NightLife at California Academy of Sciences | Photo courtesy of NightLifeNightLife at California Academy of Sciences | Photo courtesy of NightLife
Traveling with a partner can be thrilling, deeply romantic, and sometimes overwhelming. At the end of the day, though, it’s always worth it to see a new city with the person you love. San Francisco has a wide array of unique date ideas that consist of more than just hitting up a bar or going out to dinner (no shade if you’re a fan of the classics). From swanky jazz clubs to stunning hikes and a thriving theater scene, the activities are truly endless. Here’s a list of best things to do for couples in SF.
Black Cat jazz club | Photo courtesy of Black Cat
If you’d normally hit up a bar
Embarcadero, Prices vary
Sure, you could go to a restaurant at the Ferry Building and sit down and enjoy your standard meal, or you could go on a Ferry Building crawl and eat and drink your way through the entire building. Slurp on oysters at Hog Island Oyster Company, indulge in caviar and champagne at Tsar Nicoulai Caviar, split chili cheese fries and a milkshake at Gott’s Roadside, sip a cup of fourth wave coffee at Red Bay Coffee, kick back with a pint at Fort Point Beer Company, or just grabbed canned cocktails from Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant and sit on a bench overlooking the Bay.
Mission Bay, Prices vary
Food truck park meets beer (and sangria) garden at this sprawling outdoor gathering space in Mission Bay that’s perfect for anyone on a budget (especially if you plan on grabbing something to eat). Grab a seat around a fire pit atop the vintage, English-style double-decker bus with views of Sutro Tower, or just put down a blanket and go for it picnic style. Best of all, if you’re traveling with a dog, you can bring them along!
Local Jazz Clubs
Various locations, Prices vary
A bar with live jazz is always a great date option. Check out Black Cat in the Tenderloin, a sexy basement club with craft cocktails and small plates; Mr. Tipple’s in Hayes Valley, with excellent cocktails, as well as dumplings and dim sum; or, if you want something livelier and with the possibility of dancing, Boom Boom Room in the Fillmore, a classic SF spot, albeit it more blues than jazz. And last but not least, you can always count on SFJAZZ Center, which puts on over 300 shows a season.
Photo courtesy of Mission Bowling Club
If you like competition
Presidio and Mission
Is bowling the most obvious date idea ever? Sure. But that’s because bowling is really fun and an excellent way to get a little insight into your potential paramour. Are they competitive? A good sport? Do they eat nachos with their hands right after putting their fingers in the bowling ball? How do they feel about bumpers (read: cheating)? Our favorite places to go are Presidio Bowl, which has a classic bowling alley vibe plus over 45 beers and Mission Bowling Club, which is more of a boutique bowling alley with only six lanes, fancy cocktails, and a 21+ rule after 6 pm.
Stagecoach Greens
Mission Bay, $19
Stagecoach Greens, SF’s only outdoor miniature golf course, is the perfect place to see how your special someone handles a little friendly competition while also picking up some new knowledge about everything from the Gold Rush to our iconic skyline. The 18-hole “Boom & Bust” course offers surprises at every turn, and when you’re finished, you can celebrate your win or lament your loss with food truck grub and beer and wine from Parklab Gardens, which is just a few feet away. Weather not cooperating? SF also has an indoor mini golf course, Holey Moley in the Mission, a mini-chain operation that plays very heavily to Instagram.
Midway games
Various locations, Prices vary
Playing mind games while dating is a bummer. Playing video games, however, is not. Plus, nothing will tell you everything you need to know about a person more than how good or bad they are at Ms. Pac-Man, how competitive they are at Supershot, and if drinking craft beer while playing either of those affects the outcome. The Detour in the Castro is 21 and up, offers a full bar and comfort food, and also has trivia and game nights in case you prefer your date with slightly less screen time. Thriller Social Club in SoMa boasts two-stories of games, including a Golf Simulator cocktails and food, and is all-ages until 9 pm when the kiddos get sent home to bed. If you’re around the Divisadero Corridor, the Emporium, a 12,000 square foot arcade in a historic theater, has video games, pool tables, shuffle board, craft beer, and even a legit whiskey selection.
