If you’ve been around, you know my dad and I are trying to visit all 30 MLB Stadiums. Last year we had to cancel our Seattle trip and somehow the schedule this year worked out for us to spend a week in California in San Francisco, Oakland, LA and Anaheim. We started the trip off in San Francisco to watch the Cubs and the Giants and I’ve compiled where we stayed and what we did. Of course we ate our way through the city so the restaurants we went to are in the post as well!

Where We Stayed

Hyatt Place San Francisco Downtown
A contemporary hotel that’s just minutes from Oracle Park, this hotel is the perfect place to stay for the weekend. Typically they have a free breakfast buffet but that along with the Fitness and Business Center, that looked different. Their website says the gym is closed but they are allowing 7 people in there at a time. There is a Safeway about a block away that was convenient for getting some water bottles as well as some sandwiches for lunch one day! The location isn’t far from Pier 39 or Fisherman’s Wharf and there’s a Lyft bike dock right across the street that we used almost every day to get around the city!

Hilton San Francisco Airport
If you have an early flight, I highly recommend this hotel. It’s got a shuttle to and from the airport which is super convenient so you don’t have to worry about getting an Uber or Lyft at the crack of dawn and it only costs $5 per person each way (cheaper than Rideshares). They have a fitness center, pool and a walking track if you want to get some exercise in!

What We Did

Oracle Park for a Giants Game
The biggest reason for this trip was to go to Oracle Park to cross it off our Ballpark Bucket List. We got to see the Giants play the Cubs and take in the stunning views of the Bay in the background. If you haven’t been to Oracle, I highly suggest going to a game while you’re in San Fran – it’s one of the best ballparks I’ve been to!

Pier 39 – From shopping to restaurants on the water, you have to stop at the pier while you’re in town! We ate lunch at The Wipeout (more below), grabbed dessert at Trish’s Donuts (the best mini donuts I’ve ever eaten), got a Biscoff Latte from the Biscoff Coffee corner and stopped at the little farmer’s market stand that was in there and had the BIGGEST strawberries I’ve ever seen in my life. We walked and biked there when we went but you can also Uber or there is parking right across the street!

Ghirardelli Square – If you love chocolate like me, this place is heaven. There was a line for ice cream but if you wanted to just browse their chocolate selection you could walk right in. They are open from 11am-9pm everyday.

RingCentral Coliseum for an A’s Game – I hate to say it but this ballpark needs some serious TLC. I hope for the team and the city’s sake that they are able to build a new stadium for the A’s before they pack up and leave town! The game was fun though, even though our Royals lost (again). We were able to get tickets online before we went, paid $30 for parking upon arrival and were able to move seats once we got inside to the shade – rookie move on my part getting us seats in the heat of the day.

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Umbrella Alley – I stumbled up on this Instagrammer’s dream spot while I was browsing other blogs for things to do that may not be as known in the area. I am SO glad we ventured to Umbrella Alley while we were over that way! The murals are perfect for photo ops. Check out their website to meet the artists and check out the hours it’s open.

Where We Ate

The Wipeout Bar & Grill– The afternoon that I arrived we walked to Pier 39 (about 2 miles from the hotel) and decided to eat here for lunch. California, at the time, was still pretty strict on their mask requirements and this restaurant in particular asked that we keep our masks on unless we were actively eating or drinking. Between the three of us we ordered the Coconut Shrimp, Fish and Chips and The Wipeout. The food was pretty good – nothing beats fresh seafood on the coast! We did not make reservations here and only had to wait about 10-15 minutes for a table.

Crab House – This was one of my favorite restaurants because of the view we had! It sits right on the water and we are right about the time the sun was going down. Their crab cake appetizer was probably the best I’ve ever eaten. My entrée was the Garlic Shrimp Pasta and I like garlic but man oh man was this strong! We also ordered crème brulee cheesecake to take back to the hotel (it was delish). We did make reservations here just to be safe.

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The Melt – This was our dinner my first night there because we were so exhausted from walking to the Pier and after a morning of travel, no on had the energy to get up and go somewhere to eat SO we ordered The Melt via DoorDash. Probably one of the best decisions of the trip. I ordered the BBQ Bacon Burger, a side of mac n cheese (to. die. for.) and a strawberry lemonade and it was all delicious!

The Dorian – I love a good brunch and The Dorian did not disappoint. Granted it was an adventure getting there (Lyft bikes, not the ebikes, and hills – not a great combo) but the food was good! The service was a little iffy when we first sat down but the waitress got better as the meal went on. Two of us got Ricotta Pancakes and my dad ordered the Billionaire Burrito.

Franciscan Crab Restaurant – I found this restaurant on Yelp and it had pretty good recommendations so we decided to give it a try! We went ahead and made reservations just to be on the safe side and were able to get a table by the window so we had a view of the water and could see Alcatraz, too! Between the three of us we ordered shrimp alfredo, seafood fettuccini with a red sauce and Cioppino (which is a very popular dish out there – basically pasta with different types of seafood in it).

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Dottie’s True Blue Cafe – Okay, bear with me on this one. I think before COVID times this would have been a great place to eat breakfast! My dad is a huge Diner’s, Drive In’s and Dive fan and this restaurant was on the show which is why we went! It’s not in the greatest area (downtown) but we took ebikes there and back and they were only seating folks on their rooftop. Their menu was limited and the food was average. I don’t think I’d recommend going until they’re back up and fully running again!

The Bagel Bakery Cafe – We grabbed a bagel here the morning of our drive to Anaheim because it was close and we knew we’d be in the car for a while. There were quite a few people in there getting breakfast but they got everyone in and out in a timely manner. They had bagels with cream cheese, bagel omelets, some baked goods and coffee on the menu.

If you end up in the Bay Area and try any of these places or have another recommendation, please comment below and I’ll add it to this list as a reader recommendation!