Top 7 Things To Do in San Francisco This Summer (2025)

SF might be known for its cold and fog, but this summer the city is heating up with some of the best food, drink, and cultural events and festivals in the entire Bay Area. New pop-ups and outdoor events have been happening all over the city, bringing tens of thousands of residents and visitors to downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods. And there are a ton of great events coming to the city this summer. This is Austin Klar, your lawyer turned real estate agent in San Francisco and Marin County. And in this video, I'm breaking down my 7 favorite events that are coming to San Francisco in the coming months that you for sure do not wanna miss. From a pizza, bagel, and beer festival in an iconic San Francisco neighborhood, the return of a pop-up bar and music scene in San Francisco's largest park, a food festival at the iconic Ferry Building, a night market along San Francisco's waterfront, a beer festival in San Francisco's Presidio, a free concert series all over town, and the largest independently owned music festival in the entire United States. So whether you're a local or planning a vacation to San Francisco this summer, you have all the info you need in one place for great events. Let's get right to it with the first event, and it is hands down my favorite food festival in San Francisco. Returning for its third year, it's the San Francisco Pizza, Bagel, and Beer Festival in North Beach. The inaugural event in 2023 drew thousands of attendees to experience some of California's best pizza and bagels and some of the best craft brews from all over the Bay Area. And this year is looking like it's going to be the best one yet. World-renowned pizzaiolo Tony Gemignani of Tony's Pizza and the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club have put together a heavy hitter lineup of over 40 local pizzerias, Nearly 2 dozen breweries and 6 bakeries who will be taking over multiple blocks next to San Francisco's Washington Square Park this August. Pizzerias like Tony's, A16, Flour and Water, Pizza Hacker, Square Pie Guys, bagelries like Bagel Maker and The Laundromat, breweries like Sierra Nevada, Allagash, Drake's, Pizza Port, and a whole lot more. Tickets to the festival get you unlimited food and 4 16-ounce beers. There is plenty to eat and drink. And the best part, ticket proceeds go to great local causes. Over the past 2 years, The event has raised around $140,000 for local charities, and this year's beneficiaries include the Salesian Boys and Girls Club, the San Francisco Italian Athletic Club, the North Beach Business Association, and a whole lot more. The event takes place August 16th, and it starts at noon. I'll put a link to where to buy tickets in the description below, and for a list of all the different vendors who are going to be there, 100% worth checking out. By the way, before I get to my next event, if you like videos about current events or what it's like living in San Francisco, new developments, or all things about the San Francisco real estate market, make sure to subscribe to my channel. channel because I make videos about that stuff every single week. And if you're thinking about buying a home in the city and have questions about which neighborhood is the right fit for you, or which ones have the best food or the best walkability, or what all the changes we've seen going on in the market mean for you, reach out to me. I've lived in the Bay Area for over a decade and I've helped numerous people relocate from all over the country in San Francisco. I'd be happy to be a resource for you. I'll put my contact info in the description below. Reach out anytime. Now back to some of my favorite events and popups coming to San Francisco this summer, and this next one is a really unique way to experience San Francisco's iconic Golden Gate Park with the Whale Tail Pop-Up Bar. You'll find the bar on the JFK Promenade, which was closed to car traffic in 2020 and has played host to a ton of outdoor activities since it was closed to cars. And this summer, the Whale's Tail Bar is making its triumphant return to the area. The bar opened at the end of May on JFK Promenade over by 14th Avenue in the East Meadow, and it's gonna be open for the entire summer through October of 2025, weekends. There's a new brunch menu, wine, beer. There's going to be food trucks, music. There's going to be interactive games. All of that set against the backdrop of San Francisco's iconic Golden Gate Park. So when you've had your fill of food, wine, or beer, you can go experience all the incredible things to do at San Francisco's most precious park. It's a great way to spend the weekend, especially when the weather is nice. Go check out the lakes, the walking and hiking trails, all the different museums. You can picnic more in the park, play golf, you name it. There's so much to do there. You could spend days there. All right, the next Next event on my list is a food and drink festival at one of the most traveled to destinations in all of San Francisco, the iconic Ferry Building. On Sunday, June 22nd, the Ferry Building is hosting the annual Foodwise Summer Bash, which will feature unlimited food and drinks from 50 local restaurants and drink makers, including fresh produce from the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market and Mission Community Market. The festival will spread across most of the premises, including the upper level of the Great Hall, all the way to the promenade outside. And on top of the food and drinks, there's gonna be other activities at the event, including live music and an auction, and it's all for a good cause. Proceeds from ticket sales benefit the Foodwise Farmers Market and a bunch of different food access initiatives, including access to food for thousands of students. Now, because it is an alcohol-focused event, it is 21 and over, so you are going to have to leave your kids at home. I've been before, had a great time. Definitely get there, you know, earlier in the event, toward the beginning of the event, because some of the vendors did run out of food toward the