San Francisco is a food lovers dream city. Restaurants have mastered the art of making cuisines from all around the globe. There are also many signature dishes that were born in San Francisco. When visiting you should definitely try the items from the list below. Some of these foods are not found any where else in the world much less the United States of America.

1- Mission-Style Burritos

Created in the 1960s, The Misson-style burrito has become famous. This burrito is also known as the San Francisco burrito. No one is exactly sure how the burrito came to be. There are two theories. The first theory is that it was first served on September 26, 1961 at El Faro. The second theory is that it was first served on September 29, 1969 at Taqueria La Cumbre. Whichever is the correct one no one knows, we are just happy that it was invented. This burrito it much more than just a meat, rice and beans burrito. This burrito is super-sized and gets extra extra extra amounts of rice, vegetables, sour cream and cheese. It is then wrapped in a steamed tortilla, which helps keep the ingredients safely inside.

2- Cioppino

Cioppino is another dish that was created in San Francisco. Its roots are Italian-American. This dish was created in the late 1800s by fishermen who used the leftover seafood from their catch of the day. They were inspired by the ciuppin of Genoa. The dish often includes Dungeness crab, mussels, fish, shrimp, scallops, clams and squid. It is mixed with tomato sauce and wine and usually served with sourdough bread (another SF creation) or french bread.  Giuseppe Bazzuro created a restaurant out of an abandoned ship and was the first restaurant to serve this dish in the early 1850s.

3- Crab Louis/Louie

Many people believe that Crab Louie was first made in Spokane, Seattle or in Portland. This is not true. Crab Louis was created right here in San Francisco. Bergez-Frank’z Old Poodle served it in 1908. It then appeared in Victor Hertzler’s cookbook in 1910. He referred to it as Crabmeat à la Louis. This is an amazing salad that is mix of crab meat, salad dressing, tomatoes, asparagus, iceberg lettuce and hard-boiled eggs. It was also served at the Solaris in 1914. These days you can find this famous dish at Scoma’s, Swan Oyster Depot or Fog Harbor Fish House.

5- IT’S-IT Ice Cream Sandwiches 

The iconic IT’S-IT ice cream is known throughout San Francisco and the rest of the Bay Area. It is not as common in the rest of the United States, which is a shame.  George Whitney made the first IT’S IT ice cream in 1928. He put a scoop of vanilla ice cream in between two freshly baked oatmeal cookies. He then decided to make the already amazing dessert better by dunking the entire thing in dark chocolate. Is your mouth watering yet? Those who tried the ice cream piece of heaven declared it as “IT”, which is how it got its name. The dessert was served at Playland-at-the-Beach until it was closed in 1972. The operation was taken to SoMa where a small factory was opened to create the ice cream sandwiches. These days you can see the factory heading north on the  101 highway.

5- Joe’s Special 

Joe’s Special was created somewhere between the 1920’s and 1930’s. Late one night a customer came into Joe’s and was told that there was nothing in the fridge left except for mushrooms, spinach, ground beef and eggs. The customer was very hungry and told the chef to get creative and mix all the ingredients together. This became famous as the Joe’s Special. In 1937, a new branch of New Joe’s was created and named Original Joe’s. Both restaurants carry Joe’s special on the menu.

6- Green Goddess Dressing

Green Goddess Dressing first made its grand appearance in 1923 at the Palace Hotel. Chef Philip Roemer has to thank for this wonderful dressing that has taken the flavor of salad to a whole new level. It is named after the first British actor ever to win an Oscar, George Arliss and the play he won for, The Green Goddesss. This dressing is made from mayonnaise, chervil, chives, tarragon, garlic, lemon juice, pepper, and sour cream. It became mainstream in the 1970’s when Kraft started duplicating it and selling it in grocery stores.

7- Martini

The Martini was first made in the late 1800’s by Jerry Thomas in the Occidental Hotel.  A variation of the martini was made in 1890 at the Bohemian Club by Walter D.K.  Gibson. After these two men created the Martini there was a slight shift from the ingredients giving a dry vermouth and not a sweet taste.

8- Fortune Cookies

Who knew that the famous fortune cookies were actually first made in San Francisco and not China!It actually took a federal judge to determine the actual inventor of the fortune cookie. In a ruling in 1983 it was determined that Makoto Hagiwara was the inventor of the fortune cookie. This treat is made with flour, sugar, vanilla and oil is now synonymous with Chinese cuisine in the United States. Inside the cookie your good fortune is told on a tiny piece of paper.

9- Chicken Tetrazzini

Luisa Tetrazzini who was the inspiration for this dish, which was created in 1910. Chef Ernest Arbogast of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco created a casserole that had chicken, almonds, onions, celery, mushrooms,  and carrots. This was served on top of spaghetti with a creamy parmesan sauce. This dish of course has an Italian flare to it.

10- Hangtown Fry

The Hangtown Fry was originally created in the 1850’s in Placerville, California (aka Hangtown). One night in the El Dorado Hotel a miner who had just struck it rich requested the most expensive item on the menu. This resulted in a cuisine mixed with eggs, bacon that came from the east coast and fresh oysters which were from the sea water of the San Francisco bay. This meal cost $6, which was a lot of money at that time. This became a signature dish, which is still highly requested today.

11- Sourdough Bread

The Sourdough bread has roots to Egypt; however, it is most closely linked to San Francisco. During the gold rush, the Boudin Bakery by Isidore Boudin in 1849 first made the sourdough bread. It is a crusty, tangy bread that has become famous in the United States. The signature ingredients of flour, water, salt, yeast and lactobacillus cultures have come together to form this bread used for dipping in soups and holding sandwiches together. The mascot of the 49ers is even reffered to as “Sourdough Sam”