San Francisco one night dinner
 

I had posted earlier and had received much help but have one final choice to make. I am in SF for only one day and have a pretty full day planned culminating with the Alcatraz night tour from 4:30-7:00pm and I already bought the tickets.

My flight leaves at 10:30 from SFO and I will have a rental car. Any suggestions where I can have my last dinner? I am already having Dim Sum in Chinatown for lunch and will be at Pier 33 in Fisherman's Wharf.

I figure I need to be at the aiport around 9:00 so I guess I have an hour to an hour and a half for dinner before driving to SFO.

How does Scoma's sound on Pier 47? Is it an easy walk from Pier 33 to 47 and is the food good? Also how bad and how long would it be driving from the FW area to SFO at 8:30 or so?

Thanks.

I have a friend who lives in San Francisco who absolutely HATES Fisherman's Wharf, except during crab season when she goes to Scoma's every chance she gets. It gets consistently good reviews on Trip Advisor.

Looking at my SF map it looks something like 5 or 6 blocks between the two piers. But it looks as if there is public transportation between the two.

Good luck.

check www.yelp.com for reviews and pick a top rated one. you should pick what type of food you'd like. you can find almost anything. i would recommend sushi if you don't have easy access to it at home. i would also recommend eating closer to the airport as you'll be cutting it close. dropping off the rental and getting to the airport after takes time, and driving at 7pm through SF will take time, especially with traffic.

Ah, the last supper, so to speak. May it be the first of many more in San Francisco.

http://www.butterflysf.com/
Butterfly is a restaurant right at Pier 33. The food is very good, there's a lively bar at the front, and some nights there is live music. The windows have a view eastwards of the docks and then the East Bay hills. I've liked this place the two times I've been there. It's definitely NOT a Fisherman's Wharf vibe, but it's not all snooty either. You don't need a tie or anything like that.

Scoma's doesn't take reservations, so that might be a factor if you are on a tight schedule.

Thanks for all the replies. Say I decided on Scoma's at Pier 47. I figure I could leave around 8:30. How long from this location in Fisherman's Wharf would it take to get to SFO? This is a Monday night BTW. I am also dropping off a rental car but will not be checking bags. Flight leaves at 10:20.

Just want to see if this is doable. Thanks.

If I were heading to Scomas without reservations at 7:15, and had a flight at 10:30, and did not know the streets of San francisco very well, and had to check in a car - I WOULD BE VERY NERVOUS AND WOULD NOT ENJOY MY DINNER.

I'm a 32 year resident of the SF area, fly out of SFO quite often, and I currently live next to the airport. If I were you, I would walk around a bit after Alcatraz and enjoy the views/ambience at night, then head to the airport no later than 8:00. I would grab a bite to eat at the airport.

Stu Dudley

Sory to say, but you would really be cutting it close on time to get to SFO. I live in SF and travel a lot. Some days at SFO are better than others, but at times the security screening line at SFO can take a good 45 minutes to pass thru. I'm not sure if the Giants will have a game that night, but a taxi going to airport from wharf, must pass the stadium, and when a game is on traffic is a mess causing delays up to 30 minutes. Also a walk from pier 33 to 47 can take 15-20 minutes. I hate to discourage you from enjoying a nice SF dinner, but maybe when you learn the prices at Scomas, you won't feel so bad. $24-$31Pasta, $36.NewYorkSteak, $32.BroiledSalmon. Fisherman's wharf restaurants are notorious with locals as being nothing special at inflated prices, locals are rarely seen there. I don't know your age, but Scomas is more oriented to the senior citizen crowd, nothing wrong with that age, we all get there, but if you are younger, you may not love this place. I could suggest a million better places with better food and atmosphere for less $$$, like a few in North Beach, (Rose Pistola or E' Tutto Qua) but I think you really better head for SFO. Come back to SF soon and have a stress-free dinner. Good luck and ebjoy your visit.

Adding to StuDudley's excellent advice, if you walk around the wharf area following your Alcatraz tour, you could grab some clam chowder or a crab or fish sandwich on sourdough from one of the vendors for a quick bite. Maybe not as satisfying as a sit down meal at a restaurant, but given your time constraints would allow you to drive over to SFO and return your car in time. That would be at least as good if not better than anything you would eat at the airport.

Thanks Foodie. In thinking this through I actually agree with you. The last thing I want to do is rush through dinner or miss my red-eye flight...or both!

The Giants season is over and the 49ers are away that weekend so ballgame traffic will not be an issue.

I guess I'll just wing it for dinner Monday night but if anyone knows any decent restaurants on the way from FW to SFO that would be great!

Thanks,

Marc

Marc:

You could either grab a bite at the Wharf as suggested before you head out to the airport or you could go to the airport and dine there.

SFO has some very good dining alternatives and depending which terminal you use, you have a variety of choices:

http://www.flysfo.com/web/page/atsfo/shop-dine/dine/

Nevermind the close shave viz a viz timing to catch your flight .. Scoma's is terrible.

I ate there approx. 5 years ago on the recommendation of a hotelier and it was expensive and just plain crummy.

If I remember, I had a plate of crab swimming in oil with some sort of undercooked vegetables flung along side. Bleech.

Don't even try to eat in SF and make it to the airport. Scoma's is awful as are most of the restaurants on Fisherman's Wharf. Overpriced and geared to tourists. Try Il Fornaio in Burlingame. Good Italian food and close to the airport.

Lots of people like Il Fornaio in Burlingame, but I'm not one of them! If you want decent food in Burlingame (one exit past the airport), try Rocca or Broadway Grill, both of which are on Broadway, which is an exit from the freeway.

I live within a 10 min walk of Il Fornaio, and I agree with dmlove. Ecco is my favorite in the Burligname Ave area.

Stu Dudley

Broadway Ave is 2 exits past the airport.

Stu Dudley

Stu is right about Broadway being 2 exits (not one, the first is Millbrae Ave.) past the airport. FWIW, Ecco is much more expensive and "fine dining" than the other two I mentioned.