Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with SanFrancisco

SF food

AceRock — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 17:22:14 -0800

What to eat in San Francisco/the Bay Area that I can't find in Chicago? Going to be there for a few days. Looking for some great food recs. What does San Francisco do better than Chicago? What is available there that I can't get in the Windy City?

Mostly looking for restaurants, but I'll have access to a kitchen for a few days, so any can't-miss-food-shopping experiences would be cool too.

Thanks!

Industrial Jewelry

lore — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 13:55:34 -0800

Industrial jewelry in the Bay Area? Can anyone recommend a place in the San Francisco Bay Area that sells jewelry with an industrial flair? A good example would be a bracelet I saw made of the insides of analog watches. It's too late for shipping, so I want someplace local.

Marzipan in San Francisco

roll truck roll — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 09:59:04 -0800

Where in San Francisco can I get an awesome tray of fruit-shaped marzipan? When I was a kid, there was a donut shop that made marzipan every year around Christmas time. You had to place orders ahead of time and pick up your tray a few days before Christmas.

I'd completely forgotten about the stuff until a recent trip to Boston, where every bakery has it right alongside the pastries and cupcakes. My family is coming to town for Christmas, and I thought it would be fun to get some from a local bakery.

I don't seem to be looking in the right places. From finding similar questions on Yelp, I know that Cost Plus and specialty candy stores carry it, but I was hoping to buy it from a bakery or someplace that actually makes it in-house.

Thanks.

Oh, the possibilities...

soleiluna — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:34:12 -0800

San Francisco Bay Area: Looking for new running routes/paths in the Bay Area again...but this time, I have a car! I got some great answers last time I asked about San Francisco running routes. Now I've found a new running partner and we have access to a car, which vastly expands our running possibilities to other parts of the Bay Area & places public transit does not reach.

Any suggestions for new ideas? We're looking for places within roughly a 45 minute drive of San Francisco. We're interested in everything from something like the Berkeley or Peninsula equivalent of Crissy Field to places like Sawyer Camp Trail (paved flat sort-of hiking path) to other paths in various suburbs. Routes in SF/Berkeley/elsewhere that are less obvious/not public-transit-accessible are also great.

Other criteria: we're looking mostly for routes between 5-14 miles. I'm much less hill-adverse I used to be, but moderate/easy/occasional hills are more our speed, rather than super-intense grade the entire time. Neither of us do trail running.

(Here's where I run already:
-Embarcadero/ATT Park/Fisherman's Wharf
-Powell/Embarcadero/Columbus/Montgomery loop
-the Wiggle/panhandle
-Golden Gate Park
-Ocean Beach/Great Highway
-Kezar track
-Crissy Field
-Lake Merced)

Thank you, hive mind!

What Bay Area stores carry the Dell Adamo?

Susan PG — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:32:58 -0800

Where can I see a Dell Adamo (not the new XPS, but the one that was released last year) in person, in the San Francisco Bay Area? Frys doesn't seem to carry it, and I don't know who else would. I'm considering buying one, and want to handle it and check out the keyboard, weight, etc., in person, before making a decision. Thanks for any help you can provide :-)

Three year anniversary coming up Dec 1st in Berkeley/Oakland. Any ideas?

ghostpony — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 12:05:28 -0800

I have a three year anniversary coming up on 12/01 and I want to make it extra wonderful. I will be in Berkeley/Oakland. Does MeFi have any great ideas? She is vegetarian but will eat meat if it's grass fed and humanely raised. I am looking for theater/restaurant/event recommendations, as well as just the unique out-there things to do.

I have a couple of ideas, but find this community to be so resourceful I thought I would just put it out there!

Can you help?

Need advice on rush hour travel between OAK and downtown San Francisco

docpops — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:37:08 -0800

I need to get from Oakland airport to downtown San Francisco on a Thursday at around 4:30 PM as quickly as possible. BART or cab? Spouse and I are hoping to make dinner reservations in downtown San Francisco after landing at 4:10 at OAK. Is traffic a big enough issue that BART makes more sense? I have no concept of whether we are traveling with or against traffic flow and would appreciate insider advice. Any specific BART info appreciated also.

Good couples counselor in San Francisco?

roxie110 — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:43:00 -0800

Can anyone recommend a good couples counselor in San Francisco? We're a late 30s-early 40s hetero couple who have been together for 6 years. Neither of us particularly wants to delve into childhood issues (I did that for years in my own therapy; my boyfriend "isn't into that kind of thing"); we're mostly trying to figure out if we want to continue to stay together. In terms of working out relationship issues, my guess is that someone oriented toward cognitive/behavioral approaches might be best.

