Irish coffee fan? The Bueno Vista is a must visit for us each trip.

THe Buena Vista

Thanks, maddielee; in fact it is on our list! It will be my first Irish coffee.

Another vote for the BV. They have good breakfasts, too. Nice way to start the day!!!

Lots of interesting food in the Ferry Building; have appetizers and a glass of wine outside and watch the ferries come and go. Have dim sum in Chinatown.

If you want to go to Alcatraz, make reservations ASAP. It sells out way ahead of time. If you can't make Alcatraz, take the ferry over to Sausalito or Tiburon for lunch.

Have dim sum in the real Chinatown--the Richmond. Try Good Luck dim sum on Clement St. It's a dump, but the dim sum is yummy and cheap and you can't get any more real SF than that. (You line up at a counter. The people working there don't speak any English. You grab an order sheet and mark what items you want. Try to get har gao and egg custard buns.)

Chrissy Field is a particular favorite of mine. If you like to bike, you can rent bicycles and ride down there (and even across the Golden Gate Bridge if you want--you can take a ferry back). This is one of the classic views of the Golden Gate Bridge too. The warming hut on Chrissy Field has coffee and sandwiches and such. There used to be a hot dog stand by it on weekends--Frank's dogs or something like that. Chrissy Field is part of the Presidio, which is a former Army Post turned national park right in the city.

If you'd prefer a scramble down to a beach, check out some of the ocean side beaches on the Presidio, like Marshall Beach. (Baker Beach, also an ocean side beach on the Presidio is the nude beach on the northern end.)

Also in the Richmond, there's Burma Superstar, lines out the door usually. And Schubert's bakery nearby is very yummy.

Eric's Chinese in Noe Valley is a little nicer and very good with really nice service. (Not dim sum)

I like Scoma's. Much fancier than the other restaurants I have mentioned. You would want a reservation there.

Best prawn quesadillas ever at the hole in the wall Miraloma Market, near Twin Peaks (awesome view of the city) and Glen Canyon (fun little canyon tucked into obscure city neighborhoods).

Golden Gate Park has a lot to offer. I particularly like the Japanese Tea Garden. The California Academy of Science was remodeled a few years ago and is a great museum now. The rainforest exhibit with butterflies is my favorite. You might want to see about advance tickets; I'm not sure how the lines are now that it's been reopened for a few years. (I would skip the SF Zoo, it's run down and not great, imo)

Alactraz is worthwhile. I hear the night tour is good. You'll want to look at advance tickets.

Bi-Rite is classic for ice cream--lines out the door. Beard Papa for cream puffs.

Have a great trip!

A glass of wine outside the Ferry Building sounds perfect. (For some reason I thought the venues there were indoors-only.) Thanks for the tip!

Alcatraz is booked. "Escape from Alcatraz" has been duly watched, and we are excited!

Wow, thanks for all that, crl. We love to ride bikes; for this trip we are planning to bike in Golden Gate Park (I believe the park is at least partially closed to motorized vehicles on Sundays?). We're thinking of stopping at Park Chalet for a post-bike beer; have you been there? Also, I'd like to visit the Columbarium if we have time.

Bi-Rite is on the list, as are Tartine and La Taqueria.

Actually, now that I review our list, the number of eating and drinking places is rather alarmingly large...

Yes, the park is mostly closed to cars on Sundays. You might also check out the carousel, the botanical garden and the AIDS grove. I have not been to the Park Chalet, sorry.

SF is a good place to have an overload of food and drinks. :-)

Beach Blanket Babylon!

Fantastic, campy fun. Book ASAP. You can have dinner in North Beach and wander around, and see the show.

Beach Blanket Babylon is fun! Don't go if you are easily offended though.

Thanks sushi! crl, I'm offended that you would say that.

Kidding! I've heard great things about it. I don't think I can fit it in this time, though. #thatswhatshesaid

Yes, some restaurants at the Ferry Building have some outside seating. Will you be there during the week? I think it is Tuesday where there is yoga at Grace Episcopal Cathedral in Nob Hill. This might not be your style, but if it is, it's an interesting experience.

Edited: Sushipup, that or a brain fart!

Knob Hill? One of those auto-correct things?

I was coming back here to say the same thing about BBB if you are easily offended. But if you are that sensitive, San Francisco is probably not the place for your vacation in the first place!

If you go before October 1, take in a Giants game. Great ballpark! Great food!

Golden State Warriors start their preseason at Oracle arena in Oakland. You can take public transit there. Scorpions and Megadeth play October 4, LOL.

Glad you got the Alcatraz tickets. That's a must-do!

If you have time, you can take a bus trip to wine country.

This is a great walking tour: http://www.victorianhomewalk.com/VictorianHomeWalk/Welcome.html

gsciencechick, if it were Styx and someone other than REO, I'd be all over it. :)

That walking tour sounds intriguing, thanks! So far we plan to walk North Beach and the Mission District with the SF City Guides. I will try to add that one.

Do you have the uber app? My experiences with SF taxis were almost all terrible.

We do have the Uber app. I'm thinking of also trying out Lyft.

Sealavender, unfortunately we won't be there on a Tuesday. That yoga session sounds like fun!

