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Devil’s Teeth Baking Company is the Outer Sunset’s favorite sandwich. What about the rest of the city?
Devil’s Teeth Baking Company

11 Outstanding Breakfast Sandwiches in San Francisco

There's nothing like a standout BEC

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Devil’s Teeth Baking Company is the Outer Sunset’s favorite sandwich. What about the rest of the city?
| Devil’s Teeth Baking Company

When it comes to grabbable, sumptuous, on-the-move dishes, there are more than just great burritos in San Francisco. While the East Coast may have the most well-known BECs in the game, there are still breakfast sandwiches in San Francisco that make both locals and tourists swoon. On the west side, there’s powerhouse Devil’s Teeth Baking Company, on the east side NYC-style Newkirk’s, and in the dead center the plant-based newcomer Rad Radish. Here are the finest 11 breakfast sandwiches in the city for each cardinal direction and everything in between.

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Causwells

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This Marina bar and restaurant may be well-loved for inventive bartender Elmer Mejicanos’ drinks and its heaving burger, but the breakfast sandwich can’t be knocked. For $14 the upscale rendition comes on a house-made pretzel bun stacked with scrambled eggs, bacon, and Wisconsin cheddar. There are only 22 made each day, if that says anything of the raw seductive power of this sammie.

Where better to go for a breakfast sandwich than a breakfast sandwich specialist? This Tenderloin burger joint has a whole menu of breakfast sandwiches, and they’re available all day. Connoisseurs may want to eat their way through the entire list, but it’s hard to go wrong with the gut-busting Brekkie, which features scrambled eggs, a pork sausage patty, cheddar, smashed tater tots, caramelized onions, and jalapeño relish on a brioche bun. Still hungry? Get a side of unsmashed tots for good measure.

A vegetarian breakfast sandwich with tater tots. Lauren Saria

Breadbelly

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Is there anything this new-school Asian-American bakery in the Richmond doesn’t do well? In addition to its iconic bright-green kaya toast and its ever-changing lineup of cakes and pastries, Breadbelly also finds the time to put out a pretty damn good breakfast sandwich: a medium fried egg, smoked ham, gruyere, sweet and sour kale, and fermented chile paste — all piled onto a soft housemade “bun-wich.”

Lou's Cafe

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This beloved Richmond District sandwich shop is probably best known for its selection of huge, picnic-friendly deli sandwiches, making it a popular stop for folks headed out for a day at the beach. But breakfast sandwiches — like the corned beef hash sammie — also have a big cult following, in part because they’re such a carb lover’s delight: They all come topped with hash brown patties, as well as a smear of Lou’s “special sauce” for a little bit of a kick.

Rad Radish

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Hayes Valley newest all day vegan cafe is home to a proper plant-based breakfast sandwich. For just $8 the Just Egg-stuffed sandwich comes with “American cheese” and garlic aioli. For $3, throw on tempeh bacon or Beyond Meat sausage.

Sandwich.
Breakfast sandwich at Rad Radish.
Rad Radish

Kahnfections

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An incredibly buttery biscuit from baker Judy Kahn makes the ideal breakfast sandwich bun. Sure, her 20th Street bakery/cafe draws fans for cakes and macarons, but these are her most dangerous daily delight. It’s egg, avocado, and optional ham and cheddar between fresh daily biscuits. Try it with the bacon-cheddar-scallion biscuit for maximum oomph.

Biscuit sandwich from Kahnfections Kahnfections

Newkirk's

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Within the constellation of fancy breakfast sandwiches tricked out with sous vide eggs and microgreens (not that there’s anything wrong with that), this New York-style breakfast sandwich joint across from SF General is something a breath of fresh air with its relatively straightforward and affordable takes. The classic BEC (crispy bacon, an egg fried over-medium, and cheese) is the thing to get — unless you’re feeling especially decadent, in which case the Horse on the Roof, a kind of breakfast cheesesteak, will get the job done.

Breakfast Little

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This Mission District relative newcomer is well-loved for its breakfast burritos, but only a fool would miss the $7.99 breakfast sandwich. The sammie here is done in classic East Coast-style, meaning just egg, bacon or sausage, cheese, and garlic aioli on a pan de sal roll.

Devil's Teeth Baking Company

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There’s the breakfast sandwich at Devil’s Teeth, and then there’s the special breakfast sandwich. The latter comes with two scrambled eggs, pepper jack cheese, applewood-smoked bacon, avocado, and lemon-garlic aioli on a house-made buttermilk biscuit. So special, especially considering the fact you can eat it on the beach.

Tortas Los Picudos

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There might not be such a thing as a torta that wouldn’t make a good breakfast, especially when the sandwiches are as skillfully constructed as they are at this Mission District mainstay. But Los Picudos’ ham, chorizo, and egg torta is a particular morning delight, crammed full, as it is, with a chorizo-and-egg scramble, ham, and a generous portion of sliced avocado and crema for a maximally rich and creamy experience. Pro tip: You can ask for an egg to be added to any torta on the menu.

