This review is specifically for the use of the event space. While the space was good for events (overall I'd say a 4), the experience we had with a staff member was very alarming and needs to be known to anyone who is considering using the space. We had received a referral from using this space from the ease of rental and no frills set up and involvement from the staff. I unfortunately have to seriously call out the behavior of a staff member Cynthia who not only was so condescending, overbearing and disrespectful to us as we held an event for a family birthday but she also extended this behavior to guests. Extremely appalling and unacceptable behavior. She was not a guest but domineered like she knew everything better than we did, proceeded to try to demand to have my mother who is disabled try to help set up when she was sitting down and practically yell at her when she didn't comply. I had to repeat many to her without calling out her disability that she was just helping us look at the final result to which Cynthia did not immediately pick up and proceeded to say under her breath "well she's just sitting there she should help". Cynthia had no business bossing everyone around as we had a plan. At most helping set up the tables and chairs was probably all that we expected and even then we had hired people to do that, all she needed to do was tell us where to get them. It got worse during the day. She would go around like she was a guest helping at the event and her interactions were rude and belittled everyone she interacted with. She stressed all of us out the whole day and had many guests on edge, several of whom came up to us asking who she was and why she was so angry and mean. She put a cloud on what was supposed to be a joyous event frankly and we will never forgive her for taking that away from an otherwise special occasion. To top it all off she at the end of the day as we were cleaning up and waiting for the trash guy to come said "I've already done more than I'm supposed to do" - WHEN WE DIDN'T ASK FOR YOUR HELP OR OPINION!!! I expect so much better from a center geared towards bringing the community together - she certainly is not a representation of SF or SF Rec and Park and should seriously be considered to not be involved in these events in the future. So if you decide to use this space make sure you ask who will be working and demand a different staff if you find out it's Cynthia or get another place. She will absolutely RUIN your event. read more

This review is for the multipurpose space and kitchen inside the rec center for events and parties booked on the sfrec website. I booked this place for my son's first birthday because of its location - there's a playground and parking is not too difficult! Thankfully it didn't rain so guests got to enjoy the indoor party with food, drinks and other activities while also running out to the playground.. a perfect way to keep restless little kids entertained! The staff member was kind and helpful. He helped pull out all the tables and chairs from the storage room and helped us with take down as well. Another pro was the weather was really nice and sunny and the room was bright and had high ceilings, so it felt very spacious. Unfortunately some tables were broken so we couldn't use them. The permit did say that it was not guaranteed. However this impacted our party because we had many guests with not enough seats/tables. Maximum capacity written on the wall was 130+ also and I know I had a little less than 100 show up, so that was a bummer! Another con is that you do have to remove the trash after your party is over. I am not sure if this applies to all sf rec reservations but at Lake Merced Boathouse they have the same policy. It's pretty challenging to remove the trash from the site as they expect you to bring your own bags and to bring it home to toss...but we got it done. The kitchen is rather small but has everything you would need. It's not the cleanest but it did its job. We actually didn't use it as much as I thought we would but it was nice to have access in there and use the sink to clean off any food trays we had. Heads up that it does cost an extra fee per hour to rent the kitchen. They also have a keurig coffee maker if you're interested in that! I accidentally left my half and half in the fridge too...oh well. All in all I would recommend this location for a party especially if you're inviting kids. Booking the space was a little troublesome because I had issues booking online on their calendar with the right time frame so I emailed sf rec instead. I suggest looking into the prices online as they change and check the availability online as well. read more

I used to come here all the time. First time back in a while and was met with an empty gym to get my practice on. Amazing place to be, family friendly, and high touch costumer service. You can play basketball, football, ping pong, volley ball, tennis, and even Chinese Chess! read more

