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North Beach: SF’s Nightlife Neighborhood
North Beach is one of San Francisco’s most storied and picturesque neighborhoods. It’s chiefly known nowadays for being our ‘Little Italy’ and most visitors want to see it while they’re in the city, to eat at one of the many great Italian restaurants and cafes that line its streets. It was also the West Coast epicenter of the literary movement known as the ‘Beat Generation’, and several landmarks from those years, such as the City Lights Bookstore, still survive. Finally, it has a thriving late-night bar and club scene, making it that comparative rarity, in today’s world, of a neighborhood that’s equally popular with both locals and visitors.
In this article I’ll give you a brief(ish) history of North Beach and some of its important figures, and then make some recommendations for things to do, historic sites to visit and some places to eat and drink there.
Or in the parlance of the Beat Generation: North Beach is cookin’, daddy-o, and we’ve noodled it out so you can get your kicks there!
Early History of North Beach
You’d be forgiven for being a little confused by the name – if you look at a map you’ll be struck by the fact that there isn’t any waterfront in North Beach (in fact it’s completely land-locked). However, there was once (both at its northern, as well as its southeast borders) and that’s where the name originates.
Until the late nineteenth-century the neighborhood’s northern border was at the water’s edge, on Bay Street, where there was a small beach. Around 1900 the city employed the same techniques as it had elsewhere, and used landfill to move the shore out to what’s now Fisherman’s Wharf.
The southeastern section abutted the port of San Francisco, near the Embarcadero, but there the harbor was filled with a mixture of abandoned ships and trash, pushing San Francisco’s port further out into the bay and making North Beach fully land-locked.
The streets in the southern part of North Beach were central to the early California Gold Rush. 56 Gold Street, opposite Balance Street, was the address of the Office of the Assay, which was the Government representative in charge of weighing and verifying the purity of the gold that was pouring into San Francisco from the Sierra.
The Assay’s building was on the water’s edge and in front of it, in 1848, a ship was abandoned by its crew, like hundreds of others at the time, who’d all disappeared to make their fortune in the Gold Fields. The ship was called the Balance and so the street took its name and it’s now buried below.
A little later the warehouses and docks of the port of San Francisco that were constructed, around the Battery, led to the development of the infamous Barbary Coast from the 1870’s to the 1890’s. This subsection of the neighborhood may have been small – but it had a big name, known and feared by sailors the world over. Murder, robbery, prostitution, shanghaiing – and dance halls – were all commonly to be found on the Barbary Coast during this period.
North Beach Becomes SF’s Little Italy
During the late nineteenth-century the neighborhood became a home for working-class dock-workers. The Great Fire of 1906 destroyed most of the homes though and, with its subsequent redevelopment a large number of Italian immigrants began to move into the area, creating the ‘Little Italy’ that it remains to this day. Prominent Italian families that lived in North Beach included those of Joe DiMaggio and Joseph Alioto (San Francisco Mayor 1968-1976).
Many of the restaurants and cafes still operating in the neighborhood, such as Liguria Bakery, Fior D’Italia and Gino & Carlo, date from this era. Italians operated most of the fishing fleets out of Fisherman’s Wharf too, so the local cuisine was renowned for its fresh seafood.
The Italian community of North Beach was pivotal in the rum-running and speakeasy industry, during Prohibition throughout the 1920’s and into the 1930’s. Both Vesuvio Cafe and Specs’ Adler Cafe date from this era and were very popular during the Prohibition period, as they continued to serve alcohol. Many restaurants kept serving wine in spite of Prohibition because enjoying a glass, or bottle, of it with a meal is so central to Italian culture.
Coit Tower and Telegraph Hill
One of the most distinctive buildings that you can see in North Beach is Coit Tower, looking down on it from the top of Telegraph Hill. The tower was built with a bequest from Lillie Coit, after whom it’s named, a wealthy lady who grew up in the neighborhood. As a teenager she formed a bond with local firefighters and after she died, in 1929, she donated a third of her will for a monument to them.
Opening in 1933 Coit Tower is dedicated to the firemen who lost their lives in the five major fires in San Francisco’s history. The stunning murals inside were created as a pilot for the Public Works of Art Project, President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal program.
The Beat Generation
As the 1950’s dawned North Beach became the epicenter of the Beat Generation literary movement, anchored by the City Lights Bookstore, on Columbus Avenue (which is also still open). Lawrence Ferlinghetti, another Italian immigrant, opened the shop in 1953 and he published several works by Beat authors, such as Allen Ginsberg and Gregory Corso.
Many other writers, such as Jack Kerouac, Neal Cassady and Ginsberg lived in the area and the Caffe Trieste, on Vallejo Street, became one of their favorite hang-outs, where they would drink coffee and discuss their work late into the night.
In fact, it was Herb Caen, the celebrated columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle, who coined the term ‘beatnik’ – which he intended as a derogatory name for members of the new movement.