Black Jet Baking Co.

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Baker-owner Gillian Shaw’s Bernal Heights bakery might be better known for its old-fashioned cakes, pies, and pop tarts but her breakfast sandwich, the “Pat Greany,” has a devoted following all its own: ham (or spinach), scrambled egg, and wonderfully melty cheddar cheese on one of the bakery’s good bulkie rolls.

The Pat Greany breakfast sandwich Black Jet Baking Co.

Causwells

This Marina bar and restaurant may be well-loved for inventive bartender Elmer Mejicanos’ drinks and its heaving burger, but the breakfast sandwich can’t be knocked. For $14 the upscale rendition comes on a house-made pretzel bun stacked with scrambled eggs, bacon, and Wisconsin cheddar. There are only 22 made each day, if that says anything of the raw seductive power of this sammie.

Bandit

Where better to go for a breakfast sandwich than a breakfast sandwich specialist? This Tenderloin burger joint has a whole menu of breakfast sandwiches, and they’re available all day. Connoisseurs may want to eat their way through the entire list, but it’s hard to go wrong with the gut-busting Brekkie, which features scrambled eggs, a pork sausage patty, cheddar, smashed tater tots, caramelized onions, and jalapeño relish on a brioche bun. Still hungry? Get a side of unsmashed tots for good measure.

A vegetarian breakfast sandwich with tater tots. Lauren Saria

Breadbelly

Is there anything this new-school Asian-American bakery in the Richmond doesn’t do well? In addition to its iconic bright-green kaya toast and its ever-changing lineup of cakes and pastries, Breadbelly also finds the time to put out a pretty damn good breakfast sandwich: a medium fried egg, smoked ham, gruyere, sweet and sour kale, and fermented chile paste — all piled onto a soft housemade “bun-wich.”

Lou's Cafe

This beloved Richmond District sandwich shop is probably best known for its selection of huge, picnic-friendly deli sandwiches, making it a popular stop for folks headed out for a day at the beach. But breakfast sandwiches — like the corned beef hash sammie — also have a big cult following, in part because they’re such a carb lover’s delight: They all come topped with hash brown patties, as well as a smear of Lou’s “special sauce” for a little bit of a kick.

Rad Radish

Hayes Valley newest all day vegan cafe is home to a proper plant-based breakfast sandwich. For just $8 the Just Egg-stuffed sandwich comes with “American cheese” and garlic aioli. For $3, throw on tempeh bacon or Beyond Meat sausage.

Sandwich.
Breakfast sandwich at Rad Radish.
Rad Radish

Kahnfections

An incredibly buttery biscuit from baker Judy Kahn makes the ideal breakfast sandwich bun. Sure, her 20th Street bakery/cafe draws fans for cakes and macarons, but these are her most dangerous daily delight. It’s egg, avocado, and optional ham and cheddar between fresh daily biscuits. Try it with the bacon-cheddar-scallion biscuit for maximum oomph.

Biscuit sandwich from Kahnfections Kahnfections

Newkirk's

Within the constellation of fancy breakfast sandwiches tricked out with sous vide eggs and microgreens (not that there’s anything wrong with that), this New York-style breakfast sandwich joint across from SF General is something a breath of fresh air with its relatively straightforward and affordable takes. The classic BEC (crispy bacon, an egg fried over-medium, and cheese) is the thing to get — unless you’re feeling especially decadent, in which case the Horse on the Roof, a kind of breakfast cheesesteak, will get the job done.

Breakfast Little

This Mission District relative newcomer is well-loved for its breakfast burritos, but only a fool would miss the $7.99 breakfast sandwich. The sammie here is done in classic East Coast-style, meaning just egg, bacon or sausage, cheese, and garlic aioli on a pan de sal roll.

Devil's Teeth Baking Company

There’s the breakfast sandwich at Devil’s Teeth, and then there’s the special breakfast sandwich. The latter comes with two scrambled eggs, pepper jack cheese, applewood-smoked bacon, avocado, and lemon-garlic aioli on a house-made buttermilk biscuit. So special, especially considering the fact you can eat it on the beach.

Tortas Los Picudos

There might not be such a thing as a torta that wouldn’t make a good breakfast, especially when the sandwiches are as skillfully constructed as they are at this Mission District mainstay. But Los Picudos’ ham, chorizo, and egg torta is a particular morning delight, crammed full, as it is, with a chorizo-and-egg scramble, ham, and a generous portion of sliced avocado and crema for a maximally rich and creamy experience. Pro tip: You can ask for an egg to be added to any torta on the menu.

Black Jet Baking Co.

Baker-owner Gillian Shaw’s Bernal Heights bakery might be better known for its old-fashioned cakes, pies, and pop tarts but her breakfast sandwich, the “Pat Greany,” has a devoted following all its own: ham (or spinach), scrambled egg, and wonderfully melty cheddar cheese on one of the bakery’s good bulkie rolls.

The Pat Greany breakfast sandwich Black Jet Baking Co.

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