Any information about why you're recommending the therapist would be much appreciated. Many thanks!

Bay Area Dermatologist Recommendations?

noahdubya — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:19:55 -0800

Can anyone recommend a good (for acne) dermatologist in the Bay Area (SanJose/SantaCruz) I've been able to keep my acne under control for what seems like forever. One year into a PhD program, and I think that I should be seeking some professional help. That, plus I have health insurance as a graduate student (yay). But, there are sooooo many MDs. Any recommendations?

What do I need to know about preschool in San Francisco?

otherwordlyglow — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:26:33 -0800

Tell me about the need for pre-school in San Francisco, please. We have a 16-month old daughter who is in daycare three days a week and live and work in San Francisco. Assuming we stay in San Francisco, we'll probably send her to public schools and I am slowly learning about that complicated and frustrating process. In the mean time, I can't find a lot of info about pre-schools in SF.

First of all, at what age do kids go to pre-school, is it just for the year prior to kindergarten or before then?

I think our daycare would be fine keeping her until kindergarten but I'm imagining that there might be benefits to attending pre-school. She's in a home daycare situation and though they do some activities, it's not super dynamic, which is totally fine for now but as she gets older I'm thinking she might need something more enriched.

Do most kids go to pre-school? It's not usually all day every day, is it? So do they do part-time daycare/part-time pre-school if the parents work? I'm sure in the next year I'll go back to work full time so we'll need a 5-day/week solution eventually anyway.

From brief web searches I see scads and scads of pre-schools but I don't even know where to begin to filter them. Some actually seem more like daycares to add to my confusion.

And then there are the people who tell me that I should have my daughter on waiting lists for schools already, which I kind of think is crazy. Is it?

I'm planning on attending a local session on pre-schools tomorrow night so maybe I'll feel more informed after that but any other anecdotal or otherwise info would be appreciated?

Is there any way to estimate what a car & car insurance would cost me if I moved to San Francisco?

scazza — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 12:16:16 -0800

What are ways to estimate what a car and car insurance would cost me if I moved to San Francisco? I'm looking for what it would cost to have a reasonable, eco-friendly (not necessarily a hybrid, probably not a hybrid) car for 2 people in San Francisco. Something like a hatchback that's 1-2 years old. I live in NYC now so I have no idea how to go about estimating insurance and car loan payments. Resources? Thanks!

(There is a question about this from 2005, but I think things may have changed by now.)

Gin and tonic - with a twist - in San Francisco

The Shiny Thing — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:06:57 -0800

I'm going to Wootstock in San Francisco on Tuesday night, and will be craving a gin and tonic afterward - specifically Junipero, because of this thread. So, at the risk of turning MeFi into a gin palace: can anyone recommend a nice bar near the Swedish American Hall that serves a mean Junipero and tonic? And if anyone's in the area, give me a shout - the more the merrier, etc. etc.

San Francisco Nights

clorox — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 18:39:21 -0800

It's 6:30 P.M. on a Friday/Saturday. You're in San Francisco. All of your friends are doing something else. There's no Sharks game on. The Symphony and the Opera are sold out. The library is closed. You've read the newspapers front to back. You have to start heading home by 10:30 P.M. What do you do? Due to some unfortunate scheduling, this will be the problem I'm presented with for the rest of this semester. Any ideas on how to occupy myself for those four hours?

Dating in San Francisco : will the women here expect me to have a car?

Anonymous — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:46:55 -0800

Dating in San Francisco : will the women here expect me to have a car? I am a man who just moved to SF from NYC, and I plan on living in the city -- although I don't know which neighborhood yet. I lived in NYC for 6 years, and nobody there really has a car, so it wasn't expected. However, I know that SF is more car-oriented, so I'm wondering if being car-less will hinder my dating life.

I am considering getting a car anyway for recreational purposes, so this wouldn't be my only reason for getting a car. However, I can certainly live without a car, especially if it won't effect my dating life.

Please hold back on answering if you're going to respond with something like "You don't want to date a girl who expects you to have a car." That's not really helpful and doesn't answer my question. I also know that car ownership in the city can be a pain, so there's no need to go into that either.

Specifically, I would like to hear from men and women who live here or have lived here in the recent past. I would like to know what I'm in for, with as little sugar-coating as possible. Buying a car is a big decision, and I want to know as much as I can before I make this decision.

Also, I know there are various ZipCar / CityCar options. How is this seen in the dating world? Is it seen as a "he's too cheap to buy a car" option, an "it's perfectly fine" option, or an "it's perfectly fine, I guess, but why doesn't he have his own car?" option?

