Back from San Francisco
Apr 3rd, 2006, 07:44 PM
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Back from San Francisco
We just got back from San Francisco and had a wonderful time, even though it rained almost every day. We had an easy flight from Chicago to San Francisco, and after picking up our bags, we walked straight out to the taxi rank. It was about a half an hour ride to our hotel. As our room wasn't ready, we dropped off our luggage and headed to the Visitor's Center to purchase a transportation map. We'd already purchased CityPass online, and the CityPass included a 7 day Muni pass. We thought the CityPass a great bargain, as besides the Muni pass, it included several museums and a bay cruise. As I mentioned, it rained almost every day, but thankfully, on the day we took the bay cruise it was sunny and beautiful. The rain on the other days didn't stop us, as we had our umbrellas with us, tucked into the outside pockets of my husband's backpack. We made good use of them on this trip 
After we picked up transportation passes, we headed for Molinari's Deli and Café Trieste in North Beach. We got a sandwich at Molinari's, which was wonderful! I had Genoa Salami, fresh mozzarella, ham, and sweet peppers on an Italian bun, with a drizzle of oil and vinegar. My husband had the same, except that he had prosciutto instead of the ordinary ham. After lunch, we headed for Café Trieste to listen to the music that takes place from 1:00 to 5:00 PM, every Saturday afternoon, and to have our coffee & tea. However, it was so popular that there wasn't a seat to be had, so we went to Café Greco instead, which ended up being one of our favorite places in North Beach. Dinner that night was at Kuleto's, in Union Square. It was good, but a bit expensive.
The next day, we got up early and headed for Fisherman's Wharf, where we took the bay cruise, which was absolutely wonderful! After the bay cruise, we had lunch at Scoma's, which turned out to be one of our favorite meals. We had the prix fixe menu, which was a real bargain, considering what we got. We had clam chowder, which was full of clams and delicious, great sourdough bread, and a Crab Louie salad, with a huge amount of crab on the top of the salad. I couldn't finish it all, but I tried. Dessert was a wonderful chocolate torte.
We left Scoma's exactly at 1:00 PM and had to be in the Mission District by 1:30. Our waiter rushed our dessert and bill to us, and gave us a short-cut to get to the taxis. We took the taxi, as we didn't think we'd make it on public transportation. As it turned out, the taxi didn't make it either. We had planned on taking the Precita Eyes tour, but since the tour had already left, we explored Balmy Alley on our own. We had a great time exploring Balmy Alley and then walked along Mission Street, stopping in a little Mexican jewelry shop, where my husband bought me some turquoise earrings for my birthday. People were wonderful about giving us directions and suggested places they thought we'd like to see. We made our way to Tartine, where there was a long line, but eventually we got in and had a wonderful banana cream tart, with Scharffenberger dark chocolate shavings on top. Mmmmm.... it was wonderful! We had a lovely conversation there with a young man from Spain and his American girlfriend. I asked him what a good Spanish wine was, and he suggested one that he liked -- Rioja --and gave us directions to a nearby grocer that carried it.
We walked to Dolores Park and took the J Church back to Market Street. We had plans to go back later in the week to see Mission Dolores, which we did. It was beautiful, with a pretty cemetery and garden in the back. We also went into the Basilica. I believe it cost $5.00 to get in, but it was well worth the cost. When we were down in the Mission district later in the week we went to Ti-Couz for crepes and a bottle of French Cider. The crepes and the cider were very good, and tasted much like the ones we had in Paris in Montparnasse.
One day, we took the #38 bus out towards the Cliff House. When we were almost there, the bus driver told us to take another bus -- I believe it was the #18 -- as it would drop us right by the Cliff House. We didn't order food there, but just had coffee and tea and carried it to the lounge, where there were windows to look out at the ocean. Gorgeous views! Then we went to the Legion of Honor to see the Rodin collection, and we also viewed the Earthquake photo exhibition. Next, we headed to the de Young Museum, and we got a very helpful bus driver who asked what we hadn't seen, gave us suggestions, and told us how to get to Alamo Square. We got a little turned around there, but eventually made it to Cha Cha Cha's, where we had a wonderful Quesadilla, filled with barbecued pork, guacamole, cheese, and sour cream.
