San Francisco
Financial District’s best
This centrally located neighborhood is populated with skyscrapers and architectural gems, and numerous consulates are located here.
Bounded by: North Beach and Chinatown to the north, the Embarcadero to the east, and Union Square to the west.
Financial District attractions
G F Wilkinson Books
34 Trinity Pl./Bush St. Description and images.
Leica Store and Gallery
463 Bush St./Grant Ave.
In addition to displaying new, used, and antique Leica cameras for sale, this spacious gallery usually features changing photo shows on its beautiful brick walls.
Transamerica Redwood Park
600 Montgomery St./Merchant St. Description and images.
Wells Fargo History Museum
420 Montgomery St./California St. Free.
In homage to the Old West, this museum displays an authentic stagecoach complete with strongbox. Samples of various kinds of gold found in the state, a telegraph exhibit, and, of course, a re-creation of an old banking office also are displayed. The oldest bank in the West–Wells Fargo–is the sponsor, and the museum is set on the site of the bank’s first office.
Financial District restaurants
Belden Place
Most of the restaurants lining this closed-to-traffic alley have both indoor and outdoor seating. It is like a mini version of what is seen in Avignon, France in summer. Tiny lights add to the magic
●B44
44 Belden Pl./Bush St.
The best way to enjoy the Catalan menu at this engaging bistro is to pick several appetizers per person–the piquillo peppers stuffed with crab meat and the fresh white shrimp sautéed with crispy garlic and served in a little iron frying pan are both superb–and share a moist paella or entree. A sherry or Catalan wine is the perfect accompaniment. A refined chocolate banana pie or rice-and-cinnamon ice cream provide a not-too-sweet ending. Seating is in an open dining room with industrial-style decor and a full bar, or, in good weather, outside European-style in an alley closed to traffic. A restroom visit is enhanced by a video display depicting the annual “human tower” festival that dates back to the 14th century in owner-chef Daniel Olivella’s Spanish hometown of Vilafranca del Penedes, located near Barcelona.
●Sam’s Grill & Seafood Restaurant
374 Bush St./Kearny St.
Sam’s Grill is known for fresh seafood–Petrale sole, salmon, Dungeness crab, and even sand dabs when they can get them–as well as old-school favorites such as Celery Victor and Green Goddess salad. More description and Images.
Coffee Central: hot coffeehouses in the Financial District
The area around Front Street and Sansome Street is filled with coffee cafes that positively buzz in the morning. In addition to Blue Bottle and Phiz, described below, there is a Peet’s and a Starbucks,
●Blue Bottle Coffee 115 Sansome St./Bush St.
The line forms in the dark and gorgeous lobby. A posted menu allows you time to contemplate your choice of caffeinated fuel. More description and images.
●Philz Coffee 1 Front St #100.
Philz offers dark and medium roasts as well as iced coffee brewed individually just for you, after you order. More description and Images.
more restaurants
The Barrel Room
415 Sansome St./Sacramento St.
The food menu, wine list, and cocktail menu here has a regional focus and changes quarterly. More description and images.
Bun Mee
650 Market St./Montgomery St.
Delicious Americanized versions of traditional Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches are the specialty. More description and images.
Cafe Claude
7 Claude Lane/Bush St., near Grant Ave.
Located in a narrow alley, this restaurant is about as Parisian as you can get without an 11-hour flight. Banquettes line walls in the main dining room, and all the furnishings and fittings were bought in France from a restaurant that went out of business and then were reassembled here. Additional seating is available upstairs and outside in an alley. The onion soup, pâté plate, pan bagnat, and coq au vin are all exceptional, especially when accompanied by a robust cote du Rhone. For dessert, stick to the classics–a tarte tatin, crème brûlée, or refreshing pastis. Live jazz is scheduled Thursday through Saturday evenings.
Cafe Dolci
740 Market St./3rd St.
The made-to-order banh mi sandwiches are delicious, inexpensive, and fast. More description and images.
Caffe Bianco
39 Sutter St./Montgomery St.
Located on the ground floor of the 1923 Chancery Building, it’s unlikely you’ll find this pleasant spot unless you are looking for it. More description and images.
City View Restaurant
662 Commercial St./Kearny St.
Featuring a large, airy, open room with a wall of windows overlooking a narrow street out front, this dim sum spot stands out for its serene atmosphere. More description.
Kokkari Estiatorio
200 Jackson St./Front St.
Named for a small fishing village on the island of Samos in the Aegean Sea, this stylish and very popular restaurant serves sophisticated versions of Greek cuisine. Starters include traditional spanakotiropita (spinach-filled filo pies) and pikilia (an array of delicious classic spreads served with grilled housemade pita and rice-filled dolmathes). Entrees include fabulous grilled lamb chops with memorably good baked potato wedges, a grilled whole striped bass, and what might be the best rendition of moussaka west of Athens. Among the delectable desserts are a creamy rice pudding with poached peaches and cherries, and an expansive array of Greek cookies and baklava—they taste even better with a cup of strong stone-ground Greek coffee prepared in a giant urn over hot sand, or with a glass of ouzo selected from ten varieties. Seating here is a decided bonus and includes both comfortable booths and upholstered chairs.
