Food, glorious food. Your Bay Area dining options, day or night, are almost beyond countable, but our readers chose their favorites, many of them familiar and repeat winners, along with some new delicious options. Scoot up to the table and dig in (All photos courtesy of the restaurants).
Best Castro Restaurant: Anchor Oyster Bar
Runners-up: Poesia, Tie: Dumpling Kitchen/Mama Ji's
While Anchor has been shucking in the Castro since 1977, it took the closure of past Bestie repeat-winner Catch to make room for another seafood specialist as champion.
The win is overdue. Pricey? Yes, but the cioppino is the best in town, and good values can often be found among the blackboard specials. Treat yourself to a solo dinner at the counter.
www.anchoroysterbar.com
Best Late Night Restaurant: Orphan Andy's
Runners-up: Grubstake, Nopa
Ready to get adopted by a twink and his septum-ringed bear-friend? At this seemingly unbeatable Besties hall-of-famer, it's always time for a breakfast milkshake or a fluffy three-egg dinner entrée. With coffee. Black. By the gallon. Keep it together, pal. The sun'll come out tomorrow.
www.orphan-andys.com
Best Brunch: Starbelly
Runners-up: Cafe Mystique, Devil's Teeth Bakery
A tip of the mimosa to Starbelly serving brunch every day. While the offerings are expanded on weekends, the popular restaurant has a selection of brunch items available seven days a week until 4 p.m. Don't let the menu categories limit you, though: Order the corn pizza and ask for a couple soft eggs on top.
www.starbellysf.com
Best Upscale Restaurant: Rich Table
Runners-up: Mr. Jiu's, Spruce
Adventurous cooking without pretentious twaddle? Yes! Fine dining and fun dining are successfully intertwined at Rich Table. Their porcini mushroom doughnuts with raclette cheese sauce have been a hit at Outside Lands for years. The Chef's Selection tasting menu is one of the best prix fixe offerings in town at $120.
www.richtablesf.com
Best Asian Restaurant: Farmhouse Kitchen
Runners-up: Basil Thai, Sushi Sato
Kaleidoscopic décor, vibrant Isaan flavors, plus chummy queer-friendly staff make a midweek meal at Farmhouse Kitchen a welcome escape hatch from the routine. It's your party, go Thai if you want to.
www.farmhousethai.com
Best South Asian Restaurant: Mandalay
Runners-up: 1601 Bar & Kitchen, Dhamansara
This year, after four decades in business, this Burmese gem in the Richmond was recognized with an America's Classics Award from the James Beard Foundation, its honor shared in San Francisco with only Swan Oyster Depot, La Taqueria, Yank Sing and the Tadich Grill. The tea leaf salad and Moo Hin Nga (fish chowder) are must-orders.
www.mandalaysf.com
Best Italian Restaurant: Flour + Water
Runners-up: La Ciccia, Cotogna
Not your nonna's red sauce joint, F +W combines pasta and produce with distinctive California flair: Orechiette are tossed with dill pesto, shishito peppers, green peppercorn and pistachios; pickled stonefruit and sesame are incorporated in a pork tortolletti preparation; and squash agnolotti are paired with fresh basil.
www.flourandwater.com
Best Mexican Restaurant: Nopalito
Runners-up: Puerto Alegre, Elena's
Celebrating its quinceañera year, Gonzalo Guzman's authentic, creative kitchen continues to thrive amidst a million belly bomb burrito joints. The pozole, panuchos and huitlacoche huarache are stand-outs on a uniformly excellent menu. There are no clichés in this cooking.
www.nopalitosf.com
Best Middle Eastern Restaurant: La Mediterranee
Runners-up: Noosh, Beit Rima
Editors' bets were on Beit Reima, but if there's going to be a sentimental choice among the restaurant Besties, one can hardly begrudge readers' affection for La Med. It has long warmed hearts in addition to tempting tastebuds. A dependable friend in the Castro since 1981, La Med has been a safe space to gather around tables crowded with tasty small plates and fresh pita, through an epidemic, a pandemic and onward. Loyalty is a two-way street.
www.lamednoe.com
Best Soul Food Restaurant: Brenda's Oakland
Runners-up: Hard Knox Café, Everett & Jones Barbecue
The newest jewel in the crown of queer restaurateur couple Brenda Buenviaje and and Libby Truesdell is the East Bay sister of Brenda's French Soul Food and Brenda's Meat and Three. Serving fried chicken and beignets three meals a day, Brenda's also offers the region's most authentic Po Boy sandwiches, a tasty array of creole entrees, and homemade cream biscuits. www.brendasoakland.com
Best Bar Menu: Hi Tops
Runners-up: Lookout, Jolene's
Make like a torch with your corndog, horndog! There's gay Olympic sports bar snacking on tap at our gold medal winner. Pair pole vaulting with cauliflower on a stick, breakdancing with buffalo wings, and basketball with fries dunked in dip. Just remember to wait 20 minutes after finishing those Killer Nachos before taking in synchronized swimming.
www.hitopsbar.com
Best Bakery/Patisserie: Arizmendi
Runners-up: Tartine, Bob's Donuts
On Wednesdays, the Sunset location of this worker-owned cooperative business features a cheddar onion cornbread in full loaves and face-stuffing rolls that are worth going out of your way for. Selections vary at the Mission branch, but both outposts do fine work on the sweet and savory fronts. Try the cowgirl cookies, Wolverine rolls and take-and-bake pizzas.
www.arizmendibakery.com
Best Dessert/Ice Cream: Mitchell's
Runners-up: Bi-Rite Creamery, Humphry Slocombe
While the Mitchell family no longer has its dairy farm on the edge of Noe Valley (Can you imagine?), they're still dishing out 16% butterfat ice cream, made fresh in-store every day. They don't offer Salt and Straw-ish stunts like Ti-D Bowl Swirl and Existential Crunches, preferring the curatorial finesse of making two distinct coconut flavors (buko and macapuno) and showcasing Philippines-sourced fruit in their lucuma, lychee, and their bestselling mango scoops.
www.mitchellsicecream.com
Best Coffee Shop: Manny's
Runners-up: Spike's, Cafe De Casa
Super java meets social justice at studly Manny Yekutiel's eponymous Valencia corridor mash up of café, community center, bookstore and event space. There are four nights of Democratic Convention watch parties scheduled for later this month.
www.welcometomannys.com
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