A perfect afternoon in San Francisco.

dancestoblue — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:34:43 -0800

The rest of this afternoon and into the early evening in San Francisco, no car but there is good public transport of course. I was hoping to hit the Exploratorium but they're closed on Mondays -- dang. It's a perfect afternoon... It's a perfect afternoon, I'm at Fort Mason, about 1000 steps to an old pier where I love to write letters and/or journal entries and reflect on the profundities of life etc and etc, perfect views of everything I want to look at. Or a walk to the Golden Gate bridge, that's fun but I've done that on past trips. I'm fine sitting in the sun on that favorite pier writing and drinking fine tea unless you have something that I absolutely ought not to miss out on -- I've got from now until about 9:00 or 9:30, when I've got to head to the airport for a red-eye home.

I've thought maybe a ferry ride to Sausalito but I sailed on the bay yesterday and doubt I can top that with some dang ferry ride -- am I wrong? Or maybe Ann LaMott is reading somewheres or other, maybe some poet or other that I ought not miss, an art show, or ?? I can easy rent a nice bike but I'm sortof worn from this trip and not totally up to these hills and dales or what have you. I don't have tons of bread but I've got enough if you've got something jammin' that I've just got to do.

Any ideas?

San Francisco insurance confusion

eschatfische — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:16:30 -0800

What's the deal with the Brown and Toland vs. Hill Physicians division in San Francisco medical care? Why must San Franciscans with HMOs be referred to specialists who not only accept your insurance plan, but are also part of the same medical group as the referring doctor? I've always found the demarcation of Brown and Toland vs. Hill Physicians doctors in San Francisco to be strange. Having to go to specialists who not only accept your insurance but who are also part of a specific medical group is certainly inconvenient and problematic for patients, and it doesn't seem to be so great for the doctors, either.

Is there a reason San Francisco medical care is divided into these sub-groups? Does this actually benefit anyone to add an additional layer of middlemen? Is it like this elsewhere? I can't recall experiencing this anywhere else, and Googling doesn't seem to help explain the origins of these groups.

Thanks!

That "commercial vehicle" only section of Downtown San Francisco

sammich — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 15:41:41 -0800

San Francisco Filter: What's the deal with the 'commercial vehicle' only area in the financial district? No one seems to notice or care. Reading about tomorrow's six week passenger car shutdown of Market Street reminded me that they also restrict passenger vehicles in that two or three block square patch of the Financial District (roughly) between Montgomery and Battery St. There are all these no-left turn and do not enter signs bordering this area that say "Commercial Vehicles excepted" but I always see regular cars drive right in and cops are never around to enforce it. Has anyone heard of anyone getting busted in this area? If i were driving in this area would you advise obeying those signs? Does anyone care?

Great dentists in San Francisco?

needs more cowbell — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 22:21:18 -0800

Good dentists in San Francisco? Specific needs/neuroses inside. I haven't been to a dentist in far too long, partly out of fear and partly out of being pretty deeply squicked out by the thought of tooth decay. I have no idea what kind of shape my mouth is in currently. I think I can get over the dental phobia, but now my worry is that I'll end up with a dentist who sees dollar signs instead of being objective, or otherwise won't do a fantastic job with any work I need done.

I've heard of people having problems where:
1) dentists see cavities/drill where it isn't absolutely necessary (and I'm acutely aware that once you drill into a tooth, that bit of tooth is gone forever and possibly more open to decay in the long term around a filling)
2) dentists don't fully remove decay, and then teeth rot from the inside out beneath fillings

I think the only way to know if a particular dentist is good in these respects is to get a recommendation from someone who's been going to the same dentist for a long time. So, SF-area mefites, can you recommend anyone good? Other factors are:

-I don't want any hard selling of tooth whitening or cosmetic procedures. My concern is ONLY that my teeth be in the best possible shape from a health/longevity standpoint. (And I'm totally willing to do whatever is necessary in terms of flossing or waterpiking or deep-cleaning or newfangled technology to get my teeth in great shape.)
-I need a dentist who will be kind/gentle with me (mentally/emotionally) and not make me feel shitty about having put this off. I have a bizarre tendency to equate dental decay with being disgusting and having some huge moral failing.
-And lastly (but less important than the above), I'd like someone who's good about pain management and physical comfort. Sedation is not necessary, though.

If you'll all indulge me, I'd love to hear how any particular dentist you recommend ranks on each of the above things - quality of the work in the long term (over/underdrilling), hard sell of cosmetic stuff, kindness, general savvyness to ways to help my teeth be in great shape, and pain management.

I don't have dental insurance, so that's not a factor. While it would be nice to find someone who gives a discount for paying cash, my absolute #1 priority is the quality of the dentist's work and how comfortable I will feel mentally and physically.

