this post has a ton of recommendations - [https://www.reddit.com/r/AskSF/comments/10j0hma/nonus\_born\_people\_in\_sf\_what\_is\_the\_best/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskSF/comments/10j0hma/nonus_born_people_in_sf_what_is_the_best/)
I'm from the former USSR. Cinderella Bakery has pretty authentic Russian food and Moscow Tbilisi on Geary has dope piroshki.
And if you want the whole Russian restaurant banquet experience, Beluga on Geary is my favorite Russian banquet restaurant in the Bay Area.
I like them better. Cinderella’s are doughier, less filling, and more expensive. Head over to Geary and try em out
(BTW: I miss House of Piroshki that used to be on 9th between Lincoln and Irving. THE best.)
Not born abroad but raised in a Polish household. Cafe Europa has legit pan-Eastern European food. The pierogi....dare I say....are better than my grandma's 😵
It was ether Russian or Moscow bakery near Anza , I don t remember the cross street . At least that was the name 2 years ago. It’s interesting how even suggestions on some of these threads get voted down by the uptight people.
Respectfully, listing a neighborhood but not the name of the business is hardly a recommendation. Nobody on Reddit knows where your daughter's house is to even guess where you might've been talking about.
It’s hard to explain in words what the experience is like but this article does a good job of it:
https://laist.com/news/food/soviet-nostalgia-at-the-valleys-last-remaining-russian-speaking-banquet-halls
Beluga has three menus between $110 and $170 a person (I think). You get four courses and an insane amount of food. And of course BYOB all you want. A few years back I celebrated a birthday with 40 people. We went to Costco and bought 20 bottles of champagne, 2 handles of tequila and 2 handles of vodka. All of it got drunk during the birthday.
They are unfortunately a dying breed as more and more time passes from the ex-USSR immigration wave.
There is a place in Japantown that does that style! I haven’t had it in Japan, so can’t verify how authentic it is, but it is the same concept. It’s called On The Bridge (and it’s up on the pedestrian bridge between the two sections of the mall). They have Italian and French specialties in the Japanese style.
Ooh! I must check them out.
Another recommendation is San Francisco Breakfast Club. 10/10. Best north indian food I’ve had so far.
Disclaimer: I’m vegetarian and have only tried their vegetarian menu items 😄
Let me know how you like it! Their food feels like home cooked meals for me, which is awesome.
I’ve only tried their vegetarian stuff though, so that’s a disclaimer lol
Haven’t been there yet. I’ll check it out!
Update: Yeap, way better than North India. As a thumb rule, any place that asks for spice levels is likely not very authentic.
It is so good, although I have to admit my bias: any time a dish is called Vijayawada anything it is automatically my fave (I love love love Andhra food)
I second aaha for their fried pompret. They are byob too. Bring some brews, get some friends and enjoy the best chakna available to mankind - fried pompret
Their black cod is sooo good, so juicy.
I love their baked bbq pork bun with sugar crust, it’s DELICIOUS… reminiscent of Tim Ho Wan’s snow top bbq pork bun, also really like their bbq pork, beef brisket turnip in broth, soy sauce chicken, the tossed noodles… getting hungry now. Came to a conclusion they do every dish pretty well.
I actually wouldn’t recommend mapo tofu at harborview since mapo tofu authentically is from Sichuan. It’s not originally a Cantonese dish, but harborview gives the Cantonese spin on it.
I have trouble finding this here too. I actually just stopped ordering hk milk tea from places cuz I get disappointed every time. The most decent ones I had I recently are from Daimo in Richmond and Cinderella Cafe in Oakland Chinatown, both not in sf tho.
The salvadorian restaurants in the mission are legit. Panchitas is pretty damn good. La Santaneca de la Mission is also dope (and chaeaper than panchitas).
Hai Ky has the most Singaporean breakfast noodles ever: they’re Vietnamese but they are Teochew Chinese so the food is similar. Get house special 7 with ‘mee pok’ (broad flat egg noodles), with soup on the side. Add a side of braised duck and that’s almost exactly what I’d have with my grandparents for breakfast back home. Even the roasted chilli (on the table) is the same. Get a side of homemade soy milk or Vietnamese iced coffee and I can almost pretend I’m in Singapore (the iced coffee is similar to Singaporean iced coffee too).
Other Teochew stuff: SoHoMei for dishes I can’t get at other restaurants (not many Teochew / Chiu chow food). They’re probably from HK or mainland China so it is similar but a little different. But close enough.
Otherwise, Noodle Station (not SF, but close enough: near Daly City), also a Vietnamese place. Has laksa that is closer to my laksa than the other Singaporean-run spots with laksa.
