Food Trends

San Francisco's defining seafood stew, born in North Beach's Italian fishing community. Dungeness crab, clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops and white fish simmer in a garlicky tomato-wine broth, served bubbling with grilled sourdough for mopping up every last drop.

Invented in the Mission District in the 1960s, this colossal foil-wrapped burrito packs carne asada, rice, beans, cheese, salsa and guacamole into a steamed flour tortilla. You'll need two hands and a stack of napkins for this taqueria icon.

A hollowed-out round of tangy San Francisco sourdough cradling creamy clam chowder thick with potatoes and bacon. A Fisherman's Wharf ritual, you tear chunks of the chowder-soaked crust as you eat your way to the warm, savory bottom.

The Bay's prized winter catch, sweet and meaty Dungeness crab is steamed whole and served simply with drawn butter and lemon. Cracking the shells with your hands at a wharf-side table is a beloved San Francisco November-to-summer tradition.

Invented at Thanh Long in the Sunset, springy noodles drenched in a secret umami butter-garlic-parmesan sauce, paired with a whole Dungeness crab roasted in black pepper and shallots. A Vietnamese-Italian fusion that became a Bay Area obsession.

In the oldest Chinatown in North America, carts and kitchens roll out shrimp har gow, pork siu mai, BBQ pork buns, sticky rice and turnip cakes. You order plate after plate of these steamed and fried morsels over endless pots of tea.

A Gold Rush relic still cooked at century-old Tadich Grill: a hearty omelette folded with cornmeal-fried oysters and crisp bacon. This rich, briny breakfast dish was once the priciest plate a lucky miner could order to celebrate striking it rich.

Plump, briny Sweetwater oysters farmed in nearby Tomales Bay and shucked to order at the Ferry Building bar. You slurp them raw with mignonette and lemon, or grilled under garlic-chipotle butter, washed down with crisp Northern California wine.

A Chinatown bakery staple: a flaky, buttery pastry shell cradling silky, lightly sweet egg custard, served warm from the oven. Locals grab them by the boxful for a few dollars, the wobbly golden center still steaming as you bite in.

San Francisco's hometown treat since 1928: a scoop of vanilla ice cream pressed between two oatmeal cookies, then dipped whole in dark chocolate. Born at seaside Playland, this frozen, chocolate-shelled classic remains a nostalgic local favorite citywide.