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Downtown / Financial District, San Francisco, CA

Downtown / Financial District, San Francisco, CA

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While the high-rises and office buildings that dominate the Downtown skyline are unquestionably San Francisco’s business center, the shopping mecca tucked beneath them, and centered on Union Square, is easily the heart of all things retail.

Also the name of a small adjoining park, Union Square boasts one of the largest concentrations of department stores, art galleries, high-end salons, tourist traps, and boutiques in the country. If it’s a chain – high-end or simply highly popular – it’s probably here, but so are the major economic institutions that make San Francisco one of the financial centers of the world.

As bankers, lawyers, and over-caffeinated day traders make their way to work in the adjoining San Francisco Financial District, tourists flock to the historic cable car turnaround, jumping on the signature trolleys that slowly grind their way up and down the infamous hills of the city every day.

Historic and swanky Downtown hotels draw the moneyed crowd, as do dozens of galleries along Sutter, Post, and Geary Streets, while major live theater venues like The Geary, Curran, and Golden Gate Theatre are all within walking distance in the neighboring Tenderloin.

The French Quarter along Belden Place, meanwhile, offers dozens of options to satisfy a visitor’s bistro fix, and the Bastille Day festival held in its pedestrian-only alley is one of the biggest celebrations of French Independence outside of Paris.

Though the Downtown/Financial District are not bustling nightlife spots, the area around Union Square still keeps the midnight oil burning at a handful of dives and higher-end clubs, and the preponderance of hotels and theaters in the area means it is usually relatively safe at night.

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What to Do in Downtown / Financial District

Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

ATM / All Ages / Anything goes

Party Earth Review Dozens of ferries may depart and dock each day at the historic Ferry Building – also the site of many retailers and upscale restaurants – but shoppers and foodies know it best for the ... more

1 Ferry Building
Ferry Building Marketplace
San Francisco, CA 94111

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Union Square Sports Bar

30s / 40s / Ambient / Anything goes

Party Earth Review Tucked a few blocks away from its bustling Downtown namesake, Union Square Sports Bar is a safe haven for sports lovers fleeing a shopping trip and tourists looking to escape the crowds ... more

115 Mason Street
San Francisco, CA 94102

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Lefty O'Doul's

20s / 30s / 40s / All Ages / Breakfast

Party Earth Review Located a block from the shopping, hotel, and theater district that surrounds Union Square, Lefty O’Doul’s is a lively, old-fashioned pub/cafeteria that straddles the line between relaxed ... more

333 Geary Street
San Francisco, CA 94102

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The House of Shields

20s and up / 30s / 40s / After Work

Party Earth Review Located amid the towers of business and finance that line Montgomery Street, The House of Shields is an oasis of old-world luxury in one of San Francisco’s most thoroughly modern neighborhoods ... more

39 New Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94105

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Ruby Skye

18 and over / 20s / 30s / Balcony / DJ

Party Earth Review It began as The Stage Door, an 1890s-era playhouse whose long life included everything from entertaining soldiers during WWII to showcasing the premiere of Hitchcock’s Vertigo ... more

420 Mason Street
San Francisco, CA 94102

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Kells Irish Restaurant & Pub

20s / ATM / Bar Food / Beer / Burgers

Party Earth Review A wee bit of clover in an area of town known more for dollar signs and day-trading than Gaelic watering holes, Kells Irish Restaurant & Pub provides a mellow retreat to sip some Guinness ... more

530 Jackson Street
San Francisco, CA 94133

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Biscuits and Blues

40s / All Ages / Artsy / Bar / Beer / TVs

Party Earth Review A Southern-style restaurant in the heart of Northern California’s biggest metropolis, Biscuits and Blues may be a bit of a dichotomy, but it’s also the city’s top spot for live blues ... more

401 Mason Street
San Francisco, CA 94133

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Rickhouse

30s / 40s / After Work / Balcony

Party Earth Review Smack-dab in the middle of a neighborhood better known for its high-end shopping and big-name corporations, Rickhouse is an artisanal cocktail lounge that caters to both demanding mixology ... more

246 Kearny Street
San Francisco, CA 94108

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Barrique

30s / 40s / Affluent / After Work

Party Earth Review Barrique is French for barrel, and inside this brightly lit warehouse of a wine bar there are eighteen of them stacked against one wall, tapped and filled to capacity with the equivalent ... more

461 Pacific Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94133

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Redwood Room

30s / 40s / 90s Music / Affluent / DJ

Party Earth Review Locals don’t usually make a point of hanging out in hotel lounges, but they make an exception for Redwood Room. Located in the luxury Clift Hotel, the venue has been exuding (upper ... more

Clift Hotel
495 Geary Street
San Francisco, CA 94102

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Cigar Bar & Grill

30s / 40s / Blazers / Casual / Cigars

Party Earth Review Serving as a safe-haven for both the Cuban connoisseur and the American Spirit-sporting hipster, Cigar Bar & Grill is where San Franciscans go to smoke, snack, and groove to sultry ... more

850 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94133

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Union Square

All Ages / Anything goes / Artsy

Party Earth Review Although Union Square’s name technically refers to its 1850s-era beginnings as a place where pro-Union rallies were held prior to the Civil War, today it is better known for ... more

Between Stockton and Powell Streets
and Post and Geary Streets
San Francisco, CA 94108

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