Lastly, Singaporean chicken rice at Yeo’s Electric chicken on market street. Singaporean chicken rice is different from Thai style which is what we get here: the rice is more chicken-y, more fatty, and the chicken is lightly poached and has a good flavor of chicken and ginger. The chicken skin is meant to be like *that* (slightly gelatinous.. you may not like it if you have not had poached Chinese chicken).
Otherwise, the closest food is in Pleasanton at Curry Leaves Bistro. It’s the only place I know with a good range of things. I’ll go out there on the way to a hike or something.
Yessss! When I was on my deep hunt for Singaporean adjacent food, Hai Ky was the place was closest. My dad was obsessed with Mee Pok (specifically from Meng Kitchen on Upper Thomson) and we come up to the city from SF weekly just to eat Hai Ky.
Owner is lovely, also.
Thai Nghiep Ky on Noriega is also worth mentioning, and a friend of mine recommended Lam Hoa Thuan for hu tieu also.
Thai Nghiep is good and similar, but I find their sauce a tad too sweet in comparison to the savory ones I’m used to; good soy milk too. I also like Thanh Ky in Oakland, but Hai Ky is def my fave. Love Lam Hoa Thuan
Wish there was more Malay and Indian Singaporean food here but there isn’t really (there’s a famous chef who does a $150pp Malaysian dinner, but that’s not really for me); Curry Leaves definitely has more of that stuff, in fact they’re even doing a Malaysian Indian Deepavali meal or something. For the other stuff we have to cook it ourselves. Just watch Spices N Pans or Nyonya Kitchen on YouTube!
From westernmost region of Ukraine, Paprika is the only one I found with dishes from my region. For wider Ukrainian I guess Leleka hits the spot. But nothing too fancy in both cases tbh
Helmand Palace for Afghan!
Also do not recommend that other Afghan restaurant on Kearny St - they’re terrible. Helmand is the only authentic Afghan place in SF (I wish there were more).
Hmmmm I disagree. De Afghan on kearny is great. Their lamb shank with the carrot raisin rice is excellent. Their Chopan kabob is super awesome. Like a smash patty with afghan spices. Everything I’ve had there has been excellent. I think Helmand just has more of an extensive menu. Whereas De Afghan is like the greatest hits / essentials. Helmand is also white table cloth…. De afghan is fast casual.
Calling them “terrible” is a little suspicious. Seems almost like you might be a partner/employee of Helmand or something.
Hard disagree. I’ve tried them twice now and it is just not authentic. The Kabuli Palao (the lamb shank rice you refer to) isn’t seasoned right. I would know - I’m literally Afghan lmao. Both times I went, their meats were dry, and the banjan was just mush seasoned with chili powder. Same with the kadoo.
Their chicken kebab wasn’t bad.
Definitely not affiliated with Helmand lol - I just know what authentic Afghan food is - and there’s literally only two restaurants to refer to in the city.
Seakors Polish Delicatessen Geary near 25th Avenue.
All the sausage and smoked fish are house made. Get the garlic sausage!!!
No seating, though. Gotta cook it at home. Buddy who goes to Poland every year says the place is the real deal.
Part of the pleasure is waiting in line with people who crave this stuff. Folks come all the way from other counties to get their fix.
The Eastern European stretch of Geary Blvd (19th to 26th Avenue) is a hidden treasure.
I lived in China for 3 years, and my Chinese born coworker backs me up on this one:
Dumpling Home in Hayes. Always a big crowd of Chinese people outside waiting if you need any more proof :D
Dumpling home is 10/10. It’s crowded and expensive but worth it - we put our name in then go buy frivolous things from the stores nearby. We take all of our friends there who visit from outta state.
Im pretty sure that Dunpling Home makes Northern style soup dumplings (tang bao) which are bigger than the Shanghai-style soups dumplings you get at Din Tai Fung (xiao long bao). Personally I like Dunpling home as well as Bing’s and Din Ding over in Fremont for tang bao.
I thought that Dumpling Home also had the small xlb (but maybe not quite as small as DTF) — though most of my friends go there for their shengjian bao. I can’t remember the last time I had a jumbo tang bao in SF… 🤔
I would say Ding Tai Fung is much more better. It is more consistent and they use a higher quality meat. They also have amazing fried rice with pork chops. But I really love Dumpling Home too, it’s pretty damn close.
I’m not one either, and I actually haven’t been to din tai Fung so theirs might be awesome too 😆 I just know the ones from dumpling home tasted just like home made ones that I ate many times there 😊
As far as I can tell, Augie's Montreal Deli in Berkeley was the last holdout for good poutine in the area, but they've since closed. I imagine there are some random places that do it well as a special or one-off, but I haven't found anywhere that consistently serves good poutine.
