Frommer's San Francisco 2012 - Matthew Poole [113]
5821 Geary Blvd. (btw. 22nd and 23rd aves.). 415/387-8273. www.tonkiang.net. Reservations accepted for parties of 8 or more. Dim sum $2–$6.50; main courses $9–$25. AE, DC, DISC, MC, V. Mon–Thurs 10am–9pm; Fri 10am–9:30pm; Sat 9:30am–9:30pm; Sun 9am–9pm. Bus: 38.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION
Although dining in San Francisco is almost always a hassle-free experience, here are a few things to keep in mind:
• If you want a table at the restaurants with the best reputations, you probably need to book 6 to 8 weeks in advance for weekends, and a couple of weeks ahead for weekdays.
• If there’s a long wait for a table, ask if you can order at the bar, which is often faster and more fun.
• Don’t leave anything valuable in your car while dining, particularly in or near high-crime areas such as the Mission, downtown, or—believe it or not—Fisherman’s Wharf. (Thieves know tourists with nice cameras and a trunk full of mementos are headed there.) Also, it’s best to give the parking valet only the key to your car, not your hotel room or house key.
• Remember: It is against the law to smoke in any restaurant in San Francisco, even if it has a separate bar or lounge area. You’re welcome to smoke outside, however—at least for the time being.
• This ain’t New York: Plan on dining early. Most restaurants close their kitchens around 10pm.
• If you’re driving to a restaurant, add extra time to your itinerary for parking, which can be an especially infuriating exercise in areas like the Mission, downtown, the Marina, and, well, pretty much everywhere. Expect to pay at least $10 to $13 for valet service, if the restaurant offers it.
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EXPLORING SAN FRANCISCO
Route 1 and Highway 101 merge at the Golden Gate's entrance.
San Francisco’s parks, museums, tours, and landmarks are favorites for travelers the world over and offer an array of activities to suit every visitor. But no particular activity or place makes the city one of the most popular destinations in the world. It’s San Francisco itself—its charm, its atmosphere, its perfect blend of big metropolis with small-town hospitality. No matter what you do while you’re here—whether you spend all your time in central areas like Union Square or North Beach, or explore the outer neighborhoods—you’re bound to discover the reason millions of visitors keep leaving their hearts in San Francisco.
FAMOUS SAN FRANCISCO SIGHTS
Alcatraz Island ★★★ Visible from Fisherman’s Wharf, Alcatraz Island (also known as the Rock) has seen a checkered history. In 1775, Juan Manuel Ayala was the first European to discover it. He named it after the many alcatraces, or pelicans that nested on the island. From the 1850s to 1933, it served as a military fortress, protecting the bay’s shoreline, as well as a military prison. In 1934, the government converted the buildings of the military outpost into a maximum-security civilian penitentiary. Given the sheer cliffs, treacherous tides and currents, and frigid water temperatures, it was believed to be totally escape-proof. Among the famous gangsters who occupied cellblocks A through D were Al Capone; Robert Stroud, the so-called Birdman of Alcatraz (an expert in ornithological diseases); Machine Gun Kelly; and Alvin “Creepy” Karpis, a member of Ma Barker’s gang. It cost a fortune to keep them imprisoned here because all supplies, including water, had to be shipped in. In 1963, after an apparent escape in which no bodies were recovered, the government closed the prison. It moldered abandoned until 1969, when a group of Native Americans chartered a boat to the island and symbolically reclaimed the island for the Indian people. They occupied the island until 1971—the longest occupation of a federal facility by Native Americans to this day—but eventually were forcibly removed by the U.S. government. (See www.nps.gov/archive/alcatraz/indian.html for more information on the Native American occupation of Alcatraz.) The next year the island was