Happy Hours In San Francisco

Everyone is always looking to unwind after a long day of work.  However, there are so many places in San Francisco, how do you choose? Here are four delicious restaurants in San Francisco that have amazing happy hours. 

Urchin Bistrot is located on Valencia in San Francisco. This causal French Bistro has updated versions of class meals and drinks.   They also have Valet Parking if you have friends meeting you that were not able to walk.  The happy hour specials are great for all different tastes.   Monday-Friday from 5:30pm-6:30pm there are $6.00 glasses of wine and $3.00 beers.  Finally, this restaurant also features a rotating cocktail and snack for $7.00.  

Pesce is an Italian restaurant that celebrates “aperitivo hour” instead of Happy Hour.   The best part about this happy hour is the buffet of free snacks that come along with the purchase of a drink or cocktail.  This includes some cocktail specials that they have throughout the week.  This happy hour occurs from 5:30-7:30 daily.  We can not wait to try the free meatballs or bruschetta with the purchase of our favorite drink. 

Finally, the third happy hour on the list is for the every adult that wants to act like a kid for the night.  Brewcade is located very conveniently in San Francisco.  Make sure to bring some quarters before stopping at this arcade themed happy hour.  Everyday from 3pm-7pm they feature dollar off all of their drinks.  This includes their special “slushie” drink that everyone should try.   Their finally special is cans of Cans of Anchor California Lager are only $3.00.  Take some time and play an old school video game while having a refreshing drink at this fun San Francisco spot.  

These Happy Hours are all a great choice to unwind after work.  There are many other great new happy hours in the San Francisco area.  Make sure to check out other happy hours that are featured in SFEater.

Best Easter Brunches in San Francisco

Easter weekend is here.  This means that everyone will be traveling to an amazing Easter brunch on Sunday. Have you made your reservations yet?  San Francisco has some of the best restaurants for brunch in the country.  The following list will help you make a decision about where to spend your Easter with friends and family.  You can learn more at cbslocal.

One of the great traditions on Easter Sunday is enjoying a delicious brunch with friends and relatives. In San Francisco, many of the most popular restaurants will join in on the springtime celebration, offering special holiday menus or showcasing its favorite dishes. But Easter is also a day when customers don’t want to wait around before being served a sumptuous meal. Now is the time to make brunch reservations for the restaurant of your choice. Here is a look at five of the best places in San Francisco for Easter brunch.

Garden Court Restaurant
Two New Montgomery St.
San Francisco, CA  94105
(415) 512-1111
www.sfpalace.com

One of the most fabulous and certainly one of the most famous places in San Francisco for Easter brunch is the Garden Court Restaurant. Located in the landmark historic Palace Hotel, the Garden Court Restaurant, led by executive chef Jesse Lipitan, has been described as one of the world’s most beautiful public spaces, with its extraordinary stained glass atrium and crystal chandeliers. First opened in 1909, many longtime residents insist there is no better place to be for an elegant Sunday brunch, particularly for Easter. Sample dishes on the current City Brunch menu include tempura fried chicken & Japanese waffle, Maine lobster club sandwich and farmers market salad with its world famous Green Goddess dressing.

Boxing Room
399 Grove St.
San Francisco, CA  94102
(415) 430-6590
www.boxingroom.com

People looking for a New Orleans-style Easter brunch might want to sample the amazing dishes at the Boxing Room. Located a few blocks from Davies Hall, the Boxing Room is among Gayot’s Top 10 Easter Brunch Restaurants in San Francisco and an important segment of the Absinthe Group, which also includes another notable spot for Easter brunch – Absinthe Brasserie and Bar. Every Sunday, the Boxing Room hosts an acclaimed jazz brunch featuring delicious Cajun and Creole food and a live jazz band. Executive chef Justin Simoneaux will create specially crafted dishes along with other flavorful traditional treats, such as beignets filled with chocolate espresso cream, shrimp remoulade deviled eggs with pickled green tomatoes and basil and smoked chicken with andouille gumbo.

