NikkiDKatt

Octavia Street in Lower Haight stretches for 5-blocks south from Lafayette Park. Most of Octavia Street is made up of these old apartment buildings. Though there are some of those 3-story Victorians, the apartments on Octavia are more often of the 5-story variety, with bay windows and lots of attractive stone and brickwork.

What would it cost to live here?

A one-bedroom across the street from the park starts at nearly $3000 but can run as much as $4000. (There was a one bedroom house here listed for $5000/month.) A two-bedroom jumps up even further to the $6000 range and a 3-bedroom to a whopping $10K plus. The only thing “lower” about Lower Pacific Heights is the location.

You will also find businesses along Octavia. Academy of Art University, for example, has a building there (though I don’t know if it is just for administrative purposes).

There are also a couple of religious institutions here: the St. Francis Xavier Church and the Buddhist Church of San Francisco.

Schools are, of course, strong in the area and though crime is not non-existent it is mostly of the burglary and robbery variety rather than the assault and murder variety.

What brings me out here?

A restaurant, of course. Specifically, Baker and Banker which is a traditional American style restaurant owned by a pair of (married?) chefs whose names happen to be--you guessed it-- Baker and Banker. Go for the smoked trout--it really is delish!

Overall a pretty great Pacific Heights street--but only, of course, if you are filthy rich and can afford to live here. For the rest of us we can only hope we ever get the dough in the bank.

This section of Geary Blvd in the Richmond District stretches right through the slice of SF known as “Little Russia” because of the many Russian immigrants who live in the area.

But one of the main things that brings me out to this neck of the woods is not Russian at all, but Morrocan. Aziza is just a wonderful experience which I would highly recommend to anyone who wants to experience the western coast of Africa without hopping on a jetplane. But this is just one of many Geary restaurants that you don’t need a trip to SFO to experience. Geary is also home to the Hong Kong Lounge, Kappou Gomi (a Japanese place), Swamp (a Cajun seafood joint) and, of course, the Russian Renaissance Restaurant.

Geary, itself does get a fair amount of traffic, being one of the main traffic arteries flowing east-west through the Richmond District. On its far eastern end, Geary comes off Park Presidio (Highway 1). At this point it is a wide street with a tree lined center divider. The buildings are somewhat typical of the city, with bottom floor stores and two levels of apartments above them. This is where you will find business’ such as the tattoo place, Picture Machine; Healing Center Massage; Loveliness Wedding Gowns; and Cards and Comics Central.

It’s not all materialistic businesses, however. Our Lady of Fatima Byzantine Church, Holy Virgin Catholic Church and St. Monica’s are also on Geary and Washington High marks the far eastern end of Geary in Central Richmond. By the time you get to Washington High, the storefronts have given way to first floor garage doors and apartment buildings which are more clearly meant to attract tenants.

What does it cost to live around here? For renters, a 2-bedroom will run between $2200 and $2800--not a steal by any means but relatively moderate for the northern section of the city.

As to buying, one of these 3-story walk-ups in the area will run you nearly $1 million. Again, moderate for the city, though, of course, the same walk-up in the East Bay is likely to run around half that much.

The schools in the Richmond District are also pretty amazing--some of the best in the city. Unfortunately, when it comes to crime Geary, because of its high traffic, is one of the more dangerous areas in the Richmond District, with maybe a half dozen assaults taking place on Geary every month and even higher numbers of burglaries and robberies. It isn’t as bad as many other parts of the city but should definitely be something to think about if you are going to set down roots here.

I recently reviewed the section of Mission Street that is to the east of this section in the Financial District. It reminded me though, of this section of the Mission, which is just as packed with restaurants and cool places to eat, etc.

To begin with, on the far eastern end of this section of Mission is where you will find the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. The gallery has a decidedly international flavor. Right now for example they are showing the films of Thai filmmaker Pen-Ek Ratanaruang, an esoteric exhibition called “Without Reality There is No Utopia” which is all about the falseness of the narratives we live by (like “Capitalism” or “Communism”) and the David Dorfman Dance troupe performing a show called “Prophets of Funk.”

The Yerba Buena Center for the Arts is also a favorite spot for people to head to at lunch time--you will often see Financial District types sitting down at noon to grab a bite to eat and take a breather from stealing everybody’s hard earned money. (Just a joke.)

One of the residents of this location is City College of San Francisco, a huge, well-known community college that claims over 90,000 students. It actually has a pretty great reputation.

