Stretching west of Union Square and north of Civic Center, the Tenderloin could be the city's poster child for urban challenges: low-income families huddle in tiny apartments; single-room-occupancy hotels offer shelter a step up from living on the street; drug dealing and prostitution are common; and very few green spaces break up the monotony of high-rises. So why would anyone go out of their way to come here? Well, exceptional Vietnamese food, for one thing, but these days more than just the great pho is luring people to the Tenderloin. Trendy watering holes and coffee shops are springing up, with a handful of intrepid hipsters moving into the hood after them. The Tenderloin may be on its way to becoming the next Mission, but for now it remains a gritty slice of San Francisco.
Some parts of the Tenderloin are more dangerous than others, and a single street can change from block to block. Little Saigon’s Larkin Street corridor is relatively safe during the day, as are most streets north of Ellis (an area that realtors insist on calling the TenderNob for its proximity to Nob Hill). Avoid walking the last two blocks of Turk Street and Golden Gate Avenue before they meet Market Street, along with Hyde Street and Leavenworth Street between Ellis Street and Turk Street. Locals would advise visitors not to walk alone or look at their phone when walking here.
