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North Beach
This place is like the Garden of Eden for foodies that live here, and just as inaccessible for the rest of us. Seriously, there's no parking here, nor a Muni line. On a Saturday night the sidewalks are completely packed with people, as are the restaurants which are lined up one after the other...it's crazy. Truly, this is the place for SF purists.
- 371
- 1188
9 Places
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Wes’s 5-star review: Awesome sailor's bar. Ok, so there's not many sailors here any more, but you can come in and pretend you are one. Worth coming just for the awesome stuff on the walls. It attracts tourists, but it's not really that touristy, it's just damn authentic. What more can I say? A must-stop for lovers of old-fashioned bars. -
Wes’s 4-star review: Why do people think parking garage reviews are so odd? If anything, they're one of the most useful things to come out of Yelp. Maybe our suburban minds can't comprehend the idea that parking would require forethought, or they think it's just too banal a subject for polite conversation, like going to the bathroom. But in SF, and especially in North Beach, insider parking tips are like pure gold. So, there's easy parking in North Beach. Who knew? Here's my theory: I think a lot of people either avoid North Beach entirely, and thus know only of the legendary impossibility of parking, or they're here constantly, in which case they can't afford to always be parking and probably don't even need a car. I, on the other hand, only come to North Beach when it's really important (like seeing John Oliver), so when I do I'm willing to pay what it takes. Which at North Beach Garage, is something like $2-3 an hour, depending how long you stay. Of course, it's not too big, so I'm sure it does fill up on occasion, but at 6 PM on Saturday, I had no problem. Best of all, you can get to it very easily via the Broadway Tunnel, avoiding Stockton/Columbus entirely. Oh yeah, and the fortunes are a nice touch. I wonder what the very last spot in the garage says? -
Wes’s 4-star review: There's something very Old San Francisco about a corny revue in a hot, stuffy, and red music hall, don't you think? Heck at 35 years old, Beach Blanket Babylon almost counts as Old San Francisco in its own right. At any rate, when you've got out-of-town guests and the Datebook is looking thin, this is your ace in the hole. Most visitors will eat it up, especially if they still have their romanticized, gold-rush, barbary-coast-noir view of the city intact (which means they'll probably be dragging you to the North Beach area anyway). Even for the localer-than-thou crowd, a visit here is somewhat obligatory considering it's an institution and all (note that they actually renamed this block of Green St). However, while they do update the topical skits from time to time, it's still mostly the same old (Snow White) story, same old (pop chart) song and dance, my friend. So if you've seen one year's model, you've seen them all. -
Wes’s 3-star review: The name itself is an enigma: "Original US Restaurant"? Couple that with the eagle logo and the Food Lover's dumbfounding description of the place, and I just didn't know what to expect. An impossibly retro cafeteria for the likes of retired military folks? (Hey, if you've seen Twin Peaks Properties on 24th St, you'll know anything is possible in this town). Disappointingly, though, Original US Restaurant is actually just a Standard Italian Restaurant. Maybe some of the je ne sais quoi was lost when they moved from their old location a few years back--I guess I'll never know. What I do know is that you can get hearty, homestyle Italian dishes here, like the US Fusilli pasta with sausage, mushrooms, and peppers, or the arancine (yummy deep fried ricotta balls); it's like someone's Italian grandmother is back in the kitchen. Of course, you could go to the Outer Sunset and have someone's Asian grandmother cook equally comforting food for half the price. Ah, the Italian prestige tax. -
Wes’s 5-star review: Mario's worked so well as a coffee break stop on my last walking tour that I decided to promote it to lunch stop this time around. Which is another way of saying that I was dying to come back and try the much-Yelped focaccia sandwiches (actually, the grilled veggie focaccia is open-faced, meaning it's really more of a pizza, but it's frankly less messy this way, and still crispy-chewy, oiled-to-golden-glory and 100% drool-worthy). -
Wes’s 3-star review: On the one hand, life is short, North Beach is far away and Italian food is overrated. So will I ever eat a meal here? I highly doubt it. On the other hand, it was pouring rain after the John Oliver show, I needed to sober up before driving, and Mario's was packed. So did we run across the street to grab cappuccinos and dessert here? You bet. And whatever else I may say about Italian cuisine, they do know their coffee and ice cream. That hit the spot, questionable faux-roman-statue decor notwithstanding. -
Wes’s 4-star review: An icon. A landmark. An institution. A...nother day in North Beach. Whatever else your opinion of Graffeo, you gotta admit ordering is easy. You get exactly two choices: light roast or dark roast (ok ok, you can custom blend them in any ratio you want). So if you're going to be a Graffeo regular, you'd better *really* like this stuff, because it'll probably still be the same in another 75 years. Service is simple and pleasant, but at $13.75 it's some of the priciest beans I've seen. And while it's terrific coffee, I still think Castro Cheesery has a superior (and cheaper) blend or two up their sleeves. Still, whenever I take foodie tourists on the inevitable Russian Hill - Coit Tower walk, Graffeo makes an excellent point of interest. -
Wes’s 4-star review: Cobb's or Punch Line? Well, Punch Line has a little more atmosphere, but Cobb's has a balcony. Punch Line is more conveniently located, but Cobb's...has John Oliver!!!! Case closed. I do have one complaint: when the waitress came to take our drink orders, I asked her if I should just order both drinks up front, as is the custom at many comedy clubs. She said sure, then proceeded to bring me both drinks *at the same time*. Naturally I made the best of this situation, but it left me a little tipsy and it was hard at times to follow John's dense, tour-de-force monologue. Though I definitely remember whooping for inflatable barbecues and oreo pizzas. I was only sad he didn't really say anything SF-specific. I mean, I'm not expecting Gavin Newsom jokes from an Englishman, but hello, liberal hotbed here! How about a little shout-out? Anyway, if Cobb's can pull in more talent of this caliber, I'll be back for sure. -
Wes’s 5-star review: Wow. Only thing to say...wow. If you looked up classic SF ambience in the dictionary, there would be a picture of the inside of Bimbo's. I like to praise places for being "dark and red" a lot, but Bimbo's is the darkest and the reddest, not to mention the biggest. This place is cavernous. And it's got history too, I think it's been here since the 30's. Not surprising then that it feels so classy inside. We came here to see Zepparella, the all-girl Led Zeppelin cover band (how cool is that?) and Notorious, an all-around cover band (aka a wedding band). It was a great show, but most of all it's a great venue.
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