But what I like most about Mission Street is the restaurants, of course. Especially restaurants like Moya (an Ethiopian joint), Heaven’s Dog (a cool Chinese place), Zaoh (a sushi bar) and one of my all time favorites, AQ. AQ is seasonal Cal Med type restaurant that alters with the seasons and uses local fresh foods. It is a great experience and I would highly recommend it to everyone. And the chef is pretty dreamy too.

Now on the southern end of Mission St. it does look very run down and urban, but there are still some pretty good spots.

As far as living around here, the main problems are crime and high rents. A one bedroom on Mission will run you between $2300 and $4000, while a two can easily go for as much as $4500.

Crime is also a big problem around here. In the last six months there have been 3 murders just a couple of streets up on Market and literally hundreds of assaults. So it is about as bad as it gets--which is not all that surprising given this section of Mission is sandwiched between the Tenderloin and the Mission District, two of the three most crime ridden neighborhoods in SF.

Overall, I would say this is a nice place to visit, but I definitely wouldn’t want to live here.

You really feel like you are in the heart of the city when you come to the Mission in SoMA. With skyscrapers, street level restaurants and the nearby Financial District, Mission Street runs right through the heart of the commercial engine of SF.

There is a ton to do here, starting with my favorite, going to restaurants. Here are some of the places that you can go on Mission Street in the southern Financial District:

Ame: a Japanese/New American restaurant that is just amazing, though it will cost you an arm and leg. (It can run you a good $100/person.)

Roy’s: An Asian fusion restaurant that I have been meaning to go to but haven’t yet.

The Grove: Just for sandwiches if you happen to be doing something else in the area or want to get something to eat while you are at Yerba Buena Park or the Tea Garden.

The Salt House: American cuisine with a strong emphasis on seafood. Perfect for a night out with business associates or for a double date.

But that is only the start of it for Mission Street. You can also find the Museum of the African Diaspora down on Third Street (one of a half dozen museums within walking distance) and the Cartoon Museum here--that later of which is perfectly situated just a block down from the Academy of Art College. If you are looking for a nice place to stay, the St. Regis is here as well--very swanky, and very nice.

Golden Gate University also has a building on Mission.

This is also where you will find the Fluid Lounge--a super hip dance club frequented by Financial District high rollers.

So it is exactly what we love and hate about the city. It is just packed with businesses and entertainments where those who can afford it can spend those high wages they get for figuring out new financial packages. On the other hand, it is totally overpriced, overcrowded, noisy and somewhat dangerous in terms of crime.

I love visiting here, but I could neither afford nor would I really want to live here.

As you can tell by looking at the map, this is the section of Sacramento Street that runs from Van Ness right at the edge of Pacific Heights to Powell. I mention this because on its western end Sacramento has a very different feel than on its eastern end.

Near Van Ness the feel is as you would expect, sort of commercial with a Staples store on that corner and then some restaurants along that first block. One restaurant that I would definitely want to mention here is the Italian place, Acquerello. It is very good and well worth the trip if you happen to be in the area.

As you get east of Polk however, Sacramento starts looking a lot like a North Beach neighborhood, filled with very nice three story Victorian walk-ups with beautiful trims and nice wide bay windows.

Though there are corner markets and the occasional first floor store, this place is 90% residential.

By the time you get to Jones however, the three story Victorian walk-ups give way to tall older apartment buildings with cool stonework and attractive balconies. Nob Hill is perhaps the section of the city that looks most like an East Coast City like NY--the posh part of New York I guess, though given prices I am not sure there is a non-posh section anymore.

On the southern side of Sacramento Street near Powell is where you will find Huntington Park, the Union Club and the Fairmont Hotel. In other words you are right at the heart of one of the richest section of Nob Hill. At this point the street is narrow and starts descending down towards Chinatown and North Beach.

What would it cost to live here?

Buying a penthouse apartment along Sacramento can run you as much as $5 million making it one of the most expensive places in the city (without too much surprise). Though you can also buy some apartments for just a $1 million.

As to renting, a one bedroom here will run you between $2400 and $3400 per month, and a two-bedroom goes for between $4000 and as much as $10K/month. In other words, if you have to ask how much you probably can’t afford it.

Overall, this might be a really cool place to live if you are filthy rich and must live in the city. But overall, it is just way overpriced, there is really no other way of assessing it.

