An insider's guide to San Francisco's Mission District

Long known as the beating heart of the city's Latinx scene, the Mission has blossomed into a melting pot of cool. Loló co-owner Jorge Martinez Lillard shares his tips on where to go and what to do nearby.

Walk down 24th Street in San Francisco's Mission District and it's like you've entered another city: hole-in-the-wall taquerias compete for space with shops selling piñatas and Mexican lucha libre wrestling masks. Thought-provoking murals honouring local Latinx heritage decorate the sides of buildings and the narrow alleyways that shoot off the street.

While historically home to the city's Hispanic community, the last 20 years has brought big changes to the neighbourhood. Trendy bars now sit side-by-side with budget-friendly pupuserias, and the area's culinary scene includes French, Korean and Japanese offerings alongside an influx of upscale Mexican and Central American eateries. These include Loló, a family-owned restaurant serving up inventive plates of Jalisco-California-inspired cuisine in a vibrant setting of mismatched wallpaper, embroidered aprons and hanging car parts.

Along with business partner Juan Carlos Ruelas, Jorge Martinez Lillard and Lorena Zertuche are the husband-and-wife team behind Loló, which opened in 2007 as a homage to their Mexican roots. Loló originally occupied a smaller space on 22nd Street, but the couple relocated to a larger locale along Valencia Street—considered the Mission's food and nightlife hub – in 2014. "Our rent here is actually much cheaper," says Lillard, "because the landlord really wants to see Loló succeed and bring Latinx food back to Valencia" after decades of heavy gentrification.

While Lillard and Zertuche have succeeded in their culinary mission, they've also seen the Mission blossom into a breeding ground for innovative bars, third-wave coffee houses, James Beard-nominated restaurants and natural wine lounges. However, old-school taquerias still have lines out of the door, and roaming mariachi bands are par for the course around here.

Lillard tells the BBC about the couple's top neighbourhood hangouts and why you should experience them for yourself.

1. Best for Latinx food: La Taqueria

Lillard says that when it comes to no-nonsense, order-at-the-counter taquerias, he and Zertuche love La Taqueria, a Mission landmark that celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2023. In 2017, the James Beard Foundation honoured the eatery with an America's Classic Award for its bursting-at-the-seams burrito. Their rice-free combination (which keeps the line moving) of pinto beans, carne asada and toppings like salsa and guac served on a steamed flour tortilla is legendary. In fact, the place is generally considered the city's most iconic taqueria, easily identifiable by its Spanish Mission-like exterior and popular for its counter set up like an assembly line and cosy wooden tables.

Lillard's go-to is the lengua taco, which has juicy cuts of beef tongue served in warm tortillas with salsa, guacamole and sour cream. "It's the perfect soft and crispy combo – and an excellent hangover food," he says. Also popular: La Taqueria's not-so-secret word-of-mouth menu that includes burritos, meat and even quesadillas done dorado-style, meaning grilled until they're golden brown and crispy.

Address: 2889 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: +1 415 285 7117

Website: https://lataqueriasf.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lataqueriasf/

2. Best for a surreal SF experience: Royal Cuckoo Market

Filled with a collection of mismatched items – think 1960s-era lamps, deer antlers, salvaged church pews and flower-filled vases – all offset by the tiny establishment's dark maroon walls, Royal Cuckoo Market is like walking into an episode of the 1990s TV show, Twin Peaks. (Perhaps that's why it's been called the city's "most surreal bar".)

This narrow and darkened space is actually a liquor store with a mini bar, Horsies Saloon, tucked inside it. With only eight seats indoors and a few more scattered out front, the place can fill up fast, so Lillard says to come earlier in the day when it's easier to score a spot. "It's a great place to stop in for a few hours during the afternoon," he says. "Sit back with a bottle of natural wine and listen to music." In fact, the bar has its own organ and player, along with a selection of vinyl records that include everything from jazz to Europop.

Expect plenty of horse-related kitsch and framed artwork – the kind you might find at a thrift store – throughout, along with wooden bookshelves filled with bottles of wine and glass fridges for chilled beverages (it's still a shop, after all).

