Today’s post: April 9th, 2010

Here’s a snippet of whats happened in between, in no particular order:

• Stumbled upon Tropisueno and I can easily call it my favorite Mexican restaurant in the city (I have been there about 15 times in the last 3 months)
• Ousted as Mayor at Jeremy’s
• Discovered the BEST late night hot dog stand in SF (right in front of 1015 Folsom; bacon wrapped dogs…yum)
• The return of Sunday Streets
• Discussion of the Warriors moving back to San Francisco (in Mission Rock)
• Went to India for two weeks and learned that Taco Bell opened up there AFTER I got back
• Launch of the Zip Line to promote Vancouver Tourism
• Release of the iPad
• Taylors Automatic Refresher announced their rebrand to Gott’s Roadside Tray Gourmet (and not to mention handed out free grub back in March)
• Mavericks Surf Contest said to have the biggest waves ever surfed in a competition
• Manor West opens up in old Boss space

Whoa. Time flies.

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This Saturday, September 5th, the culture, music, and dance of Bali is coming straight to you. As part of the Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, the fifty performers of Sekar Jaya will present the beauty of Balinese performing arts.

This event is FREE. Starts at 1pm through 3pm. So now you can experience the people and culture of Bali without costing an arm and leg to get there. Now if only San Francisco can become its own island.

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Bakar Fitness and Recreation Center @ UCSF Mission Bay

When it comes to gyms, this one’s the cream of the crop. With a rock climbing wall and an outdoor pool on the roof, an indoor pool, squash and racquetball courts, basketball court, every possible group fitness class out there, and state of the art cardio and circuit training equipment, it just can’t be beat. It is a gym that makes working out fun again.

Delfina Pizzeria – Mission

Just the other day, I made a post about the best pizza in San Francisco, according to the locals. For me, Delfina Pizzeria is just phenomenal. Every time I take a bite into the Salsiccia Thin Crust, I feel like I’m in heaven. They have two locations now, the original in the Mission and the newest in Pacific Heights. There is something about the Mission location that makes it my favorite. And of course, can’t beat the fact that Bi-Rite Ice Creamery and Delores Park is right across the street.

Tuttimelon – Marina

It seems like Frozen Yogurt places are popping up all over the place. There are probably over 15-20 different Frozen Yogurt brands within San Francisco city limits, but the one brand that always makes me wanting more is Tuttimelon. They have several locations throughout the city, but the Marina location is my favorite. The staff there is super friendly, and their toppings just always look pristine, not to mention, they are never out of my favorites: gummi bears and captain crunch! Yum!

South Park

Being a doggy-mama, you can bet on me knowing some of the best dog parks in San Francisco. This hidden gem is my favorite dog park. A cute oval shaped park, with a kiddie playground in the middle, surrounded by cute little boutiques and cafes, make it feel like you are in some remote European town, playing fetch with your pooch.

Ferry Building Farmers Market

I pretty much never have an excuse to do nothing on a Saturday morning. The Farmers Market is pretty much the most ideal way to spend a Saturday morning. With an abundance of fresh flowers, organic produce and veggies, and other little nick-nacks, it is always bound to be a great way to start your weekend.

Swig

I may be a little biased about this place, but hey I cant help it. I randomly met my beau here. It will always hold a special place in my heart. PS, the bartenders here make awewome drinks.

Town Hall

When it comes to restaurants, this is number one in my books. The ham and cheese toast with the decadent jalapeno cream sauce and the buttermilk fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy are my staples here. And when I am feeling even more gutsy, I top off my meal with the Pumpkin Sticky Toffee Cake. ( G’on, log onto Open Table and make that reservation.)

Union Square

I am not talking about the shopping, but in fact THE actual Union Square. That area right on top of the parking garage. On nice sunny days, I grab the current book I am reading, get a Jamba smoothie from the downstairs of Macys, and find a nice little spot right on the steps of Union Square.

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In honor of the 60th anniversary of the classic childhood game, Candyland, starting early Wednesday AM, Lombard Street is going to be transformed into a real life version of the popular boardgame.

Clearly, the street will be closed to traffic, as children from the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center participate in the beloved game as colored game pieces and interact with life-size game characters. Remember Queen Frostine and Gramma Nut? Wouldn’t it be freaking awesome to meet the life size version of these popular characters?

Can I play?

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What I would like to write about is Bambuddha Lounge and what I discovered when I was there during daylight hours. Now this was the first time I visited this lounge when it was light outside, and thus I was able to really appreciate what Bambuddha Lounge/Phoenix Hotel had to offer. Their pool!