Related: Where To Have A Traditional Bay Area Easter Brunch

Foreign Cinema
2534 Mission St.
San Francisco, CA  94110
(415) 648-7600
www.foreigncinema.com

Frequently mentioned as one of the top restaurants in San Francisco, Foreign Cinema will be one of the hottest spots for Easter brunch. Nominated for outstanding restaurant by the prestigious James Beard Foundation, Foreign Cinema is not only known for its superb food, décor and service, but also for screening oldmovies outside in the courtyard. The popular restaurant located in the Mission District is led byacclaimed chefs Gayle Pirie and John Clark, who also own another widely praised dining establishment in San Francisco – Show Dogs. The California-Mediterranean-inspired menu changes daily, but delicious dishes served for past weekend brunches include a nice selection of oysters and shellfish, Santa Barbara smoked salmon with truffled farm egg and Petrossian trout caviar, and poached eggs with five spice duck breast and mixed chicories.

Luce
888 Howard St.
San Francisco, CA  94103
(415) 616-6566
www.lucewinerestaurant.com

Located in the InterContinental Hotel San Francisco, Luce is one of the few Michelin-starred restaurants in the city that will be serving brunch on Easter Sunday. Last year, the award-winning restaurant, led by executive chef Daniel Corey, hosted an exquisitely prepared buffet brunch complete with unlimited champagne. Despite its world-class, Michelin-starred distinction for the six consecutive years, Luce is known to offer remarkably affordable dishes. In recent years, Easter brunch was just $39 for adults and $18 for children. Among the exceptional dishes from the current brunch menu are wild local salmon with grilled corn and quinoa, smoked salmon benedict, and brioche French toast with spinach, hollandaise and cucumber fennel. Luce also has an award-winning wine collection of 350 labels and is a consistent recipient of Wine Spectator’s Award of Excellence.

Top of the Mark
999 California St.
San Francisco, CA  94108
(415) 392-3434
www.intercontinentalmarkhopkins.com

Located on the 19th floor of the landmark Mark Hopkins Hotel with sweeping views of the city, the Top of the Mark is one of those San Francisco places that needs to be visited at least once in a lifetime. Easter brunch is a lavish occasion, replete with champagne, an extraordinary buffet presentation, an appearance by the Easter Bunny and live music from local jazz pianist Elias Negash. Current offerings from executive chef Nenad Stefanovic for the Champagne Brunch at the Top include potato and leek soup, beef tenderloin medallions and salmon vera cruz with scallop scampi. A dress code is strictly enforced at this legendary Nob Hill restaurant and staff will not allow shorts or hats inside.

Fried Chicken in San Francisco

When is the last time you had some old-fashioned fried chicken?  Making this recipe at home is not your only option.  San Francisco has plenty of restaurants that will serve you the fried chicken that you are craving. SFist has your list of the ten best fried chicken places in the Bay Area.


Brown Sugar Kitchen
People don't only go to Brown Sugar Kitchen for their chicken and waffles, but almost. Formally, French-trained chef Tanya Holland opened her West Oakland spot to immediate lines in 2005, and the chicken, and the waffles, truly are perfect. Holland has said she wants to "do for Southern cuisine what Mario Batali did for Italian food — elevate it from mom-and-pop meals with more refined sauces and fresh seasonal ingredients." And word about Holland's chicken has spread far and wide (Oprah included), and you can learn all the secrets to her batter right here, or you can save yourself some spatter and just head over there to try it from her kitchen. — Jay Barmann
2534 Mandela Parkway, Oakland

Hard Knox Cafe
The chicken at these quirky comfort food outposts, cooked until its exterior is a dark golden brown, will make you believe in fryer vat miracles. That is, if you weren't a believer already. Note that there's a spicy option for those who crave a little kick. Corn bread comes out first, and everything is super laid back and casual. Don't expect the fastest service, but in return, you're welcome to linger. —Caleb Pershan
2526 3rd Street between 22nd and 23rd Streets and 2448 Clement Street between 25th and 26th Avenues

Little Skillet
An offshoot of restaurant Farmer Brown, Little Skillet is literally a window along a wall where die-hard fans order fried chicken and waffles, and then devour their purchase in an alley. Sound perfect? It is. Those just in it for the perfectly fried chicken can order a meal sans waffles. Sides include biscuits, mac and cheese, and the highly recommended cheddar grits. Don't lie. You know you want to eat chicken and grits in an alley surrounded by your fellow SoMa skillet fans. — Beth Spotswood
360 Ritch Street near Townsend


