Plan Your Meetings

Want to dine al Frisco?

As gourmands know, San Francisco is one of America’s best restaurant cities — there are 3,489 of them. Several “food firsts” are said to have been invented near the Bay: cioppino, green goddess salad dressing, Crab Louis, chicken tetrazzini and the Popsicle. Then, there’s Joe’s Special (ground beef, onion, eggs, spinach and mushroom), which originated in 1932 at New Joe’s Restaurant, but is now served at many cafes around town; and also the Hangtown Fry (oysters, eggs and bacon), which has been on local menus since the Gold Rush. Break bread after a tour at the Boudin Museum & Bakery in Fisherman’s Wharf, where loaves pipe hot from the oven (minimum of 10 persons). Savor the ocean vistas with Dungeness crab and clams (for up to 50 people) at the Cliff House, established in 1863. Have linguine at one of the U.S.’s oldest Italian bistros, Fior d’Italia, in any of its four rooms (up to 100). Make your party posh at Forbes Island over rack of lamb in its underwater main dining salon (for up to 75 persons) with nautical artifacts near Fisherman’s Wharf. For a dine around, head to the Fifth Floor (up to 33 persons) inside Hotel Palomar for French foie gras and caviar; Boulevard (up to 64 persons) on Mission Street has California cuisine, such as pan-roasted sole and quail; and Jardiniere offers six-course French-fusion fare (up to 50 persons).

Want to discover the Far East in the West?

You can travel to the Orient when you enter the Dragon’s Gate at Grant Avenue and Bush Street. Chinatown is 24-block adventure, where you can sip green tea, play Majong, eat dim sum, watch fortune cookies being made, and learn the Asian zodiac. The Wok Wiz can take your group (10 persons or more) to a temple, a local herbalist and a farmer’s market. I Can’t Believe I Ate My Way Through Chinatown! starts with a traditional Far Eastern breakfast, followed by steamed dumplings, and lunch of calamari, fish and ground pork. When you take a private workshop, Chef Shirley Fong-Torres will help you whip up your first course. Or, take a look at the pagodas, get to know the language, find out about the secret societies in the alleys at Waverly Place, and visit Buddhist altars during the All About Chinatown Tour. In JapanTown, your group can watch films at the J-Pop Center (opening August 2009), a three-story building with a 143-seat underground cinema, a Japanese deli, New People retail store, and an art gallery. Elsewhere in San Francisco, the Asian Art Museum has more than 17,000 artifacts spanning 6,000 years of history inside the former San Francisco Civic Center. A docent can speak to groups (up to 45 persons) about the Buddhas, jade and Silk Road exhibits.

Want your group to feel more cultured?

In San Francisco, learning about the arts is as easy as a walk in the park — Golden Gate Park — thanks to its museums and gardens. Take your group on a stroll through the Conservatory of Flowers, which has been around since 1879, to get an up-close look at rare tropical plants such as the Imperial Philodendron; afterwards, treat them to a candlelight dinner (for 500 seated) in the fragrant Orchid Gallery. Groups can gaze at the tallest California redwoods or peer through Central American rain forests at the San Francisco Botanical Garden at Strybing Arboretum. Or think heaven and earth at the California Academy of Sciences, where natural history can be explored in its aquarium and planetarium; its “living roof” is a habitat for birds and butterflies, and is one of the world’s biggest public green buildings. In the Swamp, appetizers and drinks are served (for 150 persons) near the turtles and alligators. Examine 17th -21st Century international textiles from Africa and the Americas at the de Young Museum. The Legion of Honor has a renowned sculpture by Rodin and impressionist paintings by Monet, and offers espresso and pastries in its café. San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has a sophisticated setting in the Haas Atrium for a soiree (up to 350 guests) across from the Moscone Center.

Want to meet the neighbors?

With Haight-Ashbury, there went the neighborhood in the 1960s as the hippies moved into San Francisco. Today, your group (10 or more) can relive the decade on the Haight-Ashbury Flower Power Walking Tour, when Jimi Hendrix, The Grateful Dead, and Janis Joplin made peace, love, and music. They will also view the art and images of the era at the Psychedelic History Museum. San Francisco has 49 neighborhoods, and 15 districts, such as Nob Hill and the Embarcadero/Financial District, are on an interactive map. Take the HobNob Tour to wander through the ballrooms, a cathedral, and mansions of the Railroad Barons and Silver Kings along Nob Hill. At Masa’s Restaurant, have a French-Californian dinner in the wine cellar (for up to 14) on Nob Hill, or a six-course tasting in main room (65 seats). Or take a cable car to where the only lines meet at the Fairmont San Francisco for afternoon tea as it was served 100 years ago. In the Embarcadero and Financial District, drop anchor in the Port of San Francisco for a boatload of fun with 50 to 15,000 guests at receptions. Along seven and a half miles of San Francisco Bay, the Port covers Fisherman’s Wharf where Theatre 39 (with 275 capacity) can be leased for presentations. Be a 49er again, as you stake out (up to 35 on a tour) the ore and dust from the Gold Rush at the Wells Fargo History Museum. Groups up to 95 can enjoy filets and martinis at Alfred’s Steakhouse, which has been operating since 1928 in the Financial District, which is now referred to as “Wall Street West.”

Want libations by the bay?

You’ll be stirred, but not shaken when you have martinis overlooking the waters surrounding San Francisco. They say the classic cocktail with gin and olives began in the City by the Bay, as did the rum-laced Mai Tai’s and potent whiskey drink Irish coffee. President Franklin D. Roosevelt liked a highball aboard the “floating White House” of the U.S.S. Potomac, and so can you during charters on the vessel (up to 90 passengers). At the Aquarium of the Bay, imbibe (with 500 persons) with the bottle-nose sharks at Fisherman’s Wharf. Partake in Pisco Punch, one of the most expensive liquors served during the 1800s in San Francisco, at Pisco Latin Lounge. Sip the distilled brandy (for up to 175 persons) from the grapes of Peru. Bohemian artists and writers in Paris liked absinthe in the early 1900s, so have the “Green Fairy” made from flowers, herbs, and leaves (with 40 guests) at the Absinthe Brasserie & Bar. St. George Spirits/Hangar One has a tasting room for groups of eight or more in Alameda, just east of San Francisco by ferry. Grappa used to be a “home brew” like moonshine for Italians around San Francisco, but today, even the Bar 888 at the InterContinental San Francisco offers grappa martinis. Located on the Embarcadero waterfront, the Waterbar offers more than just drinks; the entire second floor is dedicated to private dining, it includes a private kitchen and full bar.