• I've been to every single sporting good story in this city: Lombardi Sports, Sports Basement, REI and if you're looking for quality snowboarding stuff AND good customer service, I have to say: no where is better than SFO on Haight Street. http://sfosnow.com/store/

    They don't sell golf clubs or bowling balls or yoga mats... THEY JUST SELL SNOWBOARD GEAR.

    Popped in the other night after a frustrating tour of the other "discount" stores, but ended up not buying anything because I was either clearly being talked into something I did want (Lombardi's) or couldn ...

  • Today I just wanted to wrap things up by saying thank you to San Francisco Convention and Tourist Commission for inviting me here to share my city with you. It was fun, action-packed weekend and I had a great time sharing some of my favorite haunts with you.

    I couldn't quite fit it all in, so I wanted to leave you with a list of other great shops to check out on your next visit to San Francisco -- all wonderful, and quite a few you can visit online as well until you arrive here. Thanks again and Bon Voyage ...

  • Last up for the day, we wander past all the beautiful shops decorated for the holidays and the trees all strung with white fairy lights, to a favorite restaurant of mine, The Elite Cafe (http://www.theelitecafe.com/), for a late afternoon Sunday Supper. The Elite is great brunch spot too, with a Cajun flair, and yummy Bloody Mary's. Their buttermilk biscuits are definitely on on our mind, so we order those to start and we split their delicious hominy crusted catfish & mashed potatoes with collard greens. Yum! A pretty prefect end to a busy weekend, and a nice ...

  • Then, we begin our walk up Fillmore Street, a wonderful shopping district here in Pacific Heights. In between streets lined with rows and rows of old Victorian homes, is nestled this great area full of small cafes and gorgeous shops. We stop in at my local book shop, Browser Books (http://www.fillmoreshop.com/pages/browser_books.html/). It has the feel of a well worn leather chair, and looks a bit like a used book store might, but they carry all the latest best sellers, and the best of the classics. I like to shop local whenever I can, and ...

  • Well, this was the last day of our San Francisco adventure! Luckily, since I live here, I only had to head home a few miles and still am able to enjoy, and love, our beautiful city by the bay! After another leisurely breakfast served in bed at the Hotel Adagio (http://www.jdvhotels.com/adagio/), we gathered up our belongings and shopping bags (!!) and headed out for a few more stops around the city - this time in Pacific Heights, my very own neighborhood, to share a few of my favorite haunts.

    First up is a trip to Timeless Treasures (http ...

  • Also on our itinerary was a visit to Robert Redford's recently renovated Sundance Kabuki Theater (http://www.sundancecinemas.com/kabuki.html) for a late afternoon movie matinee. What's super cool about the Sundance Cinemas is that you can go online, choose and reserve your seats in advance, so if you're out for dinner, or running around shopping, you'll know you don't have to rush to get a good seat - it's all taken care of in advance. Also, if you so choose, you can have cocktails, wine, beer and snacks in their balcony level seating ...

  • It's raining again in San Francisco, but that doesn't stop us from having a good time! We started off the day with room service - a divine breakfast in bed. Oh, I do love the luxury of that! After a relaxing morning, we were off, taking a walk and doing some shopping in quaint and quite charming neighborhood, Hayes Valley (http://www.hayesvalley.com/Home).

    Our first stop is in Zonal (http://www.zonalhome.com/), a great re-purposed and vintage-inspired home furnishings shop. I love the unique styling of this store and their abundant collection of antique wrought iron ...

  • First stop before dinner was The Curiosity Shoppe (http://www.curiosityshoppeonline.com/), one of my favorite mom & pop type boutiques in San Francisco, full of truly great artwork, collectibles and hard to find unique gifts. We visited for a bit with owners Lauren & Derek, and perused the new art gallery installation by local artist & designer Tom Bonauro (http://www.tombonauro.com/), and then popped across the street to 826 Valencia (http://www.826valencia.org/).

    826 Valencia's Pirate Supply Store (http://www.826valencia.org/store/) was hosting an evening of new artwork, too - some great Pirate Posters designed by a ...

  • What a perfect evening in San Francisco rain or no rain. We checked into the beautiful Hotel Adagio (http://www.jdvhotels.com/adagio/) and relaxed in the room and admired the beautiful view of the Christmas lights in Union Square for a bit with a glass of wine from the mini bar, before heading out to the Mission District's Holiday Block Party on Valencia Street. All the small shops stay open late tonight, serving wine and snacks, and all decked out for the holidays.