Definitely also download the Lyft app, you can usually get a discount for your first ride.

This Tiny place is unforgettable.

Cafe Jacqueline. A must, if she's not retired.

We were in SF last spring. If you don't plan on a car I guess no Muir Woods, a fave, but then in 3 days you will be busy enough. Not sure I saw anyone mention bicycling over the Golden Gate? I also love SF's MOMA, newly renovated.

Restaurants, omg, you can easily spend the whole 3 days focused on that! My entire family swoons at the mere mention of Tartine. They could spend 3 days at Tartine. I had a wonderful grain salad there, making me feel entitled to their TDF chocolate cream banana tart topped with fresh unsweetened (or at least very lightly sweetened) whipped cream. That is a dessert i would never think to order as it is soooooo very rich and kind of diner-retro, but they make it so fresh and sublime.

I will add in two more, just because surely there is such a dearth of choice! Petit Crenn, a sweet and highly charming and inventive little spot but prix fixe and many courses. And State Bird Provisions; terrific small plates exploration. I don't know when you are going but I would make any reservations now.

Depending on weather, i would get food at the Ferry bldg and picnic on Alcatraz.

I am a dissenter on BiRite. Maybe it is because gourmet ice cream has become far more common since they came to fame, but I was underwhelmed. I also don't like the "new" location. Feels like any ice cream place in any tourist area.

ETA, ok, there!

We took the Love Tour and loved it. Old painted vw bus complete with shag carpet. It was a lot of fun. Saw many sites and even drove down Lombard street.

The Love Tour

(Please don't call it San Fran while you are there. It's either the City--yes, as if there is no other city in the world--or San Francisco. In writing usually SF.)

And never ever call it Frisco!

Oh, another food possibility. You could check where Off the Grid is while you are there. The food trucks are fun. Just search for their website and it will show the schedule. They are sometimes near-ish the Ferry Building. Occasionally on the main post of the Presidio. Other places I have caught them are outside the City.

SF also has Uber share, so either be warned or take advantage of it (it can be disconcerting if you were not expecting to share a car). For a couple, often Uber will be more convenient and close to the same price as public transport.

I have so many food suggestions, I can't even begin -- agree with the above, but there are also many other destinations. Pick a genre and I can name one. But I agree about Bi-Rite, the experience is diminished by the long lines, in fact.

If the weather is good, go up to Twin Peaks for a walk to the top. Great views.

I've always enjoyed two views: Fort Ross looking up at the Golden Gate and crossing the Golden Gate (by foot or bike) and then turning left and heading up through the Marin Headlands for the view back to the Bridge and the City.

Sausalito is also a nice price to visit. Heath Ceramic has a factory store there.

Mtn, thanks! We thought about biking the bridge, but it sounds like a bit of a cattle drive. We visited Sausalito a few years ago. Great tip on Alcatraz picnic, thank you!

Crl and Terriks, I would NEVER :) (Actually, I thought I saw someone call it San Fran on this thread. Maybe they changed it?)

I hadn't heard of Off the Grid. That might tie in perfectly with our plan to see the Andy Goldsworthy installations at the Presidio.

Other plans include trying to track the wild parrots of Telegraph Hill (a "wild parrot chase", I'm sure). Greens for dinner, Tony's Pizza, Tonga Room, hopefully Whitechapel and Bourbon & Branch. Wilson & Wilson also sounds fun (a speak-easy bar set up like a detective agency, password required to enter).

I am enjoying your suggestions, thank you everyone!

Heath Ceramics, yes! Great idea. I'd forgotten about it. Are there locations other than Sausalito? I will look into that.

Gooster, do you have any suggestions for vegetarian-friendly? (I imagine most places in SF are.) We already have reservations at Greens.

ETA: Also I would love to see the interior of the Frank Lloyd Wright building on Maiden Lane. I think it is some sort of gift shop now.

It can be a bit crowded on the bridge, which can make biking over it a bit difficult. The last time I biked over the bridge, I rode my bike to the bridge and then walked it over. It is a fun walk! :-)

We sailed under the bridge on the Celebrity Solstice a few years ago. It's a huge ship; we only had 28 feet of clearance. I know, that sounds like a lot, but when you're on deck 16 looking up at the underside of the bridge, and you can see people in the cars, it looks pretty close!

We went to Muir Woods; it was wonderful!

Donna

While you're on Telegraph Hill take a peek inside Coit Tower and its lovely murals from the 1930's. There is a staircase that winds down the side of Telegraph Hill, where you can likely see those wild parrots. Visit two sets of magical mosaic stairways (163 steps on Moraga St between 15th and 16th Avenues, and the Hidden Garden Steps on 16th Ave, 148 steps)--you'll see beautiful gardens, too.

Donna, that sounds close, for sure.

Kkay, both sets of steps are already on the list! We like those types of quirky things. So you think we have a good chance of seeing the parrots there?

Heath Ceramics is wonderful and they have factory tours in Sausolitio at designated times--they prefer advance reservations and require closed toe shows--which is the original location. They make the pottery there. They have a second location in SF and I think an outpost in the Ferry Building. The Sausolitio location is also very close to one of my favorite restaurants, Fish. Fish only takes cash be so be prepared if you go there.

