San Francisco’s Yerba Buena neighborhood is home to some of the city’s top museums, restaurants, and drink spots. You can spend all day museum hopping to build up an appetite. Then, fill up on fried chicken, chaat, and pizza. Here’s our list of spots you can’t miss.
What To Do
San Francisco Museum of Modern Art
One of the largest museums of modern and contemporary art in the US. It’s filled with paintings, sculptures, photography, architecture, design, and media art. There are also free exhibits you can pop in to sample before committing to paying for admission.
Yerba Buena Ice Skating and Bowling Center
Here you can play ice-hockey, take skating lessons, bring the kids to the outdoor playground, or play a couple bowling matches. There are themed events for adults, young children, and coffee club.
Museum of the African Diaspora
This museum focuses on the art and stories of African-descendant cultures worldwide. Past exhibits include liberatory living, cosmic ceremony, and love + basketball. (The museum is temporarily closed for renovations)
MLK Memorial
Enjoy the views and sounds of flowing water at this memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. It’s a great place for a brief stroll. The view is even better at night when it lights up.
Ride the Carousel
The Leroy King Carousel is located near the Yerba Buena Children’s Garden. It only operates from Friday through Sunday from 10am-4pm. Tickets are $5. All ages are welcome to ride.
Where to Eat
Benu
This restaurant by Chef Corey Lee has three Michelin stars and features a menu that blends Asian cuisine with French techniques. One of their most popular dishes is the barbecued quail served with house-made XO sauce.
Chaat Corner
This is the top place in the neighborhood for Indian street food. There’s a large selection of stuffed dosa, Indo-Chinese noodles, and several types of chaat. We recommend the pav bhaji, masala fries, samosa chaat, and pani puri.
Fang
Fang offers Chinese staples with a modern twist in a fancy setting. Don’t miss their short rib over rice and their Sichuan chili shallot pork wontons. Their unique eggrolls are filled with pork confit and served with honey mustard sauce.
Joyride Pizza
One of the best spots to get Detroit-style pizzas in the Bay. They’re all about maximizing toppings by coming up with extreme flavor combinations. The Sweet Bianca has taleggio cheese, fig jam, and ricotta. The Greek Pizza has artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, and feta. Meat lovers should go for the Meatzza topped with sausage, smoked bacon, pepperoni, and marinara.
The Bird
One of the best spicy fried chicken sandwich joints in San Francisco doesn’t lean too much into the heat, but rather the flavor. Their chicken dredge is aromatic and earthy, but what takes them to the next level is their slaw that includes slivers of green apple to balance the richness of the sandwich. Don’t sleep on their loaded tots or apple fritters.
The Sentinel
This popular sandwich shop is great for grabbing staples like a crispy chicken sandwich or short rib sandwich. They also offer unique takes like a lamb and eggplant sandwich with chickpeas and a roast beef sandwich with spicy pickles.
Bini’s Kitchen
Pop in for a taste of Nepalese cuisine. They’re best known for their momos (dumplings). We recommend their ground lamb dumpling served with a tangy roasted tomato and cilantro sauce.
Dabao Singapore
This is a new, buzzy spot for Singaporean favorites like laksa, char kway teow, kueh bingka, and Hainan chicken. If you pop in during SF’s crab season, don’t miss the whole crabs tossed in sauce!
Super Duper Burgers
This popular burger joint also serves breakfast sandwiches all day! The egg sandwich is served on toasted ciabatta with chipotle aioli. Make it a full meal by adding bacon, avocado, cheese, and grilled onions.
Delarosa (Pizza + cocktails)
This is a one-stop shop for pizzas and cocktails. They offer pizzas topped with mozzarella, spicy fennel, prosciutto, bechamel, arugula, burrata, calabrese chiles, and more. To drink, go for the “El Diablo” made with tequila, creme de cassis, ginger, and lime.
Where to Drink
Blue Bottle Coffee
A trendy coffee shop that takes their coffee bean selection and roasting seriously. One of their most popular drinks is the Iced NOLA which is a New Orleans-Style Iced Coffee slowly brewed with roasted chicory.
Tequila Mockingbird
A bar centered all around high-quality tequila serving up classic cocktails but swapping mezcal or tequila in most drinks. It’s a great spot to unwind after a trip to the museum or a pit stop before heading to dinner.
Local Edition
A newspaper-themed bar with an underground, vintage feel. It’s a classy spot with a stage for live music. Try the local edition, their namesake, made with a 10-year bourbon, orange zest, and cherry-infused angostura bitters.
The Tempest
This low-key, brick-walled pub is the perfect place to catch the game or play a match of pool. They also have an extensive food menu with popcorn chicken, tomato soup, tacos, and sandwiches. Their signature cocktail is a double margarita.
The Dawn Club
This is the spot to catch live jazz music in a classic, modern setting. While you can find classic cocktails here, you don’t want to miss their modern classics — a unique take on the evolution of cocktails including the Ella Fitz and The Town Club.
Outset Coffee
This coffee shop is known for their fruity drinks. Our favorite is the toasted banana latte topped with banana slices given the creme brulee treatment. The ocean breeze latte is also pretty good, it gets a cool blue hue from butterfly peas. If that isn’t fruity enough for you, get the yuja Americano made with Korean pomelo juice.
