Barbecue$$DowntownSun-Thu 11:00-21:00; Fri-Sat 11:00-22:00
Firestone Grill is San Luis Obispo's tri-tip sandwich benchmark, carving oak-grilled beef onto garlic rolls since 1995 for a queue that snakes out the door.
Signature: Tri-tip sandwich
Order: The tri-tip sandwich on a garlic-butter roll, with a side of fries.
Tip: The line moves faster than it looks; order at the counter and grab a patio table on Higuera Street.
Italian$$$DowntownDaily 11:30-15:00, 16:30-21:30; Fri-Sat until 22:30
Giuseppe's Cucina Rustica serves farm-driven Italian cooking in San Luis Obispo's 1876 Sinsheimer building, with produce grown on its own Edna Valley farm.
Signature: Cioppino, Wood-fired pizza
Order: The cioppino, loaded with Central Coast seafood.
Tip: Since 1988 the kitchen has grown heirloom produce on the family farm; ask which vegetables came in that morning.
Italian$$$DowntownMon and Wed 16:00-21:00; Thu-Sat 16:00-21:30; Sun 16:00-21:00; Tue closed
Flour House bakes Pizza Napoletana and rolls fresh pasta in downtown San Luis Obispo, and 50 Top Pizza has ranked it among the top 50 pizzerias in the USA.
Signature: Pizza Napoletana, House-made pasta
Order: A blistered Neapolitan pizza from the copper-clad oven, then a house-made pasta.
Tip: Meter Monday puts a metre-long pizza on the table; bring three friends and split it.
Pizzeria$$DowntownTue-Sat 16:00-22:00; Sun 12:00-20:00; Mon closed
Bear & The Wren fires sourdough-edged pizzas in the Creamery Marketplace, a rebuilt 1906 dairy plant on the quieter west end of Higuera in San Luis Obispo.
Signature: Wood-fired pizza
Order: A wood-fired pie and whatever local can or draught is on rotation.
Tip: The Creamery courtyard connects to Buen Dia Coffee and Nite Creamery, so dessert is a ten-step walk.
Japanese$$$DowntownTue-Sat 11:30-13:30, 17:00-21:00; Sun-Mon closed
Izakaya Goshi has cut sushi in San Luis Obispo for decades from its Creamery room, and its Sushi Goshi counter at SLO Public Market flies in special fish.
Signature: Sushi, Sashimi
Order: The nigiri selection; the fish case moves quickly on weekend nights.
Tip: Lunch runs 11:30-13:30 only; arrive before noon for a seat at the small bar.
Mediterranean$$DowntownDaily 10:00-21:00
Petra Mediterranean Pizza & Grill bakes its own pita and carves gyro and shawarma on Higuera Street, a Diners Drive-Ins and Dives alum in San Luis Obispo.
Signature: Gyro, Chicken shawarma, Fresh pita
Order: The gyro wrapped in pita baked in-house that morning.
Tip: Happy hour runs 15:00-18:00 and all day Sunday; the second branch sits inside SLO Public Market.