First American Title is helping us in defining each neighborhood in the city. As a homebuyer where do you want to live? Here is a brief overview into the “High Tech” areas in the city by the bay.
SoMa (South of Market) was the hippest place to have an office, loft, bar or restaurant during the dot-com heyday. When the bubble burst most of those “built to flip” companies and the restaurants that catered to them evaporated. The good news is that the businesses of all types now filling the voids left by the bust appear to be solid companies with staying power. Even the housing has gotten more real.
SoMa encompasses a sprawling area from the Embarcadero to 11th Street, between Market and Townsend. South Beach picks up near Townsend and Embarcadero where SoMa leave off, and Mission Bay/China Basin is the next district down along the Bay. SoMa is home to some of the city’s biggest attractions, including the Museum of Modern Art, the Sony Metreon entertainment complex, Moscone Center and of course the SF Giants baseball stadium, SBC Park. Restaurant, dance clubs, furniture showrooms and big-box retail stores are sprinkled around SoMa’s long blocks. Western SoMa and China Basin remain the most industrial, in fact up until recently China Basin wouldn’t have even been considered a residential district.
Thanks to the development of the south end of Embarcadero, including the construction of the beautiful SBC Park, the addition of the UCSF extension campus, the renovation of the Ferry Building with its foodie haven Marketplace, and the beautification of the broad Embarcadero sidewalk, which is perfect of jogging and rollerblading, the east side of SoMa has acquired a whole new lease on life. A beautiful new Safeway has already opened on the Embarcadero at 3rd Street, although all of the neighborhood’s new condos aren’t yet sold or even built. The new location of Whole Foods at 4th and Harrison is doing a booming business, and independent restaurateurs are jumping back in the fray.
A collection of good restaurants has sprouted just south of Market serving a mostly business clientele. Town Hall (a personal favorite!), Cosmopolitan Cafe, Shanghai 1930, and Chaya Brasserie now keep the venerable Boulevard company. The 21st Amendment Brewer is a good place to meet up with friend for a beer before a Giants game. Delancey Street Restaurant makes the best omelet in the city and enjoying one on a Sunday morning on the restaurant’s patio will make you feel particularly lucky to live in San Francisco. A few other dining options are available near the music an club scene that surround Slim’s on 11th and Folsom. And for the classiest cocktail in town visit the Pied Piper Bar at the Palace Hotel.
Housing varies in these neighborhoods. Luxury condo and executive housing dominate the area just south of the Financial District, a more neighborhood feel prevails in South Beach, and China Basin is still fairly sparsely populated. Further west in SoMa the housing is a mix of new or refurbished loft/warehouse space on the main streets and older homes tucked into mid-block alleyways. For those who like the urban, industrial style of loft and warehouse space, or who rely on a car for commuting and therefore depend on a building garage space some very nice flat are available.
