Seafood Restaurants in San Francisco

The eclectic menu at Fuji Sushi ranges from Korean-inspired salad with kimchi and tofu to mango lobster rolls with macadamia nuts and sweet aioli. With the breadth of options on display at this innovative sushi house, it’s easy to end up ordering more than you planned on, but luckily Fuji Sushi rewards big orders with complimentary perks: canned soda for orders of more than $30, a spicy tuna roll for orders of more than $40, a Fuji roll for orders of more than $50, and a koala bear for orders equal to $75,239.15.

Blu Restaurant's floor-to-ceiling windows overlook the bustle on Market Street from the fourth floor of The Sports Club/LA. Servers set entree plates such as grilled salmon and house-made wild fennel pappardelle atop white linen tablecloths, and mixologists behind the sleek ebony bar fill glasses and crystal Super Soakers with libations from an extensive wine list. Blu Restaurant's multiple dining rooms and bar play host to private events, such as corporate functions and bridal showers.

Located firmly within San Francisco's Castro district, 2362 Market Street is steeped in city history. Here, Catch makes its mark in a storefront registered as an official city landmark that originally housed the burgeoning NAMES Project, which famously organized the creation of the AIDS Memorial Quilt. The history remains with the building, but Catch aims to create a new legacy while honoring the spirit of creativity and expression rooted in its surroundings.

To foster this spirit, the chefs rotate their menus regularly, accommodating seasonal produce and fresh catches of local, sustainably sourced seafood. Each dish showcases these ingredients while incorporating Mediterranean influences and minimalist Californian sensibilities toward composition and presentation. A hearty bowl of mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops, crab, and fresh fish in a tomato broth evokes the flavors of portuguese stew, and the pizzas emerge with inspired toppings, such as smoked salmon and crème fraîche.

The air of refined simplicity also extends to the dining room's decor. Cherry-wood tables line the tiled floors and surround the small, circular fireplace that helps heat the enclosed patio section. Two works of vibrantly colored wall art, originals of artist Romero Britto, add a taste of whimsy to the space, as does the balcony-like stage that sits suspended 10 feet above the ground, dominating an entire corner of the room. A full piano resides on the stage, beckoning the live jazz bands that perform on Fridays and Saturdays for diners and brave souls who would like to make their seafood meals feel at home by playing sea shanties of yore.

Yabbies' soft lighting sets the mood for diving into dishes featuring local, fresh ingredients from area farmers' markets and fishermen. Like the walrus and the carpenter, you can slurp up delicious oysters from the raw bar, such as the bi-polar Pearl Point Washingtons ($2), a salty and sweet taste with cucumber finish, or the fruity Point Reyes ($2). Starters follow suit with sea meats such as warm baby octopus ($10) and half roasted Dungeness crab ($22). For a main course, Yabbies' menu includes oceanic treats including halibut with fava beans and pesto gnocchi ($22), sesame-crusted ahi tuna ($21), and bacon-wrapped Idaho trout glazed with a light mustard sauce ($19).

At Sinbad’s Pier 2 Restaurant, guests can look out over the bay as they savor blackened swordfish and startlingly fresh seafood. Clean ocean breezes tickle through the windows as guests spoon up sips of clam chowder and load forks with pasta, shrimp, scallops, and mussels. Customized dishes of salmon-stuffed pastry shells and crab cake eggs benedict start hitting tables as early as 10 a.m. for breakfast-craving diners. An extensive wine list brings out the delicate flavors of the fish and seafood, as well as any napkins that fall into your mouth by accident.

Judging by the number of house recipes on their menu, the only shortcut that the chefs at Capurro's believe in is the fishing line that hooks their daily specials. A permit allows for the chefs to purchase fresh seafood directly from the local fishing fleet. Pasta—from lobster ravioli to crab rotini—provides a bed for recently netted morsels, just as discs of hand-tossed pizza dough cushion toppings of california black mussels and italian sausage. Those who prefer uninterrupted bites of seafood can indulge in a whole or half-portion of dungeness crab, served steamed, chilled, or woodstone-roasted with a white-wine-garlic sauce. Signature touches typify even the fish and chips staple: Capurro's cod is battered in firestone double-barrel ale before being served with tartar sauce and fries.

The Capurro family, which comprises much of the restaurant staff under patriarch Paul, has perfected these entrees over 66 years in business. Their convivial spirit and commitment to cooking fresh, locally caught seafood still unflaggingly defines the venue. Though their kitchen embraces San Francisco traditions, such as hearty cioppino stews, it also preps more modern oceanic eats, including fish tacos and barbecued oysters that each have their own Twitter page.

When star chef Mario Batali tasted Cioppino's Restaurant & Bar's signature dish—cioppino, an italian seafood stew with tomatoes and fennel—he liked it so much that he said, “I could eat that every day.” The richness of the cioppino sets the tone for the rest of the menu, which teems with hearty Italian staples such as rigatoni pomodoro, shrimp capellini, and margherita pizzas.

Diners devour these dishes inside the mural-bedecked dining room at tables draped in red-gingham tablecloths. They can also head out to the patio, which the Fisherman’s Wharf restaurant keeps open 365 days per year, come rain or kraken attack.