1. The Embarcadero Waterfront

0

San Francisco, CA

Cancel

Open app

Search

The Embarcadero Waterfront

4.2 (180 reviews)

The Embarcadero Waterfront Photos

Recommended Reviews - The Embarcadero Waterfront

Your trust is our priority, so businesses can't pay to alter or remove their reviews. Learn more about reviews.
Yelp app icon
Browse more easily on the app
Review Feed Illustration

Reviews With Photos

Mike C.

This is probably the 1st time I've reviewed a road, or at least a stretch of road. But it's obvious that the current City government is promoting the scenic places of my home city as destinations for visitors and locals alike. The Ferry Building is the epicenter of this these days with the variety of restaurants and stores (mostly food related) that occupy the building. With its panoramic view and being a transportation hub to other parts of the Bay Area, the Ferry Building is a star. In the past few months, I've seen various pieces of art popping up along the waterfront starting from the baseball stadium (Oracle Park) going north towards Fisherman's Wharf. In recent months, the City has installed large art pieces along the walkways, obviously camera friendly for passerby tourists and locals alike. There were some on the south side of the driveway (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=xiiIO96AcOW-cCucyOR-yQ), (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=xGDByhMkEQhRegUuWbkBxA), and one to the north near pier 7 (https://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=saJuyv784apZzH--psHZ3Q&start=24&select=DJu4WY8DQvygzF9QJsGsOw). The one that caught my eye is actually closer to Oracle Park, the home stadium for the San Francisco Giants. It is almost directly across from a local favorite eatery, Delancey Street Restaurant. Kudos to our city government's vision and foresight in beautifying our waterfront as well as other parts of the City. While it wasn't a visitor friendly city from 2021 to 2024, it looks like things are turning around now as visitors and now the workforce is breathing life back to the city.

Joan W.

This is a nice walk along the water especially on a sunny day. Places to check out could be the Exploratorium, Levi's Plaza, the SS Jeremiah O'Brien, Ferry Building, and walking under the Bay Bridge. There are many restaurants with bay views as well as fruit and hot dog vendors usually springing up trying to get the after Alcatraz crowd that comes back on the Ferry. From Fisherman's Wharf to the Ferry Building is a little over a mile and 30 minutes to walk and from the Ferry Building to Oracle Park it's about the same totaling 2.5 miles. To come back I'd recommend The E and F streetcar which is another cool experience. Along the way there are constant views of the water, Telegraph hill, Bay Bridge, Treasure Island, Transamerica Pyramid. There seem to be many joggers here. To make the walk longer take the Filbert or Greenwich Stairs up to Coit Tower. For more hiking ideas, here's a collection of other trails I've reviewed: https://bit.ly/43PhQtL

Alina N.

Embarcadero has always been one of my favs in SF. We are so lucky to have the gorgeous waterfront and it's typically sunny on the south end of Embarcadero. I used to walk it every weekend but sometimes there's an experience that makes you really grateful for living here. Last weekend Diplo held his first ever Diplo Run along the Embarcadero and then threw a music festival right after. The run along the water front was amazing and the music fest underneath the bay bridge was the biggest vibe! This video will always remind me how lucky I am to be back in SF; especially after living in Texas where here's no waterfront in Austin and it's way too hot to run anywhere. Additionally, the city keeps this area super clean and enjoyable. I would absolutely love to see more restaurants and shopping along the entire strip to make it event more fun. Outdoor restaurants, rooftop movie nights, fun dog parks, outdoor markets and wine bars; it would make this place even more dreamy.

This little sailboat by the mighty Oakland Bay Bridge !
Joanna T.

One of the best Cities in the world. A world class view front the waterfront-our own Embarcadero!

Phil A.

Lots to see when walking along the Embarcadero Waterfront!! The Ferry Building and Cupid's Span are just a few of the attractions here. Multiple restaurants and bars, great bay views, and always that bay breeze is what you'll get also. This is always a busy area, with tourists and locals blending together either walking or running, filling this area with energy. Sometimes I come to the City just to hang out in this area, BART will let you off right near the Ferry Building.

From the pier, Looking at the Bay Bridge, Treasure Island and Oakland in the distance.
Jacqueline S.

We walk here a lot, afternoons, lunchtimes during work and we come during the weekends- especially when it is a stifling hot day. You can count on the bay breezes, water views, local dining and people watching to revive you. You can get off transit (BART, Muni street cars, Sausalito ferry) at Market St / Embarcadero and explore the shops or walk along the water. The sidewalks are extra large and well maintained, easy to walk, bike ride head out with a destination in mind (Exploratorium, Pier 39 or a longer walk to Ntl Maritime Museum, Ghirardelli Square or the Yerba Buena bar for a Irish Coffee) .... Enjoy!