The Summer of Love and the San Francisco hippie movement, which took off in the late 1960’s, was centered on the nearby Haight neighborhood. Much of its terminology actually originated with the Beat Generation, including the term hippie itself, which was derived from hipster – a young, fashionable guy. Many of the ideas and beliefs of the flower power era also originated with the earlier movement (such as the principles of sexual liberation and free love).
Beat Writers Make Little Italy Home
But why did the Little Italy of North Beach become home to so many figures of the Beat Generation?
(In the 1950’s) North Beach . . . had much more of a European atmosphere, because primarily most of the real estate was managed by Italians, and often first-generation Italians, so there was more than one language spoken. And the Italians never felt uncomfortable with the idea of somebody being an artist or a poet. They thought it was a legitimate job—the same as being a plumber. And in fact they had a high regard for this.
So rents were low and the atmosphere was conducive to productive work.
David Meltzer, Beat poet
Ferlinghetti remained an owner of City Lights until his death in 2021 (at the age of 102 years old). The shop itself is designated as a historic landmark by the city, such is its importance to San Francisco.
North Beach Today
Nowadays Barbary Coast has long since disappeared, to be replaced by the upscale Jackson Square Historic District, although some elements of it remain, such as the Old Ship Saloon, which is considered the oldest continuously operating bar in San Francisco, and there are tony wine bars on Gold Street.
Most of the raunchier action has moved over to Broadway and Columbus, where there are several historic bars, such as Specs, and a few strip-clubs. North Beach is adjacent to Chinatown, making it easy to explore both over a day (and night).
The main drag of Columbus Avenue, which bisects the neighborhood, is full of lovely Italian restaurants and cafes, as well as shops like the City Lights Bookstore, so it’s a great place to while away half-a-day. Dotted throughout North Beach are cool bars, such as the Saloon (dating from 1861) and Vesuvio Cafe, which became a key location for the Beat Generation and is still popular today.
Washington Square, with the impressive Saints Peter and Paul Church, is a great open-air spot to relax – if the weather allows – and has a really great program of events and concerts. Coit Tower and Pioneer Park are some of the best places from which to view the Golden Gate Bridge, the bay, Alcatraz and the city.
Our Recommendations
These are all personal recommendations – and since I’ve spent a ;of time in the neighborhood I know it well!
1. WHERE TO EAT
There are a ton of great places to eat in the neighborhood.
Breakfast and lunch:
Lunch and dinner:
- Sotto Mare
- Fior D’Italia (considered the oldest Italian restaurant in the US that’s still operating)
- Portofino
- Caffe Trieste
- Cafe Zoetrope: owned by Francis Ford Coppola, it’s also great for coffee, drinks and people-watching (Francis does eat there sometimes, but please leave him alone if he is dining).
2. WHERE TO DRINK
There are some lovely cafés and bars in the area.
3. WHAT TO DO
North Beach has some significant cultural attractions.
- Coit Tower: not technically in North Beach, but rather on Telegraph Hill, it has some beautiful murals inside and great views of the whole Bay Area from the top.
- The Beat Museum
- The San Francisco Art Institute: also not technically in North Beach, but close by and well worth a visit.
4. WHERE TO GO
If you go to the neighborhood you have to visit these iconic spots.
- City Lights Bookstore
- Cobb’s Comedy Club
- Lombard Street: you can easily visit this iconic San Francisco location from North Beach, if you take a left as you walk up Columbus Avenue.
5. WHAT TO SEE
There are some lovely little parks in North Beach. Most of them have great views of the city and bay.
- Washington Square: be sure to check if there’s an event happening in the park when you’re planning your visit, they’re usually fun.
- Pioneer Park: a beautiful park surrounding Coit Tower that has fantastic views of SF and the Bay.
- Jack Early Park: one of SF’s best kept secrets, with great views of San Francisco Bay.
- The Filbert Steps: a steep descent to the waterfront from just below Coit Tower, they’re well-worth checking out for their stunning views of the waterfront and bay. They’re great exercise too.
6. LEARN MORE ABOUT THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Our daily SF in a Day tour finishes with a walk through North Beach to Chinatown and is a great jumping off point to explore the neighborhood in the evening.
We also have a shorter daily walking and metro tour which includes the Painted Ladies, Lombard Street, North Beach and Chinatown, called the Icons of SF Tour. It starts at 3 pm and lasts 3 hours.
Finally, we have two tours of North Beach and Chinatown which focus on the criminal history of the area. The Notorious SF: Ghost & Crime Tour, which runs every Saturday night, is a journey back to the Nineteenth Century Gold rush era, when sailors were being shanghaied onto merchant ships in the Bay and Chinatown was full of opium dens and brothels. Our Prohibition in SF: the Speakeasy Tour focuses on the 1920’s, taking guests to several speakeasies from the era, as well as the 1950’s Beat Generation. Some seriously tasty street food is included and that tour runs every Friday night.
Guides can always make further recommendations for things to see and do in the area too.
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If you have any feedback on North Beach: SF’s Nightlife Neighborhood, please email us or reach out on social media, we’d love to hear from you.
– By Damien Blackshaw (Twitter)
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