San Francisco is Mecca for the Mouth

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. October 14, 2008

SAN FRANCISCO, CA, April 3, 2007. Celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse said of San Francisco, "You can't have a bad meal in this town." It's easy to see why chefs love San Francisco -- it's 49 square miles of great dining and a Mecca for the mouth. It's the diverse, distinct blending of cultures, creativity and proximity to fresh, sustainable ingredients that attracts great chefs to the City, with a trail of devoted foodies following in their wake.

San Francisco restaurants are one of the top reasons for visiting, according to the San Francisco Hotel Guest Survey, 2004, from the San Francisco Convention & Visitors Bureau.

The City has been famous for fine dining since the 49ers brought sourdough, and thousands of hungry gold-seekers to town. Locals boast that this is the birthplace of Irish Coffee, the martini, cioppino, chicken tetrazinni and Crab Louis.

In 2006, San Francisco and the Bay Area, became the second U.S. city and only West Coast city to have a Michelin Guide, with more than 300 restaurants receiving the coveted starts or making the cut to be included in the prestigious guide.

"San Francisco is a natural choice after New York City," guide director Jean-Luc Naret said to a Los Angeles Times reporter about why San Francisco was chosen for the second American Michelin guide. He praised the region for the birth of the organic food revolution and building the "foundation of California cuisine." "When you go to restaurants here, everyone is a foodie," he continued. "Everyone talks about food all the time...here, the celebrity stars are the chefs."

San Francisco is home to Ron Siegel, the first and only American chef to win, unanimously, the Japanese Iron Chef competition in 1999, and was one of Food & Wine Magazine's "10 Best New Chefs in America."

Local and visiting "foodies" can enjoy farm-fresh, organic produce during the weekly Ferry Plaza Farmers' Market encircling the historic Ferry Building on the Embarcadero, or sample artisan cheeses, meets, caviar, mushrooms, chocolate and other culinary enhancements at the indoor Marketplace every day.

Cond'e Nast's Concierge.com said of San Francisco: "Not only does the City by the Bay have thousands of restaurants, dozens of ethnic enclave, and an informed public...but it also has one huge natural advantage over its rival - it's surrounded by some of the country's best wineries, farms and coastline. To reap the benefits of this exceptional California produce, gastronomes from all over the world come to visit and shop at the renowned Ferry Building. With its restaurants, food shops, water views, and mythic farmer's market, it's the perfect snapshot of the city's culinary persona."

San Francisco has been at the forefront of such trends as Asian Fusion cuisine, exotic greens, heirloom tomatoes and pedigree produce. Innovative chefs use the diverse cultures that comprise San Francisco as a muse. It's not a melting pot - more of a teaming salad bowl with unusual ingredients mixing together, yet retaining their distinctive flavors.

It's creativity and competition in a healthy balance that creates a friendly environment for food. Drawing on many cultural communities - the Italian North Beach, the Latino influences of the Mission, the Cantonese infusion of China town and the Richmond District, for example. If a visitor is not content to remain in one dining district, one can explore the many neighborhoods within a few blocks and discover other culinary treasures.

The City boasts more restaurants per capita than any other cosmopolitan city in the U.S., and it's impossible to sample every restaurant, so many tours cater to helping visiting foodies eat their hearts out: "In the Kitchen With Lisa Culinary Excursions," "Chinatown Adventure Tours With The 'Wok Wiz'" and "Local Tastes of the City Tours" are just a few.

And, with San Francisco's famous 43 hills, a gastronome can walk off any calories accrued from any one of the City's 4,275 restaurants while enjoying a breath-taking view.