Dine at the FERRY BUILDING and walk it off on the waterfront
In San Francisco, no venue is foodier than the Ferry Building and no view beats the Golden Gate Bridge. The real estate that connects them is the waterfront, a stretch of more than five miles that will feed you, teach you, entertain you and muss your hair (thanks to the stiff breezes). It also includes Fisherman’s Wharf and the Embarcadero.
Start at the foot of Market Street in the 1898 Ferry Building, with its restaurants, foodfocused retailers and farmers market (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday). Blue Bottle coffee! Hog Island oysters! Acme bread!
Take a moment to mourn the demise (in March) of the 10-yearold nightly Bay Bridge Lights Show and hope that something worthy arises in its place. Working your way north and west on the Embarcadero (by foot, bike or throwback streetcar), you’ll find food and booze at the snug, old Pier 23 Cafe; (open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday); hands-on science at the Exploratorium (closed Monday); a tourist-driven shopping scene (with sea lion soundtrack) at Pier 39; and a whole lot of T-shirt vendors, seafood restaurants and the Boudin Bakery at Fisherman’s Wharf.
BONUS TIP: If you rent a bike at Blazing Saddles, Sports Basement or San Francisco Bicycle Rentals (about $30 to $80 daily), you can pedal to Golden Gate views at Crissy Field, the Warming Hut and Fort Point. Many visitors ride across the bridge to Sausalito (1.7 miles) and catch a ferry back, but I prefer the bike ride to Fort Point and back: no cars roaring past, less wind and more pleasant places to stop.