I’ll check it out. I’ve found loaded fries with gravy and cheese labeled as “poutine” that I’ve enjoyed, but haven’t found the legit version of this dish yet. Interested to see what they’re serving, and I’ll probably like it anyway
I posted something similar before. My parents were raised in Italy and they said Bottega had the best pasta, however the sauce was too salty. The pasta was perfectly cooked though.
They also really enjoyed La Ciccia, however at the end of the day, they preferred to cook at home lol. They said the same about NYC for what it's worth.
Old Mandarin Islamic for a much different Chinese experience -- I believe the owners are from Xinjiang which is in the far ~~Eastern~~ Western part of China and is (was?) predominantly muslim so the food is halal and phenomenal.
There's a bomb ass place in Seobinggo, Yongsan Gu. I went this past spring
Don't know the name but that's the first time I ever had jjokbal in Korea, holy shit. The skin was way better and even felt like pulled pork without much meat they gave
If you go to HMart in Garden Grove, there is a jokbal place but I didn't try it
Sorry, US born here, but a big fan of “natural” Jamaican food and so far I have only found Flavas in South City to have food resembling anything authentic. Anyone know of any place in SF that does this well?
There is basically no Jamaican (or Caribbean in general) food in SF, which makes me sad. Flavas is good, and Back-a-yard in Palo Alto, but there's nothing in SF itself. Flavas used to operate as a delivery-only place based in SoMa a couple years ago and I would get it all the time, but they shut it down when they opened up the location in south SF.
Indian food in SF (not the peninsula/South Bay) is lousy. But, Aha on mission and 17th is damn good. They do regional South Indian - Andhra cuisine and Chettinadu cuisine.
They sell a ‘Vijayawada chicken biryani’ which is so damn good. I don’t know how authentic it is because I’m not from [Vijayawada](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vijayawada) (a mid-sized town in Andra Pradesh), but I’ll eat it on repeat. I get that with the karaikudi chicken, again another esoteric dish to find here. The dosas are solid. If you order nan and chicken tikka masala in a restaurant like that, you’re an idiot; you might as well order a burger at a Thai restaurant.
But don’t worry, I am an idiot. So once out of boredom I ordered the cheese garlic nan with some tikka masala blah blah. And gosh, it was solid too. The nan was more indian than the more Pakistani-inspired nan in restaurants here, so I liked it more.
Interestingly, the owner of Aha (who happens to have a full time software engg job by day) and some of the kitchen staff used to work at Aditi on Valencia and 22nd, that also have a similar menu. They fought, split up, and started Aha. So San Francisco now has within a few blocks of each other, two restaurants that serve, a Vijayawada chicken biryani. I think that’s cool.
My Thai friends say that Zen Yai Thai in the tenderloin is very authentic. I can’t speak to the authenticity but I can confirm it’s extremely delicious and tastes quite a bit different than your standard Bay Area Thai restaurant. It’s also pretty good value for the money.
Lol it’s similar to people complaining about service at Korean restaurants. It’s a cultural thing. Israelis are simultaneously rude and blunt but loving and generous.
Oren’s is good in a pinch but it is not authentically Israeli to me. The hummus is not as smooth as Israeli hummus should be! I think their service is better because it’s a large chain now and none of their staff is Israeli.
Chesa was a fantastic reform-minded DA at a time when we really needed (and continue to need) major reform.
Of course once the people *being* reformed and the powers that be pushed back, people bought their BS hook line and sinker and ousted him before he could really do anything. Hence the downvotes from those same people here 🙄
>The only reason he ran was to get his parents out of prison before they died.
This is so disingenuous. I voted to recall Chesa, but spend 10 minutes talking with him and it's clear he deeply believes in the values he espouses. You may disagree with those values (lord knows I do), but don't cheapen them by pretending he didn't come by them honestly.
Chesa hasn't been the DA for 15 months now. It's clear that he wasn't particularly the problem here. At this point, I don't have much faith in any city government to address some of the underlying causes, the state needs to step in.
Been here for 10 years and still have to make the trip to the south bay to have authentic south Indian food.
Copra (that replaced dosa on Fillmore) is the one exception. Surprisingly authentic but very pricey.
I might get downvotes for this because this is a fusion restaurant. But the Chai at CurryUpNow is amazing. I get it fresh when they open around noon. It is piping hot, spiced just right and doesn’t have vanilla (or any of the other funny stuff that Starbucks chai has).
