There’s no place like Noodle In A Haystack in the city. It’s run by a ridiculously charming husband and wife duo that’ll gladly swap Tokyo recs as you dig into chawanmushi from across the counter. Throughout the night, eight to 10 Japanese-inspired courses ($195) land in front of you like they were dropped into this mortal dimension from the pearly gates. The two standout bowls of ramen rotate, but they’re always made with twists you won’t see on any other tonkotsu bowls around town.

San Ho Won’s galbi is capable of inducing epiphanies. It’s glistening, charred around the edges, and every bite of the melty meat comes with the realization that you’ll probably never eat short ribs this good again. But there's more to this upscale Korean restaurant than galbi—like the crispy scallion pancakes, honey butter-topped grilled corn, and light and fluffy egg soufflé that slowly deflates when you dive in with a spoon.

Showa is a singular experience. You won’t find any other restaurants in SF serving a katsu-centered tasting menu with four types of panko, house katsu sauce made from local fruit, and beverages imported from the chef’s hometown in central Japan. There are no misses across the $150 10-12 course experience. A piece of fatty bluefin is fried and served cradled in a rich house tartar sauce-laden lettuce wrap. But it's not only the food that makes dinner here memorable—it's the small touches.

If you’re wondering where we eat on our “nights off,” look no further than Mandalay’s sunshine yellow dining room. The Richmond spot opened in 1984 as SF’s first Burmese restaurant. And even though plenty of new ones have joined since then, it’s held onto its icon status. The homestyle entrees are funky, saucy, and firing on all cylinders—so fill a table with velvety curries, juicy mango chicken, and chili tofu that’s sauteed until smoky and golden brown.

The Mission spot is an institution of flawlessly seasoned meats, which you’ll smell sizzling away on the plancha before you even walk through the door (or more realistically, get into the line that always stretches down the sidewalk). Their charred-to-perfection carne asada is one reason we give when trying to convince friends to move to the city, with the nice and crispy al pastor a close second. A visit here is never complete without getting either a super burrito or a quesadilla suiza.

The so-small-you-might-miss-it spot in Lower Haight is an intimate dinner—there’s just a six-seat counter that’s so snug you’ll probably end up exchanging dog walker recommendations with whoever’s sitting next to you. The host for the night is the eponymous chef Ken, who will break the ice with jokes about cod milt virgins while serving 14 courses of outstanding nigiri, glossy chawanmushi, and a bowl of ume and rock sugar broth filled with poached ikura.

For the most dramatic tasting experience in the city, go to Californios. You’ll feel like you’ve scored VIP tickets to your favorite band every time you go here—which might not be often, since the 16-course menu is $267. Chicharrones are covered in a cloud-like bed of truffle shavings that dissolve in your mouth like snow, a caviar-topped grilled banana is served in a pool of slightly salty dulce de leche, and the chilapita has a fat swirl of sturgeon cream and sturgeon caviar.

Saigon Sandwich makes the best banh mi in the city. The roast chicken and pork are always perfectly marinated. The soft baguettes are crackly on the outside and airy inside. And no matter what filling route you take, your banh mi will be loaded with heaps of carrots, pickled daikon, cilantro, and a heavy swath of mayo that oozes out when you bite in. At $5-ish per sandwich, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better deal in town—so always expect a crowd.

If a Pasta Hall of Fame existed, Flour + Water would be its forever MVP. That’s because the city’s most iconic Cal-Ital restaurant (est. 2009) makes pastas out of ingredient combinations you’ve probably never seen before (much less thought to put on a pasta dish), and pulls them off with flair. Think veal tortellini with horseradish, corn-and-cheese-stuffed pasta topped with mint, and cocoa and rutabaga casoncelli.

This Mission izakaya is serene—there’s a courtyard filled with plants and twinkling string lights, and private booths under arched wood beams inside. It's also where you'll find the best Japanese small plates in the city. You’re treated to a parade of tare-glazed tsukune you’ll want to clone, juicy pork gyoza leveled up with gorgeous lacy skirts, and impossibly creamy soft tofu drizzled with shiitake shoyu.

At Bodega SF, Northern Vietnamese dishes are amped up with fun twists—you’ll see little mounds of caviar atop bánh khọt, truffle butter in the shaking beef, and yuzu coconut foam atop oysters on the half shell. This fancy spot in Union Square, decked out with funky geometric lights and a full bar, is a special occasion restaurant disguised as a nước chấm-drenched dinner party.

Just one glass of wine at this candle-lit Jackson Square spot can easily turn into a three-hour dinner. That’s because Verjus (from the team behind Cotogna and Quince) is the city’s most charming wine bar. The menu of fantastic French dishes sets this place apart. From a silky Boursin omelette to a charred sausage that oozes warm manchego, there’s no wrong order here. But know that a dinner here is incomplete without the pain perdu for dessert.