I am a huge fan of pool parties, and there I was, standing in the patio of the Phoenix Hotel, visioning a Rehab-style pool party in San Francisco.

I know what a lot of you must be thinking? Why would one ever want to go to a pool party in the city? It is just too damn cold. Yes. You are right. BUT, we all know there are those very few occasions in which temperatures in the city reach a nice 85 degrees, and what better way to utilize the warmth than with a pool party at The Phoenix Hotel.

The pool itself is rather small, but the area around it is pretty darn beautiful. They have nice, comfy lounge chairs and booths situated around the pool, underneath some nice shade. They also have a lot of green foliage around which makes you feel like you are in some tropical paradise. It’s something you would never expect to find when you are approaching the hotel. The hotel itself looks a bit retro, situated right in the heart of the Tenderloin. But hey! I’m not complaining. All that needs to happen now is for one of those top notch San Francisco promoters to get busy and plan a pool party before our San Francisco summer slips on by.

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The other day I had the absolute pleasure of stumbling upon what has to be the cutest little neighborhood in San Francisco. South Park.

South Park is within the better known SOMA neighborhood of San Francisco, surrounded by 2nd and 3rd street and Bryant and Brannan.

It is this cute little oval-shaped park , surrounded by local cafes, restaurants, and business. The park is dog-friendly (which I love), houses a swing set, and a number of park benches to relax on. BBQ at South Park, anyone?

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Not for long.

The Metreon will be undergoing a $30 million dollar makeover to start this fall, and scheduled to complete in November 2010. So what exactly are they going to do? If you’ve ever walked in to the Metreon from the back (a walkway about a quarter of a mile up from 4th Stret), where the beautiful Yerba Buena Gardens stands, the new look of the Metreon will make sense. The front door will be moved about 40 yards down Fourth Street, where 12 foot high retracable glass panels will replace eight doors. This will allow open views of the park from Fourth Street. When you walk in through these doors, you will be greeted by a 34 high foot atrium, framed by those restaurants that are currently tucked into the back end of the Metreon: Firewood Cafe, Buckhorn Grill, and Sanraku, just to name a few. These restaurants will finally be in the limelight.

The second floor of the newly redesigned Metreon will be reserved for arts and cultural use, while Lowe’s theater will remain in place on the third floor. And for the fourth floor, are you ready for this? Those of you who have had the pleasure of living and experiencing the second most amazing city in the world, NYC, (San Francisco, of course, being the first) the fourth floor will become the first ever non-NYC home of Tavern on the Green, the legendary Central Park restaurant. The restaurant also has plans to create an open air lounge with fire pits on a 14,000 square foot terrance just outside the main restaurant.

The goals are simple. The way the Metreon stands right now, the designers/architects had one goal in mind: Distract patrons from the outside world, and trap them inside, for a bite to eat or for the whole day. The newly envisioned Metreon’s goal is even more simple: Embrace your surroundings.

See the before and after pictures below:

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This morning, I decided to take my usual indoor workout routine outdoors. And found myself at the bottom of SF’s Stairmaster, where Green Street meets Lyon in Pacific Heights. I looked up the two sets of stairs, and took a deep breath. Did I really want to put myself through this at 8 in the morning? Hell yes!

This is absolutely, hands down, the best outdoor workout in the city. Not only are the 269 steps a rigorous cardio workout, the views are absolutely stunning. The first set of stairs is super steep, and I was a little afraid that my size 11 feet would not be able to have a handle on the steps. But I managed! The second set of steps is not nearly as steep, and has landings (break points) every 20 steps or so.

Once you get to the top of the steps, at Broadway and Lyon, the views are breathtaking. The 269 steps it took to get there are all worth it!

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For San Franciscans, it can be difficult to really know what season it truly is, since their is only a mild fluctuation in temperature all year. So even though, it doesn’t really feel like the first day of Spring today, I’m excited to know that Winter (my least favorite season) has officially cleared and that Spring is on its way.

What does spring-time mean to you? To me, Spring represents life itself. It is the renewing of one’s soul. It is the birth of new souls. It is the new light of day after being in the dark early nights for so long. I adore Spring.

One of my most favorite things about spring time in San Francisco are the Cherry Blossoms in Japantown. Every year, around mid-April, over 200,000 people flood the streets of Japantown to attend the Northern California Cherry Blossom Festival.

And look, even though it may not feel like Spring outside today, these Cherry Blossoms that have already started blooming in Japantown, know what’s up.

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