Address: 3368 19th St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: +1 415 550 6903

Website: http://www.royalcuckoomarket.com/

3. Best for food and a show: Foreign Cinema

Opened in 1999, this industrial-chic eatery quickly earned a reputation for its delicious California-Mediterranean cuisine, especially during weekend brunch hours. Over the last two-plus decades Foreign Cinema has become a Mission District landmark, earning its spot as a San Francisco Chronicle "Top 100 Restaurant" for 20 consecutive years and the recipient of several James Beard nominations. In fact, Foreign Cinema was an early frontrunner in the neighbourhood's upscale dining scene and remains one of its top culinary contenders.

Dishes run the gamut from savoury risotto brimming with mushrooms, basil and toasted hazelnuts to a four-peppercorn duck breast served with fried lentils and Castelfranco (a type of mild radicchio) salad, with an ample selection of raw oysters, shellfish and caviar. "I'm partial to the Champagne omelette with truffles," says Lillard, describing the French-inspired dish that incorporates herbs and raclette cheese and comes with a side of Yukon gold potatoes. His other daytime craving: the restaurant's flaky, fruit-filled pop tart pastries, with flavours like Maui pineapple and Sumo mandarin.

At night, the restaurant projects old movies, ranging from the 1927 award-winning silent classic Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans to Lawrence of Arabia onto its patio wall, while strewn white lights provide additional ambiance.

Address: 2534 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: +1 415 648 7600

Website: http://foreigncinema.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/foreigncinemasf/?hl=en

4. Best for wine and bites: Buddy Bar

There's a lot happening at Buddy Bar, a small, perennially packed place where the music is loud and the energy is buzzing. Opened in late 2021 by a team of local industry veterans, it's one of the Mission's most stylish wine bars – a compact space pouring a limited selection of natural wines, beer and low ABV cocktails like the no-nonsense Vermouth on a Rock and house Campari soda.

But let's just cut to the chase. "The food here is fantastic," says Lillard, "and they change the menu pretty frequently." The offerings, which include roasted trumpet mushrooms with creamy feta and sweet truffle honey and fried mortadella sandwiches, are limited to snackable eats, though they're all artfully presented and prepared right behind the bar while you imbibe. It's like a one-stop-shop for comfort.

While there's seating out front, Lillard and Zertuche prefer heading indoors for the design, which includes a chequered floor and banquette seating, along with a sound system of vinyl records ranging from jazz to electronic.

Address: 3115 22nd St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Website: https://www.buddythebar.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buddythebar/?hl=en

5. Best cafe for coffee lovers: Grand Coffee

Adjacent to the renovated Grand Theater building (where it gets its name) on Mission Street, Grand Coffee is a self-described "stoop of the neighbourhood" – a local gathering spot for everyone from artists to tech workers to travellers. They also roast their own beans.

"It's a tiny place with only six or so seats, all focused around the barista," says Lillard. "You can watch them do all their work and their tricks as you sip your coffee."  Still, it's the communal energy that really keeps this place going. That and their penchant for pour-over coffee, a brewing style that involves pouring hot water over coffee grounds slowly and matter-of-factly, bringing out a plethora of flavours and aromas in the process.

While Grand Coffee specialises in flavourful third-wave brews, Lillard's personal preference is their almond milk latte. "It's above all other coffees in the city," he says.

Address: 2663 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Phone: +1 415 656 6422

Website: https://www.grandcoffeesf.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grandcoffee/?hl=en

6. Best for a bar within a bar: Dalva

For years, Dalva was one of the Mission's most beloved watering holes: a neighbourhood bar that attracted hard drinkers and weekend guzzlers alike. But nearly two years after the establishment closed due to the pandemic, it reopened in 2022 with an entirely new look and attitude.

Gone is the taxidermy of mountain animals known to those who've frequented the bar since its original 1993 opening, though the Art Deco back bar remains. If it's something a little more divey you're after, Dalva's "bar-within-a-bar", Hideout, is still tucked away in the back, and for those looking for a way of turning an evening into an event, this is the perfect spot."Dalva is a great place to go before dinner while you're waiting for your table – or even after," says Lillard. "They have a really good cocktail programme." He's talking about drinks like Friend of the Devil, a mix of rye, chocolate stout and amaro; or the French Exit highball made with Calvados and coconut chartreuse.

Address: 3121 16th St, San Francisco, CA 94110

Website: https://www.dalvasf.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dalva_thehideout/?hl=en

BBC Travel's The SpeciaList is a series of guides to popular and emerging destinations around the world, as seen through the eyes of local experts and tastemakers.

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