But Absinthe isn’t the only restaurant along this stretch of Hayes Street. There is also Patxi’s Chicago Pizza, a very good pizza though not worthy of being mentioned in the same sentence as Absinthe; Sebo, a sushi joint; Stack’s, for pancakes; and Flipper’s, for gourmet hammies.

You also have lots of shopping opportunity here with boutiques like Nida, Propellor and Zeni Wear.

You are also within walk of places like the Orpheum and the SF Opera.

And if all of that spending makes you want to have a stiff drink, try one of the Hayes Street dives: famous Marlene’s (a gay bar); Place Pigale, and Noir Lounge.

I’ve not lived here, but I imagine that it would be really exciting being right in the middle of all this activity. Of course, the downside would be the usual city problems such as higher crime (this is pretty close to the Tenderloin), overcrowding, traffic and noise. I have heard that Hayes Valley is a place where young couples with kids come, but it just seems a little too close to the action for me.

The other problem here is the general problems of the city, which is high rent. I looked up what places are renting for around here and this is what I found: there was a one-bedroom right by Patricia’s Green going for $5500. There were some 2-bedrooms a block down on Fell near Market Street going for $3000 and $4000.

That is just crazy. For that rent you can buy a pretty nice place in the suburbs. (You would have to commute of course.) Even in the city, there are far less expensive places if you go south of Market or on the western end.

Overall, however, I can see the attraction even if I don’t think it is worth it.

Loch Lomond is a residential neighborhood that branches out from Loch Lomond Drive right by the little marina that you can find in that area. The marina is on the southern end of the neighborhood, and it is mostly made up of sailboats. There is a big parking lot there as well.

The homes here are very nice. They are a mix of styles though the ones that I saw were mostly flat and long--mostly one-story houses with pools in the back apparently. It is a very good neighborhood with strong nearby schools and nice views.

So what does one of these houses cost?

Home prices here probably run almost a million dollars on average, with prices running between maybe $700K and $1.25 million.

If it weren’t for the long city commutes and the high cost of living, a lot of people would probably love living here. The homes are really attractive, the schools are great, there are tons of nearby hiking/natural wonder and there is basically no crime--what else could you ask for in a suburban neighborhood?

I really like the look of this neighborhood, but it seems a little bit on the dull side to me--San Rafael and the nearby areas just don’t have enough going on for a newly single gal like me. If, however, I were starting a family and could afford it though, I would definitely consider it.

You might be excused for not having heard of tiny Yountville given that it’s overshadowed by neighboring Napa which gives its name to the whole valley. Yountville, however, is not just some tiny little one horse town. In fact, Yountville may have more Michelin rated restaurants per capita than Paris does--and I don’t mean Paris, Texas.

I recently came here to dine at Redd, one of Yountville’s lesser acclaimed restaurants (though it was still good enough to be listed in the Top 100 restaurants in the Bay Area by SF Gate). Redd--and basically all of Yountville--is a foodie wet dream, apologies for being crude. But this is basically the sort of place you go and just savor everything. Get the 5-course tasting menu; don’t even bother looking at what they are offering. Taste each others food and enjoy. A great place to go with a date.

But, as I mentioned this is only one of the acclaimed restaurants in Yountville. Yountville’s most famous eatery is French Laundry, Thomas Keller’s 3-Star French country-style kitchen. Although it won’t cost you as much as going to France, it will come close, so only come when you are ready to break the budget or go into hock.

French Laundry is only one of several French restaurants in Yountville, however. You also have Etoile, Bouchon and Bistro Jeanty. And if you prefer American and couldn’t get into Redd, be sure to give Ad Hoc a try.

What is it like to live in Yountville?

Though I haven’t lived there I took a look around and found out a bit about it. The homes look like they date from the 80’s and 90’s--they are newer Contemporary style homes. These are nice suburban streets that make you feel as if you are at the edge of a valley even though you are actually pretty far from heavily populated areas.

The average home here costs more than $500K though rarely does a home reach a million dollars. My understanding is that a third of residents are veterans who live in the Veterans Home of California.

Overall, Yountville is a pretty nice place to live, although a bit out of the way if you don’t happen to be involved in the wine, restaurant or other local businesses. You would probably not want to brave the commute into SF on the daily if you can avoid it.

I can’t believe that I have lived all this time in the Bay Area and never been here to Piedmont until this past week. What an amazing little lane this is. Not only does it have two of the top rated restaurants in the Bay Area (according the SF Gate list of the Top 100 Bay Area restaurants) but it is just packed with coffee houses and other entertainments.