Ad Hoc
Many folks will tell you that a craving for Ad Hoc's buttermilk fried chicken is one of the main reasons they bought chef Thomas Keller's cookbook Ad Hoc at Home. Brined in lemons, honey, and other spices for nearly a day, Ad Hoc's chicken gets a buttermilk bath and a spicy coat of seasoning before its dip in the frier. The result is an amazingly crisp crust covering intensely flavorful, juicy meat. It's the stuff chickeny dreams are made of. One warning before you hop in the car and head to Yountville to taste for yourself: as Ad Hoc only serves a four-course family-style menu that changes on a daily basis, you can't get their chicken every day. However, their boxed lunch to-go service Addendum (in the backyard) offers the chicken Thursdays through Saturdays, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Plan accordingly. -- Eve Batey
6476 Washington Street in Yountville


Wayfare Tavern
Tyler Florence's take on "restaurant-style" fried chicken is nothing to scoff at. Brined and thinly battered with well seasoned buttermilk batter, and garnished with roasted garlic, salt, fried herbs, and lemon, it's decidedly one of our fancier examples, and pricier at $25 a plate. But it's damn good. "Ridiculously good," as Food & Wine has called it. South Carolina-born Florence has kept the fried chicken front and center on the menu of his tony FiDi haunt since it opened in 2010, and it remains, easily, some of the juiciest, and most flavorful in town. — Jay Barmann
558 Sacramento Street near Montgomery

San Tung
Inner Sunset Chinese joint San Tung is known for two things: long waits, and their dry-fried chicken wings. And, yes, the two are connected, as people come from all over for the chicken that we've written about so many times over the years that it might be dubbed the Gavin Newsom of food. (And like our former mayor, the service at San Tung can be..erratic, though their dining room is far grittier than Gavin could ever hope to be.) Named by esteemed food pub Food & Wine as some of the best in the US, San Tung's dry fried wings (they have a wet fried option too, but it's not that great) combines garlic, ginger, and roasted red peppers in the batter for a concoction that even the restaurant admits "doesn't sound like typical Chinese fare" but is instead a "mix (of) American comfort with Chinese cooking expertise." Who cares, it just tastes fantastic. And if the line at San Tung's too long, you can go get a drink or check the wait at San Tung 2, which is right next door and serves the same food as the original. -- Eve Batey
1031 Irving Street (#1) and 1033 Irving Street (#2), both between 11th and 12th Avenues




Boxing Room
Chef Justin Simoneaux, a New Orleans native, has one magical, secret weapon to serve alongside his darkly fried, crunchy and delicious fried chicken: bacon giblet gravy. The combination with his always moist and picture-perfect fried chicken, is the stuff Big Easy dreams are made of. Bonus: This man knows how to make a proper hushpuppy. Double bonus: The place finally, recently added a full liquor license, so this NoLa-centric spot can do NoLa proud with cocktails. -- Jay Barmann
399 Grove Street at Gough
Front Porch
We've all agreed that food tastes better when it is pulled from a bucket — popcorn, shrimp, popcorn shrimp, and of course, fried chicken. One of the few spots one can procure chicken in a bucket without having it handed through a car window is at the Mission's Front Porch. The Front Porch is home to some seriously juicy cornmeal-encrusted friend chicken, piled high and deep in a cardboard bucket and dramatically presented tableside. Wimps can order a meager 4-piece plate, but few things say long-term love and overall health like a shared 10-piece extravaganza of fried legs and breasts.— Beth Spotswood
65 29th Street between Mission and San Jose


Miss Ollie's
Sarah Kirnon, who came to the Bay from London in 1999 and worked initially at Front Porch, opened her casual Caribbean-California restaurant to happy customers and positive press in 2013. The place is an homage to her grandmother, Miss Ollie, and the fried chicken is the odds-on highlight. Of course it's crispy on the outside, but it's also got a secret: skin stuffed with vinegar and herbs. Traditional — and also highly affordable — other dishes include phoularie, fritters made from split pea flour and turmeric and a pickle plate to complement whatever else you've ordered. —Caleb Pershan
901 Washington Street Oakland between 9th and 10th Streets


