the first of its kind in all of SF. Order anything on the menu that the wood-fired grill touches to transcend to the highest level of Italian food heaven.
Get Wood-Fired Pizza
$$
Family gatherings and celebrations.
10. Tosca Cafe
This North Beach Gem has been around since 1919! All their food is fabulous, but they are best known for their comforting meatballs and their boozy hot chocolate that they call the “House Cappuccino.” The only thing that rivals the flavors of the food here is the incredulity of the stories! The staff will gladly tell you about the time Francis Ford Coppola cooked an Italian feast at the bar, Joanne Baez got kicked out for being shoeless, or when Bill Murray, Sam Shepard, and Billy Crystal played pool in the back.
Get the “House Cappuccino”
$$$
Taking in a piece of SF history over a steaming plate of delicious pasta.
11. Flour + Water Pizzeria
Flour + Water Pizzeria swears by their method of “sandwiching” their tomato sauce between a layer of fresh pulled mozzarella on top and shredded mozzarella underneath. This keeps their pizza–carefully crafted on top of organic, naturally-leavened pizza dough–crispy on the bottom, and prevents any sogginess from ruining your slice. Choosing the best pie on the menu is hard, if you’re like me and you have a proclivity for the ever-controversial “white” pizza (no red sauce at all), the Jersey Carbonara—with pork roll, pecorino, jalapeño, egg, and hot sauce, is a masterpiece. If you’re more of a traditionalist and prefer a bit of a saucy slice, the Smoked Eggplant with smoked mozzarella, roasted eggplant, olives, and Calabrian chilli is another menu highlight.
Get the “Sauce in the middle” Pizza
$$
Celebrating a birthday, a family event, or a graduation.
12. Trattoria Contadina
Trattoria Contadina is a family affair, and has been since its inception in 1984. It is in its third generation of ownership, with the founder’s grandchildren currently at the helm. The motto here is “leave your problems at the door. Enjoy your meal,” and it’s easy to do that when the food is this good! The pasta and risotto menu is lengthy, so we’ll give you the highlights. If you like spice, try the Rigatoni Peperonata with Calabrian tomato cream, olives, roasted peppers, and a generous sprinkling of parm. If you are in the mood for some superb gnocchi, try their homemade ricotta gnocchi with tomato cream and asiago cheese.
Get the pasta
$$
Bringing your family to the kind of restaurant that will treat them like they’re a part of their family.
13. North Beach Restaurant
The North Beach Restaurant has been an institution in the area since it opened in the 1970s. The dining room recently got a facelift, but the menu has kept all of the classic dishes patrons have come to love over the last half-century. Repeat customers shout out the beef shank as being the highlight of the menu, aside from, of course, the incredible pasta. Diners can’t decide which pasta they like best! Whether you order the bright spinach lasagna, the creamy ricotta tortellini, or the meat Pasta De La Casa, we’re sure you’ll be raving about your meal.
Get the pasta
$$$
An old school dining experience that will impress your grandparents, or a distinguished client or colleague.
Does a traditional dining room sound a bit boring?
We couldn’t agree more. All the restaurants on this list are truly great, but if you’re looking for a memorable dining experience, check out our Interactive Meal. You’ll get a 4-course meal and 3 alcoholic beverages, plus 3 hosted, interactive activities throughout your meal.
Book a Dining Experience with Avital
Finding the perfect restaurant in North Beach doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Let Avital be your personal curator, taking care of every detail so you can sit back, relax, and enjoy the meal. And with us, it won’t be just another boring dinner—it’ll be an experience you and your guests will remember.
You might also be interested in the best Michelin Star restaurants in San Francisco, the best restaurants in San Francisco, San Francisco restaurants with private rooms, and restaurants for large groups in SF.
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