Okay, so I’m going to San Francisco tomorrow for the Sex Tech conference. I am looking for stuff to do Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday night. Suggestions? Ideas? Musts? I’ve never been to San Francisco. My family is trying to start a tradition of taking this specific silly hat with us when we travel to get photographs of us wearing the hat in front of iconic places. My cousin took it to Europe and had the hat in pictures of the Eiffel Tower, etc. What would be an easy place to get to from our hotel, which is downtown I do believe, where I could get pictures of myself in the hat in such a way that I’m unmistakeably in San Francisco?
For those interested in coming and perhaps meeting me (and telling me where to eat in person), I’m presenting on Wednesday afternoon. You can get the schedule from the website linked above. Just email and let me know, because I’m more fun when not surprised.
60 Responses to “San Francisco”
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San Francisco is an excellent place. I live in Detroit but frequent SF for interesting things and warm weather. I love Haight-Ashbury, Castro, and the Mission. Maybe locals would classify these as places for indie tourists, especially Haight-Ashbury, but anything’s better than the sanitized and gentrified downtowns of the world. Golden Gate park is also cool, and the AIDS memorial garden is beautiful.
The public transportation there is fantastic and it’s easy to get everywhere. The SFMoMA is one of the best museums I’ve ever seen, and it is ranked as such among modern art museums around the globe. I don’t know much about restaurants or nightlife because I travel alone and thus don’t do social activities much, but locals and other people in SF are fucking cool and willing to give recommendations to visitors, in my experience.
Chinatown and Castro Street…(two areas unlikely to have changed THAT much in the two decades since I lived in the Bay Area….).
AIDS memorial sounds interesting. How far would that be from the JW Marriott downtown?
I live in San Francisco, but my two favorite places aren’t immediately obvious as SF landmarks, but are fantastic. One is the Palace of Fine Arts, which is a greek revival open air palace built in 1915 for the Panama Exhibition. The other is the ruins of the Sutro Baths, which was an *enormous* indoor swimming pool in the late 19th century which burned to the ground in the early 20th century, leaving an almost Roman ruin which you can explore and poke around in.
I guess if I had to pick somewhere to take the photo, I would suggest the Cable Car turn-around at Bay & Taylor streets near Fisherman’s wharf. It’s not so crowded as downtown, and the guys are really great, and will probably let you stand right in front of a cable car or hang off the side.
And while you’re in North Beach, I can recommend: Manga Rosa (Brasilian), Trattoria Contadina (Italian), Iluna Basque (Basque Spanish, & really great happy hour 5-7 M-F), El Raigon (Argentinian Steak), La Trappe (Belgian, over 150 beers in a cool basement lounge) and Scoma’s (Fresh Fish — but Seattle does fish better, IMHO). We live in that neighborhood, so if you choose to stop by, I’d love to meet you!
It takes about 30-40 minutes of bus & walking to get to the AIDS Memorial Garden in Golden Gate Park from downtown. You take the 5 or 21 bus. If you go to GGP, I recommend you also visit the Conservatory of Flowers (another late 19th century masterpiece of glass & steel. It was damaged in the earthquake and was a derilict ruin from the 1920’s until they finally fixed it up and re-opened it in the 00’s. I used to wish and wish I could go in, and now — hooray!)
all excellent suggestions.
if you’re downtown, walk to the powell st. cable car terminal, take a pic of you in that silly hat in front of the cable car, then ride it up the hill to the end at fisherman’s wharf. walk around the wharf, get a walkaway clam chowder or shriimp sandwich, go to pier 39.
except if it rains. then the palace of fine arts (taxi ride) would be a great suggestion.
or the de young museum in golden gate park, freshly rennovated.
and, ifyou’re down town, you’re a subway (bart) ride away from the castro or a trolley ride away from the haight.
man, just walking down the street in sf is a great day.
have fun!
Downtown San Francisco is hardly sanitized. If you need some heroin, ask around near Civic Center.
Dolores Park is about two BART stops from your hotel - go to the top of the hill, bring a wide-angle lens, and you’ll get a nice panorama of the city skyline and Bay. Um, unless it’s foggy (though the Mission is one of the sunnier microclimates).
I absolutely love the Bay Area. I’m envious of you, as it’s been too long since I’ve been back.
May I suggest a brief side-trip to Berkeley? Go there, if not for the coolness of the town itself, then for the food - the name “gourmet ghetto” sounds like it was dreamed up by a marketing consultant, but many of the restaurants around there really are memorable.
Hi, I never post here but I really like your blog.
Coit Tower is where it’s at, very iconic, and its murals were designed by WPA artists and celebrate workers.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coit_Tower
It’s on Telegraph Hill, where there (somewhere) is also a flock of parrots.
You should also check out Tartine Bakery, which is somewhere near the Castro. I had the best sandwich of my life there.
I’m a transportation geek, so the BART is a must.
Highly recommend the Anchor Brewery tour if you’re into beer. Call ahead to reserve a spot. The hops room alone is reason to go.
At the risk of sounding touristy, I found Alcatraz fascinating.
Muir woods is not to be missed
: http://www.nps.gov/muwo/
If you follow up on any of this, please let me know.
DL
If you go out for only one night, go out in the Mission and get your drink on at Martuni’s. If you are going on Wednesday, I suggest martinis at Martini’s and then dancing around midnight at Delirium.
Yelp, is an amazing resource for SF. Nearly every single place in this city as been written about it. No bar or tourist spot has been left unrated.
Just walk! It’s a gorgeous city, and there’s so much to see/watch. If you’re anything like me, the best time to watch urban spaces is that period when the night people are starting to fade away and the day people are beginning to bustle around. It’s a fascinating juxtaposition of social worlds in urban space.
I was in SF two years ago. I’ve got enough ff miles for a free trip, so I’m going to see if I can swing a long weekend this spring.
When I was there, I didn’t really do anything other than walk. But, that’s how I like to travel in a new city. Walk for several days; then “do stuff.” This next long weekend will be the “do stuff” trip.
