"There’s controlled chaos at Sotto Mare. The Italian seafood spot in the heart of North Beach is the rowdier, louder cousin of Scoma’s down on Fisherman’s Wharf. There are life-sized swordfish on the wall, orders flying across the kitchen on a clothesline, and as many tourists as there are locals tying on plastic bibs. You’ll need one, too, for the seemingly bottomless vats of cioppino and plates of good old-fashioned linguine with clams." - julia chen 1, patrick wong