Walking Neighborhoods for Visiting Friends

by Winston Wolff | September 28, 2026

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Our Favorite San Francisco Spots for Visiting Friends

When friends visit San Francisco, they often ask us where to go. This is the list we send them. We recommend picking one neighborhood, and walk around. We try to list some sights, especially murals, some food, coffee, and dessert there. The items at the top are the most interesting things to see in that neighborhood.

Neighborhoods for Strolling

Golden Gate Park & Inner Sunset

Start at 9th Ave & Irving St and walk north on 9th Ave. At Lincoln Way, cross into the park for the gardens and museums

SF Botanical Garden - garden - Free before 9am. (1199 9th Ave, at Lincoln Way)
de Young Museum - art museum - The observation tower is free and looks out over the park. (50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Dr)
California Academy of Sciences - science museum - Science museum and planetarium, with an aquarium, a four-story rainforest dome, and a living roof. Across the concourse from the de Young. (55 Music Concourse Dr)
Roller Skaters - people watching (and roller skating) - (near Fulton and 7th Ave)
Misdirections Magic Shop - shop - Magic tricks and props. The owner will show you how the tricks work. (1236 9th Ave)
Inner Sunset community mural - mural - Neighborhood scenes: the farmers market, Golden Gate Park, a hawk, and the sunset. Painted by about 200 volunteers in 2025. (8th Ave & Irving St)
Twirl and Dip - ice cream - Ice cream truck by the de Young. Try their Tcho chocolate dipped soft serve. (MLK Jr Dr at Music Concourse Dr)
Tartine Inner Sunset - bakery - Tartine’s bread and morning buns, plus coffee. (1226 9th Ave)
Hometown Creamery - ice cream - Ice cream made from scratch on site. (1290 9th Ave)
16th Avenue Tiled Steps - public art - A staircase covered in a mosaic of the sea and sky, climbing to a hilltop view. About 4 blocks south of Irving St and 7 blocks west of 9th Ave. (16th Ave & Moraga St)

Chinatown, North Beach, Jackson Square

Chinatown side:

Bruce Lee was born at Chinese Hospital
Look at the Mainland Chinese and Taiwan Chinese flags flying above the buildings to note the differen affiliations.
Note the family association buildings. During the Chinese Exclusion Act, Chinese were not allowed to own real-estate so they instead formed companies to own the buildings.
Unbound Bookstore - bookstore - The Bay Area’s first independent Chinese bookstore. In early 2026, there was a pop-up Japanese pour-over coffee. (38 Waverly Pl)
On Waverly - shop - Gift shop of local Asian American artists and designers. (162 Waverly Pl)
iCafe - bakery - Zongzi (sticky rice in bamboo leaves), including pork, red bean, and quinoa versions. Also Chinese pastries and mochi. (133 Waverly Pl)
Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory - bakery - See how fortune cookies are made. Sometimes there’s a line. (56 Ross Alley)
Chinese Historical Society of America Museum - history museum - History of Chinese Americans. The Julia Morgan building is also beautiful—a former YWCA from 1932. (965 Clay St)
Chinatown Kite Shop - shop - Kites. (717 Grant Ave)
Ross Alley and Spofford Alley - mural - Murals, including dragons and the mosaic “Dragon Boats Chasing Moonlight.” The fortune cookie factory is on Ross Alley. (Between Jackson St and Washington St)
Monkey King mural - mural - Sun Wukong from Journey to the West. (790 Sacramento St, at Grant Ave)
Li Po Cocktail Lounge - bar - Old dive bar with a cave-like entrance and a big Buddha behind the bar. Known for its Chinese Mai Tai. (916 Grant Ave)
Ping Yuen mural - mural - Large mural on the Ping Yuen housing buildings by Darryl Mar, 1995. The faces are real members of his church. (Pacific Ave near Stockton St)
Mel Waters mural - mural - Mural by San Francisco native Mel Waters. (743 Washington St, at Grant Ave)
The Wok Shop - shop - Woks and Chinese cooking supplies. (718 Grant Ave)
Good Mong Kok Bakery - hole-in-the-wall - Take-out dim sum. Cash only. (1039 Stockton St)
Z & Y Peking Duck - restaurant - Slightly fancy Chinese. (606 Jackson St)
Mister Jiu’s - fancy restaurant - Very fancy Chinese food with Western influence. Michelin star. (28 Waverly Pl)
Yuet Lee Seafood - hole-in-the-wall - Cantonese seafood. (1300 Stockton St)

North Beach/Italian side:

