Visitors' San Francisco Stories
Do You Have a Favorite "Best Thing To Do"

Tasty Filipino breakfast at Good Bites Cafe, Belmont 
Interesting, good, hearty Filipino breakfast & brunch. Tasty Mediterranean homemade pita bread with hummus, friendly service, good prices, dumpy hole-in-...

Half Moon Bay Nursery 
If you like plants you will have great fun here!

Be ready to enter from busy Highway 92. Once you have accomplished this and found a parking spot you ...

Liguria Bakery -- Authentic focaccia bread in North Beach 
This very old bakery in North Beach is justly famous for its Italian focaccia bread. Their flat seasoned bread is great and the old Italian lady at the ...

Moraga Street Tiled Steps, San Francisco 
Beautiful tiled steps climbing from 16th Ave up to 15th Ave. Nice western views ... then continue on up to Grand View Park for one of the best 360 degree ...

Toque Blanche Kitchen Shop, Half Moon Bay 
If you are into cooking then this little kitchen shop, owned by a professional chef, is a delight. Though small it has an excellent variety of useful ...

Town Restaurant, San Carlos -- for a nice evening 
Surprisingly for San Carlos, Town Restaurant is a happening place. There's a nice happy crowd and staff, good drinks and food.

I like sitting at ...

Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, San Jose 
This small old Egyptian museum is one of the most unique things to see in all of San Jose, especially for locals. I like it better than the much more ...

Lyon Street Steps, San Francisco, CA 
Lyon Street stairs is one of the most wonderful places in all of wonderful San Francisco, indeed in all of the world.
See more details and several ...

Outerlands Cafe, in the Outer Sunset neighborhood of SF 
We accidentally discovered Outerlands Cafe last weekend. Our plans were to breakfast at a nearby coffee shop but, after several locals we met on the street ...

MotoJava Cafe, SF 
Very small and very nice. This little cafe is located right on the corner of 9th/Bryant as you get off Highway 101. There's a big sign that covers the ...

Redwood Shores Library 
The new library near Oracle in Redwood Shores is a great place to spend a few hours browsing. This is my favorite place to spend lunch hour or a quiet ...

Graveyard Hill, Half Moon Bay 
Yes, I've been there too and agree that it is a "hidden" treasure.

So good!!! Charlie's Taqueria in San Mateo 
Today I finally went to the famous Charlie's. I was impressed! I had a wet chile verde super burrito and it was fantastic. The salsa & chips were tasty ...

"New Gem in the Outer Sunset" 
Devil's Teeth Baking Company just opened on 46th and Noriega. Best breakfast sandwich ever. Wonderful staff, beignets on Sundays, great cakes, pies and ...

Ramen Dojo -- Excellent Japanese Noodle House in San Mateo 
All they serve is excellent Japanese spicy noodle soup at $8.95 for a large & filling bowl. I spent a little more to add a cold Sappora beer plus three ...

Pilgrim Kitchen -- Old Fashioned Bakery in Belmont, CA 
Basic roadside bakery/donut shop with no decor but excellent donuts, pies, and a place to sit down to eat them. The long hours, Mon-Sun 5am-11pm, is another ...

San Mateo Chinese Take Out?   Well, maybe. 
The Tao Yuen Restaurant has big, cheap lunches and an extremely nice staff. The food ... well, it's not the "best" but plenty good enough when we have ...

Grand Coffee in the Mission, SF  Not rated yet
This coffee shop is grand indeed! It is a small 1-person shop with great Mission Street ambiance and pleasant service. The Four Barrel gourmet coffee ...

The Ravioli House, San Mateo ... a real taste treat  Not rated yet
The beef ravioli with meat sauce is outstanding! It is made on site and you can eat there or take the ingredients home to cook yourself.

Strangely ...

Great sausages+beer+atmosphere ..... a winning SF combination!!   Not rated yet
Here's the winning combination! A Rosamunda grilled sausage sandwich together with Belgium beer from the Toronado dive bar next door. This is an outstanding ...

World's Top Surfers at Ocean Beach, SF, Nov 1-12, 2011  Not rated yet
UPDATE: 11/2/11 Just saw 39 yr old Kelly Slater, USA, win his 11th world title ... the most ever in history. However, there is still 2 more days ...

Trap & Skeet shotgun Shooting at Pacific Rod & Gun Club, San Francisco  Not rated yet
Just visited the Pacific Rod & Gun Club which has a surprisingly nice trap & skeet facility. This 77 year old institution provides a safe (no accidents ...

Mr. Toots Coffeehouse, Capitola  Not rated yet
The fantastic beach view from the little balcony alone makes this one of my very favorite coffee shops in the entire SF Bay area.

Mr. Toots is quaint,...