One of our favorite restaurants was L'Osteria del Forno, located at 519 Columbus Ave. in North Beach. We enjoyed it so much that we ate there twice. The first night, I had the ravioli, and my husband had a delicious pork roast that was so tender you could cut it with a fork. The second time we went there, we had pizza, and we enjoyed that too. The restaurant takes no reservations and is cash only. After dinner, we went to Gelato Classico, right by Washington Square Park, at 576 Union St for sorbetto del limone. It was so good, refreshing and light after a full meal.
Another meal that we enjoyed was lunch at the Tadich Grill. My husband had sand dabs, which he'd been wanting to try, and I had the Cioppino, which was very good and accompanied by their garlic bread.
We ate breakfast at Dotties True Blue Cafe once, and it was good, but we found we really didn't want a big breakfast, as we often ate a big meal for lunch, so we had croissants or pain chocolat at one of a chain of boulangeries. Some of them had tables, and some were just bakeries. The croissants were excellent!
http://www.baybread.com/pine.php
We took the F trolley over to the Embarcadero from Market Street and spent a couple of hours walking around the Ferry Building. We ate lunch at Mijita and browsed the many shops. I was happy to finally find the Scharffenberger Chocolate shop, and I bought several bars to take home. We didn't spend much time on Fisherman's Wharf, other than to take the Bay Cruise, but we did go back down there to order Boudin Bread samplers to be sent to the kids. It was $27.00 for a rather large sample of the breads, and that included shipping.
One day, we rented a car from Avis, located at 675 Post St, near Union Square, to drive up to the Napa Valley. I had rented the least expensive car, but they gave us a free up-grade to a silver PT Cruiser, so that was really nice. The Napa Valley was beautiful, with the rolling hills, and we stopped at the Sterling Vineyard where we rode gondolas up the side of the mountain. We got back from Napa in time to go to the Muir Woods, and afterwards stopped at the Pelican Pub, which someone on Fodor's had recommended. It was a fun stop, and looked like something you'd find in England. The waitress told us that the wood was hundreds of years old and came from England. Back in San Francisco, dinner that night was at Café Claude, a short walk from Union Square. I had Coq au Vin, and my husband had the trout. Both were good, but the best thing we had there was the onion soup, with gruyere melted on top.
We rode the cable cars several times, and especially enjoyed riding them at night. The cable car stopped at Lombard, so we got out and looked at the view, and took the cable car back down Powell, where we got off right by our hotel. Another good stop was the corner of Hyde & Union, where Swensen's Ice Cream is located. We made that stop a few times Great ice cream!
One night, we went up to the Coit Tower as it was closing. It was a beautiful view at night. We went up the next day to see it during the day. Another great view was from the Top of the Mark. We went there for a drink before going to dinner a couple of times. Our last night, we went to Allegro Romano, a restaurant in Russian Hill, that we found a little difficult to get to -- we'd checked it out during the day and found there was no way to avoid walking up a few steep hills, so we took the street car up to Nob Hill, got off and had a drink at the Top of the Mark, and took the taxi from there instead of Union Square. It was well worth the $6.00 we paid to avoid those hills Allegro Romano was just lovely. The food was good, and the service was very attentive. It was a good place for our last meal. Thanks to all who gave me such good advice and helped me plan this trip!
After we picked up transportation passes, we headed for Molinari's Deli and Café Trieste in North Beach. We got a sandwich at Molinari's, which was wonderful! I had Genoa Salami, fresh mozzarella, ham, and sweet peppers on an Italian bun, with a drizzle of oil and vinegar. My husband had the same, except that he had prosciutto instead of the ordinary ham. After lunch, we headed for Café Trieste to listen to the music that takes place from 1:00 to 5:00 PM, every Saturday afternoon, and to have our coffee & tea. However, it was so popular that there wasn't a seat to be had, so we went to Café Greco instead, which ended up being one of our favorite places in North Beach. Dinner that night was at Kuleto's, in Union Square. It was good, but a bit expensive.
The next day, we got up early and headed for Fisherman's Wharf, where we took the bay cruise, which was absolutely wonderful! After the bay cruise, we had lunch at Scoma's, which turned out to be one of our favorite meals. We had the prix fixe menu, which was a real bargain, considering what we got. We had clam chowder, which was full of clams and delicious, great sourdough bread, and a Crab Louie salad, with a huge amount of crab on the top of the salad. I couldn't finish it all, but I tried. Dessert was a wonderful chocolate torte.