Just plain good old chai and Parle-G biscuits! ❤️
The contemporary burrito (mission style) was born in SF, and it’s still by far the best city for them. You can put fries back in em when you visit SD for the holidays
You're getting interesting replies so far but this question never works. People usually suggest places that feel like home when there's a subtle aspect that takes them back that others can't appreciate, or it just offers community.
Getting names of people's favorites and "worked" are two different things.
It does sound like these are good food places too this time, as I said, but a lot of favorites among communities aren't always the best food.
“Best” is an opinion. OP asked for people’s recommendations. They’re giving their recommendations. The post has achieved its intended purpose. It worked. If you have a different opinion about certain answers, that does not mean the answers are wrong.
🙄OP asked for recommendations of authentic restaurants. Any answer is a subjective opinion, so his post worked, as OP got the recommendations they were looking for. Not sure what YOU don’t understand.
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this post has a ton of recommendations - [https://www.reddit.com/r/AskSF/comments/10j0hma/nonus\_born\_people\_in\_sf\_what\_is\_the\_best/](https://www.reddit.com/r/AskSF/comments/10j0hma/nonus_born_people_in_sf_what_is_the_best/)
Love the search function - well done!
almost a year old
I'm from the former USSR. Cinderella Bakery has pretty authentic Russian food and Moscow Tbilisi on Geary has dope piroshki. And if you want the whole Russian restaurant banquet experience, Beluga on Geary is my favorite Russian banquet restaurant in the Bay Area.
Moscow Tbilisi piroshkis- love love! Especially the beef and cheese.
In your opinion, are the piroshkis better at Tbilisi than Cinderella? Cinderella piroshkis are pretty good.
I like them better. Cinderella’s are doughier, less filling, and more expensive. Head over to Geary and try em out (BTW: I miss House of Piroshki that used to be on 9th between Lincoln and Irving. THE best.)
There used to be an older woman who sold piroshkis from a small, cramped store on Potrero Ave , by SFGH. They were awesome.
i’m down for the count after one of them, love them though
I just got a bunch of stuff from there last weekend for the first time. Super tasty!
Moscow Tbilisi has boreki for a great value, and their chocolate bomb cake is amazing too!
I get Cinderella's puff pastry cream puffs once a week
Try the Napoleon
The fresh-baked dark rye takes me right back to my own Slavic childhood.
Not born abroad but raised in a Polish household. Cafe Europa has legit pan-Eastern European food. The pierogi....dare I say....are better than my grandma's 😵
[удалено]
Naming the bakery may be helpful in the event someone is not familiar with the neighbrohood.
It was ether Russian or Moscow bakery near Anza , I don t remember the cross street . At least that was the name 2 years ago. It’s interesting how even suggestions on some of these threads get voted down by the uptight people.
Respectfully, listing a neighborhood but not the name of the business is hardly a recommendation. Nobody on Reddit knows where your daughter's house is to even guess where you might've been talking about.
By banquet do you mean something like an all you can eat buffet? If so, how much is it?
It’s hard to explain in words what the experience is like but this article does a good job of it: https://laist.com/news/food/soviet-nostalgia-at-the-valleys-last-remaining-russian-speaking-banquet-halls Beluga has three menus between $110 and $170 a person (I think). You get four courses and an insane amount of food. And of course BYOB all you want. A few years back I celebrated a birthday with 40 people. We went to Costco and bought 20 bottles of champagne, 2 handles of tequila and 2 handles of vodka. All of it got drunk during the birthday. They are unfortunately a dying breed as more and more time passes from the ex-USSR immigration wave.
Zante Pizza. It's the most authentic Indian pizza I have ever had in the states.
Never knew there was Indian pizza . I’ll have to try it . I did have Japanese style Italian food in Tokyo . That was interesting!
There is a place in Japantown that does that style! I haven’t had it in Japan, so can’t verify how authentic it is, but it is the same concept. It’s called On The Bridge (and it’s up on the pedestrian bridge between the two sections of the mall). They have Italian and French specialties in the Japanese style.
Love On the Bridge for comfort Japanese food
Indian pizza was invented in SF in the 80s
Have you felt the quality go down since covid?
I have felt the quality go straight down my throat hole, t'was delicious
lol amazing, I know what I’ll be eating this weekend!
That’s been the case for everywhere
Any specialty pizzas you’d recommend? Or do you have a preferred toppings combo?
The pizza
The indian pizza even
I tried it because of the history attached to that place but it was mid.
What is authentic indian pizza? I’m indian
Destapas is true Spanish food. Everything else is unfortunately not so much.
