Let’s Rally to Keep Our Favorite Nostalgic Bay Area Spots Alive!

Something has been on my mind lately and I’m sure it’s on your mind also. What if my favorite Bay Area places left for good? It’s a domino effect… if we don’t go to our favorite places or (encourage others to) anymore because of money, distance or a myriad of other reasons… then those places may end up leaving us for good.

It’s not necessarily the coolest new spot or the Michelin star places that crush us when they go away. It’s that place where we had coffee every Sunday with friends, met our soulmate or laughed until we cried with our best pals. What would happen if we all listed out our favorite places and encouraged others to keep these gems in business by being a regular customer? Maybe, just maybe they can stay here so we can continue to make memories in these special places.

Vesuvio should be every must-stay list

So he’s my for sure incomplete list of a few of my favorite restaurants, bars and random amazing businesses worth checking out if you haven’t yet. So many of them are tied to my childhood or coming of age in my 20s when I lived in SF. My list is just mine alone but with your favorites it’ll certainly be much more complete.

My Personal List of Must-Try Restaurants, Bars, and Unique Businesses in The Bay Area (Share Yours Too!)

SF Gems I’d be crushed to see go:

I lived in SF for more than 14 years and over the years these places were some of my go-tos. Whether I was getting a drink at Vesuvio, late-night donut at Bob’s, sneaking Golden Boy pizza into Cobb’s Comedy or meeting up with a friend to co-work at The Blue Danube, there are so many gems in SF which hold a really special place in my heart.

Golden Boy Pizza – My favorite pizza in SF by far.
542 Green St, San Francisco, CA
(Also in San Mateo)
goldenboypizza.com

Stuart at Golden Boy

The Blue Danube – A classic SF neighborhood cafe.
306 Clement St, San Francisco, CA
bluedanube.square.site

Vesuvio – a favorite bar in SF for so many of us
255 Columbus Ave, San Francisco, CA
www.vesuvio.com

Sword & Rose – The best hidden gem in SF, in my opinion.
85 Carl St, San Francisco, CA
theswordandrose.net

Bob’s Donuts – Nothing beats a warm late-night donut.
1621 Polk St, San Francisco
(also in Mill Valley and on Baker Street in SF)
bobsdonutssf.com

Hot Sauce & Panko – Best wings in The Bay.
1468 Hyde St, San Francisco, CA
hotsauceandpanko.com

Great Star Theatre – Amazing space for a wide variety of performances from movies to burlesque and aerial performances.
636 Jackson St, San Francisco, CA
greatstartheater.org

Arizmendi – worker-owned cooperative bakery with my 2nd favorite pizza in SF.
1331 9th Avenue (Between Irving and Judah), San Francisco, CA
(Also in Oakland, San Rafael, Berkeley and Emeryville)
arizmendibakery.com

READER FAVORITE SPOTS IN SF:

Mendel’s
1556 Haight St, San Francisco, CA
mendels.com

Bottom of The Hill
1233 17th St, San Francisco, CA
Bottomofthehill.com

Boom Boom Room
1601 Fillmore St, San Francisco, CA
Boomboomroom.com

Good Mong Kok Bakery
“Look for the sign ghat says Dim Sum Nice Food” – says reader Lynette
1039 Stockton St, San Francisco, CA
Goodmongkok.com

Sodini’s Green Valley Restaurant (Northbeach)
510 Green St, San Francisco, CA
sodinisgreenvalley.com

Cordon Bleu Vietnamese Restaurant
1574 California St, San Francisco, CA

Swensen’s Ice Cream
1999 Hyde St, San Francisco, CA
Swensensofsf.com

Swan’s Oyster Depot
1517 Polk St, San Francisco, CA
.swanoysterdepot.us

Caffe Trieste
601 Vallejo St., San Francisco, CA
Caffetrieste.com

The Saloon – one of the top Blues venues in The City.
1232 Grant Ave, San Francisco, CA
sfblues.net

SCRAP – non-profit which focuses on upcycling art and craft supplies with proceeds benefiting local schools.
2150 Newcomb Ave, San Francisco, CA
Scrap-sf.org