Golden Gate Bridge, a cable car, and that big pointy building downtown (Transamerican pyramid?).
I live in California, but well away from the coast.
You could always stand in front of the Beach Blanket Babylon place (I don’t advise actually going to the show, myself, but YMMV). They’re known for silly hats and have been around since the 70s.
If you have a car, you could always drive south on highway 1 into Pacifica, and go to the world best-sited Taco Bell. (Seriously, it’s sitting on the beach, with huge picture windows overlooking the Pacific Ocean. How the hell a Taco Bell wound up with a site like that I have absolutely no idea.)
The view from Pacifica Beach is to die for, anyway, assuming it isn’t foggy.
If you’re staying in the city itself, listen to Zardeenah, seriously. (I’m more a cheap food and seascapes guy, myself. Sadly, I live in Hayward these days, so only Bayscapes for me.)
Does this mean you won’t be participating in the “March for Life” in Washington on Tuesday?
If no one with a clue and a moral compass shows up, the entire crowd is bound to wander off and get lost.
If I were in San Francisco I would go to the zoo.
1) Because I love the zoo, and…
2) Because I love natural selection, and wish I could have been there when the three drunken cretins decided to torment the kitty. (RIP Tatiana!)
hmm….how about a picture where the golden gate bridge is in the background? (for a very typical picture) Or, you could go to this set of rainbow steps on Castro Street-they are very picture-iconic, and very Castro Street.
Also, I agree that that taco bell is completely amazing, if maybe a bit of an eyesore for beachgoers (looking at it from the other perspective). It’s pretty amazing to be sitting in there eating while watching tons of people surf. So bizarre but cool.
Oh, sure, I might wish that it were something other than a Taco Bell, but as it is it’s at least very, very surreal.
I just moved to SF from NYC last August. I love it here!
Definetly head up to the Presidio and walk around near the Sutro Baths as Zardeenah suggested. If you walk up the trails that start near the baths there are great views of the Golden Gate Bridge that would make a perfect SF photograph.
Buena Vista Park in the Haight is really worth going to as well. The view of the city from the top of the park is fantastic. Then you can do some excellent thrift shopping on the Haight and hit Ameoba, one of the best music stores in the country.
Another nature place to check out would be the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate.
The Mission is a good spot to explore for food and bars and Chinatown and the Castro are great places to walk around in.
I’ve lived here for almost a decade and I can honestly say that San Francisco is by far my favorite US city. All of the culture and advantages of a large city with the intimacy of a small town (SF pop. is less than 700K).
Getting around isn’t too hard since the city is only 7 square miles although it’s quite easy to hit some major hills if you’re walking. Wear sensible shoes.
Public transportation is ok if you’re using BART, but MUNI (buses and light rail) is pretty hit or miss. It should also be noted that cabs can be more difficult to flag down than in most urban areas.
Dress appropriately - it is usually cooler here than most people think, especially at night and you’re also coming during the rainy season.
Here are just some of my recommendations for the first time visitor:
Get high! Seek out elevation at Coit tower or Twin Peaks to soak in the view. Coit tower is in North Beach so it will be closer to your hotel and has the added advantage of steps you can climb to the top of the hill.
http://www.sisterbetty.org/stairways/coit.htm
Or if you prefer to relax when at altitude by all means enjoy a drink at the swanky Top of the Mark bar at the Mark Hopkins Hotel (Top of Nob Hill).
After flying high, you can sink low into the Tonga room across the street at the Fairmount hotel. Avoid their really crappy food.
Hang off a cable car. It’s a tourist cliche but a damn good one. Bear in mind that the Powell/Hyde and Powell/Mason lines can be mobbed by tourists.
http://www.sfcablecar.com/
If you take the cable car down to Fisherman’s wharf be sure not to miss the Musee Mechanique and the Seals at PIer 39 (bark-tastic). Most of the wharf is overloaded with tourist tripe but ferry trips are actually kind of fun. Trips to Alcatraz and Angel Island are highly recommended but usually require advance reservation.
http://www.blueandgoldfleet.com/Sightseeing/Boat/index.cfm
http://www.museemechanique.org/
If you can obtain a vehicle and the time, I highly recommend driving across the Golden Gate bridge and visiting Muir Woods in Marin. Old growth redwoods need to be seen to be believed. If you can’t, go see the bridge anyway. It’s another old chestnut but after all these years I still find it breath taking. I’ve never seen another structure fit so perfectly into it’s surrounding landscape.
Blow all your cash shopping in Hayes Valley.
http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide/sf/neighborhoods/hayesvalley.shtml
Visit the pirate store (yes - really) at 826 Valencia (between 19th and 20th).
Indulge your inner music snob at Aquarius Records. They’re not as big or popular as Amoeba (1855 Haight St.) but they write the most insanely verbose (and interesting) reviews on a lot of what they sell (Valencia between 21st and 22nd).
http://www.aquariusrecords.org/
Walk the labyrinths at Grace Cathedral (1100 California St.)
http://www.gracecathedral.org/labyrinth/
Art it up at the SF MOMA, Asian Art Museum and the de Young. The Cartoon Art Museum is no slouch either:
http://www.sfmoma.org/
http://www.asianart.org/
http://www.famsf.org/deyoung/index.asp
http://www.cartoonart.org/
Down a pitcher and soak up afternoon rays in the back yard patio at Zeitgeist - home to SF’s best juke box. If you’re there at the right time - get a Tamale Lady tamale (Valencia and Duboce).
http://www.sfstation.com/zeitgeist-bar-and-guest-haus-b1268
Savor the butter and flour based sourcery of Tartine’s pastry chefs. Beware their insane morning lines (18th and Guerrero).
http://www.tartinebakery.com/
On Wednesday night you could do worse than to come see the unusal audio-visual talents of Jascha Ephraim at 12 Galaxies (Mission between 20th and 21st).
http://www.12galaxies.com/?p=97
http://www.myspace.com/jaschaephraim
Afterwards you can grab a late night taco or burrito fix at El Farolito Taqueria (Mission & 24th). They’re my personal favorite but ideally you should try more than one taqueira as SF locals can be downright freaks about their taqueria loyalty.
