Shhhhh. It's a secret!…read more Loved this place! Ended up there for Halloween and was so happy to see everyone there in like minded fashion had dressed up in thoughtful and original costumes. No store bought sexy nascar mechanics or purple hatted pimps here. Everything about the place exudes cool, right down the giant doomsday ray in the downstairs lobby.

I've been wanting to check this place out since I read about the Halloween show they put on…read more First, once you find the front door, you must wait for them to come downstairs and unlock the gate and the door for you. Then you're directed down a long hallway, up two flights of stairs, then down a shorter hallway then you're suddenly inside what can only be described as the best makeshift treehouse you can imagine. Your 8-year-old self is in heaven! I was in awe of this place when I walked in. It's small, but they still managed to put so, so much into it! There's a portion of a ship coming out of the wall and a captain's room next to it stuffed with books I've never heard of and many, many comic books with paintings and a roll-top desk. You go a bit further inside, seeing many, many posters and paintings throughout the way, then there's the world's tiniest bar to your left with the 1970's style black and white tile chipping away on the floor in front of it. To your right there will be the world's tiniest skate ramp with another room at the top of it. That's right, in order to get inside that tiny room, you'd have to climb up the skate ramp, like you would a slide that we all attempted to climb up as kids on a playground. In the very back of that room is the stage, and to the right of the stage is, yes, that tree house everyone has talked about. There is just such a vintage feel to this place, like you're going back in time. It's simply beautiful. On this particular night, we all had the enjoyment of listening to oldies from the '50's and the '60's while we all had cheap beer and played Berlin Style ping-pong. Everyone had a blast, whether we were awesome at ping-pong or terrible at it, we all had the time of our lives! I HIGHLY recommend going at least once to check it out. Once you find it, it's worth it! I can't wait until their next event, and it's so close to the 16th and Mission BART station! The Secret Alley should be on everyone's bucket list.

This "museum" acts as the information center and gift shop for the "F" line. The "F" line are the…read morehistoric streetcars that run down Market St and the Embarcadero to Fisherman's Wharf. These street cars are the star of the attraction and definitely worth the ride. For $5.70 one can buy an all-day Muni pass which allows you to ride these cars along with all other transit EXCEPT the cable cars. These cars are a collection of preserved vehicles from the '30s to '50s. Each one was given from a city in the US. They were originally brought to San Francisco to substitute for the cable cars when the c.c. Went under major renovation back in the '80s. The street cars became a hit with locals and tourists and are now a part of historic transit systems in San Francisco. The museum is small but detailed. It is open limited hours and run by a team of volunteers. They are passionate about these street cars and it shows. They are very detailed oriented but expect a pause every 10 minutes when a street car goes rolling by. The museum is free with a suggested $5 donation. It will only take about 30 minutes to cover it but a great stop if a rail fan.

I love this place. I never thought about reviewing it lol bc it's always just a place we stop into…read moreon walks around this area. It's a nice place to just come and walk around. I'm not sure about parking bc we only come here on foot when we're doing what I call "urban hiking"... we like to hike our own city on lazy days. This is on one of our routes. It's got very clean restrooms and a cute gift shop. I think I I just like it bc we're used to coming through here and it smells good lol like, it's got its own unique scent and vibe. I'd recommend stopping by if you're a local. If you're a tourist and you are interested in this type of thing, for sure. It's a pretty educational and cool little spot.

Jazz + art + Live music ... for free... in the Filmore?!?! HallelUUUJAH!…read more As part of Local 365 art collective, and a passer-by, I've had the pleasure of experiencing this beautiful community space - a classy (while still being street-relevant) art space next door to Yoshi's SF. Learn more about Local 365 on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=30921242097&ref=ts and MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/local365sfcc I love Peter, the man who runs the whole show, he is bright, captivating, intersted in his community's artists,and a hard-working fellow with a profound love for Jazz, and for art -- and respects the history of both the art and the music of Jazz culture. GO LUSH LIFE!!!!!

Great new gallery that is part of the new Fillmore Heritage Center complex (Yoshi's)....Showcases…read morejazz-themed art, including photographs of famous jazz musicians, paintings, and sculptures. A good place to stop by before or after a show at Yoshis.... Check out the new exhibit on Miles Davis and Carlos Santana. Great stuff!