Pollo Campero
Guatemala-based, Central American chicken chain Pollo Campero opened their first Northern California location in the Mission just over two years ago, and if you haven't been, you need to go. You will not find a lot of English speakers in the dining room, but what you will find is some delicious, well seasoned, fast-food chicken that certainly rivals KFC, if maybe not Popeye's. Also, this is the cheapest fried chicken on this list, and it is damn good — with optional sides like yuca fries, rice and beans, and sweet fried plantains with sour cream. — Jay Barmann
2740 Mission Street between 23rd and 24th Streets


Brenda's French Soul Food/Brenda's Meat & Three
Brenda's recent expansion to Divisadero with Brenda's Meat & Three solidified a reputation for strong Southern cooking. There, buttermilk fried chicken is as it sounds: nearly creamy and wholly delicious. Over at the original outpost, Brenda's French Soul Food, they call it the B.F.C or Best Fried Chicken, advertising a secret recipe. Louisiana native Brenda Buenviaje nods to New Orleans at every turn, and her cooking is a down-home delight. —Caleb Pershan
652 Polk Street between Eddy and Turk Streets and 919 Divisadero Street between McAllister Street and Golden Gate Avenue.


Eureka Restaurant and Lounge
This Castro dinner spot does not do everything spectacularly, but I will say the fried chicken is consistently some of the best in town. Longtime chef Gaines Dobbins trained with Paul Prudhomme and Nancy Oakes (at Boulevard) before helping to open Chenery Park and then Eureka, its sister restaurant which has outlived its sibling. The fried chicken is the hands-down best bet on the Southern-inflected menu (though Dobbins' gumbo is nothing to scoff at either) and it comes served with mashed potatoes, collard greens, black-eyed peas, and black-pepper gravy. In two words: old school. — Jay Barmann
4063 18th Street, near Castro



1300 on Fillmore
The well-designed elegance of this high-end soul food supper-club allows one to feel wildly sophisticated ordering a plate of $24, cooked to order fried chicken. Deboned and deep-fried in a skillet, this chicken dish is served with mashed potatoes, gravy, and (wait for it) a house-made chive biscuit. If the Neiman Marcus rotunda deigned to serve fried chicken, they would serve this version. — Beth Spotswood
1300 Fillmore Street at Eddy




Town Hall Town Hall's fried chicken is so famous, a giant food porn photo of their chicken cooking a skillet graces their homepage. This is what they want everyone to think of when they think of Town Hall: fried chicken. That kind of confidence in a menu item only comes with years of commitment to the product and thousands of glowing reviews. Town Hall serves other delicious menu items in their classic lunch-and-dinner restaurant, but you should come for the fried chicken. It is, after all, their website wallpaper. — Beth Spotswood 342 Howard Street at Fremont

Frisco Fried
Chicken and waffles — a remarkable combination if there ever was one — are the staple of Frisco Fried, the Bayview eatery from Marcel Banks and his uncle Gregory Banks, There, every crispy piece is made to order, which means things usually take 15-20 minutes. But recall that good things come to those who wait. The "fried with pride" joint opened in 2010 to sling it's signature "S.F. style Soul Food," and however good those waffles are, they're really just a nice bed for the perfectly-battered bird. The black and orange interior shows great SF patriotism, but that's not the main event, either. You know why you're here!—Caleb Pershan
5176 3rd Street between Shafter and Thomas Avenues

The First Day of Spring

Today is the first day of spring. We look forward to this day all winter. This is the perfect time to get out and take a walk in San Francisco. However, you do not need to go alone. San Francisco has some of the best dog parks in California. Grab your furry friend and take a walk in one of these 11 dog parks. You can learn more at Sfist.