Robert S.

Amazing place to visit especially during sunset and sunrise. Great place to walk around. San Francisco Giants stadium is there too.

Anand P.

Great place to hang out. Do you like farmers markets? They have them here on the weekends. Lots of ferries going to east bay and north bay. Tons of food inside the hangar as well as bunches to relax or enjoy your meal. They also have petty cab rides available to take you to other parts of the city.

01.01.19 Happy New Year 2019!
May A.

San Francisco's spectacular waterfront! The Embarcadero runs along San Francisco's northern waterfront for 2.5 miles, from AT&T Park to Pier 39. Twice we've braved the cold and rang the New Year here in San Francisco at the Embarcadero Waterfront [2017 and 2019]... it is in the northeastern stretch of shoreline in SF. I'm not in San Francisco often but I do enjoy walking along by the water, you get some beautiful views from here, most notably the Bay Bridge and, at night, when the bridge is lit up, it looks pretty nice! The Ferry Building Marketplace is definitely a place to check out. It's always packed with many locals and tourists. Should you want to take the ferry to parts of the Bay Area the schedule is posted inside the marketplace. You will also find Cupid's Span here at the waterfront. It's a cool piece of artwork of a giant Cupid's arrow sunk to the ground... you can say you left your heart in San Francisco. Good luck taking a selfie here, you won't be able to unless you're taking it from across the street. It's a unique landmark overlooking the Bay Bridge. The Hornblower and Red and White Fleet also takes off from here. We've had some fun times at the Hornblower during a big Yelp event "Gay on the Bay" where a few of us renewed our vows. A couple of months later we followed it up with a brunch cruise UYE. We've also enjoyed some sightseeing cruises of the Golden Gate Bay, bridge & Alcatraz on the Red and White Fleet. It takes off from Pier 43-1/2 at Fisherman's Wharf. So many things to do and places to eat at the Embarcadero. It's a part of San Francisco I enjoy visiting a lot. When you're in town don't forget to stop by here. Be mindful that it's a big tourist spot so everything is expensive. Enjoy your day in the City by the Bay! Review #1255

Veronica K.

I love The Embarcadero! They have tons of restaurants and shops for everyone. Last time I was here, it was busier. On my most recent visit, there were barely any. Maybe cause they weren't fully open... hahaha but it's the silence and the calmness that really made this visit more special. I was able to appreciate the waterfront more. I also rode a bike here so I took it as an opportunity to stop and take a breather.

Sabrina S.

The Embarcadero is always filled with wonder! It truly captures the heart of the city. I love being here around the holiday time, it always reminds me of when my parents were alive & I was a small child. My dad would carry me on his shoulders as I took in all the beauty one heart could hold.

Terminal
Andrea U.

Lots of vendors, fabulous marketplace, views of the bay bridge, lots of places to sit relax, eat, shop and people watch

"Passage" a.k.a. Whoopi and Weepie
Ed U.

Yeah, I like to wear my aviator Ray-Bans and polyester-blend shirt unbuttoned to my bulbous navel - strutting the wide sidewalk in my platform shoes along the Embarcadero waterfront. Does my hair look good? "Well, you can tell by the way I use my walk, I'm a SoMa man - no time to talk. Music loud and asphalt warm, I've been kicked around since I moved here. And now it's all right...it's OK. And you may look the other way. We can try to understand the Embarcadero for this man. Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother, you're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin', and we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive." Hey Ferry Building!...Lookin' good, man! Hey Bay Bridge!...Don't let that Golden Gate steal your thunder! Hey AT&T Park!...Batter up, dude! Hey T-Line!...Whoa!...you're on time! Hey Bow and Arrow going into the ground!...Uh, whatever! "Well now, I get low and I get high, and if I can't get either, I really try. Got the wings of heaven on my shoes. I'm a dancin' man and I just can't lose. You know it's all right...it's OK. I'll live to see another day. We can try to understand the Embarcadero for this man. Whether you're a brother or whether you're a mother, you're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Feel the city breakin' and everybody shakin', and we're stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive, stayin' alive. Ah, ha, ha, ha, stayin' alive..." OUCH...OUCHHH!...LEG CRAMP!! LEG CRAMP!!!! Somebody help me...anybody?? 9-1-1...please! OK, here's my favorite use of that song... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82zrU3971DM

View of Bay Bridge from the Embarcadero waterfront.

