San Francisco coffee recommendations

February 16, 2025

I recently went to San Francisco for a business trip. I was busy the three full days I was there, so I got to explore in the mornings and the evenings. That didn’t stop me from trying to drink coffee.

I tried four cafes:

  1. Scullery (cortado, matcha latte, avocado toast)
  2. Sightglass (Mexico V60, matcha latte, morning bun)
  3. The Coffee Movement (Prodigal Colombia tasting flight)
  4. Saint Frank Coffee (cappuccino)

That isn’t all that were on the shortlist. I tried very hard to get a list of best cafes in San Francisco. There are a ton and it is quite easy to get a great cup of coffee. I found it hard to find descriptions of what the style of different cafes was online. I tried very hard to find third wave cafes with transparent sourcing and high quality single origins. All the ones I have listed should fit those criteria.

Cafes I could not make it to that I considered:

I considered going to Blue Bottle, but skipped it in favor of The Coffee Movement because I read online that they’re mainstream now. Next time I’ll try Blue Bottle.

Scullery

Scullery was a small, cute cafe. The majority of the space was behind the register area. I thought it had a nice vibe, and I loved the outdoor benches that faced the street. The cortado did exactly what it should have done. They don't seem to be a multi-roaster anymore, which is a little sad, because them being a multiroaster was part of the draw that brought me there. I think cafes that transition into roasting their own beans sometimes struggle to have unique coffees, and I think this was the case here. I am not entirely sure if roasting coffee beans and brewing coffee are related activities. Yes, they both require you to know what tasty coffee is. I think that the draw of a multi-roaster cafe is that they supposedly just focus on the brewing of the coffee. I think the house beans (single origin, but not single estate) just didn't impress me.

That being said, their avocado toast was exceptional.  

Sightglass

I went to the Sightglass roastery in SoMa, which is a huge, airy space where the roasting is happening live. I had never seen actual coffee roasting happening before, so this was a treat. That being said, I had other issues with the cafe. For some reason, the employees were all quite sad and did not seem up to have any conversation. I noticed this at many establishments I went to, but I guess being a tourist is not interesting in San Francisco. But I did not feel this way at all in New York, which is an interesting contrast. 

They had a few options on V60. They did not have all their online options there. I was particularly interested in the Finca San Luis they had online, so I was sad not to see it in the cafe. 

My wife ordered a matcha latte, and she said it was fantastic. I don't know why they served it in a to-go cup. We explicitly said our order was for here. 

The Coffee Movement

I thought this cafe was pretentious. I went to the Chinatown location. If you are approaching the cafe from Chinatown, you walk by their whole other cafe that serves as a break room/event space. When you get to the cafe, you need to line up outside (which seemed very common in SF, perhaps a law) and then you must stand outside. The tasting flight was $8, but since I opted for a fancier roast, it went up to $11! I had previously tried the DAK roast in the center (see my thoughts), so I knew I wouldn't prefer it. 


All that being said, I loved the idea of a tasting flight. One coffee brewed three ways, or three coffees brewed one way. I picked one coffee brewed three ways. The espresso was fantastic. If you are looking for good espresso, it can be found here. I don't like light roasts under milk, and the pour over cup was great. The view from this cafe is really special. 

Saint Frank Coffee

This cappuccino did the job it was meant to do. I definitely prefer a chocolatier coffee under milk, so this was not what I would have preferred in a cappucino, which was okay. I was also having this cappuccino to-go at 6 PM. They closed at 6, but still served me at 5:58 PM! I thought it was very reminiscent of a cappuccino I might have at Hyperion, which is good. 

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