Best Food Shops in the Bay

Every year, (for 16 years if you can believe it!), I’ve visited all the best new food shops in the Bay and penned the “Bites by the Bay” column including my favorite picks for “Specialty Food” magazine.  Locals know (as do the Fancy Food Show visitors), that we have a vibrant and influential culinary retail scene.  Over the past few years, the shear number of new spots have been so numerous, it’s been brutal to pare down to nine or ten worthy contenders. Some of the notables spots I’ve featured over the years include Birite market (when it first opened in 1997), Tomales Bay Foods, the Ferry Building Marketplace, Blue Bottle Coffee, Smitten Ice Cream and Oxbow Market. I think the lists hold up well, barring a few closures — but see if you agree.

For 2013, there’s nine new shops — which I’ve listed below, along with lists from the previous three years.  The full story I wrote for 2013 linked here, so you’ll get all the details of what to try, and the background of each pick!  I’d love to hear your recommendations for inclusions for next year — just post your thoughts in the comments. /Happy eating trails, from Laiko, a glutton for food shops.

2013 Stores

Craftsman and Wolves
746 Valencia St., San Francisco
craftsman-wolves.com

Dandelion Chocolate
740 Valencia St., San Francisco
dandelionchocolate.com

Gourmet & More
141 Gough St., San Francisco

Hayes Valley Bakeworks
550 Gough St., San Francisco
bakeworkssf.com

Nosa Ria Market
500 Laguna St., San Francisco
nosaria.com

Oaktown Spice Shop
530 Grand Ave., Oakland
oaktownspiceshop.com

Salumeria
3000 20th St., San Francisco
salumeriasf.com

Temescal Alley
470G 49th St., Oakland

Umami Mart
815 Broadway, Oakland
umamimart.com

The 2010 Stores

Blue Bottle Coffee
66 Mint St. (at Jessie St.), San Francisco
bluebottlecoffee.net
Other locations: Ferry Building Marketplace, 
Hayes Valley Kiosk at Linden St., SF MOMA Rooftop Garden, 300 Webster St., Oakland.

Cultured Organic Pickle Shop
800 Bancroft Way, Ste. 105, Berkeley
culturedpickleshop.com


Falletti Foods and Delissio
303 Broderick St. (at Fell St.), San Francisco
fallettifoods.com and delissio.net

Fraîche
1910 Fillmore St. (at Wilmot St.), San Francisco
fraicheyogurt.com
Other locations: 644 Emerson and 458 Lagunta Dr. at the Stanford Campus, Palo Alto

Her Majesty’s Secret Beekeeper Honey Shop (since closed)

Humphry Slocombe Ice Cream Parlor
2790 Harrison St. (at 24th St.), San Francisco
humphryslocombe.com