Piedmont itself is a bit new to me. I had always mistakenly believed it was a suburb like Danville or Pleasanton, but now I see why it is talked so highly of. It does have a suburban area up in the hills, but Piedmont is more like a semi-upscale, nicer cleaner Berkeley really.

And Piedmont Avenue is definitely the heart of the fun in Piedmont. Let’s start with the restaurants, which is what brought me here in the first place. The two restaurants that are listed on the Top 100 are--drum rollllllllll--are Dopo and Adesso, two Italian joints owned by the same guy. We came here to Dopo and loved it.

But Dopo and Adesso are only a couple of the draws of Piedmont Avenue. You also have a few American restaurants, like Commis and Bay Wolf; an Ethiopian place, Messob; some Japanese places, like Geta, Kana and B-Dama; a Asian fusion joint, Ninna; some Indian joints, Raj and House of Curries; a couple of tapas places, Bar Cesar and Barlata; and a BBQ place, Honey Badgers. Basically, you have a passport to world cuisine living here.

You also got a pretty good movie theater, the Piedmont Theater which is a classic old theater from the age of the movie palace one of a dozen or so left in the Bay Area. They show mostly indie type movies for grown-ups--not the usual blockbusters. So right now, for example, they are showing the critically acclaimed Silver Linings Notebook; No, a political movie about Chilean politics with Gael Barcia Bernal starring; and Stoker, a sort of thriller with Mia Wasikowski and Nicole Kidman a truly creepy roles. Nothing for the kiddies here.

There are also a ton of shops, like The Bee’s Knees, Instyle Threads, True Essence Boutique, The Rare Bird for furniture, Phillippa Roberts for jewelry and flowers, and Happy Heart jewelry.

And, of course, all the usual sort of places that you need to live anywhere, drug stores, groceries, laundries etc.

On weekends this place is packed with 20 and 30 somethings getting coffee and being busy. It is pretty great for people watching and meeting friends.

And in case you are curious, a 2-bedroom costs between $1500 and $2000 roughly. Though there are no apartments for rent on Piedmont Ave. proper--these are mostly in and around the side streets.

I love this place though and would love to live here.

Bayside Acres is a small, aptly named San Rafael hillside neighborhood with winding lanes and great bay views. As you might expect this is a fairly expensive location. Homes here sell from as little as $625 to as much as $1.7 million--though most are in the $900 to $1mil range, which is about where you would expect them to be. Most homes date from the 1950s and 60s.

You also get the other benefits of Marin County living: good schools and low crime. That combined with the beauty of the location makes for a pretty great combination.

Drawbacks of Bayside Acres mostly have to do with the specifics of the location. If you work in the city, for example, you will have a pretty good commute. You will also have to deal with the usual hillside maintenance problems such as erosion, critters, and wildfires.

If you love leafy, hillside living, however, you are sure to love it here in Bayside.

18th Street runs right through the northern end of the Mission District, is one of the main streets in Potrero, and is pretty good spot along the Castro as well, but this 3-block stretch of it in Mission Dolores has to be my favorite 3-blocks along 18th Street.

Why?

Let’s start with the big highlight: Delfina, probably the best pizzeria south of Market. Delfina is more than a pizzeria, it is a hot, hot date spot, as I was reminded when I came here with my friends and sat jealously watching all the young lovers out having a good time.

But Delfina is only one of the draws to this stretch of 18th. The other is Dolores Park, the best sunbathing park in all of SF and they have great movie nights during the summer too. For whatever reason--maybe because of divine placement of Mission Dolores nearby--Dolores Park seems to be magically protected from the summer fogs that keep everyone in fall dress throughout much of July and August.

And as if the best pizza and the best sunbathing weren’t enough, this is also the site of Mission Dolores itself, the oldest construction in all of SF and also one of the locations that one sees in Hitchcock’s Vertigo--so history buffs and movie buffs must make their pilgrimage here as well.

But, that’s not all--sorry I can’t help but sound like an infomercial at this point--you also have the best ice cream parlor in all of the city, the Bi-Rite Market. If you don’t believe me, just come by in summer and check out the lines. I mean, it is like kids waiting for a ride at Disneyland.