See all

1 year ago

Helpful 9
Thanks 3
Love this 6
Oh no 0

1 month ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

3 months ago

Helpful 33
Thanks 12
Love this 32
Oh no 0

8 months ago

Helpful 7
Thanks 2
Love this 7
Oh no 0

1 year ago

Helpful 5
Thanks 4
Love this 7
Oh no 1
Photo of Joan W.
114
540
1699

2 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 2
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Alina N.
5000
790
1426

2 years ago

Helpful 8
Thanks 2
Love this 9
Oh no 0
Photo of Annette J.
4957
2436
14522

2 years ago

Helpful 7
Thanks 1
Love this 8
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Joanna T.
1072
959
11526

3 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 11
Thanks 0
Love this 12
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 1
Love this 5
Oh no 0

3 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

4 years ago

Helpful 5
Thanks 1
Love this 5
Oh no 0

8 years ago

Helpful 48
Thanks 2
Love this 49
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

6 years ago

Helpful 6
Thanks 0
Love this 7
Oh no 0

5 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Olive R.
242
1180
3392

7 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

19 years ago

Helpful 8
Thanks 1
Love this 18
Oh no 0

13 years ago

Helpful 8
Thanks 0
Love this 6
Oh no 0

13 years ago

Helpful 6
Thanks 0
Love this 4
Oh no 0

12 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0
Photo of Cris I.
1070
1624
22217

10 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 1
Love this 1
Oh no 0

7 years ago

Helpful 10
Thanks 0
Love this 12
Oh no 0
Photo of Edward L.
605
3890
47715

13 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

15 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0

7 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 2
Oh no 0

9 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0

9 years ago

Helpful 0
Thanks 0
Love this 0
Oh no 0
Photo of Mark B.
204
1178
2819

11 years ago

Helpful 47
Thanks 0
Love this 47
Oh no 0
Photo of Rodney H.
4924
1237
4695

16 years ago

Helpful 11
Thanks 0
Love this 9
Oh no 0

16 years ago

Helpful 10
Thanks 0
Love this 9
Oh no 0
Photo of Ivy S.
140
2169
6181

14 years ago

Helpful 7
Thanks 0
Love this 6
Oh no 0

12 years ago

Helpful 5
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0

8 years ago

Helpful 20
Thanks 0
Love this 18
Oh no 0

10 years ago

Helpful 4
Thanks 0
Love this 3
Oh no 0
Photo of Kim N.
3264
10498
135640

20 years ago

Helpful 1
Thanks 0
Love this 7
Oh no 0
Photo of Rachel S.
356
1688
12477

15 years ago

Helpful 2
Thanks 0
Love this 1
Oh no 0
Photo of Maria C.
1876
3136
9892

12 years ago

Helpful 3
Thanks 0
Love this 4
Oh no 0

Page 1 of 5

Ask the Community - The Embarcadero Waterfront

Review Highlights - The Embarcadero Waterfront

“Should you want to take the ferry to parts of the Bay Area the schedule is posted inside the marketplace.”

Mentioned in 38 reviews

Read more highlights

Verify this business for free

People searched for Local Flavor 4,616 times last month within 5 miles of this business.

Verify this business

San Francisco Chinatown - CA Lottery selling lotto tickets and doing promo prizes at the Chinese New Year Community Street Fair, Feb. 16, 2025.

San Francisco Chinatown

4.1(603 reviews)
0.8 mi•Chinatown

"I saw a werewolf with a Chinese menu in his hand Walking…read morethrough the streets of Soho in the rain He was looking for the place called Lee Ho Fook's Gonna get a big dish of beef chow mein" (Warren Zevon) San Francisco is home to the oldest Chinatown in North America. Covering 24 square blocks, its history can be traced to the early 1850s. The driving forces behind the immigration were the California Gold Rush and jobs on the Transcontinental Railroad. San Francisco's Chinatown today is a feast for your senses, with colorful lantern lined streets, produce markets, workers wrapping dim sum dumplings in the store's windows for your viewing pleasure, pagoda roofs, dragon gates, fishmongers, bakeries, and scores of restaurants. Walking through Chinatown was such a treat! We saw dragon dancers walking through the street, stopped at a fortune cookie maker and watched the workers fold up the little cookie bundles and had a family dinner at the oldest Dim Sum restaurant in America, the historic Hang Ah Tea Room. We loved our visit.

