San Francisco California

San Francisco, California is also known as "The Cityof Flowers, the Japanese Tea Garden and Strybing
by the Bay". The City and County of San Francisco isArboretum. The Presidio and Crissy Field are part of
the fourth most populous city in California and thethe Golde Gate National Recreation Area, which
fourteenth most populous city in the U.S., with anincludes Alcatraz. Buena Vista Park is the city's oldest
estimated populated of 744,041 as of 2006. The city ispark, established in 1867. Lake Merced is a freshwater
most well known for its chilly summer fog, steep rollinglake surrounded by parkland.
hills, eclectic mix of Victorian and modern architecture,San Francisco is characterized by a high standard of
and its peninsular location.living. Property value and household income have
Famous landmarks include the Golden Gate Bridge,escalated to be among the highest in the nation,
Alcatraz Island, the cable cars, Coit Tower andallowing the city to support a large restaurant and
Chinatown. Fisherman's Wharf is also a must-see forentertainment infrastructure.
tourists and a favorite place for residents.Reflecting San Francisco's high-class economy, luxury
The city is also infamous for the major earthquake ondining graces the streets of the city. Some of the city's
the morning of April 19, 1906 that ruptured gas lines andfine dining includes Park Chow, Universal
ignited fires that destroyed over three-quarters if theCaf�Restaurant Gary Danko, The Blue Plate,
city. More than 200,000 people were left homeless andLuna Park, The Last Supper Club, Restaurant Lulu,
settled into temporary tent villages in Golden GateLimon Restaurant and Levende Lounge. Favorit Italian
Park, the Presidio, on the beaches, or elsewhere.restaurants in the city include Rose Pistola, Little City,
When it was time to rebuild, the destroyed mansionsBuca Giovanni, The Stinking Rose, Il Fornaio,
of Nob Hill became grand hotels, City Hall rose againCaf�acaroni and more. The city spices things
and the city celebrated is rebirth in 1915 at theup a bit with favorite Mexican restaurants such as La
Panama-Pacific International Exposition.Cumbre, La Rondalla, Chevy's, Left at Albuquerque,
The San Andreas and Hayward Faults are responsibleCaf�arimba and Taqueria El Toro. Streetside
for much earthquake activity, although neither passesand waterfront cafes are the perfect place to sit for a
directly through the city itself.while, some of which are Union Square
San Francisco's peninsular geography makes the cityCaf�Muddy's, Caf�rancisco's and
unique. San Francisco, California is located on the westStarbucks.
coast of the U.S. at the tip of the San FranciscoBoasting the best Asian food in the country, San
Peninsula. It includes significant stretches of the PacificFrancisco has authentic Japanese, Thai, Korean and
Ocean and San Francisco Bay. Several islands areChinese restaurants. Some favorite Thai restaurants
also part of the city including, Alcatraz, Treasure Islandare Khan Toke Thai House, Bethelnut and Zao.
and Yerba Buena Island. The uninhabited FarallonChinese restaurants include R&G Lounge and Hong
Islands are also included in the city and are 27 milesKong Flower Lounge. Korean cuisine can be enjoyed
offshore in the Pacific Ocean.at The Slanted Door or Ace Wasabi's. Other
San Francisco is famous for hills, with more than 50restaurants include The Golden Dragon, Golden
just within the city limits. Some of these illustrious hillsMountain, Naan and Curry, Maharani Restaurant and
include Nob Hill, Pacific Heights, Russian Hill, Potrero HillAngkor Wat.
and Telegraph Hill. Mount Sutro is the site of SutroSan Francisco's entertainment allures tourists and
Tower, a large red and white television transmissioncaters to the city's residents. The War Memorial and
tower. Twin Peaks is a pair of hills resting at one ofPerforming Arts Center features some of the longest
the highest points in the city and is a popular spot forperforming arts companies in the U.S. The War
tour groups. The city's tallest hill, Mount Davidson, is 925Memorial Opera House houses the San Francisco
feet high and is capped with a 103 feet tall cross.Opera and San Francisco Ballet. The Davies
Entire neighborhoods such as Marina and Hunters PointSymphony Hall is home to the San Francisco
and sections of Embarcadero sit on areas of landfillSymphony. The Herbst Theatre stages a mix of
because the city has outgrown its natural limits.musical performances and public radio's City Arts &
Treasure Island was constructed from materialLectures. The Fillmore is a popular music venue and
dredged from the bay as well as material resultinghas fostered the San Francisco Sound with artists
from tunneling through Yerba Island during the buildingsuch as the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin and Jefferson
of the Bay Bridge.Airplane.