Yet another fine recreation spot brought to you by the very excellent SF Parks & Rec department. I've yet to be disappointed by any of their facilities, pools, programs or staff: they're all outstanding. A newer or rehabbed facility, Sunset Recreation Center at 29th & Lawton offers a large (competition-sized?) basketball court and rooms for ping pong, yoga and other Parks & Rec offerings. Outside are two medium-sized children's playgrounds with all the state-of-the-art safety features included a sponge-y surface to protect little bodies in motion. (Other Yelpers are right: there are a paucity of swings but it's still an A-Ok spot, nice and clean too). A large field behind the facility can easily be used for baseball, soccer or just running around which is exactly what my little boy did today, with grassy/muddy patches on his knees, evidence of a fun-filled afternoon. (Outdoor play, urban hikes, playing with Legos and drawing, it's important to encourage exercise & creativity & get your child away from TV & computer screens). Whether it's swimming, a day hike to Point Reyes or a week-long winter camp, I continue to be so impressed by this fine city department that offers programs for everyone young and old with almost any interest - and at an extremely reasonable cost. This winter camp, for example, is only $110 for the week (9am-3pm) with extended care before/after hours for a small extra cost. (Compare that with any other private camp that's $495+ per week. In my opinion, Parks & Rec camps are too inexpensive, they should be at least $100 more.) With everything in San Francisco being so costly, it's nice to know that SF Parks & Rec offers accessible & interesting programs for everyone - and financial aid is available! read more

See all

Can you say delusions of grandeur? I'm way past my prime so I decided if I can recapture some of my youth. Came here to shoot some hoops on my day off and hope to play a pick-up game or two. It was a sunny day so it was sweltering inside. Good thing they propped all the side doors open to get some air circulating inside. One positive was that it got you sweating real fast just by shooting around. There were only a few guys inside and not enough to play a game. I did enjoy watching all the old Chinese folks playing Ping Pong, and their reflexes were probably quicker than mine. They even had two grandmas playing in one table and they would have probably schooled me with one arm tied behind their backs. Glad to see not much has changed around here. Although they might need new basketball nets, it's still a great place to play indoor Basketball. When a few more guys finally showed up and have more than enough to play a pick-up game, sad to say....I didn't get picked. I felt like that kid who was always picked last or didn't get picked at all. But who am I kidding, these were all young guys in the prime of their lives. It was probably for the best as I might have injured myself again playing a stupid Basketball game. I looked at the clock and was startled to see that I was running late in picking up my kids from school. I guess I've been shooting around for more than a couple of hours. Gotta run...I'll try to recapture my youth some other day. As I was leaving, I couldn't help but think that I could have schooled these guys in my prime. =) read more

Played tennis at the tennis court in Sunset Rec Center. The courts are fairly new. The hard ground is generally in good conditions. The only downside is there is no shade at all since there are not a lot of tall trees surrounding the courts. read more

former supervisor carmen chu, THANKS! this is the gorgeous legacy of former district 4 supervisor chu and many folks at the SF Park and Rec. (haha, thought of the hilarious NBC tv show for a second). the remodel here took about 3 years or so, but from what it was (a broken down mess) to its reincarnation today (the ultimate community recreation facility) is AMAZING! so wonderful to see our tax dollars at work to benefit the community is such a way. all ages will LOVE LOVE LOVE this new facility with the new gym floors, playgrounds, table tennis tables, and countless improvements. all i have to say is, "check it out for yourself !" it is what every gym rat dreams of at night. see my photos for evidence! JYW likes! read more

See all

Sunset Rec Center is a surprising public recreation facility when you consider it's public and free. Indoor basketball? You probably won't find that for free downtown. Just walk in and start playing! 2 tennis courts, outdoor basketball, some fitness areas, a good-sized playground, a baseball field, and a running path around it - this area in the middle of the Sunset district is a peaceful respite from the city life and busy streets elsewhere. There were plenty of people to play pickup games with on both the basketball and tennis courts. I'll definitely be back to play tennis here. Thanks, SF. read more

Sunset Recreation Center - Recreation Centers Near Me - San Francisco, California

See all

I like the park and the setup. It's nice for little kids to run around in. The ground is not super hard in case they fall. Parking is not that bad in the area read more