If you prefer a more mellow musical environment, try the piano lounge at Martuni’s (Market and Valencia).
It’s hard to find a bad restaurant in SF - here are some faves:
The Slanted Door - Vietnamese (Ferry building)
Acme Chop House - steaks - (AT&T Park i.e. the baseball stadium)
Ti Couz - crepes (16th and Valencia)
Limon - Peruvian (Valencia between 16th and 17th)
Moki’s - sushi (615 Cortland Ave. in Bernal Heights)
Firefly - California cuisine (4288 24th Street)
Luna Park - California cuisine (Valencia between 18th and 17th)
Delfina - California cuisine (3621 18th St)
Brother’s - Korean BBQ (4128 Geary)
El Farolito - taqueria (24th and Mission)
Boogaloos - hipster breakfasts (Valencia at 22nd)
Oof - time to stop writing. Email with any questions.
I’ve lived here for almost a decade and I can honestly say that San Francisco is by far my favorite US city. All of the culture and advantages of a large city with the intimacy of a small town (SF pop. is less than 700K).
Getting around isn’t too hard since the city is only 7 square miles although it’s quite easy to hit some major hills if you’re walking. Wear sensible shoes.
Public transportation is ok if you’re using BART, but MUNI (buses and light rail) is pretty hit or miss. It should also be noted that cabs can be more difficult to flag down than in most urban areas.
Dress appropriately - it is usually cooler here than most people think, especially at night and you’re also coming during the rainy season.
Here are just some of my recommendations for the first time visitor:
Get high! Seek out elevation at Coit tower or Twin Peaks to soak in the view. Coit tower is in North Beach so it will be closer to your hotel and has the added advantage of steps you can climb to the top of the hill.
http://www.sisterbetty.org/stairways/coit.htm
Or if you prefer to relax when at altitude by all means enjoy a drink at the swanky Top of the Mark bar at the Mark Hopkins Hotel (Top of Nob Hill).
After flying high, you can sink low into the Tonga room across the street at the Fairmount hotel. Avoid their really crappy food.
Hang off a cable car. It’s a tourist cliche but a damn good one. Bear in mind that the Powell/Hyde and Powell/Mason lines can be mobbed by tourists.
http://www.sfcablecar.com/
If you take the cable car down to Fisherman’s wharf be sure not to miss the Musee Mechanique and the Seals at PIer 39 (bark-tastic). Most of the wharf is overloaded with tourist tripe but ferry trips are actually kind of fun. Trips to Alcatraz and Angel Island are highly recommended but usually require advance reservation.
http://www.blueandgoldfleet.com/Sightseeing/Boat/index.cfm
http://www.museemechanique.org/
If you can obtain a vehicle and the time, I highly recommend driving across the Golden Gate bridge and visiting Muir Woods in Marin. Old growth redwoods need to be seen to be believed. If you can’t, go see the bridge anyway. It’s another old chestnut but after all these years I still find it breath taking. I’ve never seen another structure fit so perfectly into it’s surrounding landscape.
Blow all your cash shopping in Hayes Valley.
http://www.sfgate.com/traveler/guide/sf/neighborhoods/hayesvalley.shtml
Visit the pirate store (yes - really) at 826 Valencia (between 19th and 20th).
Indulge your inner music snob at Aquarius Records. They’re not as big or popular as Amoeba (1855 Haight St.) but they write the most insanely verbose (and interesting) reviews on a lot of what they sell (Valencia between 21st and 22nd).
http://www.aquariusrecords.org/
Walk the labyrinths at Grace Cathedral (1100 California St.)
http://www.gracecathedral.org/labyrinth/
Art it up at the SF MOMA, Asian Art Museum and the de Young. The Cartoon Art Museum is no slouch either:
http://www.sfmoma.org/
http://www.asianart.org/
http://www.famsf.org/deyoung/index.asp
http://www.cartoonart.org/
Down a pitcher and soak up afternoon rays in the back yard patio at Zeitgeist - home to SF’s best juke box. If you’re there at the right time - get a Tamale Lady tamale (Valencia and Duboce).
http://www.sfstation.com/zeitgeist-bar-and-guest-haus-b1268
Savor the butter and flour based sourcery of Tartine’s pastry chefs. Beware their insane morning lines (18th and Guerrero).
http://www.tartinebakery.com/
On Wednesday night you could do worse than to come see the unusal audio-visual talents of Jascha Ephraim at 12 Galaxies (Mission between 20th and 21st).
http://www.12galaxies.com/?p=97
http://www.myspace.com/jaschaephraim
Afterwards you can grab a late night taco or burrito fix at El Farolito Taqueria (Mission & 24th). They’re my personal favorite but ideally you should try more than one taqueira as SF locals can be downright freaks about their taqueria loyalty.
If you prefer a more mellow musical environment, try the piano lounge at Martuni’s (Market and Valencia).
It’s hard to find a bad restaurant in SF - here are some faves:
The Slanted Door - Vietnamese (Ferry building)
Acme Chop House - steaks - (AT&T Park i.e. the baseball stadium)
Ti Couz - crepes (16th and Valencia)
Limon - Peruvian (Valencia between 16th and 17th)
Moki’s - sushi (615 Cortland Ave. in Bernal Heights)
Firefly - California cuisine (4288 24th Street)
Luna Park - California cuisine (Valencia between 18th and 17th)
Delfina - California cuisine (3621 18th St)
Brother’s - Korean BBQ (4128 Geary)
El Farolito - taqueria (24th and Mission)
Boogaloos - hipster breakfasts (Valencia at 22nd)
Oof - time to stop writing. Email with any questions.
City Lights Bookstore is really great. I usually have to go twice. First trip to find lots of books I really really want and then the second time to actually buy the books I talked myself out of on the first trip.
