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In our minds, New England always would win a seafoord challenge over the rest of the country.

And sure, trendy dishes often start on the West Coast, but Boston and New York chefs are still the best, right?

It didn’t take long to find California’s reputation for fantastic food is well earned.

San Francisco

• Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf are packed with shops and restaurants that cater to the throngs of tourists. We didn’t expect to find a gem on Pier 39, but one great pearl in a sea of food choices is Fog Harbor Fish House.

It is a 100 percent sustainable seafood restaurant serving up fantastic Northern California fish and chowder that rivals New England’s. These guys serve dungeness crab several ways. Seabass and sole are caught not far outside your window. And don’t forget to try the cioppino.

The winelist is phenomenal. Ask your server for some guidance. They know what they are doing.

• Step into John’s Grill at 63 Ellis Street and you can just imagine Sam Spade ordering his lamb chops in one of the high-back booths of this legendary steak house while taking a break from his search for the Maltese Falcon. His creator, author Dashiell Hammett, frequented the place back in the day.

The salads are also incredible, and another local legend (and healthnut) gets namechecked: Jack LaLanne’s Favorite Salad.

The fresh seafood (oysters Wellington were a huge hit) and pasta dishes (ravioli primavera and linguine with fresh clams) will try to tempt you away from the juicy rib eye or prime porterhouse steaks. The cocktails can’t be beat.

A Maltese Falcon statuette is on display on the second floor of the three-story Union Square landmark.

• Thankful to have kids who have a wide variety of tastes, we decided to tryout the E and O Asian Kitchen, 314 Sutter St. in Union Square.

E and O’s fusion menu is amazing. The Indonesian corn fritter is unlike anything you have ever had in the South – or East!

Sharing is the key here. Ahi tartare, satay chicken, spicy sichuan cellophane noodles, a couple varieties of dumplings, wood roasted edamame, beef sliders – it goes on. Did I mention the chicken lettuce cups?

Enjoy a glass of wine, a specialty cocktail (Singapore Sling or Blushing Geisha) or a “spirit free” concoction such as the pineapple basil soda or cucumber cooler.

Monterey/Pacific Grove

• Joe Rombi’s La Mia Cucina is an incredible Italian restaurant in the heart of the quaint coastal town of Pacific Grove near Pebble Beach and Carmel. We started with the bruschetta and incredible arancini and then onto the caesar salad. My son loved his tortiglione with sausage.

This is the first Italian restaurant we have dined in that compares to anything in Boston or New York’s legendary lineups.

Los Angeles

• Classic prints of famous and not-so-famous actresses who portayed Cleopatra in film adorn the walls of Cleo, a Middle Eastern tapas restaurant, inside The Redbury, a boutique hotel at 1717 Vine St.

Ask your server for guidance on this wonderous menu and the Brussels sprouts chips will be gone before your Mom could say, “eat your vegetables.”

You may just keep ordering dips (carrot harissa, cucmbers and yogurt or Lebaneh with feta) after trying the fantastic bread. But don’t stop there.

Chef Danny Elmaleh was born in Israel to a Moroccan dad and Japanese mother. And man, he picked up something and more from the cultures. The kibbeh, lamb sliders, pork belly and six varieties of Middle Eastern sausage keep your meat lovers happy. And the seafood is great as well.

The salads, fruit, eggplant, falafel and a variety of other choices will please the vegetarians in your group.

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