Oh yeah, and there are also the Tartine Bakery on the corner of Guerrero, the Dolores Park Cafe and Namu Gaji (a Korean fusion joint), Farina Foccacio, and Luna (on the corner with shop packed Valencia).

With so much here, the only surprise is that anyone is fit enough to be seen in a bathing suit at the park during the summer.

And, you can live in the super cute 3-story Victorians over the stores as well. A dream if you love sitting in the Bay Windows and watch the young folks stomping by below. Of course, a one-bedroom around here will run you around $3000 per month--so it is not exactly affordable living to live so close to the fun.

Glen Park is not a neighborhood that gets a lot of ink. People don’t flock to Glen Park the way they do to a place like North Beach or the Marina. I bet even in the East Bay there are people who don’t even know that Glen Park is a neighborhood in San Francisco.

But Glen Park does have one thing going for it that deserves to get noticed: pizza!

Gialina’s is just a great little pizza place with some of the best Pizza in the City imo. The Atomica, is what this place is known for and to a lesser extent the Nettles; they are both fantastic. Don’t even bother looking up what they are, just go there, order them, and go to pizza heaven!

The rest of Diamond Street is pretty nice too. I think that Glen Park is a generally underrated neighborhood in SF. The Glen Park BART station is right there at the southern end of Diamond and then you get this stretch of Diamond that feels a lot like a Cow Hollow street with laundries, a little pub and the rest of it. (Interestingly, the pub’s name is Glen Park Station and Google Maps has confused the pub with the BART station. So don’t don’t try ordering your pint of brew while waiting for the Pittsburg/Bay Point; no matter how much you could use a stiff one to face your commute.)

This is the kind of stretch that you love to have right by your house for a Sunday morning or for a little relaxing post work detox.

As Diamond Street curls up into the hill, it becomes a pretty typical Glen Park residential street. It narrows and is fronted by tons of older walk-ups, the bay windows staring down onto the sidewalk. It is pretty dense, but very cute. Most of the homes have first floor garages which is a big plus for SF where parking is a nightmare. You also gets some views of the city to the south, lots of little homes on hills.

I took a quick look to see what these rent for and it looks like studios go for around $2000, 1 bedrooms for $2500, to give you an idea.

Overall a pretty good place to visit or live (if you can afford it).

The Glenwood Neighborhood is just to the west of the Peacock Gap neighborhood at the far eastern end of San Rafael. It is a pretty small, hilly neighborhood nestled up in the hills. It is very leafy, but except for the crisp bay air, you probably wouldn’t know you were in San Rafael if you were just teleported down there from the Star Trek enterprise.

It looks like a pretty upper middle class neighborhood with lots of fairly nice, but not excessively nice, Ranch style homes. The neighborhood probably dates from the 50’s and 60’s--it definitely has that Brady Bunch feel to it. You have some nice views but they are mostly just of trees and the valley in which this neighborhood is situated.

Most homes around here seem to sell for around ¾ of a million bucks, which is probably low for Marin County. The schools I hear are mostly pretty good, with San Rafael High and Davidson Middle School being above average for the state.

Overall, if you are looking for a relatively nice suburban neighborhood nestled quietly in a valley and don’t mind what could possibly be a pretty bad commuting (depending on where your work is), then Glenwood could be the place for you.

For me, the Hill neighborhood in Sausalito is all about one place: Poggio.

Poggio Trattoria is an outstanding Italian restaurant that has been ranked in the top 100 restaurants by the SF Chronicle. It is right by the marina and bayside Gabrielson Park. It has outdoor seating and a very open set-up that gives it a very European feel. I came here with my mom on one of the last days before she headed back East and we had a really nice time. I had the Caprese piadine and she had the linguine and clams I think.

Bridgeway, the major bayside avenue where Poggio is located also has a number of other stores and restaurants. Poggio itself is located right next to the Casa Madrona Hotel and Day Spa which
a wonderful place to get put up. I have never been there but have known others who have sung its praises.

Other restaurants that you find along Bridgeway include Scomas (a seafood place) and Ondines (a private dining space serving American style cuisine), both of which are right on the water. There are also a number of other places to eat and enjoy the bay breeze.

We drove around a bit afterwards to check out the neighborhood to see how the other half of the one percent live. As you might expect from a neighborhood called The Hills, the streets snail up the incline and homes are built to take full advantage of the bay views and breeze. You are just north of the Golden Gate here and I am sure many of these homes here have great views of SF, Angel Island and the Bay Bridge in the distance.

