Best Seafood Restaurant in San Francisco

Warren Simmons had a dream to create a place for people from all over the globe to gather, mingle and visit with the locals. Warren turned his dream into a reality when he conceptualized and created the famous landmark: PIER 39. Warren brought in his son Scooter to manage and operate his restaurant ventures on the PIER. In the late 80’s Warren, Scooter and Scooter’s wife, Nancy, created and launched the enormously successful Chevys® Fresh Mex concept. Chevys grew to include thirty-seven locations before the family sold it to PepsiCo. Today, over 40 years later, Warren’s son, Scooter, and his family continue to own and operate the most successful restaurants on Fisherman’s Wharf, including Pier Market Seafood Restaurant, Fog Harbor Fish House, Wipeout Bar & Grill, Eagle Cafe, Crab House and Biscoff Coffee Corner website. The Simmons remain active in the family business and the community they have been of a part of for over a quarter of a century.

Executive Chef Adolfo Soto has been with Simco Restaurants since 1996. Adolfo started his career with Real Restaurants as a line cook for Fog City Diner. During his six-year tenure with them, he worked at some of the most well-known Bay Area restaurants, including Bix, Bistro Roti and Buckeye Roadhouse. Adolfo started with us at Pier Market Restaurant, then moved over to Dante’s Restaurant where he served as head chef for 3 years. In 2001, Simco Restaurants purchased Chic’s Seafood, and Adolfo was promoted to executive chef, his dream come true. After a complete renovation, Chic’s was transformed into what is now known as Fog Harbor Fish House.

Looking for the best seafood in San Francisco? You’ve come to the right place! We are Fog Harbor Fish House after all. At Fog Harbor we are proud to serve only sustainable seafood. In fact, we were the first of Fisherman’s Wharf restaurants to serve 100% sustainable seafood back in 2012. We care about our oceans and we want to do our part to serve seafood that we can feel good about to help the ocean thrive, prosper, and continue to grow. We are proud to maintain our high standards of serving the best seafood in San Francisco while also upholding our pledge to serve sustainable seafood.

For those who are trying to choose which of the best seafood restaurants in San Francisco in which to dine at – here are a few things that set the best restaurants apart from other seafood restaurants in San Francisco.  Being on the coast, there are certain seasons for seafood San Francisco is famous for having certain types of seafood by season. The most famous of all is Dungeness crab season which opens in November and lasts until about March depending on how that season is going with whales and certain spawning that can happen in the nearby waters. Another popular local seafood is halibut which comes into season from April through August. There is of course the ever-popular Salmon that can be caught and served most often from May through October. If you are starting to plan your seafood restaurant visits based on season, we fully support your thinking. Just look for seafood restaurants in San Francisco that talk about serving fresh local seafood and change their menus seasonally to reflect the best fish available.

Another thing to look for when choosing the best seafood in San Francisco is the variety of dishes and the cooking techniques. For a true San Francisco seafood experience you will likely want to try famous San Francisco-style seafood like clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl, Dungeness crab, and seafood cioppino. To really taste the best seafood in San Francisco you’ll also want to order dishes that are simply prepared so you can actually taste the freshness and the flavor of the seafood itself. For instance, a fresh piece of salmon simply grilled with minimal sauce will allow you to appreciate the seafood San Francisco has to offer more than if it is deep fried.

The best seafood in San Francisco can be found at restaurants that receive fresh fish deliveries daily and cut that whole fish into portions before cooking them masterfully and serving them soon thereafter right to your table. Many of these eaters can be found in the PIER 39 restaurants as they are right on the water and know their guests value local fresh seafood. Of the well-known PIER 39 San Francisco restaurants, Fog Harbor Fish House, Pier Market Seafood Restaurant, and Crab House receive and cut fresh fish deliveries daily. 

If you are planning to cook the best seafood in San Francisco at home and impress your family and guests you have a few options to choose from. Depending on the season, the local farmer’s markets often have the freshest and most delicious seafood available. It also feels great to get to speak with the fishermen that caught the seafood themselves as well as support their hard work with the cost going straight to them instead of a middle-man markup. There is a famous large farmer’s market at the San Francisco ferry building every Saturday morning that we highly recommend while enjoying the local fruits, vegetables, pastries, and the waterfront as well. Another good option is to look for community-supported fisheries that allow you to sign up for a subscription service to have local fresh fish delivered to your door. Perhaps the most exciting option is to buy fish straight off the boat like the San Francisco pier restaurants do.  In Fisherman’s Wharf, you can buy live crabs right out of the tank as well as shrimp, scallops, and lobster tails. There are even fishing boats you can go out on and catch the seafood yourself.

What better way to enjoy the best seafood in San Francisco than to enjoy it while overlooking San Francisco’s most iconic landmarks – the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. To accomplish this enticing activity, we recommend the Fisherman’s Wharf San Francisco restaurants serving fresh seafood while overlooking the San Francisco Bay. There are many PIER 39 restaurants as well as restaurants near PIER 39 that give you the complete experience.

Just remember to use our tips of searching for restaurants that offer seafood that is local, seasonal, delivered fresh daily, and mentions or shows photos of the iconic Bay views. Then, it’s always a good idea to cross-reference your findings with review sites to help you narrow in on the restaurants that consistently offer the best food, views, and overall guest experience to make sure that you truly get the experience you deserve. 

We are committed to the preservation of the ocean and its fisheries. Fog Harbor is proud to be the first restaurant on Fisherman’s Wharf to offer a 100% sustainable seafood menu and proud to be a Platinum Sustainable Seafood Alliance partner based on recommendations from Aquarium of the Bay.