Coit Tower murals - mural - Murals of California life painted in 1934 by 26 Depression-era artists. The ground floor is free. A free Saturday 11am tour includes the stairwell murals. A steep walk up Telegraph Hill. (1 Telegraph Hill Blvd)
City Lights Booksellers - bookstore - Beat Generation bookstore. (261 Columbus Ave)
Jack Kerouac Alley - mural - Between City Lights and Vesuvio. Murals, and Beat writers’ quotes set into the paving. (Between Grant Ave and Columbus Ave)
The Beat Museum - museum - Beat Generation memorabilia. Closed for an earthquake retrofit, expected to reopen late 2026. Check before going. (540 Broadway)
Vesuvio Cafe - bar - Beat Generation bar. (255 Columbus Ave)
Caffe Trieste - coffee - Beat Generation hangout, open since 1956. (601 Vallejo St)
Réveille Coffee - coffee - Started as a coffee truck. (200 Columbus Ave)
Liguria Bakery - bakery - Focaccia only, baked in the same brick ovens since 1906. Go before 10am; they close when they sell out. (1700 Stockton St, at Filbert St)
Molinari Delicatessen - deli - Italian deli since 1896, one of the oldest in the US. Sandwiches, and their own salami. (373 Columbus Ave)

Posh/Jackson Square side: A few blocks of shops with beautiful things

Toast - clothing - Toast clothing. British brand of women’s and men’s clothing and homeware. In Jackson Square. (407 Jackson St)

Mission & Valencia

Gringo/Valencia side

Walk Valencia St from 24th St to 16th St.
MaestraPeace - mural - Nearly 12,000 sq ft mural covering two sides of the Women’s Building, painted in 1994 by seven women muralists. (3543 18th St)
Paxton Gate - shop - Taxidermy and beautiful things. (824 Valencia St)
Pirate Supply Store - shop - Whimsical pirate-themed store. Sales fund 826 Valencia’s free writing programs for kids. (826 Valencia St)
Clarion Alley - mural - The murals change often. (Between 17th and 18th St, from Mission St to Valencia St)
Creativity Explored - gallery - Studio and gallery for artists with developmental disabilities. The art is often very inventive. (3245 16th St)
Community Thrift - thrift store - Clothing, books, art, and furniture. Proceeds go to Bay Area nonprofits. (623 Valencia St)
Dolores Park - park, playground and people watching - Big sloping lawn with a view of downtown. Fantastic kids playground with a huge slide. (Dolores St & 19th St)
Bi-Rite Market - grocery - The fanciest little grocery. Everything is exquisite and artisinal. But genguinely delicious. Grab picnic food for Dolores Park. (3639 18th St)
Craftsman and Wolves - bakery - The cutest most artsy pastries around. (746 Valencia St)
Tartine Bakery - bakery - The original Tartine. (600 Guerrero St)
Dandelion Chocolate - chocolate - Bean-to-bar chocolate factory and café. (740 Valencia St)
Delfina - fancy restaurant - Italian. (3621 18th St)
Pizzeria Delfina - restaurant - Pizza, next door to Delfina. (3611 18th St)

Hispanic/Mission side Book stores are at the South end. Four Barrel Coffee is at the North end

Balmy Alley - mural - Murals since the 1970s. (24th St to 25th St, between Treat Ave and Harrison St)
24th St murals - mural - The Mission’s biggest stretch of murals, including murals on St. Peter’s Church at 24th & Florida. (24th St from Mission St to York St)
Precita Eyes Mural Arts Center - mural - The nonprofit behind many of the Mission’s murals. Runs mural walking tours. (2981 24th St)
Omnivore Books - bookstore - Cookbook store, a short detour into Noe Valley. (3885A Cesar Chavez St)
Et al. etc. - bookstore - Bookstore and gallery. Lots of architecture and art books, and 20th-century used fiction. (2831A Mission St)
El Farolito - hole-in-the-wall - The reference burrito. (2779 Mission St, at 24th St)
Taqueria Cancun - hole-in-the-wall - Burritos. (2288 Mission St, at 19th St)
La Taqueria - hole-in-the-wall - Burritos without rice. Open since 1973. (2889 Mission St)
Café de Olla - restaurant - Cute Oaxacan restaurant. (3388 19th St)
Mission Chinese Food
Four Barrel Coffee - coffee - Roaster and café. (375 Valencia St)

Haight-Ashbury

Walk Haight St from Central Ave to Stanyan St. Good for people watching You can also visit Golden Gate Park at the Stanyan end.

