And to your left, you will see more sourdough shaped like turtles
March 13, 2011 10:26 AM Subscribe
Pretend you are my tour guide in San Francisco for just a second. Also, there's a bonus question about roller skating!
Next week I'll be headed out to SFO for a vacation. Yay! I am meeting a friend of mine there and we are gong to have a blast. Because San Francisco is the bee's knees.
The thing: this is her first time going, my fifth (after spending a summer in the Bay Area). I am going to be playing tour guide, which is fine, but to be honest, it's a role I played on my last three trips, because I also went with people who had never been to the city before. And as much as I am down with doing the stereotypical tourist thing, I had a moment during a conversation with her during which I thought, "Fisherman's Wharf? Really? Again? Really?"
Thing is, I want to have a tour guide of my own, for once. But I don't. So I am turning to metafilter, instead!
Tell me, San Francisco denizens: what should I do on this trip that would be extra awesome? What recommendations might you give, say, to a friend who has already visited you a bunch of times and thus has already covered the obvious basics of the area? Where would you suggest she go to make this the best. trip. ever?
Bonus question: I want to surprise the friend with a trip to an old school roller rink, but I don't know where to go. I think there is one in San Jose (which seems a bit far for just an evening of skating) and there's some skating at the Golden Gate Park (but I fear inclement weather), but do you guys know of any others in/near downtown San Francisco?
Next week I'll be headed out to SFO for a vacation. Yay! I am meeting a friend of mine there and we are gong to have a blast. Because San Francisco is the bee's knees.
The thing: this is her first time going, my fifth (after spending a summer in the Bay Area). I am going to be playing tour guide, which is fine, but to be honest, it's a role I played on my last three trips, because I also went with people who had never been to the city before. And as much as I am down with doing the stereotypical tourist thing, I had a moment during a conversation with her during which I thought, "Fisherman's Wharf? Really? Again? Really?"
Thing is, I want to have a tour guide of my own, for once. But I don't. So I am turning to metafilter, instead!
Tell me, San Francisco denizens: what should I do on this trip that would be extra awesome? What recommendations might you give, say, to a friend who has already visited you a bunch of times and thus has already covered the obvious basics of the area? Where would you suggest she go to make this the best. trip. ever?
Bonus question: I want to surprise the friend with a trip to an old school roller rink, but I don't know where to go. I think there is one in San Jose (which seems a bit far for just an evening of skating) and there's some skating at the Golden Gate Park (but I fear inclement weather), but do you guys know of any others in/near downtown San Francisco?
One of the absolute highlights of my first SF trip was the San Francisco Victorian Home Walk. I have recommended it to everyone I know who is headed to the city, and everybody who has done it has raved about it, even those who had been to San Francisco many times.
posted by arco at 11:32 AM on March 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by arco at 11:32 AM on March 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
There are no roller rinks in San Francisco. The closest is in Redwood City. GG Park on Sundays is interesting, bunch of jam skaters and dance types. No rental skates available, though. If you have your own skates, skating the Embarcadero is awesome. Pretty flat, and lovely bay views.
On the roller skating tip, the Bay Area Derby Girls have a game on the 19th, if you'll be here then. It's all the way out in Richmond (the city, not the neighborhood), though.
Some ideas:
Tank Hill
the Musee Mechanique
the Academy of Sciences (some Thursday nights are adult night--cheap admission and booze available)
Ferry Building Farmer's market (Saturday is the big market, Tuesday is a very small version, Thursday is the awesome street food version)
Golden Gate Park is huge and lovely
we have all manner of awesome museums (MoAD, Comic Art Museum, Jewish Museum, MOMA, Legion of Honor, Exploratorium, de Young, Asian Art Museum, Cable Car Museum, Museum of Craft and Folk Art...)
a walking tour of murals in the mission through the Precita Eyes folks
posted by mollymayhem at 11:34 AM on March 13, 2011
On the roller skating tip, the Bay Area Derby Girls have a game on the 19th, if you'll be here then. It's all the way out in Richmond (the city, not the neighborhood), though.
Some ideas:
Tank Hill
the Musee Mechanique
the Academy of Sciences (some Thursday nights are adult night--cheap admission and booze available)
Ferry Building Farmer's market (Saturday is the big market, Tuesday is a very small version, Thursday is the awesome street food version)
Golden Gate Park is huge and lovely
we have all manner of awesome museums (MoAD, Comic Art Museum, Jewish Museum, MOMA, Legion of Honor, Exploratorium, de Young, Asian Art Museum, Cable Car Museum, Museum of Craft and Folk Art...)
a walking tour of murals in the mission through the Precita Eyes folks
posted by mollymayhem at 11:34 AM on March 13, 2011
Here's an idea: instead of thinking like a tour guide and tourist, think like an SF resident and do what we do:
1. Enjoy a dive theater/dive drinking evening by seeing Ladykiller: Live, a fun/funny James Bond spoof at The Dark Room Theater, then having a cocktail or three at Doc's Clock afterward.
2. If the weather's nice, pick up some picnic supplies at Bi-Rite Market and hang out in Dolores Park for some fab people watching.
3. Take a long, lovely walk through Golden Gate Park, stopping by the De Young Museum and Cal Academy of Sciences, ending up at Ocean Beach with a pit-stop at the Park Chalet for a beer on the back lawn to fortify you first.
posted by hapax_legomenon at 11:43 AM on March 13, 2011
1. Enjoy a dive theater/dive drinking evening by seeing Ladykiller: Live, a fun/funny James Bond spoof at The Dark Room Theater, then having a cocktail or three at Doc's Clock afterward.
2. If the weather's nice, pick up some picnic supplies at Bi-Rite Market and hang out in Dolores Park for some fab people watching.