Bernal Heights Park
Bernal's large, lovely hill is an equally wonderful dog walking or dog watching outpost, with trails, a main road, and stellar views. The sightseeing is good all the way to the top, which has even more trails and from where you can take in the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges in one panorama. The park is a favorite destination for Bernal locals and San Franciscans farther afield, but it can sometimes get chilly at the top. But that's not that bad because it increases your likelihood of seeing phenomenal dog sweaters. —Caleb Pershan

Crissy Field
This is how I do Crissy Field: I park at the parking lot closest to the Marina Gate, and let the dogs out to run off-leash on the beach. When they seem a little less nutso, everyone gets leashed and we walk along the runway (it's a former airfield) all the way down to the Warming Hut. The humans get a cup of coffee and a treat and hang out at the picnic tables for a bit. Then we walk back up the runway, eventually making our way back to the car. All the while, there's the water to one side, the Presidio to the other, plenty of places to run and play, and a lot of scantily clad, athletic people to admire. —Eve Batey

Duboce Park
Dog owners across the city drool over the park-adjacent residences surrounding the always dog-filled Duboce Park. The off-leash area is expansive, sloping a full city block all the way down to Steiner Street, and though this is not the perfect place to take dogs who are fond of running off in the direction of cars — the Duboce and Steiner Street sides of the park are not fenced off in any way — it is the perfect place for all well behaved pooches who enjoy playing fetch and bounding about with other dogs. And there will pretty much always be others there doing the same, at all hours. Of special note: Duboce is home to the annual DogFest, which happens in April. —Jay Barmann


Fort Funston
Definitely the best dog beach in town is in the southwest corner of the city, almost in Daly City, in Fort Funston National Park. You have to do some climbing down a fairly steep path and then back up it when you're done, but this is an ideal spot to exhaust the most energetic of pups — especially those who aren't afraid of water. Of course you'll want to be careful on days with rough surf if your dog is too fearless, but this long, dog-filled expanse, bordered on one side by dunes, cliffs, and ice plants, is basically dog heaven. —Jay Barmann


Golden Gate Park
While your on-leash dog's welcome in many areas (except places like the bison paddock and Big Rec, that huge field at Lincoln and 7th Avenue) of Golden Gate Park, there are only four areas where it's not against the rules to take them off leash: a dog run bordered by Lincoln Way, Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and 5th and 7th Avenues in the southeast, Stanyan between Hayes and Fulton on the northeast, MLK Jr and Middle Drives between 34th and 38th Avenues in the southwest, and a small dog training area at 38th Avenue and Fulton. All three of these spots are just the right mix of untamed nature (Wild bushes! Squirrels!) and nicely maintained park (Sprinklers! Trashcans!). Stay away from the coyotes, and you'll all have a great time. — Eve Batey


Huntington Park
In the Disney movie of SF dogdom, Nob Hill's Huntington Park would be where all the snooty poodles and can't-be-bothered lhasa apsos would strut about looking down their noses at the rambunctious beagle hero of the film. This half brick-surfaced, half grassy park with a famous fountain in the center of it sits in the shadow of Grace Cathedral, the Huntington Hotel, and the Mark Hopkins, and is the daily destination of many well heeled toy breeds from nearby luxury apartments, as well as some other riff-raff from downhill in the TenderNob and Russian Hill. It's technically an on-leash park, and there is a playground right next to it, so for off-leash play this is strictly limited to the really well behaved, and tends to mostly be for small dogs. —Jay Barmann


Lafayette Park
The Friends of Lafayette Park neighborhood group proudly describes this park as "a haven for dogs and people who love them at almost any time of day or night." What they don't mention is how this is also a great place to scope out some of the fanciest real estate in town: Larry Ellison, director Chris Columbus, and a lot of people you mainly see in the society pages live or lived in homes that border this Pac Haights park. Speaking of fancy, a lot of the dogs and their guardians that hang out here are, too, so be prepared for the occasional celeb (and their dog) sighting. Be cool! — Eve Batey


McLaren Park
The sprawling, serene southern San Francisco park is canine heaven with plenty of space and even a doggie pond. Bordering neighborhoods like the Excelsior, Visitacion Valley, and the Outer Mission. There's a large off-leash area, plenty of rolling hills, open fields and trails. What more could your dog's heart desire? —Caleb Pershan


Mountain Lake Park
This Inner-Richmond 14-acre getaway at the edge of the Presidio is great for stretching your, and your dogs, legs. There's a wood-chip carpeted dog specific area, which is where local dog walkers usually bring their herds on weekday afternoons. You'll also find plenty of trails surrounding the eponymous lake and mountain, a big grassy hill (with a concrete slide) and a duck filled lake. —Caleb Pershan


