Here’s where to find San Francisco’s best breakfast

This Asian-American bakery and cafe on Clement Street started out as a pop-up from chefs who worked at top spots like Atelier Crenn, Coi and Mourad and who were inspired by their travels throughout Asia as well as their Chinese and Filipino-American heritage. The breakfast offerings include kaya toast (seen in the luscious photo above) covered in coconut jam and sea salt, a breakfast sandwich made of smashed biscuit, black pepper pork sausage, American cheese and charred scallion chimichurri— and constantly evolving pastries like one made with poached Smyrna quince and Van Deman membrillo paste, shaves of young manchego and pinenuts.

If you’re looking for a classic San Francisco diner experience, look no further than Sears Fine Food in Union Square. You’ll find everything you’re hoping for: high ceilings, black-and-white checkered floors, nostalgic photos and quintessential American breakfast fare. The restaurant dates back to 1938 when Wilbur and Ben Sears opened shop and gained a reputation for their delicious Swedish pancakes, an inherited family recipe. Sears is still best known for those pancakes made from the original recipe. You can order a dish of 18 of these beauties—thin, silver dollar-sized and served with butter and syrup.

With several spots across the city, this bakery and cafe is exquisitely French. Its croissants take three days to get from the mixer to the oven to you, made with long fermentation, natural levain, local butter, freshly ground flour and farm eggs. Every pastry is made by scratch in small batches. We recommend the Ferry Building site with its Grande Crȇperie serving traditional Breton-style sweet crêpes and salé galettes made with farine de sarrasin, organic buckwheat flour. There’s also a Mission/Castro site and one on Sutter Street, but the latter is for coffee and bakery items only.

A lot of San Francisco’s beloved historic spots haven’t managed to survive over the years, but luckily, Pork Store Cafe is still here to fill you with chicken fried steak, omelettes, and its signature dish: pork chops for breakfast. The restaurant is the oldest free-standing restaurant on Haight Street. Its story began in 1916 when a Czech couple opened the Pork Store butcher shop. It turned into a cafe in 1953 (known as the Triple Coin Cafe), then changed hands over the years. It eventually became the Pork Store Cafe in 1979. It’s maintained a loyal following over the years for its big portions, friendly service and reasonable prices. Despite its name, it’s also great for vegetarians! A second location is on 16th Street in the Mission.

This Scandinavian-inspired cafe on Market Street offers “scandwiches” on hearty sprouted rye buns, three grain porridge, tunnbröd (Swedish flatbread) and pickled herring by the scoop. The Scandi sampler includes a soft boiled egg, yogurt cup with rye and oat granola, bread and butter and jam and Havarti cheese for a shareable healthy brunch.

A family owned diner near Golden Gate Park, Art’s Café serves American breakfast and lunch and Korean cuisine. Along with the typical Denver omelette, try the Samurai omelette made with teriyaki beef. There’s grilled banana French toast, teriyaki beef hashbrowns and the tofu bibimbap with rice, egg, five vegetables, kimch and hot paste with tofu.

Breakfast is served all day at both the Fillmore and Larkin Street locations of Jane (there’s also a bakery on Geary and a tiny location inside CalMart). Along with quiches and pastries, you’ll find Jane’s dragonfruit smoothie bowl, a riot of dragonfruit, pineapple, banana, ginger, coconut water, blueberries, raspberries, hemp seeds, flax seeds, cocoa nibs, goji and mulberries. For a more savory breakfast try the warm quinoa bowl with chili roasted sweet potatoes, kale and black beans in a cilantro lime dressing.

Tartine Manufactory is open from 8am until 4pm, welcoming diners on a first-come, first-served basis (there’s also dinner service Wednesday through Sunday but this story is all about breakfast). You have to start with the warm housemade country bread and butter, or see that same beautiful loaf in the form of a bread pudding or breakfast sandwich. Tartines (a French open faced sandwich) change seasonally. The airy space is so comfortable that you may find yourself lingering until lunch rolls around.

Although there are locations all over the Bay Area, San Francisco’s is the only one that serves weekend brunch. There are several pita options, an Israeli breakfast (two eggs any style, Israeli salad, goat cheese with olives and roasted peppers, tahini and matbucha), traditional shakshuka and a variation on a theme with hummus benedict. Sweets like baklava and challah toast fill out the menu.