If you are seeking great quality, local art of watercolor and paintings of places and locations in…read morenot only specific to San Francisco, but the SUNSET district and surrounding (aka West Portal, Parkside, Ocean Beach, Golden Gate Park) - THIS is your place. I'm so HAPPY to have found a local art gallery, in which the artist, Andy Forrest, is in the store himself, selling the art at your fingertips. His art SCREAMS local!!!! I recently did a haul here for Christmas presents, and so happy I did. I got an original of his of the Noriega & 19th Avenue corner liquor store - the shop that someone won a lotto ticket years back. This was a great gift for my mom, who lives in walking distance. I got another original painting of the Golden Gate Heights neighborhood, overlooking Ocean Beach - another great gift! For myself, I snagged a 15th and Taraval L - Taraval Muni streetcar roaming up the street. He even mentioned that he does personal commission paintings, and showed me a painting of a customer's house he was working on!!! Lastly, he did free home delivery for the bundle of art I bought from him!!! Andy has a myriad of sizes, prints, and originals. The price ranges are quite reasonable for such quality work, ranging from $30-300. I also like his style of watercolors - warm, soft colors, that are soothing to look at. The places, and locations he choses are quite a special, unique collection of artwork that only a local would pick up on. Andy himself is such a fun guy. He reminds me of my mom and dad, Boomers stuck in an era of San Francisco that is a completely different generation. He came to SF during Woodstock, stayed and worked as a structural engineer for several years, now recently retired a few years ago during the pandemic, and started to really develop his hobby of painting and watercolors, and making a shop out of it. He is quite personable, and could remember my last name, a week after I bought from his shop. Anyway, can't wait to return to his gallery, to see what's coming up next!!!

The artist is so gracious, generous, and talented! If you are looking for artwork that celebrates…read moreSan Francisco with a nostalgic water color lens, come here and get a print for your place or as a gift. I got a piece from here before moving from the Bay Area to Sacramento. Now I have a piece of SF with me all the time!

I have a lot of feelings about this museum, having stayed in the Tenderloin in 1986. The punk band…read moreI was traveling with went onward to Japan for the rest of their tour, so I stayed behind before going back to NY state after a month or so. Oh my. What I remember from the 80s: tents full of AIDS patients at the Civic Center, protesting lack of services. I met an AIDS patient, which in those days was scary because there was little information on it. He looked so ill, with a withered face and sunken eyes, since the first medicines were very hard on the body. I had heard nothing about the disease in high school and had a vague idea that it was spread through the air like TB. The man was so kind and he explained everything about the disease to me, and what they were doing there. It was my first introduction to that good old SF protest energy. Grassroots organizing at its best and very effective. Next, I observed those blessed old hippies in action. They held free needle exchanges in a park in the Tloin, to try to stop the spread of HIV and hepatitis. SFPD arrested them, and more filled their place. They kept getting arrested and reappearing, over and over and over, until the city made these places legal. NYC was years behind on this, and as a consequence, many got sick here. The Tloin was a frightening place to a middle class teen like me with no life experience. I met a few kindly elders, and a group of kids called the Powell Street Punks, who were skins (only on the outside afaik, not racist skins). They would skateboard around the BART station entrance and regularly get rousted by the cops. One thing that still p***es me off was the fact that SFPD would regularly take our beer and pour it out or drink one. I used to vacation in SF every year until 2001, and remember passing through this area and seeing how it changed and how it stayed the same. Now that I'm back to regularly visiting, I can see the city evolving and de-evolving in front of my eyes, perhaps better than those who live here year round. I see a lot of ugliness here in the Tloin, but I also see kindness, which I chose to put at the forefront. I see that same quintessentially San Francisco helper energy, and that same grassroots organizing, protesting, and innovation. That will never change, even when the city changes. Goodness never dies out.

I'm very sorry to say that I was very underwhelmed by this museum. One room with some pictures and…read morea few interpretive notes. I really was expecting more given what I'd heard. I totally understand that it is hard to run a small museum like this, rent is high (it is SF!), and without much space to work with I realize it's hard to do much. I guess I was expecting something akin to the Tenement Museum in New York with perhaps that would take one back in time and show how people really lived. I also understand that the Tenderloin Museum is not JUST a history museum and has a greater mission and advocacy to share the stories that are still unfolding there. Nonetheless, having last year visited an amazing historically living history museum at the Black Country in Birmingham, UK, well...I only wish there were more support for places like these via non-profits and government grants or subsidies. And frankly, to get there was heartbreaking as well as scary as F. I had to wade through blocks of people doing drugs (I assume fentynal) obliterated out of their minds. And that is what is insane about the Tenderloin. It never seems to get better. It is worse now than I have ever seen! (Thanks, Breed and co.) I'd say Good Luck Tenderloin, but what you really need is good policy. Maybe someday when people go to the Tenderloin Museum, they will go to a history museum that will give an account of what it was like with the horrors of addiction and poverty and violence but they will walk through a healthy city-scape of loved, creative, and vibrant (if slightly offbeat) residents. That being said, it is still a place of immigrants and artists, and glorious misfits . But they get lost among the addicts and (yes) criminals, at first look. Peace.

