Top Things To Do in San Francisco in September 2024!

San Francisco is always buzzing with new things to do, and September of 2024 is shaping up to be an incredible month. We have the reopening of one of the most iconic buildings in all of San Francisco after a $450 million renovation. We have a ton of new restaurants coming to downtown. We have a major music festival, a ton of food and garden exhibitions. There is so much happening. I'm Austin Klar, your lawyer turned real estate agent in San Francisco and Marin County, and I'm gonna break down all of my favorite things coming to San Francisco and the Bay Area this September in this video. So whether you already live here or you're just visiting, Now that you know everything that you need to add to your SF bucket list for September, let's kick it right off with the new restaurants that I'm most excited about coming next month. First up, we have Bombay Brasserie, an upscale Indian restaurant coming to Union Square. This isn't just a local shop, a new restaurant that's opening its first outpost in San Francisco. This restaurant has international pedigree with locations in London, Cape Town, Singapore, and now they are coming to San Francisco. And they're not just coming to San Francisco, they are coming to Union Square, and that's perhaps what I'm most excited about. We have seen so many headlines and have heard so many stories about businesses leaving Union Square and it becoming a ghost town, but that is not actually the reality. Yes, businesses have left. Macy's, for example, left its flagship location in Union Square, along with a number of other retail locations all across the country, not just Union Square. And a lot of other businesses have left too, but a lot of businesses remain and are actually thriving. arriving there, and it's nice to see a new business setting up shop in the area, betting on the trajectory of the area, and opening up new space there. I'm really excited about the unique blend of flavors from different Indian regions that are coming to this restaurant in Union Square. The vibe is a mix of French and Indian, both cuisines that I love but candidly have never had together, so I'm really excited to try this fusion vibe. Next up, we have another restaurant in downtown San Francisco, this one at the former Le Meridien Hotel on Clay Street near the Embarcadero Center. The Le Meridien has since rebranded to a new hotel called the J Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel. It was the only new hotel to open in San Francisco in 2023, and the renovated interiors are gorgeous. And there are a number of new restaurants and bars at that hotel, and the newest one coming next month is a restaurant called Prelude. It is a Southern comfort vibe mixed with the incredibly flavorful, delicious California ingredients. It's going to be more on the upscale side. It is a price-fixed menu. Anytime someone can do Southern-inspired comfort food with an upscale flair that California dining offers, I'm all for it. And that what's even better about this restaurant is the chef behind it. This guy has incredible pedigree. He has been a chef at numerous restaurants, top restaurants all over the Bay Area, including at a multiple Michelin-starred restaurant in the East Bay. So I'm really excited about what he's going to add to an already great brand new hotel spot in downtown San Francisco. And the next one on my list by far is the most anticipated opening of 2024, not just September, but all of 2024. But before I get to it, if you're enjoying this content and want to stay up to date on all things food, events, and course the housing market in San Francisco and Marin County, definitely subscribe to my channel because I make content about all this stuff every single week. And if you ever have questions about any of it or want more information about the events or what's coming soon, definitely reach out to me. I'd be happy to talk to you about it. I'll leave my contact info in the description below. And now back to San Francisco's most anticipated opening of the month, the reopening of the Transamerica Building. I'm most excited about this because not only is the Transamerica Pyramid probably the most iconic building in the entire city of San Francisco. But the reopening of the Transamerica Pyramid doesn't bring just one new restaurant. There are multiple new restaurants. There's a sky lounge, multiple bars, a private club. There's so much that is coming to the renovated Transamerica Pyramid. Developer Michael Schwo purchased the Transamerica Pyramid in 2020 for about $600 million and then subsequently invested, along with his partners, about $450 million into completely overhauling the now 50-year-old building. And they are completely reimagining what it means to work at the building. They're completely reinventing the office spaces at that building, turning them into very luxurious hospitality-driven spaces with amenity spaces. And like I said, all these new restaurants and clubs and lounges. The grand reopening of the Transamerica Tower is scheduled for September 12th, and it is going to be an incredible event. And most recently announced about the reopening of the Transamerica Pyramid is that Florida-based star chef Brad Kellogg is going to be helming the food projects at the center. So he's gonna be bringing food and beverage offerings to the tower. Not only is he opening two public-facing restaurants on the ground level of the Transamerica Building, he's also going to be handling the food at the tenant-only private amenity spaces, which include a sky lounge and 48th floor cocktail bar. The restaurants will include a casual bistro called Café Sebastian, as well as a Japanese-Italian fusion restaurant called Ama. There's also gonna be a gelato and shaved ice shop run by his pastry chef wife, Soraya. Soraya. I cannot wait to see everything that they have done to the place. The lobby at Transamerica has been open for several months and it is beautiful, but I have not had a chance to see the other renovated spaces at the tower. So I'm really looking forward to seeing it reopen in the coming weeks. All right. So those are my favorite restaurant openings coming next month. And now I'm going to talk to you about some of my favorite outdoor events and festivals. And first on the list is what are called Downtown First Thursdays. It's an all-ages street party that has recently been started first Thursday of every month in downtown San Francisco. The mayor's office recently instituted this program. In an effort to bring people back to downtown San Francisco. As we know, office