Best Bars For Foodies In San Francisco

When visitors think of San Francisco, certain landmarks always come to mind - the Golden Gate Bridge, Chinatown and Fisherman's Wharf. But the City by the Bay is also known as a world-class destination for elegant restaurants. While Michelin-starred restaurants are known for impeccable dining experiences, menu prices coupled with wine pairings can easily reach $400 per guest. Fortunately, even the most sought-after San Francisco restaurants serve bar food full of delicious ingredients and flavors that can easily satisfy the most finicky foodie. The following are five of the best bars for foodies, all from Michelin-starred restaurants in San Francisco.

Ame Bar
689 Mission St.
San Francisco, CA  94105
(415) 284-4040
www.amerestaurant.com

Located next to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art in the South of Market district (SoMa), Ame is an award-winning, privately owned restaurant housed within the five-star St. Regis Hotel. The fabulous Japanese restaurant, led by husband-and-wife owners Lissa Doumani and Hiro Sone, and executive chef Randy Lutz, has been awarded a Michelin star for six consecutive years. Chef Sone is a three-time nominee and 2003 James Beard Award winner and Lissa's resume includes work at Spago Hollywood and Tokyo. With extravagant dishes like Kaisen sashimi salad with Japanese cucumber, ginger pork buns and veloute of delta asparagus with smoked trout, Ame's bar menu can satisfy any sophisticated palate. Desserts are also part of the menu with trio of seasonal fruit sorbet, rhubarb tart and chocolate almond cake among the finest savory choices.

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La Folie Lounge
2316 Polk St.
San Francisco, CA  94109
(415) 776-5577
www.lafolie.com

Led by owner and James Beard Award-winner chef Roland Passot, La Folie is an elegant Michelin-starred French Restaurant once described as one of "the eight wonders of Bay Area dining." Situated in the Russian Hill neighborhood, La Folie has also won Zagat awards for Best Food and Best French Restaurant. The fine dining experience remains evident in La Folie's lounge, with lobster croque monsieur and asparagus soup, crispy duck confit and le grand plateau de charcuterie et salumi among the incredible bar food presentations. The bar also serves superior beers, wines, whiskeys and cocktails for the most discerning connoisseur.

Quince Bar and Lounge
470 Pacific Ave.
San Francisco, CA  94133
(415) 775-8500
www.quincerestaurant.com

Located in a 1907 building within the city's historic Jackson Square, Quince is among the finest Italian restaurants in the country. Owner and executive chef Michael Tusk, a past James Beard Award winner for Best Chef-Pacific, leads the Michelin-starred restaurant. The bar and lounge menu features exclusive Ostera Prime caviar, a three-course menu with wine pairings and Kumamoto oysters. Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut, Matthiasson Sauvignon Blanc and Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge are among the top-shelf wines available on Quince's considerable world-class wine menu.

Saison Bar/Salon
178 Townsend St.
San Francisco, CA  94107
(415) 828-7990
www.saisonsf.com

Located in the SoMa neighborhood and minutes from AT&T Park, Saison is a two-starred Michelin restaurant and just one of four San Francisco restaurants with that distinction. Led by executive chef and co-owner Joshua Skenes, the restaurant gained further national recognition by ranking fifth among this year's Top 100 U.S. Restaurants in a survey from Opinionated About Dining. Saison's tasting menu is among the most expensive in the Bay Area, at $298, with optional wine tasting for an additional $148. Neither the tasting menu or the Bar/Salon menu are revealed online, due to daily changes in the ingredients. However the Bar/Salon menu is listed at $88 and guests can expect to have one of the finest bar dining experiences in the City.

Spruce Bar
3640 Sacramento St.
San Francisco, CA  94118
(415) 931-5100
www.sprucesf.com

The final Michelin-starred restaurant with bar food appealing to the most fastidious foodie is Spruce in the Presidio Heights neighborhood. Housed within a 1930's brick car barn minutes from the sprawling Presidio of San Francisco, Spruce has quickly become one of the finest food destinations in the city. In business for just six years, owner Tim Stannard and chef-partner Mark Sullivan have guests marveling about the 70-seat luxury American contemporary restaurant with extravagant dinner presentations, along with an incredible bar menu. Among the outstanding bar menu choices - the highly acclaimed Spruce burger, the French omelet and Osetra Caviar. Spruce also offers an incredibly diverse wine list, in addition to classic cocktails to top off an incredible night in the city.

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Randy Yagi is a freelance writer covering all things San Francisco. His work can be found on Examiner.com.