Ocean Beach
Of course you know that Ocean Beach is gorgeous! And of course you know that it's a haven for dogs, because there are a zillion things to smell, birds to chase, water to play in, and other dogs to interact with. All I have to do is start driving on Lincoln towards OB and my dog will go bonkers at the prospect of a beach walk, it's such a fan fave. The rules are that dogs must be on-leash between from Sloat Blvd. and Stairwell 21 (which is, roughly, about mid-Beach Chalet) except from May 15 to July 1. (Do people always follow this rule? Nope! But we're not here to get you in trouble.) North of Stairwell 21, it's an off-leash free-for-all, with pooches running wild as can be. — Eve Batey



Pine Lake Park
Commonly known as "Stern Grove Dog Park," Pine Lake Park's to the Grove's immediate west, with an entrance hidden just off Crestlake Drive. Past the parking lot, there's a huge off-leash play area constantly populated by pups and their guardians, as well as benches to sit and chat while everyone's dogs play. Or you can get your dog back on leash (per the rules) and walk the perimeter of lovely Pine Lake. The best part, though, is that this park's in a valley, so if your dog tries to escape chances are that you (with your longer legs) can catch him or her on the steep uphill. — Eve Batey

San Francisco St. Patrick's Day Celebrations

Are you celebrating St. Patrick's Day this weekend?  Make sure to check out the West Coast's largest Irish event.  This event features Irish history, culture, and great events.  It has even attracted close to 100,000 people every year.  The event is on Saturday morning.  You can learn more at sf fun and cheap.

The West Coast’s largest Irish event celebrating Irish history and culture, the 164th Annual San Francisco St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival, attracts some 100,000 revelers every year and is one of the city’s most popular events.


164th San Francisco St. Patrick’s Day Parade & Festival
Saturday, March 14, 2015
- Parade: Starts at 11:30 am
- Festival: 10 am to 5 pm
Parade begins on the corner of Market and 2nd Street and runs to Civic Center
Festival is in Civic Center Plaza
FREE

The parade will start at the corner of Market and Second Streets where over 100 colorful floats, Irish dance troupes and marching bands will wind their way to Civic Center Plaza.

The St. Patrick’s Day Parade celebrates and showcases the Irish community, Irish culture and character in all its forms. Featured groups from throughout the Bay Area’s Irish community including schools, youth organizations, labor unions, cultural groups, as well as the San Francisco Police and Fire, will proudly march up Market Street.

The popular festival is back in 2015 and will take place from 10 am to 5 pm in Civic Center Plaza.

The colorful festivities surrounding the parade will showcase Irish Culture through live performance and entertainment, arts and crafts exhibitors, food and beverage concessions, children’s rides and inflatables, cultural displays, a petting zoo and pony ride and a number of non-profits booths representing the Irish community.

Cute San Francisco Date Ideas

Are you looking for a nice night away from your home?  We have found some cute date night ideas all around San Francisco.  These are not your typical dinner and a movie.  These fun activities are creative, and it will be something you both can enjoy and have fun.  Keep reading, and you can get more great ideas at thrillist.


Virtual golf

Eagle Club Indoor Golf
A virtual, indoor driving range means you can enjoy the best aspects of golf -- hitting balls and "helping" her improve her swing -- without having to endure any of the negatives (stuffy dress codes, early tee-times, committing to 19 holes with a person you met on Tinder).
Pro tip: Upgrade your standard happy-hour date by suggesting an after-work tee-time (it’s located on 2nd and Howard, near all your standard happy hour bars, anyway).