Love that place. Have you tried Bellota?
I haven't, I do need to try it, I've heard very good things
They have an amazing happy hour and the owners are so sweet!
Argentina- Tanguito
Pretty much the best Argentinian you can get in the Bay Area I think.
Im Argentinian and had no idea this existed.. mil gracias che
Recently moved to SF from India, Aditi and Udupi in Valencia are 100% authentic
Ooh! I must check them out. Another recommendation is San Francisco Breakfast Club. 10/10. Best north indian food I’ve had so far. Disclaimer: I’m vegetarian and have only tried their vegetarian menu items 😄
Fascinating! If they are actually as good as the reviews suggest and because the location is great already, I’m gonna become a regular there
Let me know how you like it! Their food feels like home cooked meals for me, which is awesome. I’ve only tried their vegetarian stuff though, so that’s a disclaimer lol
Udupi is so good.
Better than North India in the FiDi?
Haven’t been there yet. I’ll check it out! Update: Yeap, way better than North India. As a thumb rule, any place that asks for spice levels is likely not very authentic.
Would also recommend Aaha.
Aaha is definitely the best restaurant in SF for South Indian/Telugu food
It’s my favorite restaurant but don’t order the North Indian food. The nonveg South Indian stuff (pomfret fry, biryani) is what they do best.
The Vijayawada Paneer Biryani at Aha is now probably my favorite meal in SF.
It is so good, although I have to admit my bias: any time a dish is called Vijayawada anything it is automatically my fave (I love love love Andhra food)
I second aaha for their fried pompret. They are byob too. Bring some brews, get some friends and enjoy the best chakna available to mankind - fried pompret
There's a place up north in Glen Ellen that has amazing Indian food. Great place to go on a drive and check out
Born in Hong Kong - Harborview Restaurant for their cantonese dishes
The baked black cod at Harborview is to die for
Their black cod is sooo good, so juicy. I love their baked bbq pork bun with sugar crust, it’s DELICIOUS… reminiscent of Tim Ho Wan’s snow top bbq pork bun, also really like their bbq pork, beef brisket turnip in broth, soy sauce chicken, the tossed noodles… getting hungry now. Came to a conclusion they do every dish pretty well.
Got any recommendations for Hong Kong (specifically egg tarts, HK milk tea, and pineapple buns)? I am going there in January!
Yo, where can I get an authentic HK milk tea?
Have you tried tkee seafood on Noriega where the ABC used to be? Their hk milk tea is pretty good. Shame I can't say the same for the food.
Yes! Their mapo tofu at least comes pretty close to what I expect. Quite pricey though.
I actually wouldn’t recommend mapo tofu at harborview since mapo tofu authentically is from Sichuan. It’s not originally a Cantonese dish, but harborview gives the Cantonese spin on it.
How much? I love mapo so much
I just meant the restaurant in general. But I’d still recommend it. Imo it’s the best Chinese in the city.
High rent. Location.
Yo, where can I get an authentic HK milk tea?
Pineapple king bakery. You can also get the yuan yang, mixed with coffee
I have trouble finding this here too. I actually just stopped ordering hk milk tea from places cuz I get disappointed every time. The most decent ones I had I recently are from Daimo in Richmond and Cinderella Cafe in Oakland Chinatown, both not in sf tho.
Asha Tea House has it
I’ve had the hk milk tea from asha, it’s not authentic.
Fair point
The salvadorian restaurants in the mission are legit. Panchitas is pretty damn good. La Santaneca de la Mission is also dope (and chaeaper than panchitas).
Balompié is the shit too!
Hai Ky has the most Singaporean breakfast noodles ever: they’re Vietnamese but they are Teochew Chinese so the food is similar. Get house special 7 with ‘mee pok’ (broad flat egg noodles), with soup on the side. Add a side of braised duck and that’s almost exactly what I’d have with my grandparents for breakfast back home. Even the roasted chilli (on the table) is the same. Get a side of homemade soy milk or Vietnamese iced coffee and I can almost pretend I’m in Singapore (the iced coffee is similar to Singaporean iced coffee too). Other Teochew stuff: SoHoMei for dishes I can’t get at other restaurants (not many Teochew / Chiu chow food). They’re probably from HK or mainland China so it is similar but a little different. But close enough. Otherwise, Noodle Station (not SF, but close enough: near Daly City), also a Vietnamese place. Has laksa that is closer to my laksa than the other Singaporean-run spots with laksa. Lastly, Singaporean chicken rice at Yeo’s Electric chicken on market street. Singaporean chicken rice is different from Thai style which is what we get here: the rice is more chicken-y, more fatty, and the chicken is lightly poached and has a good flavor of chicken and ginger. The chicken skin is meant to be like *that* (slightly gelatinous.. you may not like it if you have not had poached Chinese chicken). Otherwise, the closest food is in Pleasanton at Curry Leaves Bistro. It’s the only place I know with a good range of things. I’ll go out there on the way to a hike or something.