Ghirhidelli square would be another great choice for a photo op (not too far from Fisherman’s Wharf, as I recall), and be sure to visit Golden Gate Park (I prefer the Japanese gardens: they’re bound to be peaceful this time of year). Steinhart’s Aquarium is good to see once, but not the best I’ve seen (Monterey Bay Aquarium is much better, but far out of your reach on this trip).
For goofy tourist traps that are worth the money, try the Ripley’s Believe it or Not museum, also near Fisherman’s Wharf. Alcatraz Island is also a fun trip, but make reservations for the ferry as far in advance as you can: on weekends, it’s booked a week in advance. During the week, I’m not sure. The ferry leaves from Pier 39, which can be fun on a weekend but tends to be dull during the week.
Make sure to get a photo in front of the cable cars and take a ride on one as often as possible (hanging off the side, of course, not sitting down. It’s a whole new experience). The cable cars will also get you Chinatown, a wonderful experience (adventurous eaters will love the candy shops there, which feature all sorts of peculiarities like dried squid pieces). Be sure to pick the right line: I believe there’s two railways. The turn-around in Union Square is regrettably seedy, but I’ve never come to harm there, though you will be panhandled at least once per block. Oh, and along the Union Square route, there’s a great Italian place called Uncle Vito’s Pizza. It’s right on the corner and has excellent food. You’ll also want to stop off at Lombard Street (almost as famous a SF landmark as the Golden Gate Bridge). After getting a quick picture, you can hop back on the next car.
Not sure about the zoo: the last time I went there, it was a concrete monstrosity that kept killing its elephant population. They may have gotten better by now.
Good places to eat:
1) The Arismendi bakery is a cooperative. it makes only one kind of pizza on any given day, but its the best pizza in America. Its all vegetarian. Its on Irving.
2) Millenium is really good food, but you usually need advance reservations. Also vegetarian.
3) I also like Cafe Gratitude a lot. Some people don’t enjoy it as much, but I think its one of the best. If you go, definitely try dessert.
4) Good chinese is to be had at Nanking Hut.
5) Feel Real Cafe is closed now I think - but I am not sure. Inexpensive, and the owners are very laid back, friendly, and warm.
Things to do:
1) Watch a movie at the Castro Theatre.
2) As someone above mentioned, the parrots on telegraph hill are awesome. There is even a movie on those parrots called “Wild Parrots on Telegraph Hill”.
3) Cross the bridge and hike a little on the marin headlands. Beautiful views of the city and the bridge. The drive down to Point Bonita Lighthouse is very pretty. It goes through Hawk Hill which is a good place if you’re interested in birdwatching (but this is not a good season, fall migration is over).
4) I love the exploratorium. I can play there all day.
5) If you go down to Stanford, you can see some fine Rodin sculptures.
6) If you have some extra time, drive down Highway 1 to Montara and climb the big Montara hill. Its about 5 miles straight up, but well worth the effort.
7) Some more time, and you can drive up near Mt Tamalpais - lots of very pretty trails there, or you could drive even further to Point Reyes, which is probably my favourite place in the area. Its quicker to get there on 101 and take francis drake all the way across, but prettier to get there via Highway 1.
Oh and for your hat, the transamerica pyramid would probably work well.
don’t bother with ghirardelli square or fisherman’s wharf. they’re so touristy you’ll hate yourself. i’d recommend taking your iconic photo in front of coit tower or lombard street (the crookedest street in the … whatever) if you need to. or go to the golden gate bridge.
but then afterwards, treat yourself to what’s really interesting in san francisco. the mission district is a great bet. walk along valencia street and check out 826 valencia, dave eggers’ and mcsweeney’s kids writing nonprofit, with pirate store. the name is the address. i believe the cross street is 19th or 20th. a half-block away is borderlands books, with their hairless sphinx cat and sci-fi books.
there are a number of galleries in the area, including the lab (16th and capp), intersection for the arts (valencia and 15th st) and southern exposure (14th and valencia). also, don’t miss clarion alley, a curated mural project with work by famous artists and street painters alike. it’s on clarion alley between mission and valencia. clarion is between 17th and 18th streets.
tuesday night at 7 pm kearny street workshop, a venerable asian american arts organization (asians make up about a third of the city’s population) is hosting a panel discussion on the past and present of arts and activism in the area, especially ethnic arts activism. here’s the info.
it’s also in the mission, at 17th st and capp, right near mission/16th street bart station. there are a million great restaurants in that area. i’d recommend a burrito at pancho villa for a typical mission night out (just ask any hipster you see on the street). or for sushi served by butoh dancers against a backdrop of country music, go to country station on mission and 18th street.
you can also try emmy’s spaghetti shack farther down on mission and 29th, for great spaghetti and meatballs and red wine.
Kantaro Sushi? I don’t know if they’re still open but they had great ‘bait’ the last time that I was there…
If you like wine, take a day to travel out to the wine country and check out some of the wineries and tastings. One fun place is Stirling, where you take a cable car up to the winery at the top of the mountain. You can just drive around all day from winery to winery.
As others have said, just walk. It’s a great city for walking (I always think you have to walk a city to get the feel of it).
After walking for 8-10 hours one day there, we had a great taxi ride back to our hotel, where the driver made his car left the ground and was airborne over each hill - Yikes - what an after-dinner ride home?
“If you have a car, you could always drive south on highway 1 into Pacifica, and go to the world best-sited Taco Bell.”
Yes, that drive is beautiful. But getting a car while staying in San Francisco is a mistake. Way too much pain dealing with a car (no place to park and ugly traffic)…
Drinking Liberally is Monday nights from 7-9 pm at Niki’s on 466 Haight Street (between Fillmore & Webster).
Most of the advice listed above is solid. I’d like to second El Farolito’s and Brothers.
If you want a great view of the city, take Stanyan south from where it intersects with Haight. When Stanyan ends in a T, take a left until the road ends. On the left side of the road is a stairway leading to one of the best views of the city. Also at Stanyan and Haight is Amoeba Records, one of the best record stores anywhere.
Hopefully I can catch your talk.
Oh my God!! I miss San Francisco sooooo much! DC is okay, I’m getting used to it, but SF feels like some phantom limb that haunts my every step. I feel so lost without my Vietnamese sandwiches and awesome Chinese food.
