This is definitely a patch of greenery worth celebrating. Smack dab in the thick of the Tenderloin,…read moreit's just one acre appropriately fenced in as the surrounding area can get quite unsavory, all the more reason for this park to be here. Five years ago, I would not have been anywhere near this block as the park established in 1985 became a den of iniquity. It was renovated starting in 2014, and now you can see local children playing freely in the space. I was passing by when I noticed a jazz combo giving a free concert. It gave me a prime opportunity to appreciate the renovation spearheaded by the Trust for Public Land and the oasis it represents for local residents. RELATED - Exploring the Tenderloin? Here's a collection of places I've visited and reviewed: https://bit.ly/2NIQ0tw

Since it's renovation , Boddekker Park has become a safe well-used wonderful playground for kids…read morewith a recreation center and restrooms on site.

Super nice newly renovated park. There are two fields - one for dogs and one with no dogs, as well…read moreas some play/fitness structures and picnic tables. The dog park is not fenced, so make sure your dog has good recall. There are water stations too. I like how there are tons of trees, so there's good shade. Flower beds line the sides, so it's very pretty. A great new park that I always love walking through!

Nothing screams San Francisco more than overspending on overbuilt public projects that look really…read morereally nice but that nevertheless fail to live up to either the price tag or the hype. They recently completely redid Esprit Park, and it has so many elements that are cool and lovely and beautiful and inviting. But it also feels frustratingly half-baked, as in they had too many ideas they wanted to incorporate and not enough space, so rather than ditch bad ideas, they kept every single one of them and just shrank them down. There's a lot that I love. They separated the park into two grassy main areas: the southern one for general grassy-main-area use, and the northern one for an off-leash dog park. Great so far. Then they made this cool figure-eight trail that loops around both grassy areas, and in the center of this figure eight, there are some nice tall (original?) trees and some really well constructed wooden furniture for sitting and standing on. Wow, that sounds great, doesn't it? Yes, it does! But then there are tiny workout stations done in this strange rustic style at different corners of the park. And a tiny playground. And the center of the dog park has fake grass, and that fake grass is surrounded by real grass, but the more time you see people interacting with their dogs in the dog park, the more you realize that it takes up way too much of the park's space, as in a lot of the open area is meant as a buffer zone between the center of the dog park and the streets on three sides. Most people won't let their dogs roam here, because they can easily get into the street. Why not fence in the dog area and allow at least some of the edges of the northern grassy area to be used by humans? But here's the killer. I understand that the old Esprit Park was run down and overgrown and unattractive. I was actually excited that they were redoing it. But it used to have way more trees. Yes, it was a rectangle in the middle of Dogpatch, and it wasn't necessarily an urban forest, but it felt like someone's backyard, and that was interesting. Now, it feels like the backyard of some billionaire who tore out all of the natural trees. Beautiful in many ways, yes, but also not as wild as it could be, especially the very middle and some of the edges along the eastern and northern sides. It's also ridiculous that the permit parking around the park is only one hour, and it runs from eight a.m. to ten p.m., Monday through Saturday. If you want people to visit the park, you might want to give them more than an hour to enjoy it before they have to move their car to a different block. And yes, I've gotten a parking ticket at night in Dogpatch for violating the hourly max, so they do enforce it. It's still a cute park in a perfect location. I'll surely eat early dinners on its picnic tables in the future.

Great local park! I remember the old public pool, but I see that this has been remodeled, and I'm…read moreexcited to see the changes. The ball field has stayed the same, but the children's playground has been remodeled as well. Very nice place for both kids and dogs, highly recommend! I don't know if it's the fung shui (very bright, sunny, open park), but I've have had good experiences and friendly interactions at this park. Parking isn't too bad: there's mostly residential apartments around this park, so that's the consideration if you're coming from far away.

Dog mama review: you'll find unleashed dogs frolicking around in the grassy baseball fields! Way…read morebetter than the gated dog run across the street. I hear dogs and their owners meet up around at 4 to 5pm for their dogs to play together, at least in the winter months. Parts of the park has gates but there are a few openings to the street. This is a great transitional place to teach your dog recall before heading to a ungated park.

We hosted our kids' birthday party here and it was great for many reasons:…read more- Parking is extremely easy. - There is optional shade under the trees. - There is a restroom on site. - There are somehow about 9 trash/recycling/compost bins (the plastic ones that homes have) by the park entrance. We were prepared to bring our trash from the party home but didn't end up needing to! - There is a water fountain on site. - This is a sand playground, so sand toys were fun for the kids. - There is plenty of grassy area for kids & dogs to run around. The only downsides are: - There are only 2 picnic tables, and they are pretty far from each other (50 ft?). - The area around the picnic tables is not paved, nor it is it grass, but it is dirt. Not an issue at all normally, but on the day of our party when the weather was a thick dense fog that made everything damp, the dirt ended up getting kicked up and coating all our things, since they were all damp.

