How I spent a week in San Francisco, told via Google Maps reviews (part 2/2, 17 reviews)
I recently went to the US for the first time, spending a busy week in New York followed by a more chilled week in San Francisco with my partner. I reviewed many of the places we went to on Google Maps, so here’s a selection of activities / restaurants / landmarks in our last 4 San Francisco days!
Note: This is a series of posts, with NYC Part 1 & Part 2, and San Francisco Part 1 & Part 2.
Day 5 (13th June): Piers & Civic Centre
This was a pretty chill day, looking at all the different piers and the… “rundown” nature of San Francisco’s city hall area which was honestly too depressing to review. Only 10,150 steps (3.97 miles).
Honey Honey Cafe & Crepery ★★★★★
We recently spent a week in SF, and ended up eating here most mornings!
Pretty much everything here is great, we usually had a savoury plate & a shared dessert plate (the waffles!!!!!), ensuring we had plenty of calories for a long day of tourist-ing.
As a pro-tip, go straight to the counter and order, then you’ll be given a table number, THEN you can go and sit at your table. It confuses quite a few newcomers!
The Art of the Brick ★★★★★
An excellent combination of art and play.
This exhibition of work contained thoughtful recreations of famous paintings and statues, along with fully original works by the artist. A few non-LEGO pieces of art were included, but 99% were LEGO based.
We visited at 10:30 and were the only visitors in the exhibit area. Staff were friendly, the atmosphere was quiet and relaxing.
After the main exhibition path (which will take 30-45m) is a shop (with unfortunately not much actual LEGO, just art of the brick merchandise) and a lego sandbox area. In this area you can take a box of LEGO and play with it for as long as you like, very reminiscent of childhood!
Highly recommend for adults and children alike.
In-N-Out Burger ★★★★✰
Walk down to the beach and enjoy your burgers with a view!
Day 6 (14th June): Golden Gate Bridge
We took an uber over the bridge, then walked alllllll the way back, resulting in a very healthy 27,448 steps (11.90 miles)!
Battery Spencer ★★★★✰
Fort is a bit dilapidated, and toilets are a hole in the floor, but the views are great!
Golden Gate Bridge ★★★★✰
Okay, yes, it looks amazing. However, walking across it is a rough experience. Not enough space, traffic extremely close, bikes barging past, security minicars squeezing by, it’s a stressful experience!
I’d recommend taking photos from either end, and walking across only if you actually need to!
SF Golden Gate View ★★★★★
One of the best places to sit and look at the bridge, lovely and quiet too!
Equator Coffees ★★★★✰
It’s alright! Great after a hike & walk across the street, service is quick and simple. There’s not enough seats, and the ones that are there aren’t too comfy.
However the drinks and food are good, so can’t complain too much.
History of Golden Gate Bridge ★★★★★
This free outside area has a couple of interactive demonstrations, and well written placards showing the history and impact of the bridge.
It’s a shame it’s a bit hidden, everyone who is interested in the bridge should spend 15m here!
Blue Mermaid Restaurant ★★★★★
Recently visited and had the Corn & Pablano Chowder bread bowl, whilst partner had fish tacos.
Both were excellent, with the chowder being one of the best I’ve ever had. Everything was well priced, and staff were attentive without harassing. No complaints, definitely worth visiting if you want to get away from the more touristy restaurants closer to Pier 39!
The toilets were also unexpectedly pleasant, as I believe they’re shared with the main hotel.
Trader Joe’s ★★★★★
Try the ube cookies NOW! Absolutely amazing, as with many of the other snacks available here
Day 7 (15th June): Mission & Museums
This was mostly a “everything we missed” day, notably a few museums and places to eat, hence the fairly average 18,329 steps (8.43 miles).
Heist Restaurant ★★★★★
Great breakfast burritos, and the staff were very helpful. This place deserves more attention and visitors!
Only downside was my hot drink being served in a glass, meaning it was untouchable for a few minutes, oops.
The American Bookbinders Museum ★★★★✰
As a bibliophile, I was very interested in this niche museum when visiting SF.
The information contained inside is very interesting, but ultimately the museum is pretty small. There’s also an office(?) behind a curtain, meaning loud phone conversations are happening constantly, not very museum-like.
The $15 entry fee was perhaps a little steep for what’s actually included, especially as none of the hands-on exhibits were currently available.
San Francisco Cable Car Museum ★★★★★
A deeply engaging look at cable cars, including their current real mechanisms.
Before visiting I had no idea the ACTUAL cable car lines are all run from here, with a “shop floor” & machinery downstairs and the museum upstairs. The museum did a great job of explaining the what, why, how, when, and who of cable cars, and answered questions I hadn’t even though to ask (how do cable cars turn corners!?).
The video on show provided great context, although was a little hard to hear over the machinery so subtitles would have been helpful.
We ended up spending nearly 2 hours in this free museum, and it transferred San Franciscoans’ love of cable cars onto me!
Señor Sisig ★★★★✰
This Filo-Mexican fusion is essentially Filo flavours in Mexican dishes, a great idea.
We tried a few dishes and enjoyed them all, and the half price beer (happy hour!) was a great bonus. The outside seating area at the back is also a pleasant place to eat, with a very optimistic quote on the wall!
Dog Eared Books ★★★★★
Great selection of books, and their free paper back (and bookmarks) are genuinely attractive in their own right.
The used books are OK priced, but not super cheap, however they are all high quality.
Mission Dolores Park ★★★★★
Great spot to sit and eat whilst watching the chaotic dog social life happening in the main field.
We ended up sitting here for close to an hour watching all the dogs running around, and learning their personalities and play styles!
Day 8 (16th June): Exploratorium & Leaving
A very short day, since we were flying out! Revisiting a few past places, and only 11,958 steps (4.98 miles).
Exploratorium ★★★★★
This place is way, way bigger than you expected.
Easily the best science museum I’ve visited, with probably 200+ fully interactive and explained exhibits. Each of them provides a very immediate and obvious effect, along with enough information for adults or older kids to understand WHY the effect happened.
We spent 3 hours here, but could have spent 4-5 if we were had time. Definitely worth a visit as an adult, don’t be fooled into thinking it’s a kid-focused museum just because everything is interactive!