Clean, spacious recreation center has everything you could want (playground, tennis courts, basketball courts) plus classes through Parks & Rec. My husband and I have taken ballroom dances classes here; I've taken pilates, and my son has taken fencing. Five stars all around. read more

Sunset Recreation Center - Recreation Centers Near Me - San Francisco, California

As inspired by King Kendrick, check it What is sunset rec? Real players call it Lawton Ballers going hard contrast soft sweater cotton Rubber soles squeaking ball bouncing through legs Salty fans on the stands still saying game 6 is rigged 3 games wait that's my youth being heist Pull up bars outside is nice good advice Listening to The Heart Part IV while i do parkour The Bars work my core this is my Park Tour. Move to where the fence is there is always tennis At least three belong to the visor miniskirt menace Their serve so smooth like a two-pour Guinness Ball coming hot from Mars but plays like Venus Volleyball court concrete knee pads a must Set me a backrow 10 gotta shake off the rust I serve offside to the other side where the grass is greener like a key lime pie Little League baseball with kids in cleats Prospect youngsters and games on fleek Coach starts yelling the Ace starts pitching Bleacher parents be talking, but please Stop Snitching Cat-like reflex for the ping pong studs Their rules are different where are the damn red cups Shout out to the staff for holding it down Keeping Lawton great and the gem of the town read more

Haven't been back here for many years. I'm so glad to see that this park and recreation center has been remodeled. It's so much better now. The place is clean and modernized including the restrooms. Nice atmosphere. The playground structures are replaced. It's so nice. I wished it was remodeled a long time ago when my son was younger. read more

Ahh the sunset rec! I spent a lot of time at this rec center as a kid. Since i went to Lawton Alternative School down the street, and we totally lacked a gym. Our gym teacher would make us trek up to Sunset rec for our "PE" time. Good memories here. Now that I'm WAY pass the age where we should be having PE class, I come here to walk my dog. Sunset Rec has definitely gone through some improvements through the years. It used to be janky looking but now they at least spruced it up a bit :) I noticed they painted a mural on the side of the building and even added a little garden area. They also seemed to fix up the indoor gym a bit. I remember as a kid that the seats were similar to land mines. You really had to watch where you stepped, or else you'll end up falling through the benches! read more

The swing sets here have to be the same ones from 1990 when i flew for the first time. I got around 7 feet of air, and then i ate 7 ounces of sand. I am proud to admit, i first got my wings, here, at Lawton Park. read more

This is the place to be. Every since I came here when I was a kid, I never went anywhere else. This place kept me out of trouble and spending the whole summer riding my bike to the Rec. Love the indoor basketball court. They use to fix the floors and re-wax them every year. Now .. . I think because of budget cuts, no more. They also have a big grass field, which me and my friends play flag football. (We too old for tackle) Hurts my joints. If I were to ever be rich, like win the lotto, I would put in a couple of Benjamin's for the Sunset Rec. I would love future generations to experience what I had as a kid. I'll be there on Sunday playing basketball and football. COME JOIN ME! read more

The reason I'm giving this place a one star is because my kid goes here while I'm at work and I found out through the staff that a supervisor was tested positive with COVID and they have been hiding it among themselves and haven't told any of the PARENTS about it. read more

I'm just reviewing the indoor basketball courts. it's free, most of the ballers are friendly, and there seems to be just about the perfect amount to have fun games going all day but not so many that you have to wait 4 games to play again if you happen to lose. It's not too competitive, not a lot of serious (which to me = no fun) ballers in here that are in off season for HS/college ball, or older angry ones that are no longer playing HS/college ball and spending every moment on the court trying to relive their glory years. That's not to say people here don't have skills, they do, it's obvious some people did play HS/college, but it's mostly just fun games with fun attitudes, i.e. good sportsmanship. Some possibly helpful information: It's closed on Mondays. Tuesdays start later because they are playing volleyball on the courts (I was told it starts at around 1 or 1:30PM) every other day seems to be open by noon and stay open until at least 8PM (closes at 9PM I think). I think weekends it opens earlier (10AM maybe) They have a schedule (minus the information about Tuesdays) posted inside that I obviously did not memorize. read more