Boiled dumplings rule all at Yuanbao Jiaozi (or at least about 75% of the menu). The tiny Chinese spot in the Sunset is folding SF’s best versions, each with meat and vegetable fillings that leave a trail of salty-sweet juice with every bite. Your only agenda item while you’re here: clear as many plates of dumplings (14 per order) as possible. Once you’ve polished off the entire spread, make a good decision for your future self and swing by the freezer in the back for a bag to take home.

Nari is a fancy Thai restaurant in Japantown that will make you stalk reservation apps for weeks. When you finally get in the door, you’ll be rewarded with a runny nose (from all the spice) and bold flavors that you'll still be thinking about days later. The charred mushroom salad with Thai bird chilis builds a lingering heat throughout the meal, and every bit of the pork jowl and squid is a sticky-sweet umami bomb. Come with a small group and go to town.

The menu at this long-standing dim sum institution has a near 100 percent success rate. The takeout-only spot in Chinatown makes umami-rich pork shumai, har gow with delicate foggy-window wrappers, and one of our favorite BBQ pork buns in the city. You'll leave debating if you should get back in line, even though there are always unruly crowds spilling out of this bakery—we’d say you should get here early, but it doesn’t matter. As a bonus, after being cash-only for years, they take cards now.

Mijoté is a French restaurant in the Mission with a $82, four-course tasting menu that changes daily. But these aren’t traditional French dishes that make you feel like you’ve been injected with a tub of butter—instead, the farmers market-inflected plates, which typically involve at least one kind of fruit, are bright and inventive.

Blink and you’d miss The Thonglor, a tiny Thai restaurant that’s well worth braving the crowds of map-wielding tourists spilling over from nearby Union Square. The casual walk-in-only spot is the poster child for impeccable Thai staples. Pad gra pow is a saucy, spicy dream. The rich curries build a complex, lingering heat. And the pad thai (stay with us) is the best rendition of the noodle standby we’ve had in the city, and will become the benchmark for every future version you eat.

Eat at this Palestinian and Jordanian spot in Duboce Triangle five times in one week and you'll still want to come back. The casual restaurant serves shareable comfort dishes like a gorgeous mezze platter that could walk a red carpet, thanks to scoops of lebna and muhammara we always clean off the plate. There's also whole-fried branzino brightened up with onions and mint, and garlicky chicken shish tawook that's the edible equivalent of putting on a massive scarf and sinking into a hot tub.

Outta Sight serves the city’s best pizza, full stop. The counter-service Tenderloin shop nails every element of a perfect New York-ish style slice: chewy yet crisp thin crusts that are foldable without being soggy, flavor-spectrum-spanning toppings like smoky pepperoni cups and thinly sliced nectarines, and a shower of freshly grated parmesan on top. The space is overflowing with irresistible Bay Area charm.

No offense to old-school steakhouses, but Niku in the Design District operates in a different league. The inside is sleek yet comfortable enough that you can show up in a crewneck sweater and still get treated like someone who just arrived by private jet. At Niku, you’ll eat the fatty A5 wagyu, perfectly charred New York strips, and lean tomahawks that outsize a child's head. Sides like rich bone marrow, buckwheat rolls, and fried potatoes take an already spectacular meal over the top.

There’s always an hour-long line on the weekends at the brunch spot El Mil Amores, but the wait is worth it every time. This casual cafe in the Mission is our go-to for weekend get-togethers with friends, weekday breakfast where we want to hang around for a few hours, or really anytime we’re craving tres leches pancakes and unlimited coffee refills at affordable prices.

The flawlessly roasted crab at this Vietnamese seafood institution is leagues better than any other crustacean in town. That’s what you’re at Thang Long for—the crab is doused in butter and a mix of spices you’ll be licking off your fingers all night. It’s the ideal pairing for their garlic noodles, which are said to have been invented here in the ‘70s. The recipe is safeguarded in a secret kitchen—these butter-drenched noodles are often imitated, never duplicated.

This former Emeryville favorite (founded by a La Cocina alum) made the leap across the Bay, bringing what’s now SF’s best fried chicken to a small outpost in the Fillmore. The southern-style rosemary-spiced skin crackles, the meat is juicy, and once you add a little bit of house hot honey, you’re going to need a moment of silence to keep your sh*t together. Come with a group, chase your chicken with champagne, and tack on an order of mac and cheese.

There’s no other way to say it—Ocean Subs in the Excelsior makes the best subs in SF: oblong stacks of evenly toasted dutch crunch rolls, crisp shredded lettuce, thinly sliced piles of meat, and an herb vinaigrette that ties everything together like a well-timed punchline. Each one arrives bulging in wax paper confines, hefty enough to anchor one of those boats docked at Pier 26. And, unlike most sandwich spots, Ocean Subs' menu only has four options. It turns out, more isn’t always more.

Prubechu is San Francisco’s island party. This always-packed outdoor-only Mission spot is also the only Guamanian restaurant in town—and one that serves knockout Chamorro dishes packed with flavors this city has never tasted before at a restaurant. You’ll have fall-off-the-bone tender BBQ pork ribs coated in sweet, sticky sauce, egg noodles with coconut braised beef, and the plumpest chicken wings served with sides of tangy lemon-vinegar fina’denne’ sauce.