3. Take a long, lovely walk through Golden Gate Park, stopping by the De Young Museum and Cal Academy of Sciences, ending up at Ocean Beach with a pit-stop at the Park Chalet for a beer on the back lawn to fortify you first.
posted by hapax_legomenon at 11:43 AM on March 13, 2011
Response by poster: Hm. If you guys want some interests for guidance: I enjoy sitting outdoors in the sun with wine/lattes, I am obsessed with museums (which is why I've been to almost every one on mollymayhem's list, except the cable car museum), still speak of fondly of the Pez Museum in Burlingame, am more a lounge than danceclub type of person, like places with good people-watching, will probably never do anything involving rockclimbing, am into indie everything (music, shopping, movies), am often short of cash.
Mainly, I want to wander around the city, looking pretty, and pretending that I am one of the hipsters who lives here. Also, I like doing things that are totally random and weird, like finding the city's largest ball of twine or playing old arcade games like Tempest after having a couple ridiculously frou-frou cocktails.
On preview: follow hapax_leomenon's lead. I want to experience SFO like a resident.
posted by vivid postcard at 11:48 AM on March 13, 2011
Mainly, I want to wander around the city, looking pretty, and pretending that I am one of the hipsters who lives here. Also, I like doing things that are totally random and weird, like finding the city's largest ball of twine or playing old arcade games like Tempest after having a couple ridiculously frou-frou cocktails.
On preview: follow hapax_leomenon's lead. I want to experience SFO like a resident.
posted by vivid postcard at 11:48 AM on March 13, 2011
Where are you staying?
If a trip to fisherman's wharf is inevitable, you can make it worthwhile by going to the Musee Mechanique and getting seafood or In N Out Burger, depending on your preference.
Since you haven't been, the Cable Car museum is unique, free, and can be part of a combined trip to Chinatown and/or North Beach. The museum is small enough that you can see everything in 30 minutes.
"Mainly, I want to wander around the city, looking pretty, and pretending that I am one of the hipsters who lives here."
What kind of hipster? Also, this question has a different answer if you're in your 20s than it does if you're in your 30s or 40s.
posted by outlaw of averages at 1:00 PM on March 13, 2011
If a trip to fisherman's wharf is inevitable, you can make it worthwhile by going to the Musee Mechanique and getting seafood or In N Out Burger, depending on your preference.
Since you haven't been, the Cable Car museum is unique, free, and can be part of a combined trip to Chinatown and/or North Beach. The museum is small enough that you can see everything in 30 minutes.
"Mainly, I want to wander around the city, looking pretty, and pretending that I am one of the hipsters who lives here."
What kind of hipster? Also, this question has a different answer if you're in your 20s than it does if you're in your 30s or 40s.
posted by outlaw of averages at 1:00 PM on March 13, 2011
One tip from a resident: SFO is the airport, not the city.
Standard advice: Read sfist and laughing squid, and go through the event listings in the Bay Guardian and the SF Weekly. Mission local is good for the hipster angle.
Do go see a roller derby match if you have a car or access to one.
posted by gingerbeer at 2:11 PM on March 13, 2011
Standard advice: Read sfist and laughing squid, and go through the event listings in the Bay Guardian and the SF Weekly. Mission local is good for the hipster angle.
Do go see a roller derby match if you have a car or access to one.
posted by gingerbeer at 2:11 PM on March 13, 2011
This roller rink in Redwood City has a disco night. It's actually a lot of fun. There's no roller rinks in SF, though you can go ice skating at Yerba Buena.
If you want to hang out like the locals, then you may want to spend a lot of time in the Mission/Noe/Duboce Triangle districts, far far away from Fishermans Wharf. Visit one of the Off the Grid food truck hubs. Get pastries from Tartine, walk over to Bi-Rite for ice cream and chill at Dolores Park. Head over to 826 Valencia to stock up on pirate gear. Lots of interesting little stores along the way, such as Paxton Gate, Wonderland and Therapy. Go to a hookah bar, like the one next to Pork Store Cafe on 16th. Get your coffee buzz by walking over (note, it's a long walk) to 24th St, hitting up Ritual Roasters, Philz, and Dynamo (be sure to get a bacon donut while you're at it). Finish the day with a sashimi dinner at Sushi Bistro on 24th.
Hmm that seems to cover some of my favorites in the Mission, but there's plenty more to see/eat/do in the other areas. Agree with checking out sfist. SFStation is another good resource for local events.
posted by hampanda at 4:47 PM on March 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
If you want to hang out like the locals, then you may want to spend a lot of time in the Mission/Noe/Duboce Triangle districts, far far away from Fishermans Wharf. Visit one of the Off the Grid food truck hubs. Get pastries from Tartine, walk over to Bi-Rite for ice cream and chill at Dolores Park. Head over to 826 Valencia to stock up on pirate gear. Lots of interesting little stores along the way, such as Paxton Gate, Wonderland and Therapy. Go to a hookah bar, like the one next to Pork Store Cafe on 16th. Get your coffee buzz by walking over (note, it's a long walk) to 24th St, hitting up Ritual Roasters, Philz, and Dynamo (be sure to get a bacon donut while you're at it). Finish the day with a sashimi dinner at Sushi Bistro on 24th.
Hmm that seems to cover some of my favorites in the Mission, but there's plenty more to see/eat/do in the other areas. Agree with checking out sfist. SFStation is another good resource for local events.
posted by hampanda at 4:47 PM on March 13, 2011 [1 favorite]
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Those are just a few highlights from the first 150 out of over 600 posts tagged sanfrancisco. I mostly ignored recommendations on food and beverage, so there's more there if you want to not just sightsee but also hang out in a cafe for an hour, find food you can't find in Chicago, go to a restaurant or bar near Chinatown...
posted by salvia at 11:22 AM on March 13, 2011 [2 favorites]