Secret San Francisco: The Unique Guidebook to San Francisco's Hidden Sites, Sounds, & Tastes (Secret Guide series) [Paperback]

David Armstrong (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2001 | Series: Secret Guide series

San Francisco is two cities: the pretty tourist mecca of glossy travel brochures and the layered, flawed, intoxicating city that San Franciscans actually live in. For those travelers who want to go beyond the postcard photo-ops and tried and untrue tourist destinations to explore the vibrant neighborhoods, intimate hideaways, and out-there adventures that make San Francisco so much more than pretty, this guide explores the city’s extreme-and-proud-of-it wild side.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Leave your heart in San Francisco... San Francisco is two cities: The pretty tourist mecca of glossy travel brochures, and the layered, flawed, intoxicating city that San Franciscans actually live in. Secret San Francisco is for those travelers who want to go beyond the postcard photo-ops and tried and untrue tourist destinations to explore the vibrant neighbourhoods, intimate hideaways, and out-there adventures that make San Francisco so much more than pretty. Secret San Francisco was written to help you lose yourself in the city and come to know it the way locals do. So you'll fall in love with San Francisco, but your love won't be blind. With Secret San Francisco, take a walk on the city's extreme-and-proud-of-it wild side: 'Secret Cop Bars,' 'Secret Vibrators 'n Stuff,' 'Secret Taiwanese Pearl Drinks,' 'Secret Not of This Earth,' 'Secret Swank,' 'Secret Revolution,' 'Secret Sam Spade & Dashiell Hammett.' Only in San Fran! Tourist traps? San Francisco has plenty. Armstrong levels with you about them, and tells you where to find the secret treasures buried in the tackiest of traps. Got laundry to do? Chill out with California craft beers while your clothes chill in another kind of suds. Need a makeover? Buy clothing by the pound and get your hair and nails done while sipping cocktails. Afterwards, go dancing at the all-night danceterias. Feeling peckish? Secret San Francisco dishes out huge portions of food and drink in the American city with the most restaurants per capita. Smack your lips over San Francisco's most elegant expense-account Valhallas, no-frills, ultra-cheap joints, and muticultural delights. Lick your way through saffron-rose and cardammon flavours at an ice-cream parlour and swim without shame in the glorious grease and pillowing starch of white-trash food at a unique bistro. It figures that a book about this great food town begins with 'Secret All You Eat' and ends with 'Secret Wine.' One more thing: We also show you where to find the rarest commodity of all in a compact city clogged with SUVs and pickup trucks on steroids: a parking space.

From the Author

DAVID ARMSTRONG is a staff writer at the San Francisco Chronicle. He has also written for The San Francisco Examiner, Travel and Leisure, The Los Angeles Times, and Village Voice. He is the author of three previous books, The Insider's Guide to Health Foods and A Trumpet to Arms: Alternative Media in America, and co-author of The Great American Medicine Show.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: ECW Press (April 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1550224387
• ISBN-13: 978-1550224382
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,308,440 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent book, January 15, 2006

By 

Sarah A. Rolph (Carlisle, MA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Secret San Francisco: The Unique Guidebook to San Francisco's Hidden Sites, Sounds, & Tastes (Secret Guide series) (Paperback)

This book surpassed my expectations. I love San Francisco, and one of my favorite things to do there is to walk around the city and enjoy all its quirky wonders. This book is a delightful guide to such places. It covers many old favorites, but it really does have a lot of secrets, too--places I had never heard of and am eager to check out. And not only does it contain great information, it's also very nicely written. The author clearly loves the City, and his voice throughout the book is authentic and enthusiastic, just as if a treasured friend were guiding one through this magical town. Lovely book.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting Book, April 1, 2007

By 

A. Miller (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Secret San Francisco: The Unique Guidebook to San Francisco's Hidden Sites, Sounds, & Tastes (Secret Guide series) (Paperback)

Lots of cool tips and suggestions that one wouldn't normally know about.

Unfortunately, its a bit dated it spots. For example a gallery I wanted to visit was closed now. The BART station at San Francisco Airport is now completed.

Overall a great book and a fun read too. I would recommend this if you dont want to just see all the tourist attractions.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, but not so secret, April 1, 2008

By 

Robert L. (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Secret San Francisco: The Unique Guidebook to San Francisco's Hidden Sites, Sounds, & Tastes (Secret Guide series) (Paperback)

First off, much of 'Secret San Francisco' is heavy on the San Francisco, but light on the the 'Secret.' This is really a compilation of top 10, or top 5 or 6 or whatever, lists for San Francisco. The 'Secret' part is just a marketing hook. Most of the people, places, and things mentioned would show up in any San Francisco tour guide or would rank very high in a Google or yelp search on the topic. The book is also marked by occasional major omissions. To give two examples: there are sections on tea and on Japan but no mention of the Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park and there is a section on Jazz that omits the Fillmore St Jazz Festival, one of the better street fairs in the city. Having said all this, the lists range from OK to excellent, though, as another reviewer pointed out, they are getting a bit dated as the city changes. I think how much you like this book will depend on how you use it. Because it is a collection of lists, few of them specific to an area, it is not useful for tourists or people looking to explore a particular area of the city. If, on the other hand, you are a San Francisco trivia buff or trying to assemble some very off beat day trips around the city you cold have some fun with it.