Don’t have much to add to the above recommendations, but my personal favorites:
AQUARIUS RECORDS. They are quite simply the best music store in the country–no one else has their sensibilities. If you’ve ever been curious as to where all of my random 10’s come from, they are the fount of wisdom. They do great mail order too.
Borderlands Books: A block or two up from Aquarius, it’s a Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror bookstore with a nice cozy atmosphere. It’s also the home of Ripley, an awesomely alien looking hairless kitty.
And the Best Chinese Food award goes to:
Shanghai Dumpling King. It’s on Balboa between 34th and 35th Avenue–take the Ocean Beach 38 Geary by bus. They make by far the MOST authentic steamed soup dumplings I’ve had outside China. All of their “street food” is tasty, like the Shanghai noodles. Oh my God, I’m drooling just thinking about it.
Also in the Richmond is Spices and Burma Superstar–great Szechuan and Burmese, repectively.
I have no suggestions, but want to thank the posters for their suggestions. I’ll be taking my first trip to SF in mid-March, and I’m taking furious notes about your recommendations. Have a great trip, Amanda!
Dress. In. Layers. Yesterday, in Berkeley, I think we had a 20-30 degree temperature change from the morning to the evening and back. And SF is both colder and windier than Berkeley.
Don’t bother coming to the gourmet ghetto; the best thing here is the Cheeseboard, and it’s easy to find fantastic pizza on short notice in SF. If you like ice cream, try either the Bombay Ice Creamery at Valencia and 16th-18th (I don’t remember which is the correct cross street) or Mitchell’s, which is multiple blocks down from Duboce Park, also in the Mission. Bombay has rose, cardamom, and other fantastic spices for flavors. Mitchell’s…well, I had yam ice cream from them, and it was fantastic. Yams!
I love, love, love Borderlands (SF, fantasy, horror, and appropriate DVDs of each) but don’t forget that in the same area (Valencia and 17th) is Good Vibrations. (Of course, you’ll probably see them at the conference anyway, but it’s still fun to see the shop. Aquarius, for music lovers is apparently not to be missed. (I am not so strong of a music lover as you.)
If you go to City Lights in North Beach (which I recommend; City Lights has some great small-press feminist stuff) you can go to just about any restaurant except for The Stinking Rose or Brandy Ho’s. Except for those two places, I’ve had *fabulous* food in every restaurant up and down Columbus.
With Chinatown, go up the touristy street. Then go up or down a block and walk down some of the non-touristy streets. Better, cheaper food, and better, cheaper souvenirs. It’s still all interesting to look at, though. And for a picture, you can’t do better than the Chinatown gate. Unless it’s the Peace plaza at the Japantown mall.
Looking over more of the great posts above, I have to add a bit more about the MUNI buses and light rail.
When we lived there, we didn’t own a car, so we got know the bus system very well. They can be frustrating and inexplicably delayed and bunched up, but from downtown there are a few lines that are a bit more reliable for getting around–plus, most of the bus stops now have GPS displays that tell you exactly when each coach is coming, so you don’t have to play the waiting game as much you did a few years ago.
But if you want to get to Golden Gate Park, take the 5 or the 21 on Market: those two lines are pretty reliable workhorses. And the 38 Geary (you catch it on the Southern side of Union Square, next to Macy’s) is a very reliable way to get to the Richmond District–it’s an incredibly crowded line, but there are so many buses you never have to wait very long. The Mission is a short BART hop, pretty straightforward.
The 2 or the 38 will get you to Japantown, which is where I’d recommend taking your tourist hat photo–the Friendship Pagoda (can’t remember if that’s the right name) is a nice little artifact of the Japanese American community. The Japantown Mall is a bit of a relic, feels rundown and little visited, but on the 2nd floor you can get a real taiyaki: a fish shaped waffle filled with either chocolate or red bean paste. It might be the only place in the States where you can get them. Also, Suzu downstairs makes GREAT fresh ramen, and there’s Kinokuniya Bookstore upstairs.
I’d avoid the more tourist oriented restaurants in the little indoor Japanese restaurant street downstairs, though.
Also, for cliche SF photos, I believe no one’s mentioned the Painted Ladies Victorian houses up in the Haight yet–they’re pretty. The 21 bus will drop you off right in front of that park.
But if you’re Golden Gate Park or ocean bound, I’d recommend a stop in the Richmond district near 6th Ave and Clement. There’s a great used bookstore called Green Apple there, as well as a whole lot of Chinese delis, and Spices + Burma Superstar restaurant. We lived near that area, actually a block away from the site of the first Church of Satan (which is now a new apartment building). You could the the 38 bus there, then hop on the 44 southbound on 6th ave to get to Golden Gate Park. The 44 also gets you to the Arboretum, the art museum, and the Sunset district near Arizmendi bakery (mention about somewhere).
And in Golden Gate, it’s only a short hop to Ocean Beach–there’s a place called the Beach Chalet right on the edge of the park, but I’d ignore the upstairs restaurant and instead stay downstairs in the Park Chalet, where they brew microbrews and have a nice lawn to lounge around on and get your fog bathing done.
Oh! And about Chinatown–I know there are great holes in the wall there, but the ONLY bad Chinese food we ever had in the Bay Area was found, not once, but TWICE, in Chinatown. Beware people standing on corners offering menus and specials near Grant Ave. I very, very much recommend going to the Richmond or the Sunset for Chinese, if you’re in the mood. Yet another plug for Shanghai Dumpling King and Spices 2 here!!!
Once you start me up on SF, I can’t stop, sorry about the babbling.
God, I miss SF. I’ve learned to love NYC, but San Francisco is a magical town.
If you do sushi, don’t miss Webe sushi. Dirt cheap, good, and fun atmosphere. Plus, it is in the Mission, the best neighborhood in the town. If you don’t, get a burrito at, well, any of the joints around there are good, but El Farolito holds a place in my heart. You can also hit Good Vibrations. And, well, Just walk down Valencia street for a bit. I know I’m biased, having lived there for about 10 years, but it is the greatest street in the country.