We left Scoma's exactly at 1:00 PM and had to be in the Mission District by 1:30. Our waiter rushed our dessert and bill to us, and gave us a short-cut to get to the taxis. We took the taxi, as we didn't think we'd make it on public transportation. As it turned out, the taxi didn't make it either. We had planned on taking the Precita Eyes tour, but since the tour had already left, we explored Balmy Alley on our own. We had a great time exploring Balmy Alley and then walked along Mission Street, stopping in a little Mexican jewelry shop, where my husband bought me some turquoise earrings for my birthday. People were wonderful about giving us directions and suggested places they thought we'd like to see. We made our way to Tartine, where there was a long line, but eventually we got in and had a wonderful banana cream tart, with Scharffenberger dark chocolate shavings on top. Mmmmm.... it was wonderful! We had a lovely conversation there with a young man from Spain and his American girlfriend. I asked him what a good Spanish wine was, and he suggested one that he liked -- Rioja --and gave us directions to a nearby grocer that carried it.
We walked to Dolores Park and took the J Church back to Market Street. We had plans to go back later in the week to see Mission Dolores, which we did. It was beautiful, with a pretty cemetery and garden in the back. We also went into the Basilica. I believe it cost $5.00 to get in, but it was well worth the cost. When we were down in the Mission district later in the week we went to Ti-Couz for crepes and a bottle of French Cider. The crepes and the cider were very good, and tasted much like the ones we had in Paris in Montparnasse.
One day, we took the #38 bus out towards the Cliff House. When we were almost there, the bus driver told us to take another bus -- I believe it was the #18 -- as it would drop us right by the Cliff House. We didn't order food there, but just had coffee and tea and carried it to the lounge, where there were windows to look out at the ocean. Gorgeous views! Then we went to the Legion of Honor to see the Rodin collection, and we also viewed the Earthquake photo exhibition. Next, we headed to the de Young Museum, and we got a very helpful bus driver who asked what we hadn't seen, gave us suggestions, and told us how to get to Alamo Square. We got a little turned around there, but eventually made it to Cha Cha Cha's, where we had a wonderful Quesadilla, filled with barbecued pork, guacamole, cheese, and sour cream.
One of our favorite restaurants was L'Osteria del Forno, located at 519 Columbus Ave. in North Beach. We enjoyed it so much that we ate there twice. The first night, I had the ravioli, and my husband had a delicious pork roast that was so tender you could cut it with a fork. The second time we went there, we had pizza, and we enjoyed that too. The restaurant takes no reservations and is cash only. After dinner, we went to Gelato Classico, right by Washington Square Park, at 576 Union St for sorbetto del limone. It was so good, refreshing and light after a full meal.
Another meal that we enjoyed was lunch at the Tadich Grill. My husband had sand dabs, which he'd been wanting to try, and I had the Cioppino, which was very good and accompanied by their garlic bread.
We ate breakfast at Dotties True Blue Cafe once, and it was good, but we found we really didn't want a big breakfast, as we often ate a big meal for lunch, so we had croissants or pain chocolat at one of a chain of boulangeries. Some of them had tables, and some were just bakeries. The croissants were excellent!
http://www.baybread.com/pine.php
We took the F trolley over to the Embarcadero from Market Street and spent a couple of hours walking around the Ferry Building. We ate lunch at Mijita and browsed the many shops. I was happy to finally find the Scharffenberger Chocolate shop, and I bought several bars to take home. We didn't spend much time on Fisherman's Wharf, other than to take the Bay Cruise, but we did go back down there to order Boudin Bread samplers to be sent to the kids. It was $27.00 for a rather large sample of the breads, and that included shipping.
One day, we rented a car from Avis, located at 675 Post St, near Union Square, to drive up to the Napa Valley. I had rented the least expensive car, but they gave us a free up-grade to a silver PT Cruiser, so that was really nice. The Napa Valley was beautiful, with the rolling hills, and we stopped at the Sterling Vineyard where we rode gondolas up the side of the mountain. We got back from Napa in time to go to the Muir Woods, and afterwards stopped at the Pelican Pub, which someone on Fodor's had recommended. It was a fun stop, and looked like something you'd find in England. The waitress told us that the wood was hundreds of years old and came from England. Back in San Francisco, dinner that night was at Café Claude, a short walk from Union Square. I had Coq au Vin, and my husband had the trout. Both were good, but the best thing we had there was the onion soup, with gruyere melted on top.
