San Francisco’s Essential Cozy Locales

The warm, well-lit wooden walls at Liliana might make you think you’re inside a very chic cabin in Tahoe, but the wood-fired fare is why you’re there. Charred half chicken with smoked potato or a smokey, grilled grass-fed ribeye and a couple cocktails will do just the trick.

With all the woven rugs and plethora of potted plants, it feels like you’re dining inside someone’s home at Penny Roma, and they’re serving you up big pasta plates of creamy cacio e pepe and soul-satisfying ragu Bolognese.

Nothing’s cozier than a big bowl of noodle soup on a cold winter day, but even better are the ones found on Bodega’s happy hour menu: pho ga features shredded free range chicken, while the beef pho has rare filet mignon, brisket, and meatballs. There are vegan versions too.

Perch up at the horseshoe bar or grab a table in the charming backyard patio, and choose your meat and three sides. Chicken fried steak with country gravy, red beans and rice and collared greens and mashed potatoes is just one options, but the combinations are almost endless.

A big, two-liter Das Boot is probably the best way to end a long day at your desk in the FiDi. Maybe grab some schnitzel or spätzle or a some sausage sandwiches to help ensure you finish in one piece.

There’s nothing like dining under the dragon with loud music blasting in your ears. Mushroom mapo tofu, kung pao pastrami, and thrice-fried bacon with rice cakes are some classics to keep coming back to at Mission Chinese Food.

A long lingering meal at Heirloom Café, housed in an old Victorian home in the middle of the Mission is a wonderful way to pass your time. Grab a bottle or two, and cellar dive deep with wine director/co-owner Stephen Hallenbeck — the man is a walking wine encyclopedia.

The charming, intimate, and hospitable Gialina in Glen Park is a nice place to cozy up to literally any night of the week (they’re open seven days a week). A thin and crispy pie, a salad for the health, and a slice of cheesecake for dessert is just what the doctor ordered.

Grab a counter seat at Rintaro, and if you’re lucky you’ll be placed near the yakitori station where the grillmaster will char chicken skewers to perfection as you watch in awe. Add an oden set to the meal set or maybe mix in some handmade udon in a warm broth to finish.

We know this list is supposed to stick to the city, but the ramen from Chez Panisse alums at Ramen Shop features housemade noodles and bowls featuring some of the best produce in the bay, like matsutake mushrooms, cranberry beans, and blistered cherry tomatoes in the classic shoyu. Plus, there’s warm date sticky toffee pudding with house hoshigaki (!) and vanilla ice cream for dessert.