Stella Alpina Osteria, food from the Italian Alps in Burlingame?  Not rated yet
One of the best northern Italian restaurants in the San Francisco Bay area is hidden on the basement floor of a Burlingame, CA, side street, of all places....

Casual elegance at The Village Pub, Woodside  Not rated yet
This recipient of a Michelin Guide star is very nice but not too formal. You can even get a good (& expensive) burger and beer here or, of course, something ...

Back A Yard Caribbean Grill, Menlo Park   Not rated yet
Very, very tasty grilled Caribbean food at reasonable prices. The jerk pork, oxtails, and fried bread (called corn festivals) are great examples. Spicing ...

Flying Fish Grill, Half Moon Bay  Not rated yet
Excellent food in a new location (which is much bigger than their old shack but still quite modest). Better food than the more expensive places which have ...

Happy Taco Taqueria, Half Moon Bay  Not rated yet
Just about the best and cheapest Mexican restaurant around. It is our long-time favorite for tasty, quick, clean Mexican food even though the decor is ...

Mori Point, Pacifica, CA,
is a SF gem on clear days  Not rated yet
On a clear day in Pacifica here's a hidden gem worth checking out. Only the locals seem to know about this Golden Gate National Park even though it is ...

Civil War Reenactment at Fort Point,
San Francisco, on Sat 8/13/11, 10am-5pm  Not rated yet
A retired military participant I met at the Presidio information office recommended this interesting event. He said it would be an exceptionally good ...

Good $12 Sunday Brunch
at Pedros in Los Gatos  Not rated yet
The Sunday brunch buffet at Pedros in Los Gatos was a pleasant surprise ... not fantastic but much better than expected and for $12 is excellent. The ...

Serpentine in San Francisco, a nice place for Sunday brunch  Not rated yet
This nice newish little gem is hiding out behind a nondescript exterior in the historic Dogpatch neighborhood south of the Ballpark. It's accessible to ...

"SF Bay Model" Visitor Center, Sausalito  Not rated yet
An engineer's delight, this giant 1.5 acre 3D working hydraulic model of the entire San Francisco Bay was developed in 1957 by the Army Corps of Engineers ...

ZombieRunner Coffee Bar, California Ave, Palo Alto  Not rated yet
An excellent gourmet coffee bar run by two ultra-marathoners who know their coffee. It's located inside a well-stocked running store which makes this ...

FREE Sausalito Houseboats & Art Tour ... Saturday April 30, 2011  Not rated yet
The Artists of Issaquah show is a great way to step inside some fabulous Sausalito houseboats ... which is one of the best things to do in Sausalito ...

Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show Half Moon Bay Airport coming Sunday May 1, 2011, 10am-4pm  Not rated yet
Do you like interesting old airplanes, cars, motorcycles, tanks and unique machines; then this has got to be one of the greatest shows on earth! And, it'...

SOMAguide.com -- A guide to SOMA for locals by locals  Not rated yet
SOMAguide.com burst onto the scene just last weekend. It's a brainstorm of Michael Orrfelt, SOMA resident and local SOMA Guy who spends most of his ...

Tasty Treats Crepes and Gelato in San Mateo near Hwy 280  Not rated yet
Nifty little creperie located near Hwy 280 (via Bunker Hill D) or Hwy 92 (via either De Anza Blvd or Polhemus Dr).

For more details see:
Web Site:...

L'acajou Cafe & Bakery, SOMA, SF  Not rated yet
This is a new local coffee shop with excellent coffee and baked wares. It is small and service can be slow but the food is tasty and atmosphere comfortable!...

Book Lovers Find! -- Book Bay Store, Fort Mason, SF  Not rated yet
This is a nice find for book lovers!

Book Bay is an excellent used book store run by Friends of the San Francisco Public Library. It is bigger, more ...

Best all-American breakfast on the SF Peninsula -- Nina's Coffee Shop  Not rated yet
Extremely good all-American breakfasts (and lunch) in an old fashioned coffee shop setting. Hearty too; in fact, don't go if you are on a diet. The combination ...

Old St Hillarys Open Space Preserves & Church, Tiburon  Not rated yet
This is one of the finest hidden gems in the entire SF Bay Area. No exaggeration!

On a picturesque hill overlooking Tiburon is Old St Hilarys Church,...

"Baked" ... a tiny but good bakery shop in San Francisco  Not rated yet
Very small cute bakery run by two ladies who met each other in culinary school. They bake right in the tiny store so the goods are definitely fresh. Also ...

Chez Mamas in Potrero Hill, SF  Not rated yet
This is a small casual neighborhood French Bistro with excellent food and pleasant but slightly slow service (which is not all bad since it gives you time ...

Legion of Honor Museum, SF  Not rated yet
This Beaux-Arts museum building is beautiful inside and the nearby outside areas have fabulous bay views making for a close and pleasant weekend getaway ...