  • Hi! It's Victoria again from sfgirlbybay.com. I'm gearing up for my weekend, playing San Francisco tourist for you, and pretty excited about sharing my version of the city with you!

    I've been coming to San Francisco since I was about 10, when my family made trips up here every summer (as you can see from this photo of a long ago cable car ride - that's me on the far right!) and I fell in love with the city way back then. I moved up here 15 years ago, and could never imagine leaving. This is ...

  • Barneys is having a sale. I suggest you run, not walk to their shoe department and kick your winter off on the right foot... Personally, I've got my fall/winter boot situation all tied up with these super cute Marc by Marc Jacobs ankle boots.

  • First of all, thank you so much to the San Francisco Visitors Bureau for the perfect SF weekend getaway, including gift cards to Westfield and Thirsty Bear. Also, thanks to all of you who followed along as I played tourist in my hometown. The Queen Anne may only be two miles from my house, but it felt like a million miles and another lifetime, which was exactly what I needed. Most of all, I'd like to thank the magical four poster bed in room 311.

    I thought I'd finish my weekend of posts with a list of some ...

  • I'm not normally the type of girl who rushes to dine at the hot new restaurant, but since Baker and Banker, which took over Quince's old space on Octavia and opened on December 1st, was only a block away from our hotel this weekend (The Queen Anne in case you haven't been paying attention to my rave reviews about this one-of-a-kind B&B) and since I was somehow able to score an 8:30 p.m. reservation on a Saturday night, I decided to check it out.

    And of course, because it's me, my experience was ...

  • The four poster bed I slept in last night at The Queen Anne is possibly the most amazing bed in which I've ever slumbered. And yes, slumbered is a euphemism, but seriously, that bed... So good. The only bad part about the magical bed is that while it lived up to its part of the "bed and breakfast" promise, it also had me so enraptured that I completely missed taking advantage of its counterpart: breakfast.

    No worries though... The one thing upon which San Francisco can always deliver is amazing food and fantastic drinks.

    After a delicious brunch at ...

  • Buddying up with Santa at The Queen Anne.

  • Christmas Lights at Westfield Shopping Center in SF. So pretty!

  • Me & The Boy at the top of Coit Tower. There's not much to do up there except take photos.

  • Looking out the window at Coit Tower.

  • View of Pier 39 and Alcatraz from the top of Coit Tower. Kind of a hazy day, unfortunately...

  • Coit Tower from the parking lot.

    Despite what many people will tell you, Coit Tower was NOT designed to look like a fire hose nozzle. It is, however, 210 feet high which is equivalent to 21 stories.

    I was disappointed (in the most bizarre way ever) to learn you can only get up in the elevator. Not that I like exercising, I just wanted to work off some of that brunch!

  • On our way to Coit Tower...

  • Absinthe Brasserie & Bar is one of my favorite places to go in SF for brunch, dinner and amazing drinks. We stopped by today for Breakfast Sandwiches: fried duck egg, Raclette, andouille sausage, griddled brioche. Oh, and a bellini, of course.

  • My first time ever at Paulette Macarons in Hayes Valley. I had New Orleans Praline and The Boy had Caramel Pecan. Yummy! http://www.paulettemacaronsf.com/

  • Oh, San Francisco, I miss you already.
    I am currently on tour from Chicago to Phoenix and back to Northern California and I find myself looking forward to yet another San Francisco jaunt. This time I am promising myself not to miss...

    Shopping at Benefit. http://www.benefitcosmetics.com/
    This cosmetics company is based in San Francisco and consistently puts out all of my favorite products. Most recently I was gifted with their Badgal Plum Eye Enhancing Mascara and Posie Tint Cheek and Lipstain. Both products have changed the way I look at makeup.

    Chef Jia's 925 Kearny Street ...

  • There are a few things most people know about me:

    1. I'm not a people person. I will cross the street and hide behind a mailbox if it means I can avoid having a conversation with someone I barely knew in high school. I find small talk to be painful and, as a result, usually end up saying something wildly inappropriate... like when I was interviewing a potential ski cabin member and within the first five minutes said, "Isn't it great that abortions are only $15 at Kaiser?" Exactly.

    2. I hate clutter. I find excessive "stuff" stressful ...

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