It was an early morning in San Francisco recently and I made it over to the fashionable and scenic Hayes Valley neighborhood and the corner of Hayes and Octavia.
Just onto Octavia my feet took me to a shipping container that is home to Ritual Coffee Roasters.
Ritual Coffee has been a San Francisco based coffee roaster since 2005. I smiled upon seeing the red cup-and-star logo as I reached the counter.
The pour overs and hand crafted coffees were being made one after another for those that came by. The baristas were nice and knowledgable, making sure everyone was getting a great coffee beverage.
I went the Macchiato route on this visit, taking one of their cups as a souvenir. 🙂
The lounge chairs just outside the container was my home for a few, even though it was misting slightly. The light rain was no factor as the flavor of the macchiato and watching the happenings in the neighborhood was my focus.
After capturing the scene at Ritual I walked across Octavia and into Patricia’s Green. The park is surrounded by lots of color and all the boutique, coffee and foodie options in the neighborhood.
You’ll find lots of romantic park bench seating opportunities. A good place to hangout and people and dog watch. Hayes Valley has the feel of a small-town, even though it’s right in the middle of a big city.
It was time to head off Octavia and onto Linden Street for more exploration and coffee deliciousness.
Opposite Ritual and facing Linden is the Smitten Ice Cream shipping container. Based on the reviews, I’m sure they will see me soon. 🙂
Walking onto Linden I noticed lots of bicycles on both sides of the street. Finding bikes for rent is a pretty common occurrence in San Francisco. Anytime I see bikes in the city it immediately makes me think of the 1980’s Kevin Bacon movie, Quicksilver. Always have had a thing for San Francisco based movies!
As you walk down the tree and flower lined Linden it’s a good bet you’ll see people congregating before the next intersection.
What could they be doing? They are hanging out and getting ready to order at my next coffee stop, the Blue Bottle Coffee Kiosk.
The kiosk and outside location keeps you right in the middle of the happenings of the neighborhood, just like Ritual, as your ordering and enjoying your coffee.
Blue Bottle is a coffee roaster headquartered in nearby Oakland. Everyone who orders here is guaranteed of getting a coffee less than 48 hours out of the roaster.
Always checking out the cream and sugar stands, here is one of the portable variety.
I went with a basic espresso, enjoying the few sips and shot of caffeine while watching people come and go. The drink might have been small but so so good as always at Blue Bottle Coffee, a cult-favorite amongst fellow coffee drinkers. The lines you’ll find at their various locations in the Bay Area and New York City say all you need to know. Gotta love seeing the blue bottled logo up close. 🙂
That ended my morning stay in Hayes Valley. It was a fun morning exploring and coffee-ing it up in the neighborhood. It’s a recommended part of the city I will come back to hang out at and enjoy some more craft coffee.
What neighborhoods do recommend in San Francisco to hang out at and checkout the coffee scene? In any city?