Whew. I'm finally (sort of) dealing with this. Thanks in advance!

Searching for Chinese dinner w/lazy susan.

user92371 — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:23:34 -0800

I am looking for a restaurant in Oakland or San Francisco that will serve a large group a cheap but massive Chinese dinner with a big ol' lazy susan. The lazy susan part is key.

Maybe not the Sleep Eazy Motel, though

hwyengr — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 01:25:49 -0800

I'm visiting San Francisco this weekend, but I don't want to stay overnight in the City. What's your favorite Bay Area cheap-ish hotel? BART accessibility a plus. The ladyfriend and I are driving up from LA this weekend for Folsom. We'd rather spend our money on gear than hotels, so we were hoping to find a hotel/motel outside of San Francisco proper.

We're coming up the 101, but it looks like the East Bay is the best bet for BART access, right?

We're open to anything, I'd just rather not bring home bedbugs.

Full English breakfast, hold the spam.

eschatfische — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:41:36 -0800

Where can I get a full English breakfast in San Francisco? To clarify, I'm not looking for an American breakfast that just comes with a side of beans -- I can make that at home. I'm looking for the full breakfast, with fried bread, tomato, the works. Thanks!

San Francisco Vacation Neighbourhood

ssg — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 00:55:49 -0800

San Francisco: In which neighbourhood should I stay for a month long vacation? I'm planning to sublet an apartment in SF for a month long vacation this fall. I'd like to be reasonably close to good cheap food, culture (art, theatre, film, music), farmers markets, and to be able to explore the city via transit, bike, or on foot reasonably easily. I'm not particularly interested in shopping, clubbing, or being right in the middle of the action. It would be a bonus if I could go on 20-50mi road bike rides without having to slog through endless blocks of traffic first. I've never been to SF before.

Specifically, I'm considering an appealing place on Folsom, just south of Cesar Chavez. Would this be a reasonable area for me?

Where to throw a party in San Francisco?

roxie110 — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 14:03:30 -0800

Suggestions for birthday party locations to rent in San Francisco? I'm thinking about throwing a party for my 40th birthday in October and have been racking my brain for ideas for places to go or to rent. My best guess is about 30 people (could be less or more, probably depending on how cool the event is!), preferably an evening/night event, and those thousand-dollar-and-up uber-swanky places are definitely out. It's quite likely I'd want to have a couple bands I know play, and have some sort of music going (probably from an ipod playlist) the rest of the time. I could set up some sort of bar if the venue doesn't have one--quite a number of my friends are big drinkers, so availibility of booze would help grease the rails!

Every year on my birthday I just have friends show up at a bar (Zeitgeist, Casanova) so I don't have to bother with planning. This year I'm open to trying something a little more special--but ideally I'd like the venue to be cool enough that it will do some of the work of making the party successful. (I don't want a bunch of people standing around just *looking* at each other. Horror!)

Any suggestions would be gratefully welcomed. From looking at past Metafilter postings, it looks like art galleries are a possibility--does anyone know one or two in particular that might do the trick? I'm also open to suggestions for places or party ideas that are very cool but that are outside of what it seems I'm looking for.

With a little help from his friend

Anonymous — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 12:47:51 -0800

I'm trying to help a friend get a medical marijuana card in San Francisco, CA. Although I'm asking for a friend, some people at work know my username here, and I don't want to deal with the "knowing looks" thing, hence the anon.

My friend Jay has HIV. He's on a number of meds, some of which make him sick to his stomach, and some of which kill his appetite altogether. He's talked to his doctor about medical marijuana; his doctor has had him try Marinol, but it hasn't worked well for him - he needs to hit a sort of sweet spot when he's both psychologically and physically wanting/able to eat, and the Marinol doesn't seem to work like that for him. His doc is reluctant (for her own reasons, I think, licensing and such, not because she's opposed to it) to prescribe it for him, and Jay is a little weirded out anyway about how it would appear in his insurance records.

So, the question: how can he find a doctor who will write him a prescription/recommendation (I'm not entirely certain how the process works, exactly)? He's seen the ads on the backs of the free weeklies, but he's hesitant about going that route if he doesn't have to. If you have personal recommendations, those would be welcome. If you don't want to broadcast your knowledge to the world, or have questions, you can email anonymedsSF at gmail. Thank you all!

Who in San Francisco will pick up my wheelchair donation?

mrgrimm — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 13:47:26 -0800

Will anyone in San Francisco pick up medical equipment donations? I have a wheelchair, bedside commode, walker, and some other significant hardware that I'd like to donate, but I don't have a car. Does anyone know any org that will pick up?