San Francisco - April 2009

San Francisco is one of our favorite cities to visit. We stayed with some friends in Laurel Heights and had some good food and lots of fun.

ATTRACTIONS

Fisherman’s Wharf

I love going to the Wharf even thought it's touristy and gets really crowded on the weekends.  We walked down there after taking the bus from Golden Gate Park.  We got off at the embarcadero and walked all the way to Ghirardelli Square to meet some friends.

Ghirardelli

Great stop for a chocolate fix.  I got hot chocolate and Mike had an ice cream sundae.

Chinatown

We went tea tasting, which we'd never done before. You go in and sit at the counter and they pour you several teas to taste and tell you what they are good for, like digestion or relaxation. Our lady kept telling us the tea wasn't for "yummy yummy" but for health benefits. We ended up buying some for their taste. However, I don't remember what the benefits are for "Blue People" and "Siberian Rose".

Afterwards, we ate at R&G Lounge.  Our friends recommended this place.

California Academy of Science.

This is a cool museum with a rainforest, aquarium, living reef, living roof, and a planetarium.

"The Academy's green rooftop will keep the building's interior an average of 10 degrees cooler than a standard roof would. The plants also transform carbon dioxide into oxygen, capture rainwater, and reduce energy needs for heating and cooling."

RESTAURANTS

Chin Sushi Bar 

Our friends took us here as it's one of their favorite sushi places in San Fran near their neighborhood.  The rolls were really good!

Q Restaurant 

A cool funky restaurant.  We sat at a table with a tree through the table.  The food was pretty good.  Our friends love the tater tots and we all shared a large order.

R&G Lounge

I wasn't really happy about eating here once I saw shark fin soup on the menu.  It's a very popular place to eat in Chinatown, but people don't realize the deal with the shark fin soup.  Please watch the movie Sharkwater.  (Yelp Review)  I started a Yelp account after eating at this restaurant.

Giorgio’s Pizza

We grabbed a quick bite here before heading to the airport to go back home on Sunday.  Good food and inexpensive.