SFGuide
The Best Restaurants In The Marina
photo credit: Erin Ng
Yes, the Marina is a breeding ground for athleisure influencers and fancy strollers (for children and dogs)—but it’s also home to a bunch of great restaurants. So the next time you’re in the area and hungry, use this guide. It includes all the best places to eat in the waterfront neighborhood, from a diner with great pancakes to a spot serving gravy-like Japanese curry.
THE SPOTS
photo credit: Carly Hackbarth
We’d go out of our way any day to get to Viva Goa. That’s because this casual spot is serving some of the best Indian food in town, let alone the neighborhood. They have perfectly cooked tandoori fish, rich curries, and a slightly sweet Navrattan korma, which is a mix of vegetables and curry. Get them all, and lots of naan to go with it. Viva Goa works well for takeout, but is also built for spontaneous weeknight dinners when your fridge is sad and empty—there’s rarely a wait, and you’ll probably make it out with leftovers.
Despite being so close to the water, there aren’t many completely seafood-centric spots in the Marina. That changes with Popi’s Oysterette. At this breezy corner restaurant, folks flock in from all over town to go in on raw and grilled oysters, creamy Dungeness crab rolls, and some of the best clam chowder these 49 square miles have to offer. This spot is also a highly pleasant place to spend an afternoon—ocean-blue tiles and hanging ropes are everywhere, and natural light streams in from all angles. Keep the wine flowing and get here for their Happy Hour (Monday to Thursday) with $7 glasses of rosé.
There’s an abundance of Cal-Ital in the Marina, on Chestnut Street alone. But Norcina stands out. The restaurant turns out handmade pastas and pillowy Neapolitan pies that are perfectly charred. And the seasonally changing salads, snacks, and large plates aren’t afterthoughts, which is why this spot rises to another level. Impressive-looking pork shanks, chicken milanese, and sausage-stuffed pork snouts come over well-seasoned grains. For dessert, roast your own marshmallows at the table for s’mores. The experience might seem hokey, but it perfectly matches Norcina’s "just hanging out on the beach" aesthetic we’ve fallen for.
photo credit: Greens
POWERED BY
Greens is a Marina institution that's been serving up entirely vegetarian dishes since 1979. The waterfront dining room in Fort Mason has tons of natural light, huge windows, and colossal wood sculptures, all of which create a beautiful setting for long, leisurely meals consisting of vegan spring rolls, pizza on cornmeal crusts, and fancy imported teas. The food at the groundbreaking restaurant won't blow your mind, but it doesn't need to—a meal at Greens will always be an experience to try at least once.
photo credit: Nippon Curry
Debuting winter 2021 as Hinoya Curry, the spot for Japanese curry in the Marina has officially rebranded as Nippon Curry. But don’t expect big changes at the casual counter-service spot. They’re still using the same roux from the popular Japanese chain Hinoya Curry, and serving it alongside pork and chicken katsu, vegetables, and battered oysters. The curry dishes come with tangy pickled Japanese onions, which add a nice crunch to this quick (and filling) lunch or dinner. And the best part, Nippon Curry serves beer and sake.
The Korean drinking snacks at Ilcha are the sustenance you need before hopping on the mechanical bull at Westwood down the street. And the space’s all-white walls and striking mural make for a pregame that’s a lot more chic than pizza on a friend’s rickety balcony. Order the fried seaweed spring rolls that are lightly battered perfection, and know that rolling up your sleeves to dig into soy-cured shrimp is a mandatory Ilcha activity. Also go for the bulgogi hot pot, which is loaded with cabbage, rice cakes, mushrooms, and bouncy japchae.
photo credit: Julia Chen
When you want to devour puffy Neapolitan pizzas without having to push through a crowd of micro-influencers, get to Napizza. The eclectic-looking Italian restaurant (by the people behind Roma Antica) is calm, easy to walk into, and serves wood-fired pies with stretchy crusts. The pies lean pretty traditional, with the exception of the “Americana,” which is dressed up with french fries and hot dogs, naturally. While the quirky combination sounds tempting, hone in on the red pies with the slightly sweet, light sauce—specifically the margherita, which is a prime example of simplicity done well. We also love their cheesy gnocchi in thick tomato sauce, which is another nice way to fuel up before heading to nearby Silver Cloud to possibly lose your dignity over karaoke.
From the outside, Lucca’s looks like a tiny Italian deli that got lost on its way over to Columbus Avenue. But it doesn’t matter where this place is located—it’s a sandwich temple. The deli is usually pretty packed in the middle of the day, with people ordering lunch, trays of meatballs, or groceries like olive oil or crackers, but the chaos is worth it to get their impeccable sandwiches (order ahead online if you don’t want to wait). The Italian combo and caprese sandwiches with sliced meats (always add prosciutto) are the way to go.
photo credit: Julia Chen
Kopiku Coffee is the only Indonesian coffee shop in SF, and Marina dwellers are lucky to have it. Swing by before heading on a walk in Fort Mason, or whenever you need a non-boring caffeine boost. Their drinks are all fantastic, but our favorite is the pandan latte. It’s just the right amount of sweet without overpowering the actual espresso, and like everything on the menu, is made with lactose-free milk. They also have great snacks, like pineapple tarts and sticky rice balls stuffed with chicken.
If one of the city’s many data companies illustrated Marina brunch spots as a pie chart, the larger slices would be "bottomless mimosas" and "social media-friendly wallpaper" and the smaller slivers would be lowkey breakfast spots like Home Plate. The diner looks like a living room straight out of an East Coast beach house, and you’ll want to get here for the buttermilk pancakes loaded with fruit and whipped cream, omelets, and benedicts, all of which you can dig into while admiring the baseball photos on the wall and the pillows with motivational quotes stitched on them.
The number one reason to go to Delarosa is for the prime people-watching—the casual Italian spot is right in the heart of Chestnut Street, and is always swamped with folks on dates and friends having some kind of big night out. Generally, it has a lot going on and is kind of a scene, but the food is great, like the pasta, small plates, and pizzas (we like the one with prosciutto and arugula). Whatever you get, the burrata bruschetta should be on the table.
For a casual, non-stuffy Italian spot to have dinner, beeline to Roma Antica. The friendly staff are always whizzing around singing songs in Italian or serenading tables with the birthday song. And you'll probably end up swapping menu suggestions with the group sitting next to you. Wherever you land in the food department, though, the meal is bound to be great, from the carbonara with smoked guanciale to the Roman-style pinsas.
photo credit: Joey Backs
Casual drinking spots to grab beers are easy to come by in the Marina. But what about beer halls located in historic waterfront warehouses? Radhaus at Fort Mason is one of the area’s more unique bars/restaurants—and that’s aside from the beautiful setting. It’s a Bavarian-style spot with lots of German beers, a menu of things ranging from pretzels to heartier jägerschnitzel, along with cocktails and wine for non-beer drinkers. It’s also ideal for big groups, and works for quick hangs, date nights, and relaxing evenings after a day of doing waterfront things.
You could come to this American bistro to split a few dishes and casually drink wine with a date, but our favorite time to come to Causwells is actually brunch. Even if there’s a line, it’s worth waiting it out because the brunch burger with bacon and a fried egg is excellent. If you’ve already tried this glorious creation, they have a mix of other fantastic things to turn to, like french toast bites and chilaquiles.