TuTuGether is a fun DIY studio for a you and friend group to get a little crafty!…read more Located on the bottom floor of the mostly empty San Francisco Centre, there are little signs of life. One of those places is TuTuGether which has several different DIY options for you including tufting, paint pouring, and decoden. While tufting seems to be the most popular option, my friends and I decided to do paint pouring, which involved picking out a figurine and then pouring on layers of paint. The instructor helped us through the process and even made helpful suggestions to improve the designs. Yes, it didn't require too much skill, but enjoyed watching the designs come together as the paint dripped. There is almost little control yet it can come out so beautiful. Unfortunately, you cannot just take your creation home right away, but at least when they are finished, they wrap it up nicely! The cost came out to be about $40 for about an hour's worth of creating. It was a fun activity! Next time, my friends and I will want to tackle tufting! Overall, TuTuGether is a fun DIY destination that is worth checking out if you are looking for activity to do with friends!

If you're looking for a unique and creative experience in San Francisco, look no further than TuTu…read moreGether, a tufting and crafting studio tucked away on the ground floor of the Westfield Mall. I recently had the pleasure of taking a tufting class here, and it was hands down one of the most enjoyable and fulfilling creative experiences I've ever had! From the moment I walked in, I was captivated by the bright and inviting space. The walls are lined with beautifully organized yarn in a rainbow of colors, and the layout of the studio is both practical and aesthetic. There's a cozy, creative energy here that immediately makes you feel at ease and ready to create. The workspace is well-organized, and the staff has thought of everything to ensure a smooth and enjoyable experience. I signed up to make a small tufted rug, and I decided to create a Jigglypuff-themed piece. The instructors were incredibly welcoming and took the time to walk me through every step of the process. No prior experience? No problem! They made sure I felt comfortable using the tufting gun and provided guidance on how to layer the yarn to get the best results. The experience was surprisingly therapeutic--there's something incredibly satisfying about seeing your design come to life, one tuft at a time. The entire process, from sketching the design onto the canvas to tufting and trimming, was well-paced and SO much fun. Plus, the pricing was affordable, especially considering the high-quality materials and hands-on instruction. What really stood out to me was the warmth and enthusiasm of the staff. They were super patient, helpful, and encouraging, making the whole experience feel relaxed and enjoyable. Whether you're a total beginner or an experienced crafter, the team ensures that everyone leaves with a rug they're proud of. They also pay close attention to detail and provide pro tips to make sure your final product turns out great. I left TuTu Gether with a custom Jigglypuff rug that I absolutely LOVE and a newfound appreciation for the art of tufting. The combination of great vibes, expert guidance, and hands-on creativity makes this a must-visit spot in San Francisco. Whether you're looking for a fun weekend activity, a date night idea, or a unique gift experience, this place is a 10/10. I'll definitely be coming back for another class--maybe a larger rug next time! If you're on the fence, just book a session. You won't regret it!

Absolutely love this place. They housed very talented artists to showcase their exhibits. It's not…read morea very large art gallery though. It's pretty streamlined. But the art they displayed speaks volumes. I was there for a pop up shop tour by Raggedy Tiff of Los Angeles. To pick up some of her designs. I will revisit this place again. When they have another showing if I'm in the area.

Seriously amazing place that does amazing things. A great…read moreorganization that focuses on great art and culture.

Best place to experience art and relaxing wine tasting learning experience. Must try this little…read moregem in SF. A beautifully curated space where art is both seen and created. The gallery inspires through thoughtful presentation, while the workshop invites hands-on exploration and creative freedom. It is a place where imagination feels welcome and ideas come alive.

It was so much fun! The owner is super friendly and personable. Relaxing environment to do artwork…read moreand connect with local peep