Stanford Dish Hiking Trail  Not rated yet
This is a very nice, very popular 3.7 mile paved loop trail up and around the beautiful foothills between Stanford & Hwy 280.

The "dish" is a 150 diameter ...

Magnificent Russian Cathedral in San Francisco  Not rated yet
The Holy Virgin Russian Orthodox Cathedral is one of the most interesting and splendid churches you will find anywhere in the world. You would never expect ...

Marco Polo Italian Ice Cream, San Francisco  Not rated yet
They have excellent gelato which is made in the back. Location and atmosphere is not that hot but the "Chinese made" Italian ice cream is delicious, some ...

The House -- Excellent Asian Fusion food in North Beach? Yes indeed!  Not rated yet
We wandered into "The House" restaurant after spending a cold afternoon with friends in North Beach. They had been there before and highly recommended ...

Readers Cafe coffee shop -- Just opened at Fort Mason, SF   Not rated yet
The new Readers Cafe at Ft Mason is well worth checking out! Good location, good Blue Bottle coffee, good cause, and free WiFi. It is adjacent Book Bay,...

Fleet Week SF 2010 & 2011 -- the best ever!  Not rated yet
Update: The 2011 Fleet Week runs Oct 6-11, 2011. See schedule for details. The article below describes a more relaxed version of Fleet Week. If you ...

Stern Grove, San Francisco  Not rated yet
It's been decades since we went to the free music concerts at Stern Grove Festival on Sunday afternoons from June-August each year. They are still popular,...

Suppenkuche -- Wunderbar German Food in Hayes Valley  Not rated yet
On a cold day I went to Suppenkuche in Hayes Valley with my older, sophisticated, europhile boyfriend. Despite being of northern European extraction myself,...

Best Flea Market ever ... at De Anza College in Cupertino  Not rated yet
On the first Saturday each month, a great flea market is open at the De Anza College parking lot in Cupertino.

There is an eclectic offering of goods!...

A little bit of Cuba in Palo Alto  Not rated yet
La Bodeguita Del Medio (the bar in the middle of the block) in Palo Alto was named after one of Ernest Hemingway's favorite hangouts in Havana.

We liked ...

Emergency BBQ Deli, San Carlos  Not rated yet
Very, very tasty fire grilled Tri-Tip and Beer-B-Q Beans. They also serve other BBQ meats and run a catering business. The owner makes his BBQ sauces ...

A. Silvestri Co. -- Garden Ornaments, San Francisco  Not rated yet
If you are really need a cast concrete garden gargoyle, gryphon, bronze baby alligator, lead planter box or other such interesting statuary check out A....

Breakfast at Boogaloos in the Mission district, San Francisco  Not rated yet
We've often seen dozens of people standing about this corner at Valencia St/22d St but never understood what the big deal was. The sign on the old building ...

Dinner at Gary Danko's in SF  Not rated yet
For a VERY special occasion recently, we decided to try Gary Danko's. Several "foodie" friends have described visiting this high-end San Francisco restaurant ...

Fourth of July Fireworks - Foster City  Not rated yet
We used to live in Foster City and know that they have some of the best fireworks shows on the SF Peninsula. You can get quite close to a good fireworks ...

Sunday breakfast at Piccinos  Not rated yet
Last weekend I went with my honey to the Dogpatch section of San Francisco. We had breakfast at Piccinos. Their pizza and French pressed coffee, not to ...

Yes, Mike's Cafe in Portola Valley is OK!  Not rated yet
I had heard mixed reviews so was reticent to visit. However, one of my friends often eats at Mike's Cafe in Portola Valley and has been bugging us to ...

Hellyer Park Velodrome, San Jose  Not rated yet
This is a unique local thing to do. In fact, Hellyer Park has the only velodrome in Northern California (note: there are 24 in the US with 3 down south ...

Moss Beach Distillery Patio  Not rated yet
On a clear day the ocean view patio at Moss Beach Distillery is great for snacks & wine & romance. When it's breezy or cool, which is reasonably often,...

Cypress Flower Farm, Moss Beach  Not rated yet
If you are near Moss Beach check out Cypress Flower Farm which is also known as Go Native Nursery. This is a very pleasant stop just a block west of Cabrillo ...

Best Thrift Stores on the Peninsula  Not rated yet
In case someone shares my love for spending a few hours browsing for second hand treasures, here are some of the best thrift stores on the Peninsula:

GOODWILL ...

Half Moon Bay Nursery  Not rated yet
I like Half Moon Bay Nursery (on 92 on the way to HMB). It has an inspiring seed and plant selection and there is always something fun to look at. I especially ...

Amelia's in downtown Redwood City  Not rated yet
Amelia's is my favorite place when that craving for a great burrito shows up.

Although they supposedly are famous for some other things, like papusas,...