After that, do head up to Castro via Mission/Delores park.
If you like oysters and other raw bar, you must go the Swan Oyster Depot (Polk & California). They are only open until 5PM and on weekdays. It’s basically a fish store, with a long counter for eaters. Best, and most diverse, oysters I’ve had anywhere. Eaten with good sourdough bread (natch) and either Anchor Steam or chardonnay, heaven.
French bistro Boulevard, at Mission and Steuart (by Embarcadero) is truly outstanding. Reservation needed for main dining, but go without and you can easily snag a table in the bar (full menu provided), where you still feel like you are integrated with the hubbub of the restaurant (of which there is a lot).
May be too late, but I strongly second CITY LIGHTS BOOKS on Columbus in North Beach (which is directly adjacent to Chinatown to the west, Coit Tower to the east, and Fisherman’s Wharf to the north).
Can’t strongly second it enough. I don’t want to insult your cultural literacy, but just in case you didn’t know, this is the landmark location that was the very epicenter of the Beat Generation. It is still owned and operated by Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Virtually every title under the City Lights imprint is available here. Some stuff you’d never expect was published in-house — Sam Shepherd (sp?), for example, oddly — and most of it you’ll never see elsewhere. I understand a lot of Beat authors aren’t faves with feminists (and why), but four words: Diana DiPrima for chrissakes.
I would live in a closet upstairs if I could.
The We Be Sushi recommendation reminded me of our favorite inexpensive sushi: Yum Yum Fish, in the Outer Sunset, on Irving and 23rd Avenue. It’s a tiny fish market, owned by a French guy, and you can get great fish soup AND dirt cheap sushi, especially their spicy tuna rolls. You can get there on the 71, which goes from downtown up Haight St., by Golden Gate Park, and then through the Sunset–but I’ll say that it’s a notoriously unreliable bus route. You can also ride the N Judah train, which is also for some reason a hard to catch train.
But also along the way near the 71 and the N Judah train is Lime Tree on Irving and 5th Ave, a GREAT Singaporean lunch stop. Incredible food for 6-8$ an entree. Which brings me to my final plug for the Bay Area in general:
Contrary to its reputation, you can eat like royalty for very, very little money. There’s so much competition that the street level places HAVE to serve great food to survive, and the mid-level restaurants tend to give you a very high level of quality for what you’re paying. Sigh. I miss it so.
I’m bookmarking this thread.
One thing to add, there is a $31 prix fixe menu at a lot of restaurants this month: http://www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/dineabouttown/enhanced_listings.asp?id=400&Submit2=Select.
I’m with Claire: don’t bother with Fisherman’s Wharf or Ghiradelli Square. If you’ve never been to North Beach before, it’s ok to wander around for an afternoon (and brunch at Mama’s is great), but they’re all REALLY touristy–and not in a good way. Imagine a midwestern mall (and I’m from the midwest; so I have a lot of experience with this) picked up and transported to California. That’s this area. blech.
As with Claire, I recommend getting yourself to the Mission (my favorite part of the city). If it’s a sunny day, Dolores Park is pretty fabulous, and if it’s not, it’s still fun and interesting to walk down Mission or Valencia, starting at the 16th & Mission BART stop until around the 24th & Mission stop.
Some not expensive highlights of the area:
- the pirate store. Yes, this is schticky, and I kind of hate myself for liking it, but it is a pirate store and hence really fun.
- Tartine: again, this is an obvious pick, but you’re only in SF for a few days. Tartine is one of the best bakeries in the country, by common consensus. All of their tarts are good; their quiche is beyond all other quiches I’ve ever had, and I’m a big fan of their morning buns too.
- Bi-Rite Creamery: The salted caramel ice cream here is, hands-down, the best ice cream I’ve ever had. The other flavors are also really good, but I dream of the salted caramel. (Baked goods from Tartine or ice cream from Bi-Rite, eaten in Dolores Park were my nightly activity this summer, when I got the chance to work in SF for a few months).
- burritos: San Francisco burritos are a thing, different from other burritos, and they are SO much better than burritos elsewhere. When I first had one, I was just so shocked as I had no idea burritos could be a real, actually tasty, food. I like Taqueria Can-Cun’s vegetarian burrito, but there are other places too.
- tacos: This may not be an issue for you, given that you live in Texas, but there are TONS of taquerias all up and down Mission St. I am a huge fan of tacos in the style of Mexico City (tacos al pastor), and you can get them (and they’re really good) here. I have yet to visit anywhere else which has this many such tacos. I might miss this even more than the salted caramel ice cream.
Like the others I also recommend using Yelp. It has tons of reviews and is pretty intuitive to use. The public transportation website is also relatively useful, and don’t forget that taking the bus around the city can be a great way to see beautiful sights. (For example: although the J-Church line is a pain to commute on, something I know from experience, it has great views out over the city when heading south on it, starting at the base of Dolores Park and then up through Noe Valley and into Glen Park.)
Lonely Planet SF is not bad. Also, I liked SFMOMA.
Feel free to email me if you want more thoughts on what to do in SF.
Second on the recommendations for Slanted Door and Millennium (which is actually vegan, not just veggie). I’m hitting both next weekend on my anniversary trip (we live on the Monterrey Bay). I reemphasize the need to make a pilgrimage to City Lights. And then go get a cappuccino at nearby Cafe Trieste, another beat landmark, where Coppola wrote the Godfather screenplay, and the cafe from Parrots of Telegraph Hill.
If you’ve got a car or a bike, take a trip across the GG Bridge and visit the Marin Headlands to get out of the city.
You’re a beer person, right? You need to hit the Toronado.
To follow up with Em, if you’re a beer person I would also highly suggest 21st Amendment. It’s down by Pac Bell Park where the Giants play and they will have a beer you’ll like no matter what your taste!
