Best restaurants & places to visit downtown (San Francisco: how much, house)

[BuckeyezRule]

Our family will be visiting in a couple weeks, & I wanted to find out the best places to visit downtown. Free or cheap is the best. LOL We have a 4 1/2 & 3 1/2 yo kiddos. =) Also the best places to eat that aren't that expensive & kid friendly. I figured the locals would be the best to ask! =) I also read that the zoo is free the 1st wed. of each mos. Is this still true? =) TIA

[mr bolo]

Originally Posted by BuckeyezRule

Our family will be visiting in a couple weeks, & I wanted to find out the best places to visit downtown. Free or cheap is the best. LOL We have a 4 1/2 & 3 1/2 yo kiddos. =) Also the best places to eat that aren't that expensive & kid friendly. I figured the locals would be the best to ask! =) I also read that the zoo is free the 1st wed. of each mos. Is this still true? =) TIA

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St. Anthony Foundation | Dining Room

free meals are available from ST. ANTHONY's dining room in SF

There are no requirements or documentation necessary to eat in the Dining Room. The Dining Room is open at 10:30 a.m. for seniors 60 and older, people with disabilities, and families with children. Service for all other guests begins at 11:30 a.m.

[humboldtrat]

I don't understand your question. "Best restaurants" usually means expensive. Fast food places are usually cheap and kid friendly but are not the "best" places to eat.

[BuckeyezRule]

I meant free things to do. Best doesn't always mean expensive, does it? LOL How about pizza places? I guess I should've defined not that expensive. Under $20 a person (kids eat free is a bonus =) .

[City Boy]

Best and Cheap does not really go together in SF. Food here is expensive. I'd say Village Pizza is one of the best pizza spots in SF IMO. It's on Van Ness not too far from Down Town.

[capoeira]

Originally Posted by BuckeyezRule

I meant free things to do. Best doesn't always mean expensive, does it? LOL How about pizza places? I guess I should've defined not that expensive. Under $20 a person (kids eat free is a bonus =) .

Here are some suggestions in the downtown area.

$3.00 huge slices at Blondies right on Powell by the Cable Cars.

Blondies Pizza

More downtown pizza:

Uncle Vito's

The food court in the lower level at the Westfield Center is kid friendly,however avoid the very crowded peak lunch times,go for an early lunch.

Westfield - Dining

The zoo is free the first Wed. of the month. However then it is extremely crowded and parking is difficult.

[lostonmulberrystreet]

The farmer's market at the ferry building is a great way to spend a weekend afternoon and there are several fantastic restaurants and vendors to choose from in your price range. Please forgive some of the responses. There are some people who live in sf that believe "family" means chuck e cheese. Chinatown dim sum places are usually fun for kids too. Union Square has a great cafe where you can pick up a sandwich and people watch. I also recommend the Metreon at 4th and Mission. There are several nice places in the food court area. It has a beautiful public open space just outside and if you follow the pedestrian bridge across Howard, you'll find a playground and Zeum( a hands on, interactive museum for kids) as well as a carousel.

[humboldtrat]

From Market Street in downtown SF, take a ride on a vintage streetcar on the F line Historic Streetcars ($1.50 one way) and go to Pier 39. Plenty to see including the sea lions lounging on a marina dock. Also, there are plenty of places to eat at the Pier. You can walk further down to Fishermans Wharf, watch sailboats on the bay and you don't have to spend any money. PIER 39

[clongirl]

Just about all Asian restaurants are kid friendly AND have reasonable prices. I second the dim sum places! Check out a place called Yank Sing on Spear St. in the Rincon center. It's my favorite place to go and you can spend as little or as much as you want (it's so noisy in there that your kids will blend in!). Actually, there are a few places that look reasonable within the same center. San Francisco is actually one of the best places in the world to find cheap, excellent food. Try taquerias for fab Mexican food (cheap) and child friendly also. What you won't/shouldn't do is seek out those large chain restaurants- I know they are child friendly but you can get that sort of thing anywhere in America!

[gizmo980]

Take your kids to Mel's! melsdrive-in.com It's an old-fashioned burger joint with thick milkshakes, jukeboxes, etc... burgers run about $8-10, and they have cheaper kid's meals. One idea of a fun free activity is sea-lion watching, which I enjoyed as a kid - just go to the Cliff House overlook, and put a few quarters in the binoculars. The lions were gone for nearly 20 years, following the 1989 quake, but finally came back to seal rock last year. You could also take them to Golden Gate Park, where they have a lot of cheap & free options. I'm not sure how much it costs, but I used to love the Japanese Tea Garden there. What else? There's always the beach, and if you're here during a Giants game, you can view (at AT&T Park) from the breezeway for free. I'll let you know if I think of anything else... have fun!