Roller disco

Church of 8 Wheels
Ice skating is lame (and cold), but roller-skating? See, that right there is retro and cool, and still provides plenty of opportunities for rom-com-like falls that inevitably lead to touching. Also: DJs spinning old-school funk and disco while you skate around a converted historic church is awesome in and of itself.
Pro tip: Bring a flask -- there’s no bar on the premises
Archery

Golden Gate Park
Tucked away just North of the golf course is Golden Gate Park’s archery field, surrounded by woods that look like Robin Hood’s Sherwood Forest (the cartoon one with the foxes, not the Costner one). You rent your equipment at the nearby San Francisco Archery Shop, where the expert archers on staff give you a quick tutorial. Then walk down to the field where nine target bales await you and your best Katniss Everdeen impression.
Pro tip: Bring wine or beer (probably just for post-shooting), plus picnic provisions.
Hiking

Lands End
You know what’s expensive? Dating. You know what’s free? Hiking. And thanks to panoramas around every corner, San Francisco turns what’s basically just walking into an exercise in romance. SF offers several awesome urban date hikes, but a walk that ends at Sutro Baths is especially dreamy. Making out... in a cave... while waves crash near by -- it’s like Danielle Steel created SF’s coastline herself. Wait... did she?
Boat ride

Stow Lake
Take a page out of a Nicholas Sparks novel with a picturesque paddle on Golden Gate Park’s Stow Lake. Sure, the waterfall on the center island, sweeping city views, ducks, and storybook wooden bridges could tip this date into cheesy territory, but that’s nothing a few tall boys in paper bags can’t temper. Plus, is it really the worst thing in the world if you start to remind her of Ryan Gosling?
Pro tip: Rent the pedal boats instead of the rowboats so your hands are free for sipping beer. Oh, and bring snacks to share with the ducklings.
Bowling

Mission Bowl
Classic courtship gets the trendy, hipster treatment at Mission Bowl. It’s basically a typical Mission bar -- complete with decent food, craft cocktails, and people in flannel -- only there are bowling lanes, too.
Pro tip: Come during the week when the wait list for the two first-come, first-served lanes is generally shorter. And enjoy drinks or food on the patio while you wait.
Mortified Storytelling

DNA Lounge and The Uptown
Dating can be awkward and embarrassing, but for once the angst will not be your own when you witness Mortified’s hilarious exploration of most embarrassing moments. There’s just something about sharing in other other's misfortune that really helps people bond. Newsweek, The Onion's A.V. Club, This American Life, and more rave about the raw storytelling, so even if the relationship doesn’t last, this "cultural phenomenon" is worth seeing. Catch it in SF on October 10th, or in Oakland on the 11th. If you're gonna go to Oakland, make sure you read this first.
Sidewalk Food Tours

Various Locations
For around the same cost as a dinner for two at any moderately priced restaurant in the city, you’re treated to a much more interactive experience with this food tour of San Francisco’s most delicious neighborhoods. Choose from Italian goodies in North Beach, Latin flavors in the Mission, or Chinese delicacies in Chinatown (coming soon) and taste popular dishes from five of the most iconic restaurants and holes-in-the-wall the neighborhood has to offer.
Giant trampolines

House of Air
A massive trampoline park in a historic airplane hangar. Do we really need to explain further why this is awesome?
Pro tip: After you’re done jumping around like kids, plan on sharing a bottle of wine on Crissy Field across the street like the adults (with the healthy, active love lives) that you are.

Best Bagels in the Bay

What is your favorite bagel?  People argue all the time about their favorite bagel in any city.  However, San Francisco has many bagels that could be considered the best.  SFist has gathered what they believe to be the nine best bagel locations in the area. Keep reading and let us know if you agree or disagree. 


20th Century Cafe
Pastry chef Michelle Polzine (formerly of Range) knows her way around proper European baking traditions, from her knishes and honey cakes to her proper, boiled and baked bagels, liberally crusted with poppy seeds, or onion, or just plain naked. The bagels are dark, yeasty, and chewy, with a hint of honey in the dough, and Polzine prefers to call them "San Francisco bagels" lest any purists try to call her out. Still, these are some delicious, fresh-from-oven wonders (baked twice daily!), and you owe it to yourself to have one the next time you're in Hayes Valley. — — Jay Barmann

Beauty's Bagel Shop
Hand-rolled, Montreal-style: that's the name of the game at Beauty's Bagel Shop. With seeds enough to stock a birdhouse, these bagels also draw long lines. But those move quickly, and you'll be rewarded with the wood-fired goods before you know it. Lots of cream cheese and topping options await, from the traditional to the tofu, and then there are the bagel sandwiches, which definitely standout. Yes, they're organic, and yes, those eggs are free-range. — Caleb Pershan
3838 Telegraph Avenue, Oakland, between 38th and 39th Streets