Went here last Saturday with two friends, honestly couldn't believe it when one of my friends, who worked here before, said all SF gyms were free (I'm from Daly City), so I was like, "hey, I should really try it out here". The baseball field and blacktop basketball courts also look really good. Also a pretty nice playground for your little kids right outside of the main gym. So we got a couple of games in, all the people are chill, just looking to play some basketball as well. The gym is really clean, floor still looks brand new, also like how they have glass backboards like the two baskets on the main court, and not the cheap, usual wooden ones like in most schools or smaller gyms. Great place to shoot around or get some runs in, highly reccomend this place if you're in need of hooping in a gym for free! read more

Grew up playing at this park. I've utilized almost every part of this recreation center. Outdoor basketball courts are good. You can shoot around or find someone to play pickup games with, mainly for the kids. Indoor courts are decent, smells like... sweat usually, but that's expected. There are 6 hoops, 3 of them taken for a full court game and the other 3 are used for mini games. Good for pickup games and just to shoot around. Adjacent to the courts is a ping pong room. I don't understand why this place is always packed! Throughout the day and night with old people. The tennis courts are great, but there's always a line of people for some reason. Balls that don't land in the court usually end up in the streets, the field, bushes, or a patch of grass. So, its hard to lose your balls unless you hit it into the bushes in which case its whether you care enough to look for it. The volleyball net used to be nice and new but is pretty dilapidated now. Behind the court is a wall for tennis practice or handball lol. And opposite it is the wall of the ping pong room that people practice pitches at. On the other side of the tennis wall is the football/baseball field. It's fairly large and is dirt based. Haven't used the baseball field much but have played ultimate frisbee and variations of football here. Only complaint are the holes that await your feeble ankle. On the other side of the park is the playground. Nothing special here. Swings, slides, and the works. Surprisingly, its still in very good condition. A lot of kids come here to play, mainly because of its close proximity to an elementary/middle school. Mom's bring their little ones here during the day as well. read more

Terrible. No schedules posted online, no one answers the phone. Called five times and drove 45 minutes to go shoot around on the indoor courts and was turned away. read more

I was at the park with my son and saw some huge rodents running around inside this building ( was closed and locked lights were on though). Sun was setting then I saw them in and out of the planters. A couple years ago, I saw one running across the playground in broad daylight. Sunset Rec Center seems to have a problem. read more

This place was empty when we were here, but that's not so much a bad thing. The field was empty, but the basketball courts (indoor and outdoor) were full. Good place to throw a frisbee, baseball, or football around. Parking is on the street, but we didn't have trouble finding a spot. read more

I love how it was gated and they separate the kid playing areas. It was a bit windy but I was able to find street parking. There was a recreation center with badminton and basketball court. The bathrooms were clean. read more

So this indoor gym is in my neighborhood, has tons of street parking, and is free. My kind of place. I was in here on a Tuesday and the place filled up pretty quick, running a full court game on one side and some other guys just shooting around on the other. There are also some outside basketball courts that looked well maintained. My only issue was that the floors were really dirty, and it was pretty slippery to play on. Other than that, this place was pretty cool. An added bonus: there's a little side room with some SERIOUS ping pong players, screaming and hollerin..pretty entertaining. read more

I love this place good hoop games friendly competition My son loves it as well cool family environment read more

I use to call this Lawton Park, because it was near Lawton School & the park is on Lawton St. Now I refer it as the Rec, maybe because my bro always went & called it that. I think they need more tennis courts, every time I go, there are people always playing. I know there is a courtesy rule that you are allowed to play for 20 minutes, but no one is there to enforce it. I wish they made this park with astroturf like the South Sunset Park http://www.yelp.com/biz/south-sunset-park-san-francisco on Vicente (near Sunset Super & Ulloa Elementary), then you wouldn't have to worry about your shoes getting dirty. read more

