Right across from Dolores Park, there’s the adorable Dolores Park Cafe. I don’t know how they scored such an awesome location, they must have signed some kind of pact with the devil. There’s indoor seating along with some limited seating out front.

A cool and refreshing smoothie along with a cafe au lait. We wanted to fuel up before playing tennis across the street. And no, I can’t play tennis… not at all.
Cobb salad! I don’t know what kind of bacon this was, but it was especially good. Blue cheese on the side, and also blue cheese dressing. A little too much blue cheese if you ask me. Would have been better with something less creamy and super light. But all the components of this salad were super tasty. Excellent tomatoes!

I wasn’t super hungry, so along with the smoothie, I just had this lemon blackberry muffin. Super good. It’s a lovely little spot.

So… there’s a lot of coffee shops in San Francisco. And this may be an understatement. I thought there were lots in Seattle, but no, I think there are more in San Francisco. And while there are lots of chains like Starbucks, Peets, etc, there are many more independent shops, and small local chains. One of the better ones we discovered is Ritual Coffee. These pics are from their site at Oxbow. We also visited a shop in the Mission, located far down on Valencia.
They’re serious about their coffee here. They pick their own beans, roast it on their own, and take painstaking steps in brewing the finest cup. Plus, we dig their logo and the aesthetic of their shops.
The menu options are few. You can also buy beans and paraphernalia to take home.A simple iced coffee, served in green cups. These are the ones made from corn, so they’re completely compostable. These coffees are strong, but not bitter, and super smooth. They brew a mean cup. If I had to choose between Blue Bottle and Ritual, I think I’d have to go with Ritual. It’s just a gut feel.

I’d been reading lots of good things about Blue Bottle Coffee. There was a spot in the Ferry Building so J got a latte.