House of Bagels
This Richmond District bakery and storefront's been churning out "NY Style" bagels for 50 years, which has got to count for something, right? With a decidedly un-NY list of bagel flavors(Apple Ginger?) purists should note that HOB is also kosher-style, not kosher. But they're swift to assure you that they "carry NO pork or shellfish products of any kind." Casting aside those issues, how do they taste? Not too bad! Boiled and baked every day, as the good lord intended, if you stick with HOB's plain, poppy, or salt you'll get a firm, not-too-cakey bagel with a nice spring to it. Just as important, their staff is really, really nice. If only more people realized what HOB does, that the flavor of one's food can be dramatically enhanced by friendly service!— Eve Batey
5030 Geary Boulevard between 14th and 15th Avenues


Izzy's Brooklyn Bagels
Keeping it kosher in Palo Alto is Izzy's, where they're doing Brooklyn-style bagels just like "back east." One of those places that people invoke as the best bagel in the Bay Area, it's certainly worth a visit for top-notch fare, including baked goods like babka and gourmet lox. Also of note: great deviled eggs, and catering, because who doesn't want a huge plate of smoked salmon? — Caleb Pershan
477 South California Ave, Palo Alto


Katz Bagels
Boiled bagels at Katz, some might complain, are a bit compact. But classics like salt, garlic, and poppy seed are indeed super fresh boiled. Cream cheeses run the gamut, though I'll put in a plug for the chive. You'll also find numbered bagel sandwiches including good old bacon and egg. The cash-only establishment plays great jazz, has a nice bar slash counter to hang out on, and serves coffee. But you can also bring a bagel over to Stanza across the street, where there's better brew. Don't worry, they won't mind. — Caleb Pershan
3147 16th Street between Albion and Valencia Streets

Marla Bakery
Every day, Marla Bakery staffers get up before the rest of us to make their salted, poppy, sesame, and multi-seed bagels, which are available to all comers in increments as high as the half-dozen (they ask that you call in an order if you want more than that at any one time). This daily practice shows — while some places' bagels feel like they've been hanging out for a bit (no shade, that might be part of their charm), those at Marla feel fresh as a daisy. They're a little softer and chewier than some on our list, but their crust is one of our favorites, a smooth finish that never feels sticky. If you decide to dine in, check out their sophisticated take on the bagel plate, with herbed farmers cheese, Marla's house-smoked sable and their homemade pickled vegetables. — Eve Batey
3619 Balboa Street, between 37th and 38th Avenues

Nopa
I'm guessing that unless you're a Nopa brunch fanatic you didn't even know that pastry chef Anna Lee has been doing small batches of bagels every weekend, to be served as special with lox or smoked trout and dill farmer's cheese. They're yeast-risen, boiled in salted, malted water, and come topped with either sea salt or sesame, usually. You need to be part of the early brunch crew to get one, because Lee only makes about three dozen of these by hand each Saturday and Sunday. — Jay Barmann
560 Divisadero at Hayes

Posh Bagel
They may not be the most authentic around, and in fact some of them are just balls-out California with their jalapeno and occasional pesto-laden tops. But I like these bagels anyway, dammit. They're the correct consistency, chewy and not too bready, and superior to Noah's in every way. Assuming you don't have serious New York snobbery about things like asiago cheese or blueberries in your bagel — and also assuming you don't mind eating delicious things in secret for fear of judgment from your authenticity-obsessed friends — we suggest you try this place. You might be a convert. — Jay Barmann
There are 14 Posh Bagel retail locations located throughout the Bay Area.

Wise Sons Deli 
Though a recent fire in the Mission has delayed their plans for a daily bagel operation, on Saturdays you can still nab a four-pack of bagels at their 24th Street location, and singles with cream cheese are often available in their Mission spot as well as at their Ferry Building Farmer's Market location on Tuesdays and Thursdays and their Contemporary Jewish Museum location (though bagels are unlisted on both of those spots' online menus). The flavors are blessedly limited: a plain, sesame, salt, or everything. Most respectable of the bunch is the plain, with just the right amount of chew and heft, and maybe a little bit of a sourdough finish.— Eve Batey
3150 24th Street at Shotwell