Great playground for kids of all ages. Pros: newly renovated, close bathroom Cons: limited swings read more

I brought Blue here this morning, since I've always driven by. This is a place for people to relax, play and air out all their regressions. Especially when it comes to walking the dog. I might come back tomorrow ... read more

I come to this park to play tennis against the tennis wall. I envy all the Asian guys playing basketball there. I think that's really great, and it doesn't seem like there are that many recreation centers like it. There's a baseball diamond where people practice, but I don't see any league play. I think it's great to promote sports, but I think they could have made a better park for some part of the Sunset district. I am not a local, so I don't really care. I just like to go play tennis by myself, and maybe start playing with a stranger. read more

The only public indoor bball court that I know of in the sunset. Everytime I come here its really crowded to the point you have to wait an hour to play one game. The floor is really dirty so you might slip. The outside court seem slanted but less slippery. The 2 tennis courts are decent and the baseball field is all natural grass. Overall its the place to go if playing indoors is the preference, but Id rather play street ball at loweel or south. read more

I haven't been inside the gym yet, but the basketball courts outside and playground seems to be very nice. Me and a couple of friends hang out here and just chill on the swings or play basketball. Most times I have to be extra careful for the younger children on the play structure and I believe I have seen dog poop in the sand before. read more

Love the new remolded gym. I played ball over the weekend and it felt good hitting the courts again. Surprisingly, is wasn't that crowded for some reason. The gym floor is nice and the bleachers are clean. Definitely an upgrade from the old gym when I grew up. read more

This is an excellent neighborhood park for all ages. My toddler is in love with the playground and loves to run around, swing, sit on the benches to eat his snacks, and climb everything. He also happened to see someone with a basketball walk into the gym - where he wanted to sit and watch teens and adults play basketball indoors while we stayed by the bleachers. There's also a baseball field for people to play, tennis courts, ping pong tables, and they offer classes for the neighborhood. There are also changing tables and water fountains. While my dog isn't allowed in the park, he definitely enjoys walking on the sidewalk around the park on-leash. All in all, it's a great neighborhood rec center that I recommend for everyone in the area! read more

I used to play here as a kid. Now my son frequents this freshly updated playground. They have a Tiny Tots program here on Wednesdays my son just loves. He comes home and shows me all the exercises and songs they do. He absolutely loves the parachute game! They also have two play rooms spread out between a pretty long hallway great for running. It is pretty awesome. read more

I basically grew up at this recreation because I went to the k-8 school a block away and lived a block away from here. So many memories :) i haven't been here since the remodeling but I must say, it looks good! The play structure is new and sturdy, the basketball gym actually separates from the Ping pong room, which is much safer for the people playing ping pong. The new gardening looks good and everything looks much more modern. Will always love this place! read more

Only went there for some basketball action. Great courts and very nice people of varied expertise levels playing. Really enjoyed myself. The only thing I noticed is that we were playing 4x4 instead of full court even thought we had plenty of people to do so... I guess people just weren't interested in picking teams and doing it that way, though I'm not sure. I'll be back many many times! read more

Good place if you want to have pick up games. In can be inside our outside where there is a basketball court. It is a nice place if you go with friends. You can play basketball, table tennis, tennis, or just through the baseball around outside. Nice place. read more

Best place to hoop! Been going here since I was 10 years old. Only reason why I didnt give it a five star due to fact this place can be very teritorial by asians. I just come to this place to sweat, ball,and have fun, not get in fights or start one. read more

Great recreation center. Friendly people, gym is nice. You'll rarely see littler on ground, even around the block. Bathrooms are clean and tidy. Only negative is the gym gets really stuffy read more

This place is really nice after the recent remodel. The gym is clean and has bleacher seating. 4 stars because its always so crowded and you're lucky if you can get to shoot at a hoop in the gym. Playground is great for kids and tennis courts are well maintained. Baseball field and open grass field are also well maintained. Bring a jacket. It's in the sunset district in SF read more