Golden Gate Park
- Fantastic Koret Playground at 4th Ave and Lincoln with concrete slide and scarily tall climbing structure.
Haight St murals - mural - a Summer of Love mural at Masonic. (Haight at Masonic Ave)
Famous houses (private homes now–please don’t disturb the residents)
- 710 Ashbury St: the Grateful Dead house, 1966–68.
- 1524A Haight St: where Jimi Hendrix lived, sometimes called the “Red House”.
- 122 Lyon St: Janis Joplin’s apartment, next to the Panhandle.
- 2400 Fulton St: the Jefferson Airplane mansion, across from Golden Gate Park.
- 1090 Page St: the old boarding house where Big Brother and the Holding Company rehearsed.
- 636 Cole St: where Charles Manson lived briefly in 1967.
- 318 Parnassus Ave: Hunter S. Thompson’s apartment in the mid-1960s.
Wasteland - vintage clothing - One of several vintage clothing stores on Haight St. (1660 Haight St)
Free Gold Watch - arcade - Pinball, video, and arcade games. (1767 Waller St)
Jalebi Street - restaurant - Vegetarian Indian, mostly South Indian. Quite spicy. (1466 Haight St)
The Ice Cream Bar - ice cream - Sodas and floats from house made tincures. Best banana split ever. (815 Cole St)
Sandy’s Muffuletta - sandwiches - New Orleans muffulettas. (1457 Haight St)
Gus’ Market - grocery - Great cheese counter. (1530 Haight St)
Slice House Pizza

Divisadero / NoPa

Walk Divisadero St from Page St north to Fulton St. Good for people watching

The Panhandle section of Golden Gate Park - Park engineers tested trees here in the 1870s before planting the rest of Golden Gate Park, so it has over 50 species, and some of the city’s oldest trees. (The Frisc)
- “An Attempted Murder” - sculpture - Two giant one-ton bronze crows, Tom and Lucinda, cawing at each other, by Jack Champion. Installed May 2026 for one year. (Panhandle lawn just west of Masonic Ave)
- “Seed of Self” by Kate Raudenbush. A mirrored sphere and a bench “at the threshold between past and future.”
“Tribute to Divisadero Street” mural - mural - Two-story mural of old Divisadero businesses by Brian Barneclo, 2006. Inside Nopa. (560 Divisadero St)
Pink Lady mural - mural - By Jas Charanjiva, part of her “Pink Lady” series. On the wall of Rare Device. (600 Divisadero St, at Hayes St)
“Patty Hearst” house
Comix Experience - comics - Comic book and graphic novel shop. (305 Divisadero St)
Gamescape - games - Board game store and event space. (333 Divisadero St)
Nopalito - restaurant - Mexican, from the team behind Nopa. One block east of Divisadero. (306 Broderick St)
Club Waziema - bar - Ethiopian food in an old jazz bar with red velvet wallpaper and year-round Christmas lights. Open evenings until 2am, closed Mondays. (543 Divisadero St)
Bi-Rite Market - grocery - The fanciest little grocery. Everything is exquisite and artisinal. But genguinely delicious. (550 Divisadero St)
Katsuo + Kombu - restaurant - Fukuoka-style udon made from scratch. (559 Divisadero St)
Nopa - fancy restaurant - Wood-fired California food. Dinner only. (560 Divisadero St)
Rare Device - gift shop - Design shop with handmade and well-designed gifts, cards, prints, jewelry, and housewares. Art gallery in the back. (600 Divisadero St, at Hayes St)
Beretta - restaurant - Thin-crust pizza and Italian food, with a big patio. (661 Divisadero St)
The Perish Trust - gift shop - Curated general store with vintage finds, design pieces, and home goods. Open Wed–Sun. (728 Divisadero St)
Sightglass Coffee - coffee - Roaster and café. (301 Divisadero St)

Clement St

Walk Clement St from 3rd Ave to 8th Ave. This is another Chinese neighborhood, with lots of other restaurants too.

Clement St Farmers Market - farmers market - Sundays, Clement St between 2nd and 4th Ave. (200 Clement St)
Green Apple Books - bookstore - New and used books. (506 Clement St)
New May Wah Market - grocery — Chinese grocery store. Get “Wong Fei Hung spicy peanuts” to snack on. (707 Clement St)
“Foggy’s Neighborhood” mural - mural - Clement St in the fog, by Jason Jagel, 2016. (Clement St at 3rd Ave)
Kitchen Istanbul - modern Turkish restaurant - Turkish/California fusion. (349 Clement St)
Pasta Supply Co. - casual delicious pasta - Fresh pasta and sauces to take home, and a dining room. (236 Clement St)
San Francisco Columbarium - landmark - Domed building from 1898 holding the ashes of over 8,000 people, with stained glass and ornate niches. Open to visitors daily. A few blocks south of Clement St. (1 Loraine Ct)

A litle farther up Clement:

Sichuan Home - restaurant - Chengdu-style Sichuan food. Spicy. A detour, on Geary Blvd one block south of Clement. (5037 Geary Blvd)
Lung Fung Bakery - bakery - Fantastic baked Cha Su Bao and Dan Ta (Portuguese Egg Tarts). A detour, 11 blocks west of the walk. (1823 Clement St)
Dragon Beaux - dim sum - modern (slightly fancy) dim sum. Hot pot at dinner. A detour, on Geary Blvd near 22nd Ave. (5700 Geary Blvd)

Presdio

Presidio Tunnel Tops - park - Park built over the highway tunnels, with views of the Golden Gate Bridge. (Presidio Main Post)
Walt Disney Family Museum - museum - The life and work of Walt Disney. (104 Montgomery St)
Golden Gate Bridge - landmark - You can walk across it.
Yoda Fountain - statue - Bronze Yoda outside Lucasfilm. (1 Letterman Dr)
Andy Goldsworthy sculptures - sculpture - Four large outdoor sculptures made from trees and earth. Spire is a cone of tree trunks; Wood Line is a long snaking line of eucalyptus logs through a grove. (Around the Presidio)
Dalida - restaurant - modern Mediterranean food. (101 Montgomery St)

Ferry Building

You can take ferries to Alcatraz, Sausalito, Tiburon, Treasure Island, and more. The boat ride is a a great way to see the bay.
Ferry Building - food hall - See the Ferry Building section above. (1 Ferry Building)
Ferry Plaza Farmers Market - farmers market - Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. (1 Ferry Building)
Arquet - fancy restaurant - Wood-fired California cooking, from the team behind Sorrel. (1 Ferry Building)
Humphry Slocombe - ice cream - Ice cream in unusual flavors. (1 Ferry Building)
Recchiuti Confections - chocolate - Fantastic SF chocolate. (1 Ferry Building)
Dandelion Chocolate - chocolate - San Francisco bean-to-bar maker. (1 Ferry Building)
Exploratorium - science museum - Hands-on science exhibits. A 10-minute walk north along the Embarcadero. (Pier 15)

Dogpatch

Besharam - modern Indian restaurant - Vegetarian Gujarati Indian food. (1275 Minnesota St)
Piccino - modern Italian restaurant and bar - (1001 Minnesota St)
La Fromagerie - cheese shop - French cheese shop, with bread, charcuterie, and sandwiches. (2425 3rd St)
Minnesota Street Project - gallery - Several contemporary art galleries in one building. Besharam is inside. (1275 Minnesota St)
UCSF mural - mural - By CAMER1sf. (Minnesota St side of the UCSF Grand Building)
Crane Cove Park - beach park - Great place for a picnic by the Bay. (701 Illinois St)
- Wooly Pig - hole-in-the-wall - Great banh mi and other to-go supplies for that beach picnic. (2295 3rd St)

Other Restaurants and Places Worth a Trip

Cable Cars
- Powell St line from Union Square to Acquatic Park. Good things to see at both ends, but long lines to get on.
- California line from California & Drumm St (near Market) to Van Ness Ave. Usually a much shorter line than the Powell lines. It goes through Chinatown at Grant Ave and over Nob Hill, past the Mark Hopkins hotel, the Fairmont, and Grace Cathedral. The Brocklebank Apartments, where Kim Novak’s character lived in Vertigo, are across from the Fairmont.
- Cable Car Museum
B Patisserie - french bakery - French pastries from Chinese pastry chef Belina Leong and and Frenchman Michael Suas. James Beard award. (2821 California St)
Routier - French restaurant - French restaurant. Co-owned by owners of B Patisserie. (2801 California St)
Copra - Fancy Indian - Coastal South Indian food from Kerala. (1700 Fillmore St)
Alcatraz - landmark - The old federal prison on an island in the bay. (Ferries leave from Pier 33)
SFMOMA - art museum and people watching - San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. (151 3rd St)
Shalimar - hole-in-the-wall - Pakistani/Indian. In the Tenderloin, a rough neighborhood. (532 Jones St)
Musée Mécanique - arcade - Free-to-enter collection of antique coin-operated machines: fortune tellers, mechanical dioramas, and a creepy laughing “Laffing Sal.” Most games cost a quarter or two. (Pier 45, Fisherman’s Wharf)
Modern Appealing Clothing - clothing - Designer clothing boutique in Hayes Valley. (387 Grove St)
Last Rites - bar - Tiki bar themed as a plane crash in the jungle. Really delicious Tiki drinks. (718 14th St, between Church St and Sanchez St)

Independent Movie Houses

See our independent movie-house finder for movie houses such as the Roxie, Balboa, Four Star, Vogue

Out of Scope

In our opinion, don’t bother going to see these famous things:

Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl. Nobody from SF eats this.
Fisherman’s wharf — too touristy. Better seafood elswhere.
The Painted Ladies — there are so many Victorian style houses in SF. Why bother with these.