We rode the cable cars several times, and especially enjoyed riding them at night. The cable car stopped at Lombard, so we got out and looked at the view, and took the cable car back down Powell, where we got off right by our hotel. Another good stop was the corner of Hyde & Union, where Swensen's Ice Cream is located. We made that stop a few times
Great ice cream! One night, we went up to the Coit Tower as it was closing. It was a beautiful view at night. We went up the next day to see it during the day. Another great view was from the Top of the Mark. We went there for a drink before going to dinner a couple of times. Our last night, we went to Allegro Romano, a restaurant in Russian Hill, that we found a little difficult to get to -- we'd checked it out during the day and found there was no way to avoid walking up a few steep hills, so we took the street car up to Nob Hill, got off and had a drink at the Top of the Mark, and took the taxi from there instead of Union Square. It was well worth the $6.00 we paid to avoid those hills
Allegro Romano was just lovely. The food was good, and the service was very attentive. It was a good place for our last meal. Thanks to all who gave me such good advice and helped me plan this trip! 
Apr 3rd, 2006, 08:37 PM
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Hello sandypaws, your joy and excitment of your visit to San Francisco is heartwarming to me as San Francisco is such a beautiful city and since I have had family there since after the Civil War very sentimental to me. It was a true pleasure to read about your lovely visit, and how wonderful that you two got to so many places!! Thank you for sharing your visit.
Apr 4th, 2006, 04:10 AM
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LoveItaly,
Thanks for your kind remarks I actually forgot a few places of note. We got to the Asian Art Museum, but didn't have nearly enough time there. I would encourage anyone to go there, but leave plenty of time. It's one of the museums included on the CityPass. I had no idea how extensive it is. It's $5.00 -- half price -- on Thursday after 5:00 PM, so if one doesn't have the CityPass, it's still very affordable. We also went to the Japanese Tea Garden, which was lovely. We took a library sponsored tour of China Town, which was excellent, but the guide had to shorten it by a bit, as it was raining so hard. Still, we got to go into a temple. I'm not sure of the name, but it's on a little side street. We went through China Town often on bus #30 from Stockton, on our way to North Beach. We stopped and walked around, and I found a little pair of the embroidered slippers for my granddaughter.
Sandy
Thanks for your kind remarks
I actually forgot a few places of note. We got to the Asian Art Museum, but didn't have nearly enough time there. I would encourage anyone to go there, but leave plenty of time. It's one of the museums included on the CityPass. I had no idea how extensive it is. It's $5.00 -- half price -- on Thursday after 5:00 PM, so if one doesn't have the CityPass, it's still very affordable. We also went to the Japanese Tea Garden, which was lovely. We took a library sponsored tour of China Town, which was excellent, but the guide had to shorten it by a bit, as it was raining so hard. Still, we got to go into a temple. I'm not sure of the name, but it's on a little side street. We went through China Town often on bus #30 from Stockton, on our way to North Beach. We stopped and walked around, and I found a little pair of the embroidered slippers for my granddaughter.Sandy
Apr 4th, 2006, 07:49 AM
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sandypaws3,
Loved your report - it's enthusiasm like yours which makes me see the City with fresh eyes.
Re: the pork roast at L'Osteria - I believe it's braised in milk, which gives it that unbelievable tenderness.
Loved your report - it's enthusiasm like yours which makes me see the City with fresh eyes.
Re: the pork roast at L'Osteria - I believe it's braised in milk, which gives it that unbelievable tenderness.
Apr 4th, 2006, 12:10 PM
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dovima,
Glad you enjoyed my trip report San Francisco is a wonderful city, and I would love to go back! There's so much more I'd like to see.
I came across this article by Herb Caen called "Wonderful Town" just before we left for San Francisco, and I read it again today. Now I can picture what he's talking about.
http://tinyurl.com/gpy7j
Sandy
Glad you enjoyed my trip report
San Francisco is a wonderful city, and I would love to go back! There's so much more I'd like to see. I came across this article by Herb Caen called "Wonderful Town" just before we left for San Francisco, and I read it again today. Now I can picture what he's talking about.
http://tinyurl.com/gpy7j
Sandy
Apr 4th, 2006, 03:58 PM
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sandypaws: What a treat!
First your report! One of the best on SF for quite awhile!