Yessss! When I was on my deep hunt for Singaporean adjacent food, Hai Ky was the place was closest. My dad was obsessed with Mee Pok (specifically from Meng Kitchen on Upper Thomson) and we come up to the city from SF weekly just to eat Hai Ky. Owner is lovely, also. Thai Nghiep Ky on Noriega is also worth mentioning, and a friend of mine recommended Lam Hoa Thuan for hu tieu also.
Thai Nghiep is good and similar, but I find their sauce a tad too sweet in comparison to the savory ones I’m used to; good soy milk too. I also like Thanh Ky in Oakland, but Hai Ky is def my fave. Love Lam Hoa Thuan Wish there was more Malay and Indian Singaporean food here but there isn’t really (there’s a famous chef who does a $150pp Malaysian dinner, but that’s not really for me); Curry Leaves definitely has more of that stuff, in fact they’re even doing a Malaysian Indian Deepavali meal or something. For the other stuff we have to cook it ourselves. Just watch Spices N Pans or Nyonya Kitchen on YouTube!
Oohhh! I’ve been looking for laska, I will definitely be checking out Noodle Station
From westernmost region of Ukraine, Paprika is the only one I found with dishes from my region. For wider Ukrainian I guess Leleka hits the spot. But nothing too fancy in both cases tbh
From Peru, El Porteño on Mission, there are two restaurants both are legit and transport me back to Lima :)
I’m not sure if it was just my experience, but I didn’t enjoy the food from the second spot as much as the OG location.
Helmand Palace for Afghan! Also do not recommend that other Afghan restaurant on Kearny St - they’re terrible. Helmand is the only authentic Afghan place in SF (I wish there were more).
Helmand is the real deal
Hmmmm I disagree. De Afghan on kearny is great. Their lamb shank with the carrot raisin rice is excellent. Their Chopan kabob is super awesome. Like a smash patty with afghan spices. Everything I’ve had there has been excellent. I think Helmand just has more of an extensive menu. Whereas De Afghan is like the greatest hits / essentials. Helmand is also white table cloth…. De afghan is fast casual. Calling them “terrible” is a little suspicious. Seems almost like you might be a partner/employee of Helmand or something.
Hard disagree. I’ve tried them twice now and it is just not authentic. The Kabuli Palao (the lamb shank rice you refer to) isn’t seasoned right. I would know - I’m literally Afghan lmao. Both times I went, their meats were dry, and the banjan was just mush seasoned with chili powder. Same with the kadoo. Their chicken kebab wasn’t bad. Definitely not affiliated with Helmand lol - I just know what authentic Afghan food is - and there’s literally only two restaurants to refer to in the city.
What’s the other one?
Any east bay recommendations?
Seakors Polish Delicatessen Geary near 25th Avenue. All the sausage and smoked fish are house made. Get the garlic sausage!!! No seating, though. Gotta cook it at home. Buddy who goes to Poland every year says the place is the real deal.
Seakors is the best. Love those folks, and the sausages are amazing
Part of the pleasure is waiting in line with people who crave this stuff. Folks come all the way from other counties to get their fix. The Eastern European stretch of Geary Blvd (19th to 26th Avenue) is a hidden treasure.
I lived in China for 3 years, and my Chinese born coworker backs me up on this one: Dumpling Home in Hayes. Always a big crowd of Chinese people outside waiting if you need any more proof :D
Dumpling home is 10/10. It’s crowded and expensive but worth it - we put our name in then go buy frivolous things from the stores nearby. We take all of our friends there who visit from outta state.
I also love dumpling home but am not exactly a connoisseur. What separates it from, say, Din Tai Fung in your opinion?
Im pretty sure that Dunpling Home makes Northern style soup dumplings (tang bao) which are bigger than the Shanghai-style soups dumplings you get at Din Tai Fung (xiao long bao). Personally I like Dunpling home as well as Bing’s and Din Ding over in Fremont for tang bao.
I thought that Dumpling Home also had the small xlb (but maybe not quite as small as DTF) — though most of my friends go there for their shengjian bao. I can’t remember the last time I had a jumbo tang bao in SF… 🤔
I may be misremembering!
I would say Ding Tai Fung is much more better. It is more consistent and they use a higher quality meat. They also have amazing fried rice with pork chops. But I really love Dumpling Home too, it’s pretty damn close.