21st Amendment
563 2nd Street
San Francisco, CA 94107
Phone: 415-369-0900
Yes Fishermans Wharf is abominable (altho fresh Dungeness ain’t exactly a bumper cop in tx) and North Beach is yuppie / shoppie / overpriced bistro-y / tourists wanting their waiter to be in their snapshot with them. Still, for a literate and “countercultural” person living in tx to not hit City Lights Books would be a crime.
The Mission is, in fact, the greatest of’em all. Get plowed at Doc’s Clock, right at Mission and something or other (in that same stretch people have cited). As long as you’re staying downtown, may as well clamber over the babbling human detritus of the Tenderloin — they make drag-worms look like Fred MacMurray — and get some killer, killer Indian food, the likes of which you’re unlikely to score in Austin.
Damn you, now I wish I were going to San Fran. To those who live there, a pox upon your house. Bastards!
Bumper crop. Nothing good can come from a “bumper cop.”
Gotta get some excellent Italian coffee at Graffeo: http://graffeo.com/pages/source/sf.htm
And if you like Jazz, you have to go to Jazz At Pearl’s: http://www.jazzatpearls.com/jazz/ It’s awesome. The 17 piece Jazz Orchestra is not to be missed.
-Jason
Just FYI, Steinhart Aquarium is closed right now while it moves into it’s awesome new building in Golden Gate Park.
If you decide to take transit and have a phone that does web browsing, bookmark www.nextmuni.com. It uses GPS to estimate the next arrival time for any MUNI train or bus except for the Cable Cars. It’s almost never wrong, unless a bus is broken down and not going anywhere.
The zoo is much improved over the last 10 years, and they’re still working on it more (obviously needed, given recent zoo news), but the main problem with it is that it is way the heck out on the very southwesternmost edge of the city, and it takes forever to get there.
Definitely stick with the less touristy North Beach stuff, Haight/Ashbury, the Castro, or the Mission. If you take the 21 to H/A, you can walk *easily* in an afternoon all the way through H/A on Haight and all the way down Castro St. as well.
Enjoy your trip!!
As a proud resident of “The Sittay”, our little Babylon-on-The-Bay, I have to put in plugs for what I think are the best of the best.
Sights:
I’m going to put in a strong plug for Twin Peaks. It’s usually crowded and windy, but hard to beat vista-wise with the 180-degree-plus view of the entire City and the Bay Area layed out before you. I second Sutro Baths Park. It’s better in warmer weather when the red-tail hawks are more active and you can watch them swoop down the cliffs or kite into the wind, all in the pursuit of lunch. It’s still very cool and scenic looking out over Ocean Beach and Land’s End and all that.
Other photo spots would be 18th and Castro at Harvey Milk Plaza at the entrance to the MUNI station. You’ll be right under the giant Rainbow Pride flag and right across the street from the famous(and gorgeous) Castro Theatre.
Food:
Go to the Mission and get a Mission Burrito, AKA “Urban Food Log”.
Just about any Taqueria will have them.
La Mediterranee on the corner of Noe and Market is good Mediterranean food. Cafe Flore’ and Bagdad Cafe’ are right across the street. There is argument at times over whether they’ve gone all yuppie and over-expensive now. Whatever, you can’t beat them for people-watching.
Koh Samui down on 4th and Brannan is really good Thai with a large selection of vegetarian and vegan menu choices.
I definitely second the votes on the Clement Street Crawl out in the Richmond. Green Apple is an awesome bookstore, and City Lights is not to be missed either, despite the fact that North Beach is pretty darn touristy.
Ritual on 21st and Valencia has awesome coffee and is not a chain. The hipsters with their laptops and free wireless are either a blessing or curse depending on how you look at it I guess.
While you’re in that general vicinity, the main Good Vibes store is nearby on 18th and Valencia and definitely worth a stop.
Not too far from THAT is Borderlands Books, an awesome locally-owned/operated bookstores specializing in SF/Fantasy.
Golden Era in the Tenderloin is supposed to be really good pan-Asian Vegan food with lots of veggies and the entire range of TVP-based pseudo-meats.
At the other end of the spectrum, should you have a hankering for forbidden flesh, allow me to recommend In-N-Out for fast food and Old Krakow for genuine, old-country, Slavic/Central European food.
Take the MUNI kvetching with a grain of salt. We’re just grumpy because it used to be much better. Despite it’s faults, most visitors still tell me it’s a lot better than what they have at home.
Pier 39 and Fisherman’s Wharf are totally avoidable unless you have an undying love for touristy kitsche.
Oh, and should you have an electronic emergency, both the Apple Store at 4th and Stockton and Central Computer (locally-owned semi-chain[is two stores big enough to be a chain?]) on Howard between 4th and 5th should have most of what you need.
I grew up in the East Bay, lived there during the 90s as an adult, and left in 1999. If I won the lottery, the first thing I’d do is to try to persuade my family that we should move back!
I don’t have much to add to the great suggestions above, especially since I’m kinda a Rip van Winkle where SF is concerned (go to Doctor Bombays on 16th!…er, wait, it closed like 5 years ago
). But I’ll forge ahead, anyway:
Amanda, you should definitely check out The Women’s Building on 18th between Valencia and Guerrero, especially since everyone wants you to go to the Mission and you’ll be in the neighborhood anyway. Also, while you’re in the Mission you could visit the actual Mission itself (on the corner of 16th and Dolores, not 16th and Mission as you might imagine). This is also walking distance from the Castro (maybe 15 minutes), in case you’re curious. If you don’t want to visit a church, just tell yourself you’re visiting Carlotta Valdes’s grave site, instead.
I used to prefer Cancun to El Farolito, but the key thing is to find a place that grills their tortillas instead of steaming them.
You could also take a ferry across the Bay — the rides to Oakland and Alameda (the East Bay) are much prettier and more fun than the ride to Marin (Larkspur Landing), but the Marin one is faster.
If you’re going out for drinks with friends after the conference, and feel like spending way, way too much money, head over to The Redwood Room at the Clift Hotel on Geary in the Tenderloin — it’s a magnificent bar in a huge room built entirely from the wood of a single, old-growth redwood cut down in the 19th century. Beautiful and horrifying at the same time.
