There's no shortage of delicious Italian restaurants in San Francisco. Here, we've rounded up the best Italian joints you don't want to miss out on.
Traditional Italian fare at Original Joe's
Opened in 2004, this bustling Italian eatery serves up Neapolitan slices, housemade pasta and more alongside an award-winning wine list. Expect seasonal menus rich with decadent dishes like braised meatballs, creamy burrata, pizzas made according to Vera Pizza Naploletana requirements and fresh seafood. 2355 Chestnut St.
Refined luxury comes with a side of traditional countryside charm at this 30-year-plus fine dining experience. Two Michelin stars and a few generations later, the contemporary Italian hot spot is still a must for romantics and food lovers alike. 1722 Sacramento St.
This offshoot of Quince is casual and homespun, but well-bred. From pizza to pappardelle to roasts, the food is a match for its surroundings, and at its best makes you wonder why you ever eat any other way. 490 Pacific Ave.
Michael Tusk’s fine-dining shrine breathes refinement but also a hospitality that’s as unforced as it is flawless. The same could be said of the food, where an eight- to 10-course tasting menu runs $360 per person with wine pairings from $320. Ingredients are sourced from Fresh Run Farm in Marin. 470 Pacific Ave.
Chef Massimiliano Conti, a native of Sardinia, Italy, seeks to create flavors that are exactly what you’d find in a Sardinian restaurant, not California-ized approximations thereof. Order the tender baby octopus stew in spicy tomato sauce or the fresh-made arrizonis, heady with sea urchin and shaved tuna heart, and ask your waiter to pair it all with something unusual from the all-Italian wine list. 291 30th St.
In the many years since Delfina opened, Italian food in San Francisco has moved from Americanized red-sauce outposts to someplace closer to Italy. Dishes at Craig and Anne Stoll’s beloved Mission district restaurant still sparkle, such as grilled calamari emerging from a shallow sea of savory white beans. 3621 18th St.
This neighborhood eatery debuted in 2023 in Inner Richmond and the Mission District. It offers tasty Italian delicacies like spicy meatballs, mafaldine “butter + cheese” topped with Perigord black truffle butter and so much more. Take a pasta-making class for the ultimate immersive experience. 236 Clement St.
Modern Italian cuisine is the name of the game at Itria. Start with fresh fish from the raw bar, then move on to one of the sumptuous handmade pastas, from spaghetti with manila clams and Fresno chile to pappardelle with roasted pork sugo, mustard and fennel. 3266 24th St.
This isn’t the original Original Joe’s, but it's a loving reproduction. And that’s fine, because you don't eat at Joe’s to taste the latest fashions. You go to feel a part of the city as it once was, when waiters wore tuxedos and the sole piccata came with a side of fresh pasta. 601 Union St.
Over the years, chefs Thomas McNaughton and Ryan Pollnow have created more than 100 unique pasta shapes, from morel tortellini to squid ink corzetii. If you're looking for a memorable culinary experience, you’ll find it here again and again. 2401 Harrison St.
Photography by: EMMA K. MORRIS