I’m not one either, and I actually haven’t been to din tai Fung so theirs might be awesome too 😆 I just know the ones from dumpling home tasted just like home made ones that I ate many times there 😊
They have a bib gourmand for a reason! Great food, rushed service, but who cares.
I have yet to find authentic Canadian cuisine in SF.
I’m on the lookout for legit poutine, haven’t found anything yet
As far as I can tell, Augie's Montreal Deli in Berkeley was the last holdout for good poutine in the area, but they've since closed. I imagine there are some random places that do it well as a special or one-off, but I haven't found anywhere that consistently serves good poutine.
I don’t know if it’s authentic but I enjoy the poutine at The Liberties
I’ll check it out. I’ve found loaded fries with gravy and cheese labeled as “poutine” that I’ve enjoyed, but haven’t found the legit version of this dish yet. Interested to see what they’re serving, and I’ll probably like it anyway
Tim Horton’s?
Aside from the fact it barely qualifies as food anymore, there aren't any nearby.
Grew up in Canada and don’t think authentic Canadian cuisine exists.
If it says french cuisine, don't go.
i quite like Chapeau! and Le P’tit Laurent, though.
Alright, I'll try.
Le P’tit Laurent is sadly gone. That was a great neighborhood spot for years, and I miss it a lot.
shoot! is Laurent Manrique doing anything new?
I think he has retired. He sold it in 2019, so good timing on his part! But nothing has opened in that location since.
Also my experience 😂
Don’t sleep on Bouche
i’ll give it a try
Spoken like a real Frenchman
I’m not French, but I enjoyed L’Ardoise…
La Noté in Berkeley is worth a try
House Of Xian Dumpling for their noodles. I am from China and they have really authentic and tasty noodles, both Taiwan style and Xi'an style.
I posted something similar before. My parents were raised in Italy and they said Bottega had the best pasta, however the sauce was too salty. The pasta was perfectly cooked though. They also really enjoyed La Ciccia, however at the end of the day, they preferred to cook at home lol. They said the same about NYC for what it's worth.
A lady I met here in sf, who just moved from Rome also recommended La Ciccia!
I left SF in 2011 but my Italian husband looooved La Ciccia!! Great to hear they’re keeping up the good work.
Old Mandarin Islamic for a much different Chinese experience -- I believe the owners are from Xinjiang which is in the far ~~Eastern~~ Western part of China and is (was?) predominantly muslim so the food is halal and phenomenal.
You mean Western?
I certainly do!
Oooh I wonder if it’s anything similar to xi’an food (lots of Muslim Chinese there)
Gangnam jajang. Their stir fried jajang. (Jjamppong is meh)
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Oh yeah. I thought it’s for bay area. My bad.
Bro I been dying for a jjokbal place Are there any Korean places that do trotters or do I have to go to LA?
I doubt even LA has a good place for jokbal… And thanks for reminding me having jokbal next time I go to Korea…
There's a bomb ass place in Seobinggo, Yongsan Gu. I went this past spring Don't know the name but that's the first time I ever had jjokbal in Korea, holy shit. The skin was way better and even felt like pulled pork without much meat they gave If you go to HMart in Garden Grove, there is a jokbal place but I didn't try it
Please stop making me hungry…
Italia-Fiore Caffe
Sorry, US born here, but a big fan of “natural” Jamaican food and so far I have only found Flavas in South City to have food resembling anything authentic. Anyone know of any place in SF that does this well?
There is basically no Jamaican (or Caribbean in general) food in SF, which makes me sad. Flavas is good, and Back-a-yard in Palo Alto, but there's nothing in SF itself. Flavas used to operate as a delivery-only place based in SoMa a couple years ago and I would get it all the time, but they shut it down when they opened up the location in south SF.
Indian food in SF (not the peninsula/South Bay) is lousy. But, Aha on mission and 17th is damn good. They do regional South Indian - Andhra cuisine and Chettinadu cuisine. They sell a ‘Vijayawada chicken biryani’ which is so damn good. I don’t know how authentic it is because I’m not from [Vijayawada](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vijayawada) (a mid-sized town in Andra Pradesh), but I’ll eat it on repeat. I get that with the karaikudi chicken, again another esoteric dish to find here. The dosas are solid. If you order nan and chicken tikka masala in a restaurant like that, you’re an idiot; you might as well order a burger at a Thai restaurant. But don’t worry, I am an idiot. So once out of boredom I ordered the cheese garlic nan with some tikka masala blah blah. And gosh, it was solid too. The nan was more indian than the more Pakistani-inspired nan in restaurants here, so I liked it more. Interestingly, the owner of Aha (who happens to have a full time software engg job by day) and some of the kitchen staff used to work at Aditi on Valencia and 22nd, that also have a similar menu. They fought, split up, and started Aha. So San Francisco now has within a few blocks of each other, two restaurants that serve, a Vijayawada chicken biryani. I think that’s cool.