NightLife at California Academy of Sciences | Photo courtesy of NightLife
If you want to relax and feel cultured
Golden Gate Park, $21 and up
Hanging out with the nearly 60,000 animal residents at the California Academy of Sciences is a fun date any time of day, but if you go during regular hours, it’ll cost almost $100 for the two of you and there won’t be any alcoholic beverages. If you go during NightLife on Thursday nights, however, admission is $21 to $29 each and there are full bars throughout the museum, as well as a different DJ each week. Plus, what’s more alluring than sitting in a dark aquarium with someone you like (or love?), watching luminescent jellyfish pulse and propel?
Embarcadero, $23
Check out the Exploratorium’s adult-only Thursday night party where you can enjoy a drink, tinker with your hands, experiment with light, sound, and vision, and play with social interactions. Will your date give you a sip or a squirt of water at the Trust Fountain? How far can you walk toward each other until it becomes uncomfortable? Is your date scared of the dark? (To answer the last one, be sure to make a reservation to crawl, slide, and bump your way through one of the museum’s most beloved exhibits, the pitch-black Tactile Dome.)
Broadway SF, A.C.T, and more
Various locations, Prices vary
There are always a slew of amazing musicals and plays at BroadwaySF and A.C.T., and you’ll find some fantastic theatrical more budget-friendly performances at the San Francisco Playhouse, Magic Theater at Fort Mason (known for cultivating bold new plays and playwrights), 42nd Street Moon (Financial District), and New Conservatory Theatre Center (Civic Center). And don’t forget about Dear San Francisco at Club Fugazi in North Beach, where you get to watch high-flying acrobats and jaw-dropping circus acts while sharing a bottle of wine.
Photo courtesy of Blue Heron Boathouse
If you’re both outdoorsy
Presidio, Free
The Presidio is full of urban hikes, which means most of them aren’t super crowded, even on the weekend. Start with one of those, and then, if things are going well, head over to the aptly-named Lovers’ Lane. Be sure to take a detour to see Andy Goldsworthy’s Wood Line installation, a “hidden” 1,200-foot sculpture made of Eucalyptus branches and one of our favorite things in the entire park, and then finish with tacos and margaritas at Colibri Mexican Bistro or pizza and wine at Il Parco.
Golden Gate Park, $32.50
Get a mini workout while pedaling a boat built for two around this lake (formerly Stow Lake) that was once a promenade for horse-drawn carriages in the late 1800s and is now home to an artificial waterfall that cascards down Strawberry Hill, a colorful Chinese pagoda, and tons of wild life. Speaking of, there’s a good chance you’ll see turtles mating and if that gets you in the mood, there’s no where more romantic to kiss than under the Stone Bridge. There’s a little cafe so you can also grab a snack and the beer to reward yourself for sneaking in an extra “leg day.”
Presidio, Free
The possibilities for fun at Crissy Field are endless—as long as you like your fun with a side of dramatic views of the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz. Stroll along the promenade to Fort Point and take a guided tour of the Civil War-era brick fort. Or play with off-leash dogs on the beach, go crabbing or fishing off of Torpedo Wharf (you don’t need a license), fly a kite, have a picnic, bird-watch, then end your day cozying up with a hot chocolate at The Warming Hut.
Golden Gate Park, Free
Sometimes, the best date is a good old-fashioned walk in the park, and when that calls, there’s no better one than Golden Gate Park. Depending on the time of year, explore the park’s abundance of gardens, including The Rose Garden, which yields an impressive display of award-winning roses beginning in early May. Other gardens to check out include The Shakespeare Garden and the Rhododendron Dell (best in spring). If you want to add a picnic to the date, do that at the Conservatory of Flowers—the flower beds last all through the spring, and the building is a stunning backdrop for a romantic, al fresco meal. And don’t forget about the San Francisco Botanical Garden. The 55-acre “urban oasis” is home to more than 9,000 kinds of plants from around the world, and, while it’s a tranquil respite year-round, for obvious reasons, really goes off in the spring.
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Daisy Barringer is a San Francisco-based freelance writer with over 15 years of professional experience as a copywriter and editorial journalist. Her areas of expertise include hamburgers, road trips, the 49ers, and anything and everything NorCal. She grew up in San Francisco and has a BFA in Dramatic Writing from New York University and an MFA in Creative Writing from UNC Wilmington, the latter of which she commonly refers to as “the time she spent three years at creative writing summer camp.” Follow her on Instagram @daisysf, where you’re guaranteed cute pics of her 160-pound Saint Bernard named Monkey.
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