48 Hills and the Bay Guardian are proud to present the 52nd Annual Best of the Bay! Thousands of our readers voted, telling us who they think deserved to be called “best” in dozens of categories like Best Burrito, Best Drag Show, Best Bookstore, Best Street Fair, Best Date Restaurant, Best Bike Shop, Best Dive Bar…. No matter how much the city changes, there are still beautiful civic treasures to be found.
You can find the results in four sections below, with our extra-special Editors’ Picks published here (with more to come throughout the year, we can’t stop!). Join us to celebrate the winners at our 13th Annual 48 Hills Gala + Best of the Bay Winners Party on October 27 at the fabulous El Rio!
As the Bay Area’s daily, independent, nonprofit, community-funded news + arts site, we need your help to keep this tradition alive and continue serving this great community. Please become a sustaining member here to help our work continue. Also please consider advertising with us—we can’t do this without you!
BEST OF THE BAY 2026 READERS’ POLL WINNERS:
CITY LIVING
Best Street Fair, Best Salon, Best Bike Repair, Best Podcast, Best Tour, Best Gym, more
FOOD & DRINK
Best Burrito, Best Best Pizza, Best Brunch, Best Date Restaurant, Best Sports Bar, more
ARTS & NIGHTLIFE
Best Nightclub, Best Art Gallery, Best Drag Show, Best Live Venue, Best Dance Club, more
SHOPPING
Best Bookstore, Best Bike Shop, Best Cannabis Dispensary, Best Shoe Store, more
See last year’s winners here.
Special thanks: This is my 20th time editing this institution, and I could not do it without Aaron Joseph/ Identafire (designer), Caitlin Donohue (editor at large), my partner in crime Tim Redmond, all our fabulous writers, hubby Hunky Beau, and of course the thousands of you who voted. You are all the Best!
