I moved to San Francisco in June and was a bit apprehensive about it because I'd become a full-blown New York City girl at that point. Sure, I'd lived in SF before and had some friends there, but was the vibe going to be too slow, I wondered?
Fast-forward a couple of months, and I am SO in love with SF.
Lucky for me I was able to make a ton of great friends through my building -- 100 Van Ness -- since it's super social with a big open rooftop and shared workspace. People in the building are always organizing fun day trips and events, so I'm going to start chronicling some of my favorites here!
I've been wine tasting once before out in Napa -- but little did I know that a fantastic wine tasting experience could be found just 10 minutes from my door on Treasure Island.
There are seven or so wine-tasting venues on Treasure Island, as well as some great breweries and brunch spots.
We started our day on Treasure Island at Aracely Cafe. While the food wasn't the best brunch I've ever had (my favorite in SF is MyMy!), it was tasty and a nice ambiance with plenty of outdoor seating, so totally worth a trip.
I'd recommend getting the Croissant French Toast with dulce de leche cream cheese & maple syrup; the fried chicken; or the Pork Belly Eggs Benedict. Instead of a Bloody Mary opt for the Michelada -- one of my favorite Cali drinks that mixes IPA with tomato juice & some extra heat!
From there we took a twenty minute walk across the island past little league/rugby games and abandoned army barracks. A lot of Treasure Island just isn't developed yet, though it's rumored that a bunch of housing will be going up soon.
Our first stop was The Winery SF -- a cute open barn/warehouse space that's perfect for weddings and events. While I enjoyed many of the wines, my favorites were the Zins -- especially when we were able to do the barrel tasting
From there we walked next door to Winemaker Studios where we tried more wine and hung out around the ocean & Bay Bridge with our toes in the sand. It was a perfectly sunny day and they had that little game set up where you try to get the metal ring around the hook, as well as bocce ball. Some people brought their dogs or packed cheese & snacks for picnics, which I'd recommend.
SF is a picnic paradise and it seems like you organize at least one a week -- another thing I love about this city!
Winemaker Studios is also right next door to The Woods Island Club -- an unexpected highlight for me. Wood's Island has eight beers on tap, including the MateVeza -- their flagship barrel-aged Yerba Mate IPA.
As an IPA girl, I was really into the selection and could have spent more time here -- especially for some of their special events, like their seasonal release of Girl Scout Cookie inspired beers!
All in all our day in Treasure Island was a perfect example of how much this city has to offer when you take the time to explore it. In the car on the way home as the sun set and everything looked washed over in blue, our Lyft driver commented on how he'd been in SF for 30 years and not a day went by when he didn't think about how lucky he was to live in the most beautiful city in the world.
I agree. Even driving around SF you can't help but feel like you are in a little magical paradise where people and nature live in harmony together. We are very fortunate to live here.