The roads here are very leafy and the homes have plenty of bay facing balconies and street side car ports. Many of the condos are right by the edge of the water as well.

As you might expect, these are mostly multi-million dollar homes around here and probably running closer to $2 million than $1 for the most part. In fact, even the condos will often run in the milllion dollar range. (Though I did see one or two places that had sold for around $800,000.)

Basically this is not just a great place to come and visit, but a great place to live--if, of course, you are loaded.

When most folks think of Point Reyes, they think of the amazing beaches, hiking and the natural splendour of the Northern California coast. These are without a doubt great destinations and when I was here this weekend with my mom I indulged her love of lighthouses by taking her to see the one along the coast. I totally get the fascination with them--love to imagine what the life of a lighthouse keeper must have been like.

But for me, the real attraction to Point Reyes Station was Stellina, an Italian restaurant that has been listed in the Top 100 Bay Area restaurants by the SF Chronicle. Point Reyes Station is actually a quaint little town that takes advantage of its location along Highway 1. It is one of those places that you just have to stop by and check out--the kind of place where it is a joy to spend a morning just walking around a bit.

Osteria Stellina serves what its creator calls Point Reyes Italian, which I guess means that its Italian dishes are created from locally sourced foods. In that sense it is very much in the Alice Waters tradition of using local flavors and seasonal foods to design their culinary masterpieces. I had the steelhead salmon and the moms had the lemon chicken. We both loved it.

There were several other restaurants that we might have gone to as well, though I doubt any of them are much of a match for the Osteria Stellina. Here is a little sampling: Cafe Reyes (a Mexican place), Station House Cafe, and Pine Cone Diner. There was also a saloon, a bookstore, a flower shop and a saddle shop for the equestrian types who want to go horseback riding in the hills.

I don’t know if I would want to live in a little town like this but I can see the appeal of coming here for dinner.

I hope this isn’t going to become a habit for me--as a former Stanford Cardinal--but I yet again found myself in Bear territory. This time it was with my mom who is here visiting and wanted to go to the famed Chez Panisse--Alice Waters’ renowned East Bay eatery. Unfortunately, as you may have heard, there was a fire that has basically shut Chez Panisse down for now--thus ruining our original plans. Mom was very disappointed--she has always wanted to go and my moving to this section of the Bay Area was her big chance, she thought.

We decided to come here anyway and check out some of the other offers of this stretch of the Gourmet Ghetto as it is affectionately called by Berkeley denizens.

Despite being a pretty busy street, Shattuck Avenue still has a fairly quaint feel to it because of all the stores and restaurants that line the sidewalks. It really does have a European feel to it.

We ended up going to Gregoire, an affordable French joint, where I had the honey bbq pork and moms had the crispy potato puffs. It was really great. We both loved it.

But this was only one of a number of places we could have gone on this strip of the Gourmet Ghetto. There are also a bunch of Asian restaurants like Taste of the Himalayas (an Indian place) and Cha-Ya, a Vegan Japanese joint. We also considered going to Tratoria Corso or to the other French place along this strip, the French Hotel.

The area is also packed with students and local families. On weekends you really do get a sense of being in a metropolitan center of the East Bay. (I still prefer Palo Alto, but I am beginning to see the appeal of Berkeley.)

Maybe its the Stanford gal in me, but I haven’t quite gone gaga over Berkeley the way some of my friends have. The other day though, I did put aside my love of the Cardinal to venture here into Bear territory for a meal within just steps of the UC campus.

What brought me here to Center Street was the restaurant Ippuku. It’s a Japanese restaurant that was voted one of the Top 100 Bay Area restaurants by SFGate last year. It is very Japanese. You feel you like you have stepped on the set of the Last Samurai or Lost in Translation when you are there. We thoroughly enjoyed it even though I don’t remember the names of what ate. My only problem with it was that the plates were way too small.

As to the rest of the street, it seemed like it was a typical Downtown Berkeley street, filled with noisy traffic and dirty. (Sorry, any street in Stanford has Berkeley beat in terms of cleanliness.) But I can completely see what Cal students like about the area surrounding their campus--you do feel like you are in the heart of a bustling international city (I heard at least 4 foreign languages while we were there.)

The other great thing is that BART is right there, so you don’t have to hassle with parking. And there look to be a ton of other restaurants on this part of Center including Le Regal, a Ben & Jerry’s and a place called Alborz--all of which I am keen to try next time I am here. Of course, there was also a Starbuck’s on the corner, a Quiznos and a Bongo Burger which I’m sure are great for undergrads but which have no pull with me.