Douglass Playground is a cute little park with a playground, open field, bathrooms and 1 tennis…read morecourt/basketball court. The park used to be part of an old rock quarry, which was turned into a park in the 1930's, so the cliffs/rocks provide a very dramatic backdrop to the area that is quite beautiful. Just be aware that it is more a small neighborhood park and not so much a destination park. The playground equipment is adequate but fairly old/tired, the slide area is always closed and the city has closed off the upper path that used to go around the ridge. Dogs are only allowed on leash. The field is pretty to walk around, but the cliff/trees cast perpetual shade on the field and it always seems to be damp/muddy so not so good for a picnic. There is however, a picnic table closer to the playground equipment. Still, it is great if you live in the area and up for an outing or quick walk in the park! Pros: picturesque rocks/hillside and trees, not often crowded, bathrooms, convenient/street parking usually available. Cons: old playground equipment, shady and muddy field, limited capacity/space for large groups

This quad is large but I wouldn't consider it a park or 'picnic' area. It's a neat landscape for…read morethose who like to eat outside as it provides sitting areas both in the sun and under the shade. The borders and walkways are lined by trees and there are a few benches and such scattered on both the west/east sides of the quad. A ~1 ft wall stretches through both sides of the walkway and receives ample shade for lunching outside. The north side of the quad is more of a hill with an interesting structure and the south side of the quad is has a subtle bowl shape to it, making it awkward to really picnic or lay out on. I personally wish the green areas were flatter or more suitable for lounging on. It almost feels as if the green parts are not to be touched since its so bordered and empty--perhaps that's the way its supposed to be? Fun fact: the bordering trees make a figure 8 from an aerial view (shoutout to google maps).

Places like Koret Quad make me wish I worked at UCSF so I could enjoy its beauty everyday. Then…read moreagain living 20 minutes walking from Koret Quad isn't too bad, either. It's one of my favorite places to go on the weekends with my dog. I'd love to visit during the week and read a book or do some work. Anything, really, when it's a lovely SF day. During the week, I wouldn't bring my dog here because there's so many people. And apparently UCSF security doesn't allow off-leash dogs anyways. Makes sense. On the weekends, though, it's FREEDOM GALORE!! Lots of running and chasing. My friend has also had their dog's birthday party here. Great place with lots of seating, shade, open space... everything that makes a perfect nature getaway from work. Even if you don't live walking distance, and especially if you work at UCSF, come check it out. I've attended events at UCSF before, and it will always remind me to come by here and just meditate for a few minutes. Lovely area.

This really isn't a much of a "park"…read more On the docks near the bay is a smaller section of upraised grass this sculpture stands on. It's very pretty, but the smell isn't amazing. It's a bit of a trek from the Financial District, but if you work in SOMA it's not too far for a lunch walk. Definitely an at least one time adventure sort of thing.

Small but awesome little San Francisco Green space. great view of the Marina and the ships anchored…read morein the South San Francisco Bay. Right next to Oracle Park. There's even a small kids play Park.

Great views and the skate park are the highlights. Perfect for walking your dog or kid. Playground…read moreand varied areas at different elevtions. Unexpected to have such a nice park in this neighborhood. Hunter's Point doesn't bring to mind anything so beautiful - usually you just hear about the toxic levels of pollution that they build affordable housing on top of - but that is a totally different converstion. The park has an elevation that is just enough to get great views from anywhere you look. I think this is the highlight. Hard to believe that such prime real estate was utilized for just a park. Newer everything at this park. Structures and landscape. Nothing is super perfect but it has a certain level of care that is more than good enough. I wouldn't hesitate to drive 5 or 10 miles to get to this park. Dogs and kids will love it.

This must be a hidden gem because it was empty on this gorgeous Sunday afternoon. We found this…read morepark by following the yellow sundial which we noticed sticking out of the trees from miles away. There is a very cool skate park and equally awesome playground, plenty of picnic tables as well all around the park. Views are amazing up here, the city with Sutro tower on one side and the Bay on the opposite side.

The cherry blossom trees at Hellman Hollows are starting to bloom. When the wind blows, the pedals…read morefall like snow.

Golden Gate Park has tons of these meadows good for a festival. Hellman Hollow is just one. It has…read morea pretty good location in the middle of the park. A lot of open area. There's always crowd but it doesn't seem to get too crowded though. Always seems to be something going on here. It's got like 12 acres of open space. There's often concerts and those kinds of things. Other times people are out here playing with their dogs. This is also considered a picnic area, and it's a nice place to have one. Convenient location to get to from. It's located pretty close to the Polo Field and some other things in the park. This is a good place to have a party or just chill and whatever.