When you dim sum, go to Chinatown!…read more The oldest and largest Chinatown in America is in San Fran and it offers plenty of Chinese street food classics and of course a wide selection of baked, fried or steamed dim sum. Most shops open at 7 or 8 so get there before the lunch rush as some of the popular ones get sold out. After devouring all the dim sum, explore and walk around. Another must stop is the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory which is a family run shop hand folding cookies since 1962. Watch the ladies fold, pack these iconic cookies and pick up a bag or two to take back home to your friends and family. Places we ate at: GOOG MONK KOK BAKERY WING SING DIM SUM DELICIOUS DIMSUM HOUSE OF DIM SUM GOLDEN GATE FORTUNE COOKIE

Photos
San Francisco Chinatown - CA Lottery selling Lotto tickets and doing promo prizes at the Chinese New Year Community Street Fair, Feb. 16, 2025.

CA Lottery selling Lotto tickets and doing promo prizes at the Chinese New Year Community Street Fair, Feb. 16, 2025.

San Francisco Chinatown - Hang Ah's dilapidated signage

Hang Ah's dilapidated signage

San Francisco Chinatown - San Francisco Chinatown: 2026 Feb 7 (5 of 5)

See all

San Francisco Chinatown: 2026 Feb 7 (5 of 5)

Lombard Street

Lombard Street

4.2(862 reviews)
1.3 mi•Russian Hill

A fun stop, though it's a quick one. We drove through it and we also parked before driving, and…read morethen climbed down the stairs to bottom, and then climbed up, means we enjoyed every bit of it First on foot and then by car. See, I am seeing this crooked st pics since childhood, so I don't just wanna 5 min and then get over it. I am not gonna come again n again from east coast, right This famous block on Russian Hill has eight sharp hairpin turns, brick paving and flower beds, and it was built in 1922 to make the steep hill easier to drive. You can drive down at 5 mph, but the line can get long on busy days. We found walking the stairs on the side much easier, and you get better photos and nice views of the city and bay from the top. Parking is very limited since people live on this street. Most people park a few blocks away or take a rideshare. The Powell-Hyde cable car also stops near the top. Go early or on a weekday, and be respectful of the residents.

While most people like Lombard Street for its curves, I've found a host of qualities to love about…read moreit: 1. The view. 2. No stop lights--you can drive right through! 3. The sanitation (no poop!). 4. The lack of crime: No gangs, street races, or drive-by shootings. Nobody's getting away fast on this baby! 5. It's the least expensive site-seeing you can possibly do in San Francisco. Lombard Street, I'll see your 244 stairs, and raise you five gold stars.

Photos
Lombard Street - Lombard street 1/2025

Lombard street 1/2025

Lombard Street
Lombard Street

See all

Japantown - Cherry Blossom Festival vendor

Japantown

4.2(555 reviews)
2.3 mi•Lower Pacific Heights, Japantown

Yep... another reason to LOVE SF. Culture, community, and somehow... magically clean?! Like I don't…read moreknow what spell they cast over Japantown but the usual city "aroma" is nowhere to be found lol. Just good vibes, music, anime, cosplay sightings, and me absolutely losing it over a Japanese vintage shop like it was a life event. Gifts everywhere, manga on manga on manga... I blinked and suddenly I needed everything. You can literally watch fresh udon being made, bounce between ramen spots, sip tea like you have your life together, and yes... plenty of veggie and vegan friendly options so we're all thriving. And the history? Not just cute... it's legit. This is the OLDEST Japantown in the U.S. and one of only three left, built after the 1906 earthquake when Japanese communities relocated here and made it their cultural home (Japantown Cultural District⁠). It was once a booming hub with hundreds of businesses before WWII internment basically wiped it out, and the community had to rebuild from scratch after . So yeah... what you're walking through now is resilience with really good snacks. Hit the mall, the Peace Pagoda, the paper stores (origami, stationery, art... obsessed), and all the Ghibli love. Cute AND historic... we love a neighborhood with depth.

I'm sure I'm biased bc I grew up up coming here in the 70s/80s and then as a teen and grown up in…read morethe 90s... 2000s lol... it's like a second home despite a lot of changes over the years. Some of the changes I like and some not so much. Parking is hella easy in the underground lot and you can always find a nice gift at any price range as well as a nice snack, drink or meal. I always bring my visitors here when we run out if other stuff to see- but it's hit or miss. My company either loves it and always asked to return, or they think it's a waste of time lol. Like I said, I love it and always will- but I'm not sure how much is pure nostalgia. Recommend visiting at least once. I know the J town in LA feels a lot bigger and I appreciate that one too, but this one is my favorite and I have to show support as a Sansei. Most importantly, restrooms are always clean lol ...

Photos
Japantown - The last of the cherry blossoms

The last of the cherry blossoms

Japantown - 12/28/25 FYI. Food & drink options.

12/28/25 FYI. Food & drink options.

Japantown - Godzilla

See all

Godzilla

The Embarcadero Waterfront - localflavor - Updated October 2026

Loading...
Loading...
Loading...