The historic center of San Francisco is home to theThe American Conservatory Theater routinely stages
Financial District, with Union Square, the principaloriginal productions. The city also frequently hosts
shopping and hotel district nearby.touring Broadway productions in a number of vintage
Union Square is home to some of the finestvenues in the Theater District including Curran,
department stores including Macy's, Neiman Marcus,Orpheum and Golden Gate Theatres.
Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale's. Nordstrom's isSan Francisco celebrates history and art in the
just off the square on Market. Fine designers such asMuseum of Modern Art, the Palace of the Legion of
Christian Dior, Gucci, Kate Spade, Prada, Yves SaintHonor, the De Young Museum, the Asian Art Museum.
Laurent, Ralph Lauren and Versace can be found atTthe Palace of Fine Arts today houses the
Union Square. Other popular clothing stores areExploratorium, a popular science museum dedicated to
Banana Republic, Bebe, Diesel USA, Guess?, Gap,teaching through hands-on interaction. The California
Victoria's Secret, Levi's Flagship Store, Urban Outfitters,Academy of Sciences is a natural history museum
Nine West, Cole-Haan, Johnston & Murphy, Loehman'sand hosts the Morrison Planetarium and Steinhart
and DSW. Jewelry stores at Union Square includeAquarium. The San Francisco Zoo cared for roughly
Tiffany & Co., Bulgari, Cartier, Swatch and Simayof.250 animal species, 39 of which have been deemed
The city is a gracious host to tourist, offering charmingendangered or threatened.
bed and breakfasts as well as hotels. Bed andTourism is the backbone of the San Francisco
breakfasts in the city include The Inn San Francisco,economy. Its frequent portrayal in music, film and
Red Victorian B&B, Chateau Tivoli, Victorian Inn On thepopular culture has made the city and its landmarks
Park, Archbishop's Mansion, Albion House Inn, Bocksrecognizable worldwide. San Francisco attracts the
B&B, Golden Gate Hotel, Hayes Valley In, Jacksonfifth highest number of foreign tourists of any city in
Court, The Mansions and more. Area hotels includethe United States and claims Pier 39 near Fisherman's
Nob Hill Motor Inn, Comfort Inn by the Bay, Castle InnWharf to be the third-most popular tourist attraction in
Motel, Heritage Marina Hotel, Carriage Inn, Hotel Brittonthe nation.
and Hotel Americania. Luxury hotel suites are widelySan Francisco is also the principal banking and finance
available at Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton, Mandarincenter of the west coast. Known as the "Wall Street
Oriental, Palace Hotel, Argent Hotel, Hilton, Hotel Vitale,of the West", Montgomery Street is home to the
Pan Pacific, Grand Hyatt, Prescott, Sir Francis Drake,Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. The Wells
Galleria Park, Stanford Court, The Omni Hotel, HotelFargo corporate headquarters and the site of the
Monaco, El Drisco, Hotel Griffon, Hotel Nikko andformer Pacific Stock Exchange are all held there. Bank
Huntington, to name a few.of America was also founded in San Francisco. San
The San Francisco night life has something thatFrancisco is a Beta World City, with over thirty
appeals to everyone with its many clubs and barsinternational financial institutions, six Fortune 500
including 1751 Social Club, Velvet Lounge, Brunos, Thecompanies and services including law, public relations,
End Up, The Fillmore, Caf�u Nord, Ashkenaz,architecture and graphic design.
New Wave City, Toronado, Bottom of the Hill, Bimbo'sSmall businesses make up 85 percent of the city's
365 Club, Elbo Room, Sweetwater and Ruby Sky.establishments. The penetration of national big box
The beauty of San Francisco is appreciated in itsretail chains into the city has been slow. The Small
many parks. The Golden Gate Park, stretches fromBusiness Commission supports a publicity campaign to
the center of the city to the Pacific Ocean. The park iskeep a larger share of retail dollars in the local
planted with thousands of non-native trees and plantseconomy in an effort to buoy small privately owned
and is rich with attractions including the Conservatorybusinesses in San Francisco.