OT: Anybody from San Francisco

[TylerH]

I'm going to Gary Danko tomorrow night actually.. haha

 

Being a life long bay area resident, that list really is great! Fun things and no tourist traps...

 

If you want a spectacular view of teh GGB at night, drive over to marin and go up to the Marin Headlands.. At night, the bridge lights up and after a VERY mild hike, you are at about eye level with the top of it.. Its really an amazing view on a clear night!

 

 

[greaterfool]

Oh, and if you're dying for a burger, you gotta hit "In & Out". Unfrotunately, us East Coasties don't have that at our fingertips.

 

In & Out - there's one near fisherman's wharf

[Flee-Marquette]

Oh, and if you're dying for a burger, you gotta hit "In & Out". Unfrotunately, us East Coasties don't have that at our fingertips.

"In & Out" burgers! I eat there at least a couple of times during my annual northern California visit. (thumbs u

[sckao]

Oh, and if you're dying for a burger, you gotta hit "In & Out". Unfrotunately, us East Coasties don't have that at our fingertips.

 

In & Out - there's one near fisherman's wharf

 

Forget Daniel Boulud's Burger Royale for $99. You can get a $98 dollar burger from In & Out...

 

The IN & OUT 100x100:

http://whatupwilly.blogspot.com/2006/01/in-n-out-100x100.html

 

(BTW, I think company policy was changed to limit the max size to 4x4.)

 

 

[seank]

Oh, and if you're dying for a burger, you gotta hit "In & Out". Unfrotunately, us East Coasties don't have that at our fingertips.

 

In & Out - there's one near fisherman's wharf

 

Or for a truly great burger, try Barney's in Rockridge, just over the Bay. And while you're in Rockridge, try to meet up with Marc from House of Comics to get your funny book fix.

[Jeffreykli]

Oh, and if you're dying for a burger, you gotta hit "In & Out". Unfrotunately, us East Coasties don't have that at our fingertips.

 

In & Out - there's one near fisherman's wharf

 

Or for a truly great burger, try Barney's in Rockridge, just over the Bay. And while you're in Rockridge, try to meet up with Marc from House of Comics to get your funny book fix.

 

Barney's are great burgers, and they're throughout San Francisco, with one or two locations in Berkeley. Barney's Website

 

Don't forget that there are also good museums, and the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park is usually pretty quiet and romantic.

[tth2]

Have lunch in Sausalito.

(thumbs u

 

Ride the cable car from Powell Street to Fisherman's Wharf. Immediately get back on the cable car and ride back to Powell Street. (In other words, don't burn time in Fisherman's Wharf.)

But so true...

 

Going to Haight-Ashbury is also a waste of time.

 

Make sure you bring a warm jacket, Bob. Downtown SF is COLD at night in the summer when the fog rolls in.

 

[seank]

Have lunch in Sausalito.

(thumbs u

 

Ride the cable car from Powell Street to Fisherman's Wharf. Immediately get back on the cable car and ride back to Powell Street. (In other words, don't burn time in Fisherman's Wharf.)

But so true...

 

Going to Haight-Ashbury is also a waste of time.

 

Make sure you bring a warm jacket, Bob. Downtown SF is COLD at night in the summer when the fog rolls in.

 

 

Attributed to Mark Twain: "The coldest winter I ever saw was the summer I spent in San Francisco."

 

 

 

[Jeffreykli]

Also, if you're so inclined, take in a SF Giants game. The team sucks, but that means tickets can be found on craigslist pretty cheap, and the park is really nice. The food is incredibly expensive, though.

[supapimp]

summer in the city rules! i love the fog, it's currently 55 degrees and clear

[silverweb]

I am going to be in San Francisco then NAPA in a few weeks and was looking for a few suggestions for things I should not miss. Also , the names of a few good restaurants in San Francisco would be helpful. I will be with my wife so nice, romantic places would be the type I am shooting for. Thanks

 

SF's top high-end Restaurants:

Gary Danko

Fleur De Lys

Fifth Floor

Ozumo (sushi)

Slanted Door

Ame

Michael Mina

Masa's

Boulevard

 

Things to do:

Drive along Broadway on Billionaires Row (the intersection of Broadway and Divisadero is where the truly stunning houses start), park your car, and get out and check out the houses. Walk down the Lyon Street stairs at the end of Broadway. Enjoy the spectacular views.

 

Walk across the Golden Gate Bridge.

 

Have lunch in Sausalito.

