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Just up the hill from the Marina—and slightly quieter with more young families—is Cow Hollow. Union Street is the main strip, dense with restaurants, cafés, and boutiques that mostly cater to the trendy A-list crowd. Wander even farther up the hills and you’ll be in the thick of the manses of Pacific Heights.
Dinner at the spectacularly inventive flagship of San Francisco’s most celebrated chef of the moment, Dominique Crenn, is an exploration of both Crenn's journey as a chef and California's distinct geography and history. Each course is usually eye-opening (and downright delicious) and many dishes feature produce from Crenn's own Bleu Belle Farm. The presentations, textures, and tastes will stay with diners for years after the final chocolate bite from pastry wizard Juan Contreras.
Dominique Crenn’s sumptuous salon decked out with fur-draped bar stools, chandeliers, and lush velvet drapes is really a bar only in name. Yes, there's a bar pouring outstanding wines and it’s possible to graze on warm gougères (savory cheese puffs) and oysters. Its forte, though, is the petite haute gastronomic French menu available as a tasting menu or à la carte. Low tables make eating properly a challenge and your credit card will take a hit, but take it for what it is and it’s a magnificent way to spend an evening.
San Francisco is filled with wonderful ice cream shops, but for the real-deal smooth, airy gelato, this Union Street gelato maker is the address to know. It's all about the ingredients here—pistachios from Sicily, local fruits in season, a sour cherry variety from a particular part of Italy—and the results are delightful whether it's a hot, sunny day or the fog feels as cool as the gelato.
San Francisco has a handful of Peruvian restaurants, but this uber-hip Union Street spot is the first Nikkei (Japanese-Peruvian) restaurant. Skip the pedestrian appetizers and have fun sampling around the tiraditos (dishes with raw fish) and sushi rolls. Much of the seating is at the bar or on the sidewalk terrace, so be prepared for some high decibels.
In what's described as "Cal-Tropic" flair, Palm House serves atmospheric and colorful vibes. The drinks are smoky and competently worldly, and the menu is a vacation in and of itself.
Tacos and lobster rolls aren't a standard duo, but they're the staples of the menu at this fast-casual favorite a block downhill from Union Street. The connection is Nantucket (ACK is Nantucket's airport code), as the owner grew up in New England and honors the Massachusetts summer destination in this eatery with an East Coast yacht club vibe.
This hip, bustling Union Street destination proves that plant-based cuisine can be exciting and delicious, along with being virtuous for the body (well, at least most dishes are) and better for the environment. The highly eclectic menu includes dishes from wild mushroom "zeppole" fritters to a spicy yellow Thai curry. The plant-filled space has a fun, breezy vibe with a bar on one side, plus plenty of sidewalk seating, and many seats are filled by diners who don't follow vegan or even vegetarian diets.
The Instagram set knows this almost table-free Union Street roaster and café as the place with the pineapple wallpaper. Everyone enjoys some of the finest lattes and espresso shots around, usually to-go, but sometimes sipped on the low bench in front of that famous backdrop. There are almost always a few locally-baked pastries and hard-boiled eggs on hand for a snack.