Then Herb Caen writing about Baghdad by the Bay - what memories. I didn't realize how much I miss his column.
Thanks so much!
First your report! One of the best on SF for quite awhile!
Then Herb Caen writing about Baghdad by the Bay - what memories. I didn't realize how much I miss his column.
Thanks so much!
Apr 4th, 2006, 04:47 PM
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Sandy, very nice and detailed trip report! Next time take a tour of SharffenBerger with free samples 
Why, or why, you didn't take the rain back to Chicago Actually, the sun is out, and tomorrow we'll get a break. For just one day! Sigh...
Why, or why, you didn't take the rain back to Chicago
Actually, the sun is out, and tomorrow we'll get a break. For just one day! Sigh...
Apr 4th, 2006, 05:19 PM
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>>and tomorrow we'll get a break. For just one day! Sigh...<<
Don't count on it!!!!!
On the news last night they said that today it would be dry in the morning, and heavy rains during evening commute hours. It rained all night and all morning, and it's dry now during commute hours.
In the last 35 days, it's rained 29 of them. Set a record for the most number of rainy days in March. It's rained every day in April so far. Already reached the normal rainfall total for April. I'm heading to visit relatives in Seattle for some sun & fun!!!
Stu Dudley
Don't count on it!!!!!
On the news last night they said that today it would be dry in the morning, and heavy rains during evening commute hours. It rained all night and all morning, and it's dry now during commute hours.
In the last 35 days, it's rained 29 of them. Set a record for the most number of rainy days in March. It's rained every day in April so far. Already reached the normal rainfall total for April. I'm heading to visit relatives in Seattle for some sun & fun!!!
Stu Dudley
Apr 4th, 2006, 06:38 PM
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Hi Stu- I'm just south in San Jose, and I'm sick of this rain too. I take the Light Rail down here, so thank goodness for my wind resistant unbrella.
Great report SandyPaws. I'm ready to get up to the city again soon. I feel priviledged to only be an hour away from such a great city.
Great report SandyPaws. I'm ready to get up to the city again soon. I feel priviledged to only be an hour away from such a great city.
Apr 4th, 2006, 09:21 PM
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Just reporting in from the southern section of the Sacramento Valley. Woke up to rain and had it most of the day, sigh. It is not raining right now but everything is so wet and soggy.
And it looks like we are going to have a lot more rain in the oncoming days.
And it looks like we are going to have a lot more rain in the oncoming days.
Apr 5th, 2006, 07:49 AM
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easytraveler,
Thanks for the compliment, and you're very welcome Glad you enjoyed the article. I know I did. I just discovered Herb Caen before we left, and he seemed to have such a great love for San Francisco.
Sandy
Thanks for the compliment, and you're very welcome
Glad you enjoyed the article. I know I did. I just discovered Herb Caen before we left, and he seemed to have such a great love for San Francisco.Sandy
Apr 5th, 2006, 08:03 AM
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FainaAgain,
Thanks That sounds like a wonderful idea, taking a tour of Sharffenberger and getting free samples. I did get a free sample at the shop, but only one little one, and it's so good! I did buy some for us too, though not much. The bulk of it was for our family.
LOL! I did take the rainy weather back to Chicago, at least on Sunday when it was storming, but yesterday and today the sun was shining. It was so good to see the sun come out Someone told us that it hasn't rained so much in San Francisco since something like 1904, and all this rain is some sort of record.
Sandy
Thanks
That sounds like a wonderful idea, taking a tour of Sharffenberger and getting free samples. I did get a free sample at the shop, but only one little one, and it's so good! I did buy some for us too, though not much. The bulk of it was for our family.LOL! I did take the rainy weather back to Chicago, at least on Sunday when it was storming, but yesterday and today the sun was shining. It was so good to see the sun come out
Someone told us that it hasn't rained so much in San Francisco since something like 1904, and all this rain is some sort of record.Sandy
Apr 5th, 2006, 08:22 AM
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>>Someone told us that it hasn't rained so much in San Francisco since something like 1904, and all this rain is some sort of record.<<
Like I said - it set a record for the number of rainy days in March. Previous record was in the 1880s.
It's raining now !!! and it's a heavy overcast.
Stu Dudley
Like I said - it set a record for the number of rainy days in March. Previous record was in the 1880s.
It's raining now !!! and it's a heavy overcast.
Stu Dudley