City Lights Bookstore
261 Columbus Ave, San Francisco, CA
citylights.com

Green Apple Books
506 Clement Street, San Francisco, CA
1231 9th Avenue, San Francisco, CA
greenapplebooks.com

Mandalay Restaurant
4348 California St, San Francisco, CA
mandalaysf.com 

Noc Noc
557 Haight St, San Francisco, CA
nocnocs.com

Trad’r Sam’s
6150 Geary Blvd, San Francisco, CA
Trad’r Sam on Yelp

826 Valencia – 826 Valencia is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting under-resourced students ages 6 to 18 with their creative and expository writing skills
(on Valencia with other locations also in The Tenderloin and Mission Bay)
826 Valencia Street
826valencia.org

Smuggler’s Cove
650 Gough St, San Francisco, CA
smugglerscovesf.com

Sushi Zone
1815 Market St #5, San Francisco, CA
sushizonesf.com

Kamei
525 Clement St m, San Francisco, CA
Kamei on Yelp

East Bay Businesses Which Are Too Amazing to Leave For Good:

Annie’s Annuals – probably the best nursery in the entirety of The Bay Area specializing in hard to find plants
740 Market Ave, Richmond, CA
www.anniesannuals.com

Fairyland – 10 acres of fun in the heart of Oakland
699 Bellevue Avenue, Oakland, CA
fairyland.org

Fairyland – photo from the Visit Oakland site for more information on Fairyland learn more here

Heinold’s First and Last Chance Saloon – the oldest bar in Oakland
Jack London Square, 48 Webster St, Oakland, CA
heinoldsfirstandlastchance.com

Masse’s Pastries – The favorite specialty cake shop & where I get every birthday cake.
1469 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, CA
massespastries.com

Philomena – my favorite Oakland pizza joint
1801 14th Ave, Oakland, CA
philomenapizza.com

READER FAVORITES IN THE EAST BAY:

Cafe Van Kleef
​​1621 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA
Cafevankleef.com


Fenton’s Ice Cream
4226 Piedmont Ave, Oakland, CA
Fentonscreamery.com

Monterey Fish Market
1582 Hopkins St, Berkeley, CA
montereyfish.com

Kiraku
2566B Telegraph Ave, Berkeley, CA
kirakuberkeley.com

Jo’s Modern Thai
3725 MacArthur Blvd, Oakland, CA
josmodernthai.com

North Bay Spots You Have to Check Out:

So many of these places take me back to growing up in San Rafael. Back in high school, my friends and I would go to Cafe Kaldi in San Rafael as often as we could. It was basically the must-go stop before any activity whether it was heading to a punk show or before the farmer’s market. It was so full of life. When it closed, all of the regulars were devastated. I still drive by that storefront and most times it’s abandoned.

Comforts – I have dreams about their salads.
335 San Anselmo Ave., San Anselmo, CA 94960
comfortscafe.com

Comforts has the best salads in Marin – photo from their website

Silbermanns Ice Cream – This place has been around since the mid-60s. It’s a classic soda fountain style ice cream shop with handmade ice cream

196 Northgate One, San Rafael, CA
Silbermanns.com

photo from a TripAdvisor review of Silbermann’s – user Mister-Markie

Lo Coco’s – Best pizza (in my opinion) in Marin County.
631 Del Ganado Rd., San Rafael, CA
lococosterralinda.com

The Phoenix Theatre – favorite place to see a punk show or local band
201 Washington St. Petaluma, CA
Thephoenixtheater.com

Anna’s Fish Market
901 Lakeville St, Petaluma, CA
https://www.shopannasseafood.com

A Call to Action – Tell us Your Favorite Nostalgic Bay Area Spots Are

The whole time I was writing this list out I kept thinking of more and more places I’d hate to see go.
Can we all just try a little harder to keep the places we cherish alive and thriving?

Share your favorites, buy gift certificates, spread the word about events, and visit them as often as possible.  My hope is that you’ll add in your favorite places below and we can build a list of places that hold a special place in our hearts.
(Note: I really don’t have much experience with The Peninsula or South Bay so I really would appreciate hearing where we should go in that area of The Bay.)