The 10 Best Casual Breakfast Spots in San Francisco, from a Local
San Francisco has such an amazing Brunch scene, ranging from cute cafes to over-the-top spins on classic brunch plates. As a local in San Francisco for the past few years, I have come to try over 50 different spots in San Francisco. While some are overrated, like Zazie’s in my opinion, there are some great spots I’ve found unique to SF. Keep on reading for my curated list of best brunch/breakfast spots in San Francisco that are more casual like a pay-then-sit format.
1. Laundromat Bagels
The Laundromat is an iconic place in San Francisco, very famously known for their morning bagels and Wednesday night Smash Burgers. Their bagels are second to none in the city, with many native New Yorkers claiming these are even better than NYC. I go every single weekend to pick up a bagel and have made it a must-do stop on any visiting friends tour of the city. They come served so fresh and warm, with a tub of cream cheese for you to self cream cheese your bagel as you’d like.
Food Recommendation: The Egg Everything Bagel with Scallion Cream Cheese
2. Devil’s Teeth Baking Company
Devil’s Teeth Bakery has a location coincidentally right next to Laundromat bagels. There are a few locations throughout the city, all famous for their breakfast sandwich. This is truly one of the best breakfast sandwiches I’ve had, mainly because of their homemade biscuits. You can get it one of two ways – The Regular or The Special which is the same as the regular but with avocado and lemon-garlic aioli.
Food Recommendation: The Special Breakfast Sandwich
3. Le Marais Bakery
Le Marais is a very cute Parisian cafe located just a couple blocks away from Dolores park, tucked away in the corner of a neighborhood. They offer breakfast boards which let you pick 5-7 items you can get for $16. The items you can pick from range from yogurt, fresh fruit, pastries, eggs, avocado, breakfast potatoes, and more.
Food Recommendation: Be sure to do the custom breakfast board! I also love their coffee here so be sure to pair a coffee with your breakfast.
4. Camino Alto
Camino Alto is a restaurant and wine bar in Cow Hollow located right on Union Street. For brunch, they have amazing Spanish style plates with Chilaquiles, Breakfast Tacos, and more. It’s a more casual spot where you pay then sit down, with some cheaper options on the menu as well if you are looking to be more cost effective!
Food Recommendation: The taco plates are one of the menu highlights, but I also loved the chia pudding for something a bit lighter and more refreshing.
5. The Mill
The Mill is a cafe located in the NOPA district, which is famous for making in-house bread which they turn into an array of different breakfast toasts. These toasts are incredible – ranging from egg-in-a-hole to ricotta with local jam to cinnamon sugar. The coffee is fantastic here as well, making it a great more casual stop for breakfast.
Food Recommendation: The egg-in-a-hole toast and a latte
6. B. Pattisserie and Arsicault Bakery
Both of these bakeries are some of the most well known spots in the city, known for amazing pastries that leave people waiting in line for 1 hour+ on the weekends. B. Pattisserie is more known for it’s delicate Parisian pastries and cakes. Arsicault is famous for it’s Kouign Amann and Croissants. If you are willing to wait, both of these are absolutely worth it! These are some of the best pastries I’ve had.
7. Early to Rise
Early to Rise opened more recently in 2024 in the NOPA district of SF. It’s rooted in it’s Southern hospitality and makes all of its food from scratch. Yes, truly all of it! They allow walk-ins but the wait is usually typically 1 hour+ so I would recommend making a reservation in advance.
Check out their website for their menu and making a reservation. This one is more of a sit down then the others on the list, but it has very cute modern and casual diner vibes.
Food Recommendation: The Eggs Benedict and I highly recommend getting their freshly made donuts for the day to start.
8. Tartine Manufactory
Tartine is one of the most classic spots in SF’s Mission District for breakfast. They make all of their breads in-house and have delicious pastries and pizzas. They have a bakery location located just a couple minutes away from Dolores Park, but they also have a dine-in spot at their Manufactory just a 5 minutes drive further into the Mission.
There are very cute connecting stores to the manufactory – Heath Ceramics and a local Newsstand, and local home furnishing stores across the street. It’s a great spot to grab a bite then window shop.
Food Recommendation: Their bread, butter, and jam order! It’s truly so good fresh and warm.
9. Cafe Réveille
Cafe Réveille has multiple locations throughout the city – Lower Haight, Polk St, and the Marina. The coffee is great here, but the food is just as good. They have amazing breakfast sandwiches, âcai bowls, and more lunch items like salads and grain bowls. As with the others, it’s more casual and a pay then sit down format. I personally recommend the Lower Haight location for a more neighborhood feel.
Food Recommendation: Either the breakfast sandwich (all locations) or the Turkey Club (at the Marina location)
10. Duboce Park Cafe
If you’re looking for a cute corner neighborhood cafe, Duboce Park is my favorite! They have outdoor seating that overlooks Duboce park, and is one of the cutest neighborhoods in SF. They have an array of pastries, sandwiches, and coffees + smoothies.
Food Recommendation: Any of the smoothies and the Turkey Club sandwich!
Bonus – Kitchen Story
Kitchen Story is the definition of brunch. Located right in the heart of the Castro district, the place is so colorful and full of life. This one is a sit down restaurant so it’s a bit more formal than the others on this list.
They have Millionaire’s Bacon, which if you haven’t tried it before, is an absolute must have even if you don’t normally like bacon. It comes in various flavors like rosemary, cinnamon, and citrus which are each fantastic in their own right. They also have incredible drinks, french toast, and more but my favorite are their egg benedict’s.
Food Recommendation: The Strawberry Iced Matcha, Millionaire’s Bacon, and Traditional Egg Benedict