I also saw a Tibet souvenir store which looked kind of cool but we were in a hurry to catch a movie on one of the streets over, so I didn’t spend much time inspecting it. Oh yeah, and Games of Berkeley--a store devoted solely to games, is on the southern corner with Shattuck--pretty cool!

I was a lot less impressed with Center to the south of Shattuck. There was a parking lot down there and I understand that Berkeley High is there too, but there seemed not to be much worth exploring down there--very urban looking.

Overall, a great place to grab a bite to eat, and to keep your Cardinal Red well hidden away.

Looking to play a few holes of that Scottish terror known this side of the Pond as “golf”?

Well then you have come to the right place. Peacock Gap, this far eastern peninsula of San Rafael, is most famous for its eponymously named golf course. This is one of those large, beautiful golf courses that appeals to the 1% since they are probably the only ones that can really afford them.

It isn’t all about greens and ruffs here, however. The southern end of Peacock Gap is home to McNear Brick and Block, where you can get all your bricking needs met--everything from driveways to fireplaces. They look very nice and I guess they make all the bricks and blocks right on site. You certainly see enough trucks coming in and out of the yard. (They must be doing pretty well given their ability to afford this prime bay front property which I’m sure developers would love to get their hands on.) The other company that shares this southern end of the peninsula is the Dutra Group--three companies that dredge, construct and provide materials , all wrapped in one.

The rest the of Peacock Gap section of the peninsula is pretty much residential with streets named after birds and famous seaside places: Partridge Dr., Peacock Ct., Pheasant Ct, Biscayne Dr., Riviera Dr., San Marino Dr. and Point San Pedro Dr . As you might expect given the water and the golf course around which many of the homes are built, this is prime real-estate. The typical single family home here probably sells for about a million dollars. I’m sure there are some that go for even more. These are large beautiful homes built mostly in the 60’s on the southern end and getting newer (and no doubt more expensive) as you head north.

There are also some condos up here as well which sell for alot less than the homes.

And with China Camp State Park and McNear’s Beach Park right at the edges of neighborhood, this is a dream come true for outdoorsy types who love a good hike, bike or walk.

In addition to the great location, you also get virtually zero crime and great schools. Glenwood Elementary, Davidson Middle School and San Rafael High are all above average schools with great programs and lots of parent involvement.

This is the famous 4th Street Mall section of Berkeley, known for it boutiques and restaurants. There’s lots of stuff to do here. I’ve only been a couple of times but here are my favorites so far:

1. O Chame: A Japanese place with great pancakes and pretty good Tempura.

2. Cafe Rouge: A Berkeley style steakhouse with its own butcher inside.

3. Zut: I haven’t been here yet, but this American style restaurant with its Mediterranean spin looks really great.

4. 4th Street Yoga: Definitely want to check this place out (though there are definitely no shortage of Yoga places in the East Bay).

5. The Apple Store of course--can’t live without one of these.

6. The Molly B clothing boutique

7. Jigsaw London for the bags mostly

8. Books Inc.

9. The Peets (always need some Joe)

10. Brennan’s Irish Hofbrau for when I need a pint of Guinness. (Okay so it is technically not on 4th Street and is south of University, but its close of enough for horseshoes, hand-grenades and Irish pubs, right?)

I’m sure I will continue to change this list as I discover new favorites.

Came here to Solano Avenue to go to Rivoli, which is listed in SF Gate’s Top 100 Bay Area restaurants.I am not that familiar with Berkeley, being more of a Stanford gal myself. However, I love this area in North Berkeley. It just has a very European feel.

Rivoli is great. Don’t be fooled by the name, it is not an Italian restaurant. They actually serve a Western menu--what is called “California comfort food” by SF Gate. I had the grilled yellowtail and for dessert the strawberries and cream panna cotta (which I was supposed to share but didn’t).

My friend who I went with tells me that this section of Solano is an especially popular spot for Sunday morning brunch, especially during spring and summer. With a Copy Central and a 7-11, it definitely has a college town feel. There are also some cute little restaurants and shops down there that I want to check out.

Apparently the Northbrae neighborhood is home more to graduate students and young married couples though there are still a lot of people who are somehow involved with the university.

I will definitely have to check it out again sometime and add to this review.