A sister restaurant, Evvia, is located in Palo Alto.
Palio
640 Sacramento St./Montgomery St.
Artwork in the light-filled front room here evokes the piazza in Asti where the restaurant’s namesake horse race, Il Palio, is run. A more cozy, cave-like back room features comfortable booths and a full bar (during happy hour, martinis are $1 and pizza is complimentary with drinks). The Italian menu offers a risotto, a wood-baked gnocchi, and a selection of pastas–which might include housemade square spaghetti alla Chitarra with veal meatballs, or a hearty and tasty ravioli stuffed with porcini mushrooms and ricotta and topped with wild boar sugo. A superb summer salad features stone fruits—peaches, plums, and cherries—with butter lettuce, red onions, almonds, and pecorino cheese. Pizzas and an assortment of secondi courses are also available. The lunch menu is a la carte, while the dinner menu consists of three prix fixe menus: $29 (two courses), $37 (three courses), and $45 (four courses).
Quince
470 Pacific Ave./Sansome St.
Known for impeccable technique and fresh local ingredients, this sophisticated venue can be difficult to spot—it has no street number or name sign. The menu changes daily but might include sea scallops with squash blossoms and sea urchin sauce, a fig and mesculun salad, tortelli stuffed with artichoke and burrata, or crisped halibut with eggplant puree and tiny green chickpeas. Expect foam toppings and tiny portions of esoteric items—squid, octopus, eel, suckling pig—and delivery by a choreographed line of waiters. Service is punctuated with an amuse and sweet tray.
Rooster & Rice
125 Kearny St./Post St.
This small spot specializes in serving just the popular Thai dish “khao mun gai” (chicken over rice) but does offer it in four versions. More description and images.
Royal Exchange
301 Sacramento St./Front St.
In the simpler times when this corner pub bar opened–it was not so long ago in 1972, when Alcatraz became a national park and the first episode of “The Streets of San Francisco” aired–only two beers were on tap and only hot dogs and cold sandwiches were on the menu. Now 32 different beers are on tap–including a clean, crisp Amstel Pilsner lager from Amsterdam and a full-bodied, smooth Trumer Pils from Berkeley–and the dog has been joined by hamburgers both big (1/3 pound) and bigger (1/2 pound) as well as veggie (portobello mushroom). Less pub-style grub includes a tasty Genoa-style lazy-man’s cioppino and a grilled salmon salad with mango salsa. All this and cocktails, too! I love the brick walls and the many enclosed wood booths that surround the two central wood bars. Why, after half a beer, you might actually think you’re in the jolly U.K. A take-away window outside makes a quick bite possible.
image courtesy of venue
Schroeder’s
240 Front St. Contemporary German.
Dating back to 1893, this is the oldest and largest German restaurant on the West Coast. More description and images.
Tadich Grill
240 California St./Battery St.
Begun in another location in 1849 as a coffee stand, this San Francisco institution has been here since 1967 and is California’s oldest restaurant in continuous operation. It is the third-oldest restaurant in the U.S. With dark wood walls, a long wooden dining counter, and private enclosed booths, it has an old-fashioned clubby feel and is a cozy place to be on a rainy day. The wait to get in can be long, but persevere. Then be wise and order simple, unsauced dishes. Pan-fried fish (my favorite is the petrale sole) is particularly good and served with housemade tartar sauce. Everyone gets a hunk of the classic sourdough bread. Steaks and chops are on the menu, Hangtown fry–scrambled eggs, bacon, and oysters–is available, and the housemade rice pudding has been on the menu for more than 100 years. Old fashioned drinks made from scratch include Manhattans, martinis, and Bloody Marys.
Wayfare Tavern
558 Sacramento St./Montgomery St.
Celebrity chef Tyler Florence starts meals in his American brasserie with a perfect popover (eat it while it’s hot!) and offers many down-home dishes—a juicy grass-fed burger on a brioche with brie from Marin, organic buttermilk-brined fried chicken, and sometimes baked Alaska or peach pie. The deviled eggs, baked macaroni and cheese with Vella dry jack, and fresh mozzarella burrata are also justly popular. For dessert you can’t go wrong with the Tcho chocolate cream pie, devil’s food cake, or any anything with salty caramel. The cozy ambiance of this 1907 building that once was a gold-measuring center includes natural red brick, dark wood paneling, and high ceilings, plus some very comfy booths.
Upstairs on the 4th floor, The Sequoia bar features a “power booth” inside a former bank vault that houses a whiskey collection. The glamorous bar features a leopard-print carpet and a view of the Transamerica Pyramid.