A Guide to San Francisco
One of my goals for this year is to post on the blog more, and the first one came to my head on the plane home from Christmas. A guide to SF! My husband, Andrew, grew up in the Bay Area of California with his parents and 3 siblings, and they know a ton about the area. I polled the fam, threw in my favorite things I’ve done over the last 4 years, and voila! Here it is: many of these are parks and lookout points, so use google to help find your way and if you need help, feel free to get in touch! I’m happy to help!
December 2018: Andrew’s parents, uncle, aunt, cousins, Andrew, and his sister Sophia and me on the beach at the 17-Mile Drive!
To Do: got time to kill? Love the views? Need to walk off some of the delicious food you’ve eaten? Want to see it all?
The Lion Steps: I had my first encounter with the Lion steps shortly after we got engaged in 2015. The houses in this area are beautiful, and when (if? jk you will) you make it to the top, you’ve got a great view of the bay. There were sailboats out on the water the day we were there, and we loved it.
The Presidio: We did this the same day as the Lion Steps! Walk along the Presidio towards the Marina/bridge is a great photo op, too! This is one of the state parks, and it is really cool.
Dolores Park
Lookout on Twin Peaks
Land’s End/Sufro Baths: This is where Andrew wanted to propose to me, but he got nervous because of all of the tourists that day! This area has GORGEOUS views and it’s a lovely hike. we ended up getting engaged at…
China Beach: a lovely beach with an incredible view of the hills and the bridge. We love it and we try to go when we’re in California!
China Beach: Andrew and I got engaged here! The day was a lot grayer, but we visited in December and it was a beautiful day. Look at it! I’ve also heard good things about Baker Beach!
7. Point Cavallo: Drive over the bridge, and keep going. Right after the view point, you’ll turn right and follow a road down to the spot where we parked and took the photo below right after sunset. The traffic was pretty bad that day, but it gave us a ton of time to enjoy the sunset on the bridge.
8. Japan Town! It’s a mall with restaurants, taiyaki, and Japanese paper stores and book stores galore. The “dollar store” we visited was incredible. It was like Ikea, but with such cute kitchenware and really nice bowls and plates. I loved it. 10/10 will go back!
9. The Museum of Ice Cream: What’s not to love? It is really well put together on the inside, the gift shop is great, and there is a sprinkle pool! I love it. Get your tickets ahead of time- they sell out!
10. Chinatown: Dim Sum and steamed/baked buns are some of my favorite things in the world. We like to walk around, get some baked goodies, and we usually stop by the fortune cookie factory. It’s so fun to watch them being folded!
11. Is it raining? There are some great museums: DeYoung Museum, The California Academy of Sciences, MoMa, Legion of Honor Museum, and the Asian Art Museum.
12. Golden Gate Park: This is a HUGE park with lovely trees and tons of activity. The Tea Garden in this park is beautiful, and there is a bison conservatory here too!
13. Palace of Fine Arts: this is a stunning building and there is a lovely park around it. My brother in law, Marc, graduated high school in this spot.
14. Painted Ladies: Some of the most iconic painted homes in San Francisco! There are some other great houses right around here, too.
15. Shopping in the Haight: These are notable faves from Marc and Daniel, Andrew’s brothers: Decades of Fashion, Relic Vintage, Static, and Afterlife.
16. Farmer’s Market at Ferry Plaza
17. Heath Ceramics
To Eat:
(Marnee’s Thai)
Robin: Omakase sushi, loud hip-hop, and tons of special touches. A trip here was my Christmas gift from Andrew last year! I can’t say enough about how good it is.
Marnee’s Thai: Love it. Everything we had there was delish! If you have a large group, call ahead.
Kevin’s Noodle House: if you love pho, this place is pho you!
Plow: I’ve been for breakfast, but everyone in the Armitano family loves this spot! Casual comfort food.
Tartine: When Andrew came to my apartment for the first time, I had just purchased the Tartine recipe book from Anthropologie. I didn’t believe him when he told me his family bought their bread there all the time! It really is so good.
Tartine Manufactory: We’ve never been, but it is a sibling favorite for lunch!
La Taqueria: One of Andrew’s picks and some of his friends confirmed! It’s in the mission and they make a mean burrito.
Ferry Plaza Farmer’s Market
City View Dim Sum: My favorite thing that I can only get in California!
B Patisserie: The best. and there is a Kiehl’s nearby! That’s fun!
Robin
There’s so much more, but these are the favorites! (For now!)
Happy new year!
