How we choose San Francisco's best businesses
The five steps behind every San Francisco 10 ranking: a citywide search, a lasting local following, facts checked first, real quality and reach across SF.
San Francisco is small on the map and big on choice. A good list here has to cover the whole city, from the Bayview to the Marina, and it has to stay current in a place where a favorite can disappear when its lease runs out. Here is how we build each one.
Casting a citywide net
We start by looking across all of San Francisco, not only the corridors that get written up. A family bakery in the Excelsior or a repair shop in the Bayview is weighed alongside the better-known names in the Mission, SoMa and Hayes Valley, and the avenues of the Richmond and Sunset get the same attention.
A following that lasts
We look for businesses whose good name with San Franciscans has endured: people who go back week after week, who send friends and who praise the same things over the years. Steady word of mouth in the neighborhood matters most to us. A burst of attention after a launch, on its own, does not earn a place.
Facts checked first
Before anything is published we confirm the essentials: that the business is open, its street address, a working phone line and its trading hours. Places that have closed, moved or that we cannot confirm are kept off the list until the picture is clear.
Quality where it counts
We consider what each kind of business is really for. A taquería is judged on its food and consistency, a mechanic on honest diagnosis and fair estimates, a clinic on care and access. Doing the essentials well, day in and day out, matters more than a stylish storefront.
Within reach across the city
When candidates are otherwise close, we favor variety across neighborhoods, so that most readers have a strong option within a short Muni ride or walk. The aim is a list that works for the whole city, not for a single zip code.
Staying current in a fast-changing city
Storefronts in San Francisco change hands often, so each ranking comes back for review on a regular cycle. Tell us about a closure, a move or a business that deserves a spot at info@sanfrancisco10.com, ideally with the neighborhood, and we will follow it up. Readers who walk these streets every day are often the first to notice that something has changed.