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    Tin How Temple

    4.2 (31 reviews)
    Closed 9:30 am - 3:00 pm

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    Rachel H.

    I had difficultly finding the temple even with my precious iPhone... at least when I went back in September it seemed that the pinpoint location shown on my phone's map did not exactly correspond with the address, and there are several other similar buildings in the surrounding area to add to the confusion. Visiting was an enjoyable experience once I found it, although I did not stay for very long. Worth checking out if you're in the area for sure, but I wouldn't necessarily go out of the way to see it unless you have a personal reason for doing so. I still have the satchel of "lucky tea" I received on my way out as a memento.

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    5 years ago

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    3 years ago

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    19 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    5 years ago

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    6 years ago

    Due to the shelter in place, the temple will be temporarily closed until further notice. Stay safe everyone!

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    16 years ago

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    15 years ago

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    19 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    16 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    17 years ago

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    8 years ago

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    9 years ago

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    21 years ago

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    16 years ago

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    11 years ago

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    18 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    14 years ago

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    11 years ago

    Love this temple! This is my first time coming here. I got sufficient guide before starting my prayer. Definitely will come back again.

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    15 years ago

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    14 years ago

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    18 years ago

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    10 years ago

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    Ask the Community - Tin How Temple

    Review Highlights - Tin How Temple

    If you don't like receiving "bad" fortune and advices as honest as they come, perhaps, you ought to go else where.

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    Kong Chow Temple - I like how the #chinese #temple highlights the streets of #sanfrancisco #chinatown

    Kong Chow Temple

    4.0(11 reviews)
    0.1 miChinatown

    The business actually belongs to the Kong Chow Benevolent Association…read more Growing up in Chinatown, I learned a lot of things in my childhood years from my parents who owned a business in the neighborhood. My father was particularly active in this association as well as the related Bo On Tong. Besides the political groups, family associations, and provincial associations, new immigrants found their comfort zones in joining these and making friends and business contacts in starting their life in a foreign country; it was particularly challenging for those who did not speak a word of English. These men, as it was a very sexist culture in those days, found refuge with people who shared their political views, spoke their dialect of Chinese, or came from the same districts or villages. Kong Chow mainly serves immigrants from the greater Guangzhou (Canton) area and its neighboring districts (Toishan, Chung Shan, Jiang Men, and my dad's Sun Wui). This association has changed over the years with mainly only members living in Chinatown being here on a regular basis. There is a shrine on the upper floor the building, a memorial to members who passed over the years. To get a spot for a memorial, one must make a donation to the association. I learned of this after ordering a plaque for my late father a couple years ago. The association also has its own memorial park in Colma but I am not sure they are still offering plots and the site is pretty well filled now. During the Spring memorial holiday, flocks of family will come to the memorial park for picnics, either family only or along with the family associations. Remains to be seen how this will go this year on April 4th. This association also used to host annual banquets as a fundraising source as well as a community reunion for its members. Needless to say, it's been a while since the last event which used to be held at one of the few remaining banquet hall restaurants in Chinatown (see Far East Cafe and New Asia Restaurant - one is struggling to survive and the other is now a converted supermarket). Let's hope and pray that the pandemic is closer to its end than start and the community can restore its life like before. After all, if we lose our culture, who are we?

    Love this place. Always take out of town guests here. They will be taken through a ceremony and…read morehave their fortune read afterward for a $5 donation. I don't speak any Cantonese, and the people who work here are not quite fluent in English and are a little shy at first. But once they warm up they are actually very welcoming and love to joke which is difficult with no common language. Oh, don't even think of taking pictures here. This temple is located above the post office on Stockton, on the top floor, with an elevator!

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    Kong Chow Temple
    Kong Chow Temple - Kong Chow Benevolent Association, shelter in place

    Kong Chow Benevolent Association, shelter in place

    Kong Chow Temple

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    MA Tsu Temple of USA - Beautiful Temple hidden away in an anonymous Chinatown Alley

    MA Tsu Temple of USA

    3.8(4 reviews)
    0.1 miChinatown

    I went by and saw the gates closed. I called multiple times and even texted the number but no…read moreresponse. It says that it's open for public but when I finally got the lady's attention from inside she was so rude. Looked at me like I was crazy and very unwelcome. I was just trying to learn about the culture/ religion but instead got sent away.

    A confession: I have never been *inside* of the Ma Tsu Temple, and it's highly unlikely that I ever…read morewill (or can) go inside, not being a Taoist or of Asian ancestry. The temple is small inside, and I would be conspicuous, to say the least! In some ways, that's a shame, but then again -- some romantic notions are best maintained from the outside, lest they be displaced by a cheesy reality. But I am fascinated by the remnants of old Chinatown that have survived, and the Ma Tsu Temple is a very evocative example. A 3-storey brick building, it's the only thing of real interest in the alley, which makes its impact all the more striking. As you approach the Temple from Jackson or Pacific -- especially at night -- it is quite a dramatic sight, with about 40 spherical red lanterns hanging on the fire escape, glowing in the dark and gently swaying. The interior is a profusion of red and gold glitz with an altar and a number of small shrines. Ma Tsu (AKA Mazu) is an indigenous goddess figure worshiped in southeast Asian coastal areas -- especially the islands in the Straits of Taiwan. A goddess of the sea, she is believed to protect fishermen, sailors and those who travel by sea. Considering that all early Chinese emigrants to San Francisco reached these shores by sea, it's hardly surprising that some of them, grateful for a safe passage, would establish a temple in her honor here. If you find yourself in the neighborhood at night, take a walk over to Beckett Alley, stand near the Temple and let its dusty old Chinatown magic cast a spell over you.

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    MA Tsu Temple of USA
    MA Tsu Temple of USA
    MA Tsu Temple of USA - Entrance to the temple

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    Entrance to the temple

    Tin How Temple - buddhist_temples - Updated May 2026

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