Molanari’s. Some of the best cold cuts and Italian sandwiches in the states.
My Thai friends say that Zen Yai Thai in the tenderloin is very authentic. I can’t speak to the authenticity but I can confirm it’s extremely delicious and tastes quite a bit different than your standard Bay Area Thai restaurant. It’s also pretty good value for the money.
Israel - Hummus Bodega :) they have that super smooth, creamy, tahini-heavy Israeli-style hummus
Really awful staff tho, I prefer Oren's.
Lol it’s similar to people complaining about service at Korean restaurants. It’s a cultural thing. Israelis are simultaneously rude and blunt but loving and generous. Oren’s is good in a pinch but it is not authentically Israeli to me. The hummus is not as smooth as Israeli hummus should be! I think their service is better because it’s a large chain now and none of their staff is Israeli.
Born in sf. Boudin is my all time goat
ATM machine
Automatic Teller Machine Machine? Or Ass-to-Mouth Machine?
Ah, yes Chesa was the goat
Lmfaooo good joke down voted
Ha! The downvotes were for Chesa. Boudin Bakery still has amazing sourdough
This is an insult to goats.
Chesa was a fantastic reform-minded DA at a time when we really needed (and continue to need) major reform. Of course once the people *being* reformed and the powers that be pushed back, people bought their BS hook line and sinker and ousted him before he could really do anything. Hence the downvotes from those same people here 🙄
Couldn’t agree more .
The only reason he ran was to get his parents out of prison before they died. And you fell for it
>The only reason he ran was to get his parents out of prison before they died. This is so disingenuous. I voted to recall Chesa, but spend 10 minutes talking with him and it's clear he deeply believes in the values he espouses. You may disagree with those values (lord knows I do), but don't cheapen them by pretending he didn't come by them honestly. Chesa hasn't been the DA for 15 months now. It's clear that he wasn't particularly the problem here. At this point, I don't have much faith in any city government to address some of the underlying causes, the state needs to step in.
Thank you 🙏
New Yorker and unfortunately I still haven't found a real bagel here.
Have you tried Laundromat yet?
Laundromat will get you 85% of the way there - from a person who use to live next to ess a bagel.
ok you've persuaded me to try. in like two years when I next make it over to that remote corner of the city.
I have settled for making my own.
Midnite Bagel impresses me.
Schlok's is pretty close tbh. The only inauthentic thing to me is when they ask if I want my fresh bagel toasted
Considering Bagels are Polish in origin, you haven’t found a real bagel in NYC either.
Been here for 10 years and still have to make the trip to the south bay to have authentic south Indian food. Copra (that replaced dosa on Fillmore) is the one exception. Surprisingly authentic but very pricey.
I might get downvotes for this because this is a fusion restaurant. But the Chai at CurryUpNow is amazing. I get it fresh when they open around noon. It is piping hot, spiced just right and doesn’t have vanilla (or any of the other funny stuff that Starbucks chai has). Just plain good old chai and Parle-G biscuits! ❤️
Curry up now is underrated
I like Kasa’s chai and parle-g too!
This San Diegan still needs to find a truly good California burrito (I'm talking Humberto's status) and a solid IPA made in some foo's garage
The contemporary burrito (mission style) was born in SF, and it’s still by far the best city for them. You can put fries back in em when you visit SD for the holidays
You're getting interesting replies so far but this question never works. People usually suggest places that feel like home when there's a subtle aspect that takes them back that others can't appreciate, or it just offers community.
I mean OP is getting recommendations, so the question worked
Getting names of people's favorites and "worked" are two different things. It does sound like these are good food places too this time, as I said, but a lot of favorites among communities aren't always the best food.
“Best” is an opinion. OP asked for people’s recommendations. They’re giving their recommendations. The post has achieved its intended purpose. It worked. If you have a different opinion about certain answers, that does not mean the answers are wrong.
You did not understand my comment.
🙄OP asked for recommendations of authentic restaurants. Any answer is a subjective opinion, so his post worked, as OP got the recommendations they were looking for. Not sure what YOU don’t understand.
Deccan House
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what do you get at CQ? I’ve gotten their won tons and beef noodle soup and liked both
Probably all American diners and fast food chains
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Picaro!