Jane

What is(are) currently San Francisco's hippest neighborhood(s)?

ED

Good Luck...We try and stay away from SF since Willie Brown has turned it into a cesspool again.Try walking a block without getting hit up for money, smelling urine/poop, step over people in the streets and I hear TB is on the upswing again in the bay area?? We travel a lot and find SF to have some of the rudest service people in shops/restaurants and even a distinct lack of courtesy walking down a sidewalk.
And such a beautiful place t'was.

But,the Marina dist and No. Beach are still pretty cool.
In April the hot spot will be SOMA (South of Market st) since the new Pac Bell ball park will be open.The Gordon Biersch brewery is pretty cool

john

Wow! I agree with the above poster. I have started to trravel to SF for business and I found the downtown area a bit "scary", especially at night. And this is from a New Yorker who has seen my city move in the oposite direction? Viva Herr Guliani!!

John

Dear Jane:
ED is right about SOMA, but wrong about the cesspool. Sure, SF has some local color (and has always had it), but the City does not have a surfeit of panhandlers. (About as many as Santa Barbara or Seattle, I'd say--and they're certainly not as aggressive as the hard-nosed Seattle variety).

Kim

As a SF native and one who has lived here for 20 years, I completely disagree with Ed and John. Don't listen to people who don't live here - what do they know? Currently, the hippest neighborhood is the Mission/Media Gulch area. SOMA is a rat's nest and will be made worse by the ballpark. There is nothing hip about droves of people from the suburbs trying to manuever their way into a game, a restaurant, or a club. In the last two years, I've found the City to be more difficult to navigate. Everything from seeing a movie to getting a sandwich just takes more time because everything is busier. However, I've also noticed a huge difference in the courtesy of people. Yes, the sidewalks can be crowded, but I've heard more "I'm sorry's" and "Excuse me's" than at any time in the last 20 years. San Francisco is the most exciting place in the world right now, and not just because of its natural beauty, incredible culture, and diverse population. It's also the center of the hi-tech/internet/dot com craziness. It's the Gold Rush all over again, and I can't imagine a more exciting, fun, interesting time in which to live here.

Patrick

Not sure your particular definition of "hip", but my favorite area is Cow Hollow -- Union Street, Filmore, Chestnut. After staying downtown many times, I have now switched my loyalties to that area and always stay there when I go to SF. Great restaurants, nice shops and boutiques, friendly neighborhood atmosphere at the small markets, bakeries, etc. Some tourists, but not as many as there are locals, genrally a young professional crowd. None of the problems of downtown SF are apparent there. What's more, I park my car there and use public transportation.

John

Dear Kim:
Are you calling suburbanites "rats?"

cecily

Patrick is right about the Cow Hollow/Union Street area. I have stayed at the Cow Hollow Motor Inn and at the Union Street Inn. Both were within walking distance of great coffee shops, unique shops, and wonderful restaurants.
Not sure what your interests are, but hippies love the Haight-Ashbury area. You can take a short bus ride and see the Greatful Dead's former home and the old stomping grounds of rock legends like Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and Jerry Garcia. If you are into techno, SOMA has some great techno clubs. The North Beach/Telegraph Hill area has in past times been the hang out for poets and writers such as Lawrence Ferlinghetti and Jack Kerouac. There is a great bar here across from the City Lights Bookstore on Columbus. Can't remember the name.
The above mentioned places are all very interesting, though very crowded. My advice is to stay in Cow Hollow/Union Street and use public transportation to get around. San Francisco is a wonderfully beautiful and diverse city.

ed

Kim, You young whippersnapper...your attitude is probabaly why we stay away from SF now...I have been coming down to SF since early 1964 so your 20 yrs is spit to me ! I worked in SF in the late 70S..

I have seen the Summer of Luv turn into a Spare Change Mecca in no time. We have felt safer walking from Little Italy in NYC, over to SOHO and then on to the Village after midnight without any fear or safety concern, but we felt scared walking from the ST. Francis to the Carnelian Room at 7 PM...Kim has to realize that those of us that have been coming to SF since 1962 really know it for the gem of a city it used to be...

We knew it when all of the neighborhoods were hippest...Is Jane looking for a place to live or is she looking for a thing of the past ???

SFSally

San Francisco does have it's share of problems but it is still one of the greatest cities in the world. I have lived in the SF Bay area off and on for over 40 years. No it is not the same as it was before the flower children arrived in the 60's and the other things that have taken place. But San Francisco has survived it well. Crime is NOT a big problem in San Francisco so I do not have a clue why some folks are paranoid about it.

In any event, San Francisco is very interesting, diverse, attractive and the folks are pretty courteous and friendly. What more could you want?

As far as the hippest neighborhood goes, that is a personal opinion. I will let others comment on that.