end. I'll put a link for the event in the description below with where to buy tickets and more information about the vendors. The next event on my list is a recurring night market at another iconic San Francisco venue that's going to make Friday nights in San Francisco even better. After a many months-long break, the Fort Mason Night Market is making its triumphant return to Fort Mason. On one Friday every month, the Fort Mason Center for Arts and Culture along San Francisco's North Waterfront is completely transformed into an outdoor market with over 100 retail vendors and nearly 2 dozen food and drink vendors in a partnership with Off the Grid and West Coast Craft. If you've never heard of Off the Grid, it's a mobile food innovator founded in San Francisco in 2010 that hosts public markets across the city, basically transforming underutilized spaces in the city into community gathering places. And West Coast Craft produces indoor and outdoor markets for retail vendors all over the Bay Area. Since their launch in 2013, they have played host to thousands of different creators and vendors. Really awesome organizations. And on top of all the food and shopping, there's live music, there's public art installations, and all the sightseeing that comes with being on San Francisco's North Waterfront. The next event takes place June 27th, and I've put a list of the remaining scheduled dates in the description below. Not all of them have been set yet, so make sure to check the website for updates on the dates that are missing. It does get really, really busy. It's a very popular event and parking there is pretty limited, so it's probably best for you to take public transit or a rideshare instead of driving to the event. But it's definitely worth it and it's a great way to experience a former military site in its whole new use. The next event on my list is another festival, also at a former military site, but this time at the iconic Presidio. The Parks Conservancy is hosting its 3rd annual Parks for All Brew Fest right here in the Presidio. Studio where I'm standing. You should expect local craft beer from over a dozen breweries, food trucks, live music, lawn games, all set against incredible views of the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco Bay. The event takes place Saturday, July 19th, and I'll put a link about more information and link for the tickets in the description below. Tickets get you unlimited drinks, and proceeds from ticket sales go to benefit the Park Conservancy's programs, which help improve access for everyone to all of our incredible parks in the city. Great cause and a lot of fun, worth checking out if you like craft beer or you just want to hang out in the park. Next on my list is a There's a series of free concerts coming back to places all around downtown San Francisco. Starting June 14th, Another Planet Entertainment and the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department are bringing back the popular free concert series at locations all around downtown, Embarcadero Plaza, Union Square, and the Civic Center. The series is viewed as a boom to local businesses and typically bring in about 3x the amount of foot traffic as non-event days. So it's a huge boost for local restaurants, local breweries, coffee shops, you name it. It's all part of the great work Mayor Lurie is doing help revitalize our hard-hit downtown. The free concert series is part of a 3-year agreement with Another Planet Entertainment that allows them rights to host ticketed events at the polo fields in exchange for free concerts at these locations. I think it's a great idea and glad to see more events coming to downtown. Arts and culture are obviously a huge part of what makes this city great, and even better that these events are free to the public. Do you want more information about the concert series? I've put a link in the description to a press release going over all the details. And last but not least, Outside Lands. Now in its 17th year, Outside Lands is the single largest independently owned music festival in the entire country. The 3-day festival is basically San Francisco's version of Coachella, obviously a lot smaller. The 80-acre festival grounds feature art installations and exhibits by local artists, dozens of different local food and drink vendors ranging from like Michelin-starred restaurants down to like food truck and pop-up spinoff establishments. This year's festival is taking place from August 8th 5th to 10th, featuring artists like Tyler, the Creator, John Summit, Doja Cat, Doechii, Glass Animals, Ludacris, and a lot more. I've been to the festival multiple times. It's always a great event, but just remember to bring a jacket because even if it's warm during the day, the weather can turn on a dime and you will be freezing if you are still out there listening to the headliners at 9, 10 o'clock at night. More info on the lineups, the vendors, and links to purchase tickets are in the description below. Well, there you have it. Those are some of my favorite events and pop-ups coming to San Francisco this summer that you're not gonna wanna miss. If you like videos about current events, or you're curious about all the new development going on in the city, or what it's like living in San Francisco, or all things San Francisco real estate, make sure to subscribe to my channel because I make videos about that stuff every single week. And if you're thinking about buying a home in San Francisco and you're curious about how all the changes we're seeing citywide impact the local housing market, reach out to me. I was a lawyer at one of the biggest law firms in the world before getting into real estate, and I've helped numerous people relocate from all over the country. I'd be happy to be a resource for you. I'll put my contact info in the description below. Reach out anytime. And before you go, if you want to learn more about new policies that are being implemented across the city and how it's revitalizing downtown, I've got videos on those topics that I'll link in the description below. Go check them out. I hope you enjoy, and I'll see you in the next one.