 

Take the ferry to Tiburon and have a cocktail on the deck at Sam's Anchor Cafe.

 

Do the 49 mile drive (if you have a whole day to kill).

 

Ride the cable car from Powell Street to Fisherman's Wharf. Immediately get back on the cable car and ride back to Powell Street. (In other words, don't burn time in Fisherman's Wharf.)

 

Napa is a whole 'nother issue.

 

Here is a prior post I did on the subject:

 

Best way to start the trip is to attend Merryvale Vineyard's wine tasting tour and (short) tasting seminar on a Saturday or Sunday morning. It runs from 10:30 to 12:30 or so. It is one of the most fun things I've ever done in Napa, and the guy (Ed) who runs the tour is one of the coolest and most fun people in the valley. The "seminar" is where you are seated in Merryvale's historical cask room, and you taste six wines blind, along with small samples of four core wine components (sugar, alcohol, grape tannin, and acid) and compare the prevalence of each in the six wines in front of you. Very informative, tons of fun, and a nice way to start a day of wine tasting, even if you know your way around a bottle of wine.

 

Lunch at Taylor's Automatic Refresher across the street. I recommend the ahi tuna burger with Asian slaw and some sweet potato french fries. Liz also loves the milkshakes, but I tend to skip them to keep my waistline measurement in the mid-30s.

 

After that, it's a short, 20-minute drive up oak-lined Spring Mountain Road, where you can spend the day tasting at Paloma, Pride Mountain Vineyards, Barnett Vineyards, and Chrisco37's personal favorite and home of the "Crazy Queen of Spring Mountain," Guilliams. (Call ahead and make reservations at each of these places at least two weeks in advance. They are small wineries and they limit the number of visitors at a time. Allow 1 hour for each winery, which should give you 40 minutes of tasting time plus 20 minutes to travel to the next stop. The view of Napa Valley from the tasting deck at Barnett is incredible, so I like to schedule that one as late in the day as possible to try to catch the sunset.)

 

Follow that up with dinner at the Martini House in St. Helena to cap off an epic "Day to Remember in Wine Country."

 

And that's just day one!!!!

 

I like Bacco, an Italian restaurant in Noe Valley, House of Prime Rib,the Asian Art museum in downtown, shows at the Curran or Orpheum theatres. You might also try to catch the Beach Blanket Babylon show in North Beach

[Silver Surfer]

If you get a chance stop off in Sonoma and visit the wineries, and snack on some goodies outside on their picnic tables. Also, do a drive around town and check out the pitched slate roofs and mason walls on some of the nicer homes, absolutely beautiful stuff. Probably one of my favorite trips I have ever been on. The Redwood forest is alittle out of the way but pretty awe inspiring.

[FFB]

A couple of other suggestions that I left off my initial list:

 

If you and your wife are foodies, I highly recommend a walk through the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero at the end of Market Street. There is a terrific bunch of gourmet food shops and restaurants (Slanted Door is in there, as is the San Francisco location of Taylor's Automatic Refresher), as well as one of the better wine stores in the city. A written description won't do the Ferry Building justice, so just go there at around 11:00 a.m. and explore the shops until lunch time. Sample the cheeses at Cowgirl Creamery. Stop by the mushroom shop (Far West Fungi) and ogle the black truffles in the glass case while they're in season and sample some sea beans if they're still in season when you're there. Get a bottle of black truffle oil and take it home with you as a memento of the trip. Stop at the Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant (the aforementioned wine store) for a tasting flight or three. Then get a seat by the bar at the Ferry Plaza Seafood restaurant (inside and just past the Golden Gate Meat Company shop), or if the weather is nice, get a table outside and enjoy the view. If you're more in the mood for an amazing Vietnamese lunch, make an advance reservation for Slanted Door and eat there. Have a cup of tea at the Imperial Tea Shop afterward. Go back to your hotel room and take a nap. You'll need it.

 

If you and your wife are in the mood for a more traditional and authentic San Francisco experience, get lunch at the Swan Oyster Depot on Polk Street just north of the intersection at California Street. You can take the California Street cable car there from Market Street at the California Street cable car turnaround. Get to the restaurant at around 11:45 a.m. or you may have a short wait for a spot at the bar. Do not be deterred by the hole-in-the-wall appearance of the place -- this is a James Beard award-winning spot. If you love oysters you'll think you've died and gone to heaven. The seafood combo salad is also fantastic. They usually make it with a Louie dressing on the side, but ask the guy behind the counter to make the special vinaigrette with crab fat. Delicious.