If you are going to be exploring the Presidio, there are a lot of hiking opportunities. Also El Polin Springs is potentially worth a stop, though I wouldn't go out of my way for it. And the Presidio Social Club is a decent restaurant. Might be convenient if you are on the Presidio.

Fairmont Hotel and buttermilk pancakes @ FH

Great pancakes at Sears Fine Foods, on Powell just above Union Square!

My favorite museum is the Legion of Honor. So beautiful and it's situated at Land's End, with gorgeous views. The Alcatraz tour is very well done- glad you got that booked.

Seems like you have some great food suggestions. This is what we miss most about SF. We moved east four years ago and still miss it. My favorite pizza in SF is Pizzeria Delfina (two locations; Pac Heights is larger and the one we used to frequent). Excellent veg options. I second Burma Superstar and I'll throw in a Sardinian option bc it is rare to find a Sardinian restaurant- La Ciccia. Food is excellent. I'm wistful now!

This just showed up in my Facebook feed. It's a picture from the Heath store in the Ferry building. (I'll take two of everything please.)

If you go to the Legion of Honor, make sure you check out the Lincoln Park Steps.

http://www.lincolnparksteps.org/

My favorite hike in the City is Lands End, a coastal trail with great views of the GG Bridge and Marin Headlands. You can start at the Lincoln Park Steps, and end at the Cliffhouse for a drink with views.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/california/lands-end-trail

Love Sears Fine Foods for breakfast!

We also did a tour of the Castro district. http://cruisinthecastro.com/ In all my times in San Francisco, I/we had never been there. If you are a fan of the movie "Milk", there are a lot of the places featured in the movie on the tour. I think they have cracked down on the public nudity in the Castro district, but, yeah, that was interesting, too.

I think my major conference goes back to San Francisco in 2020. The last time we were there it was so much fun. We did the Victorian walk tour, there was an awesome street festival going on at the end of the tour, and then Van Halen was playing later that night at Oracle arena, on my birthday yet. Good or bad, my birthday usually falls over my conference, which means I usually get to go somewhere good.

I like Fort Point, a civil war-era fort located literally under the Golden Gate Bridge. You can often see surfers off the point, and it shows an excellent short movie about the construction of the GG bridge.

I also always get a kick out of the Sutro Baths, which are a weird bit of San Francisco history. Ruins now, it was the site of a large complex of saltwater swimming pools built in the late 1800s. My understanding is that the magnates who had railroad lines across the peninsula built the attraction to get business. If you like ruins and tunnels, it is at Land's End, near the Cliff House.

The San Francisco Maritime Museum is excellent. It has 7 historic ships that you can explore. I fondly remember going there with my family when I was a kid, and I've been several times now as an adult living in the area. Always fun and interesting.

My son and his girlfriend live in the Castro - right on the corner with the rainbow crosswalk. (just another week though before moving to New York) One day I saw a guy walking across the street wearing just sandals - and one sock. ;) Nobody paid much attention to him though.

I've been super busy and am jumping in without reading.

Did anyone mention Zarzuela in Nob Hill for fantastic Spanish food?

@mrrogerscardigan -- I see the others hit your other questions. If tile and art ceramics are interesting, there are many choices. Yes, there is another SF location, at 18th and Alabama, in the Mission (and Tartine Manufactury!). There is the street food park nearby, next to Costco, filled with permanent food truck installation. OffTheGrid is on Friday nights at Fort Mason, Sunday mid-day at the Presidio.

Regarding your vegetarian resto question -- the city (and California) is very vegetarian and vegan friendly (DH went veg five years ago). Almost all restaurants will have one if not more options - plus the Italian, Indian and other southern Asian restaurants will have plenty of choices, often a whole sub-menu that is veg and vegan. For Mexican, you might consider Gracias Madre in the Mission (purely veg) or for vegan sushi, Shizen (have not been, but have heard good things). It certainly beats your average nut burger for variety.

At the high end, some top rated places are either veg-forward (Al's Place) or sometimes even have a complete tasting menu for vegetarians.

I sometimes think because the SF restaurants are so veg-friendly (and rents so high) it hurts the success of veg-only restaurants (many have closed, including ones we went to). For example, Coqueta (tapas, famous chef, on the water) has so many veg tapas on the menu a mixed table is always happy.

On pizza, Delfina is a great choice. I'm also partial to the pinsa (a Roman crisp rice crust variant) at Montesacro (in one of the gritty mid-Market corners).

I've been to a party at the home featured in the "Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill" documentary. The parrots can now be found everywhere, but the place the protagonist lived at is near the top of the Greenwich steps.

Wow, thank you again for sharing these wonderful suggestions. I am reading them carefully, and my list is growing. :)

Sears Fine Food was already on the list! Back in the seventies (or possibly late sixties), my best friend's mom was a waitress there. She was a gifted artist, and painted a large SF cityscape that Sears kept on the wall for many years.

The Sutro Baths was also already on my list. In addition to its intriguing history, a brief scene in one of my favorite films (Harold and Maude) was shot there.