One last thing: if possible, try to be outside between 4:00 and 5:00 one day, when it’s not raining — Noe Valley or the Castro are good for this — and watch the fog crawl over the hills and pour down into the City. It’s really an incredible sight.
Dillo above is certainly right about MUNI–some people I knew absolutely hated it, and I had my bad days, like when I got kicked off the 33 twice in a row because the buses got the call to turn around.
But as a whole, it’s pretty damn easy to get around by public transportation.
Mark Twaine once said; “The coldest Winter I ever spent was one Summer in San Francisco.”
It may be sunny California, but the Bay geography traps in the cold wet fog from the ocean.
Sorry, quick follow-up on weather:
Evening fog is a lot more common in summer than winter, so you might not have a chance to watch it roll in over the hills this time around.
On the other hand, the most spectacular views in the Bay Area are after big, winter storms slam through and head for the Sierras. If you get a big rain storm followed by clear weather, that day with clear weather is the day to head up to Twin Peaks, or Buena Vista Park on the edge of the Haight, or to Coit tower, for a view of the region.
Ooh, one more Mission hint: head to The Marsh for cool experimental theater and funky performances. This might seem redundant to an Austinite, but if you’re in the Mission you might want to check it out.
Visited SF for the first time in Dec. at age 60. The murals in Coit Tower alone were worth the trip. Brilliant social expressionism from the early 1930s.
My favorite bad restaurant:
Sam Wo
813 Washington St (Grant/Stockton) 415 982-0596
11am–3am, closed Sunday.
Not for the faint of heart, but worth the experience.
They have been there forever, food is cheap, they only serve tea (BYOB), and the waiters get surly if you don’t tip.
Very San Francisco
best korean food, http://www.yelp.com/biz/han-il-kwan-san-francisco - just take a cab to it, totally worth it.
awesome tacos at 25th and Mission, http://www.yelp.com/biz/la-taqueria-san-francisco
Downtown, Osha on 2nd. St. is good for fancy-ass thai food. kind of loud and trendy tho.
I also recommend the Borderlands Books, Modern Times Books, Ritual Roasters, Good Vibrations, outing. All within a few blocks on Valencia, around 21st-ish.
@KittyM:
Yes, the one thing that people who haven’t been to SF much tend to forget/not realize is that we are in NORTHERN California. It gets cold here. What most people think of when they think of California is SOUTHERN California. Expecting it to be warm here is sort of like expecting New York to have the same weather as Florida.
Yeah, it gets “cold” and rainy here but it’s not exactly winter in NYC or Boston. Up until today we had a nice, beautiful, sunny stretch for about a week and half or so.
I’m loving this suggestions list…lots of great things for me to check out in my new home.
I would add that Vietnamese food in SF is absolutely fantastic, the best I’ve had. Little Saigon is worth checking out for places to eat. I’ve also heard great things about the Slanted Door in the Ferry Building. (The farmers market on Saturday at the Ferry Building is a food lovers dream and very worth checking out).
Oh and the sushi here is also excellent. Try Tokyo Go-go if you are in the Mission.
You should visit me in the Mission and be my new cool best friend. Please?
Seriously, the touristy places in SF that are probably worth the trip include:
— Coit Tower. If it’s overcast, don’t bother with the trip to the top; just check out the Marxist WPA murals all around the bottom floor. Keep an eye out for the storied wild parrots on the way up and down Telegraph Hill. I’ve seen them all of once, but maybe you’ll get lucky.
— The cable cars, always good for shits and giggles. I recommend a nighttime cable-car ride up Nob Hill, followed by overpriced drinks at the Tonga Room, an amazing vintage tiki bar inexplicably located in the basement of the uber-ritzy Fairmont Hotel.
— Golden Gate Park. Go up Haight Street so you can say you did that (and possibly stop at Amoeba Records), and enter the park from the top of Haight. There’s plenty to see and do in there, maybe even if you don’t want to score weed.
— SFMOMA. The temporary shows that are up right now are great. Around the corner are the Museum of the African Diaspora and the Cartoon Art Museum, the latter of which I heartily recommend, and not just because I’m married to the curator.
— Fisherman’s Wharf is one of our fair nation’s most bloated tourist traps, but it is worth visiting for the view of the Golden Gate Bridge, the sea lions that live next to Pier 39, and the utterly awesome Musee Machinique.
The best not-so-touristy neighborhoods are arguably the Mission and the upper Geary/Clement Street area.
The Mission has the Mission Dolores itself, a dozen fantastic bookstores, great cafes and restaurants, the pirate store at 826 Valencia, both Little Star Pizza and Pauline’s Pizza, both the Bombay Ice Creamery and Mitchell’s Ice Cream (although it’s far from ice cream weather right now), lots of beautiful murals (including, yes, the Women’s Building), and, I’m told, unbelievable burritos. I’m going to say no to We Be Sushi and yes to Restaurant Yoyo for sushi; it’s equally cheap but better, and they give you a metric ton of food. Serious sushi devotees, of course, turn up their noses at both places, but that’s because serious sushi devotees are made of suck.
Upper Geary/Clement has Green Apple Books, Toy Boat Cafe, Pizza Orgasmica, lots of good Asian food and groceries, various cafes, the coldest microclimate in the whole damn city, and a generally ungentrified, comfortable atmosphere, as measured in density of little old Chinese and Russian ladies per square kilometer.
Man, this is a fun city. Almost worth what it costs to live here…almost.
Also, it’s fucking cold and wet right now, so dress warm.
If you like hills, and strange little hidden places, look for Corona Heights in the Castro. You just go uphill on Castro a couple blocks past Market, turn left on Beaver St. (ahem) and go up some little stairs in between the houses, and there’s a winding stair up to a pile of crazy rocks with an amazing view of everything. It’s almost impossible to see it from anywhere in the neighborhood, so it’s like stumbling on a doorway into fairyland (ahem).
Hi Shaenon! Hi Yami!
I have to say I enjoyed the sea lions. “Auuf, auuf!”