Though brunch is not for everybody, there is a time and a place when brunching is absolutely necessary. And if there's anything San Francisco excels at, it's drinking during daylight hours, and eating a good first meal on the weekend is a necessary preparation for that. So, we've run down our solid favorite brunch spots before, as well as some newer entries to the brunch scene, but now it's time to give you a definitive list of places to brunch for brunch-time needs, be they savory or sweet, hungover or not hungover, and with various obstacles to entry including lines, and offbeat locations. Once again, you're welcome.
Best prix fixe brunch with beef tartare: Bar Tartine ($35) - 561 Valencia Street between 16th and 17th
Best family-style brunch for a gang: Bar Agricole (custom made for groups of five to ten people) - 355 11th Street near Harrison
Best pancake brunch that you should probably only attempt on weekdays: Mama's - 1701 Stockton Street at Filbert
Best downtown brunch when you need some good Burgundy to go with it: Les Clos - 234 Townsend Street near 3rd
Best poached egg brunch in which the eggs are poached in wine: Monsieur Benjamin (the oeufs en meurette, they come out purple) - 451 Gough Street near Grove
Best excuse to do laundry while you brunch: Brainwash Cafe - 1122 Folsom Street at Langton Street
Plow from Peter Belanger on Vimeo.
Most delicious brunch for those who don't mind an hour wait: Plow - 1299 18th Street at Texas
Most delicious (German) brunch where there's rarely a wait: Schmidt's - 2400 Folsom Street at 20th
Most delicious dim sum brunch where there will definitely be a wait: Hong Kong Lounge 2 - 3300 Geary Boulevard at Parker
Best new Oakland brunch: Sequoia Diner - 3719 MacArthur Blvd. Oakland
Best OG Oakland brunch with fried chicken and waffles: Brown Sugar Kitchen - 2534 Mandela Parkway, Oakland
"Adam's Bonanza" at Rye Project. Photo: Rye Project
Best fish-and-bagel hangover curing brunch: Rye Project - 180 7th Street between Natoma and Howard Streets
The Torija on Beso's brunch menu. Photo: Facebook
Best Spanish French toast brunch: Beso - 4058A 18th Street near Castro
Best all-occasion brunch with relatives: Zuni Cafe (don't miss the burger) - 1658 Market Street near Gough
Best downtown/SoMa brunch when you have friends at a hotel: Marlowe - 500 Brannan Street at 4th
The Square's Tots and Eggs, with hand-made oversized tater tots topped with Hollandaise and bacon. Photo: Instagram
Best tater tots and eggs to treat a hangover: The Square - 1707 Powell Street near Union
Photo: Facebook
Best burger brunch, Marina edition: Causwells - 2349 Chestnut between Divisadero and Scott
Best burger brunch with reservations: Nopa (the baked eggs and French toast are great too) - 560 Divisadero at Hayes
Best burger brunch, Oakland edition, with pork-y grits: Kronnerburger - 4063 Piedmont Avenue, Oakland
Foreign Cinema (Photo: Jennifer Yin)
Best birthday brunch with reservations, Mission edition - Foreign Cinema (don't miss the famed adult "pop tarts") - 2534 Mission Street at 21st Street
Best excuse for morning cocktails with a breakfast sandwich: ABV - 3174 16th Street
Crawfish beignets from Brenda's.
Best New Orleans-style brunch with beignets: Brenda’s French Soul Food - 652 Polk at Eddy
Best pulled pork hash and biscuit brunch this side of the Mississippi: Brenda's Meat & Three - 919 Divisadero Street near McAllister
Nutella Crepe from Sprig. Photo: Sprig
Best delivery brunch for when you're actually too hungover to leave the house: Sprig
Best new brunch, Cow Hollow edition: Belga - 2000 Union Street between Webster and Buchanan Streets
Best après-surf brunch: Outerlands - 4001 Judah Street between 45th and 46th Avenues
Best margarita brunch: Loló - 974 Valencia Street between 21st and Liberty Streets
Best brunch you can take your Bubbie to: Wise Sons Delicatessen - 3150 24th Street between Shotwell Street and South Van Ness Avenue
Best peak Valencia brunch: The Vestry (short on waits/lines in a neighborhood famous for them, and the food's good!) - 777 Valencia Street between 18th and 19th Streets
Best brunch if you correctly consider pizza to be a brunch food: Beretta 1199 Valencia Street between 22nd and 23rd Streets
Best boozy brunch with kimchee fried rice, Oakland edition: Hopscotch - 1915 San Pablo Avenue, Oakland
Photo via Facebook.
Best bottomless-mimosas-before-stumbling-to-Dolores-Park brunch: Radish - 3465 19th Street at Lexington Street
Best brunch for when all you really want is a Bloody Mary with bacon in it: Pop's Bar - 2800 24th Street at York Street
Best Bloody Mary brunch, waterfront edition: Waterbar (includes jumbo shrimp and bacon!) - 399 Embarcadero
Best casual Dogpatch brunch: Just For You Cafe - 732 22nd Street at 3rd Street
Photo via Flickr.
Best excuse to have a milkshake with brunch: St. Francis Fountain - 2801 24th Street at York Street
Best you're-feeling-energetic-because-you-went-to-bed-early-and-you-want-an-activity-while-you-brunch brunch: Mission Bowling Club - 3176 17th Street between South Van Ness Avenue and Shotwell Street
Marla Bakery's Baked Egg brunch dish: Eugene M./Yelp
Best bakery brunch, Outer Richmond edition: Marla Bakery - 3619 Balboa Street near 37th Avenue
Best see-and-be-seen North Beach brunch, with boozy milkshakes: Park Tavern - 1652 Stockton Street
Best see-and-be-seen brunch, Marina edition: Presidio Social Club - 563 Rutger Avenue
Crab fat congee with crispy pork, soft cooked egg, heirloom tomato and corn at 1760. Photo courtesy of 1760
Best new brunch with Filipino tendencies: 1760 - 1760 Polk Street at Washington
Best off-the-beaten-path bottomless mimosa brunch: The Corner Store - 5 Masonic Avenue
Best French brunch, 24th Street edition: Sous Beurre Kitchen - 2704 24th Street
Photo: Jay Barmann/SFist
Best Mexican brunch featuring churro doughnut holes: Hecho - 2200 Market Street at 15th/Sanchez
Best bacon walnut sticky bun brunch: Salumeria (formerly part of Central Kitchen's brunch, now more casual, starting this weekend) - 3000 20th Street at Florida
Best new, healthy, vegetarian brunch, Richmond edition: Nourish Cafe - 189 6th Avenue at California
Best old-school, diner-style, hangover brunch, Nopa edition: Eddie's Cafe - 800 Divisadero Street
Art does his thing. Photo: Ben M/Yelp
Best old-school, diner-style, hangover brunch, Inner Sunset edition: Art's Cafe - 747 Irving Street between 8th and 9th Avenues
Previously: The 10 Best Brunch Spots In San Francisco (and One In Oakland)