vacancies, especially in downtown, are at record highs. So we need more foot traffic to the area to help support and reinvigorate local businesses. And I think this is a great way to do it. These events take place on the first Thursday of every month. They started a couple of months ago and they're going at least through April of 2025. There are street discos, DJs, live performances. There have been drag performances. Fashion shows, and a ton of other street performances at these events. The events of this one are taking place along Second Street between Market and Howard, as well as the alleyway offshoots of those streets. There's also a 21-and-over outdoor bar area between Minna and Natoma. I think this is a great idea by the mayor's office. Any ways that we can get more foot traffic to downtown and reinvigorate the area, I'm 100% for it. And so far, these events have been really successful. At drawing really great crowds. They're super fun events. If you haven't checked one out, definitely worth it. Next up, we have the peak bloom of the Dahlia Dell at Golden Gate Park, right next to the Conservatory of Flowers. The dahlias usually start to bloom in June, but reach their peak toward the end of August and in September, and you can enjoy all the colors and beautiful scenery through October at the park. And when you're done looking at the dahlias, you can do a number of any other amazing things available at Golden Gate Park, the most amenities at any park that I'm aware of, especially in San Francisco, things like golf, disc golf, touring the de Young Museum, the California Academy of Sciences Museum, the Japanese Tea Garden. There are baseball fields, there are picnic areas, barbecue areas, there are lakes where you can take out boats and paddleboards. There is so much to do and see in Golden Gate Park. I love it. You could spend multiple days there and still not do everything there is to do. So after you're done checking out those dahlias, you could spend multiple days in the park doing all of that great stuff. And if you're into garden-type festivals, another great one outside of San Francisco is at Filoli Gardens in Woodside. Woodside is about 45 minutes south of San Francisco, and they are doing their Summer Night Series now for the next few weeks. Every Wednesday and Thursday for the next several weeks through September 19th, from 5:00 to 8:00 PM, they let you roam Filoli Gardens with cocktails, take in all that beautiful scenery. If you haven't been there before, definitely worth checking out, especially because it'll be sunset. You'll get to see it in a whole new light probably than what you've seen it before. Yeah. And you get to do it all with cocktails, so no better way to do it. There are also food trucks that service the event, so you can get dinner there and make a whole night out of it. Next on my list is probably one of the most random events I've ever seen pop up in San Francisco: a rooftop outdoor roller rink. The SVN West Sky Rink in the Civic Center has 21-and-over events starting at 4 PM Wednesdays through Sundays. Think things like themed music and costume parties with food and alcohol while roller skating on the top of a rooftop right in the heart of San Francisco. Tickets start at $29 and include skate rentals, so it is really not a bad deal at all, and it is a really unique thing to try out if you haven't done something like that before. The Sky Rink debuted earlier this summer, and it's hosting its last couple parties heading into the first couple of weeks of September, so don't miss your chance to check it out. Next up is one of the most anticipated music festivals of the year in San Francisco, the EDM music festival Portola at Pier 80 in San Francisco. I'm not super in the know when it comes to EDM, but I have a lot of friends who are, and all of them have been pushing me super hard to go to Portola because the lineup is apparently insane. Combine that with the awesome waterfront setting and the food and drink vendors that are gonna be there, it is going to be a can't-miss event. The 2-day music festival takes place on Saturday, September 28th, and Sunday, September 29th. So if you like EDM music, if you like live music, if you like being outdoors, if you like food, if you like alcohol, definitely a great event to go to. Tickets directly from the event sponsor are sold out, so if you do want to go and don't already have tickets, you are going to need to get them secondhand. The last event I want to highlight is actually a free event. It is the Haight-Ashbury Street Fair, which is like an art festival in the heart of Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco. It's an annual fair, and historically it has been known to host some incredible musicians like Jefferson Airplane, famous for actually living in the area. The fair is celebrating its 45th anniversary on Sunday, September 15th, so it's definitely going to be a special event. There will be a ton of food, beer, wine, cocktails, art, you name it, and you get to enjoy all of that while looking at some of the most historic homes in San Francisco, the beautiful Victorians all throughout the Haight-Ashbury area. Well, there you have it. Those are my favorite new restaurants and events coming to San Francisco in September of 2024. There's no doubt the city is undergoing a ton of change. Some of it has been negative, but there's a lot going on that is really positive, and it doesn't get enough coverage. So on this channel, I'm going to be doing my best to highlight all of the great things that are happening in the area, because sometimes that gets lost in the mix. So if you want to stay up to date on new events, new developments, things that are coming soon, and all the great things about living day-to-day life in San Francisco and in Marin County, definitely subscribe to my channel for more videos just like this. And there is no doubt that all the things that have been happening to San Francisco and in San Francisco have had an impact on the housing market., you know, especially on prices, supply and demand, what neighborhoods are good, what neighborhoods are not as good, how those things are shifting. It's a really fast-paced, challenging market. It is changing constantly. It can be really tough to navigate on your own. So if you ever have any questions, whether you're thinking about relocating or not, if you just want to learn more, definitely reach out to me. I'd be happy to help you. I'll leave my contact information in the description below, and I'd be happy to chat with you. Thanks for watching, and I'll see you in the next video.