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Built in 1898 in glorious Beaux-Arts style with a 245-foot clock tower, San Francisco’s Ferry Building sits where Market Street meets the Embarcadero. It was the original gateway to the city, and boats used to bring around 50,000 passengers a day into San Francisco.
When the Golden Gate and Bay Bridges were built in the ‘30s, ferry traffic gave way to roads and freeways. In fact, the double-decker Embarcadero Freeway went right in front of the Ferry Building for decades. It’s hard to believe, but the now-iconic building was once like a wallflower at a middle school dance—hidden in the shadows and unnoticeable.
The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake shook things up.
The highway was torn down for safety reasons, and suddenly, this Beaux-Art beauty was visible. It underwent a full renovation, and planners turned it into one of San Francisco’s most beloved places to eat and drink when it officially opened in 2003 as the Ferry Building Marketplace (but we just call it The Ferry Building).
Today, farmers market devotees, eaters, commuters, and visitors cross paths every day inside the light and airy Ferry Building, where there are more than 50 shops, coffee stands, cafes, and restaurants.
It’s one of many amazing things to do in San Francisco.
There’s also a year-round farmers’ market that sets up around the outside of the Ferry Building. It runs Tuesday & Thursday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with farmers and artisans from around the Bay Area and California selling meat, seafood, flowers, cheese, jams, honey, olive oil, bread and baked goods, and more.
It’s pretty easy to discover on your own, but if you want your food served with some local history told by a knowledgeable guide, take a Farmers’ Market and Ferry Building walking tour.
There is a lot to discover at the Ferry Building, but this guide should get your stomach grumbling.
Parachute Bakery
A new darling of the Ferry Building, opened in September 2025, and born from the culinary minds behind Michelin-ranked Sorrel, parachute is where melt-in-your-mouth dreams come true—if you’re willing to wait in line for it.
The item to secure is the Parachute Chocolate Entremet, a multi-layered chocolate dessert that resembles their logo: a parachute and a croissant.
Honestly, it looks like a piece of modern art, and it disappeared quicker than the ever-present queue of devoted pastry lovers.
You can also get morning buns, croissants, pain au chocolate, and my personal fave—the Everything Kouign Amann, a savory version of the classic pastry with scallions, everything seasoning, and a cream cheese-like mousse. Yum!
El Porteño Empanadas
There is always a line here, too, and I am often in it. This Argentinian empanada stop sells golden pastries filled with spicy beef, gooey cheese, smoky chicken, shrimp, and some vegetarian options too. Each is perfectly seasoned, hot, and ready to eat on the spot from a paper bag.
It’s the perfect midday lunch on the go, or a fuel-up snack before setting out to explore all the amazing things to do in San Francisco.
FYI, if you can ask for them frozen, then take them home, wipe a little egg wash over the top, and bake.
Hog Island Oyster
If you can’t take a day trip to Point Reyes and Tomales Bay, stop here for the freshest bivalves in the city. The outdoor patio hums on sunny days, but I prefer the inside oyster bar. It faces the water and is a great perch for people watching.
Slurp a trio or a dozen with mignonette or straight with lemon, or try the clam chowder, oysters Rockefeller, and towering shellfish platters.
Nopa Fish
Another newcomer in 2025, Nopa Fish is part market, part casual restaurant, with a focus on sustainable and responsibly sourced seafood.
You can grab sandwiches, fish and chips, and seasonal small plates. They also sell gorgeous fresh catch fillets and seafood to take back to your Airbnb.
A16 La Pala
A spin-off of the beloved A16 restaurant in The Marina, this counter-service spot offers Roman-style pizza al taglio, or pizza by the slice. Baked in large rectangular pans, the pizza is sold in square or rectangular portions.
You can also grab focaccia sandwiches, salads, classic antipasti, and Italian pastries.
Fog City Flea Trading Post
I love this shop, but the word ‘shop’ hardly does justice to this 5,000-square-foot ode to made-in-San-Francisco goods. It’s hard to know where to look, to be honest.
You’ll find vintage clothing, t-shirts, décor, jewelry, hats, printed scarves, coffee mugs, and knick-knacks galore, all sourced from local makers. It’s the perfect place to take a rest between stuffing your face, and to pick up some San Francisco-sourced goods, too.
Arquet
Taking over the space occupied by The Slanted Door (RIP fabulous restaurant), this is the newest full-service restaurant in the Ferry Building, also from the team behind Sorrel. It’s open Wednesday through Sunday for lunch and dinner.
The bright dining room is inviting, as is the coastal California menu that is casual, sustainable, and designed for sharing. You can expect to find items like Dungeness crab brioche, roasted chicken, BBQ oysters, ricotta dumplings, and more on the rotating menu. Reservations are essential, though you could snag a seat at the bar.
Humphry Slocombe
This ice cream outpost is known for its quirky flavors that blend novelty with deliciousness. Perhaps that’s why it’s been a beloved San Francisco institution since opening its first ‘scooperia’ in the Mission district in 2008.
They’re beloved for their delicious ice cream in best-selling flavors like Secret Breakfast (bourbon & corn flakes) and Blue Bottle Vietnamese Coffee. My personal favorite is the Peanut Butter Fudge Ripple because I happen to love chunks of peanut butter in my chocolate.
Ferry Plaza Wine Merchant
A bottle shop, wine bar, and easy meeting point, this nearly 3,000-square-foot space has been a go-to for me for years as an easy spot to catch up with friends coming to the city from Larkspur or Sausalito on the ferry.
The menu features cheese and charcuterie platters to nibble alongside a selection of California and world wines, poured by the glass or by the bottle.
Delica
A great Japanese-California spot with fresh grab-and-go items like sushi rolls, salads, donburi, bento boxes, udon noodles, soup, and more. If they have the wasabi garlic potato salad, don’t skip it!
Grab a table or bench outside and watch the ferries roll in with the tide.
Miette
Cute as a French crumb (Miette means crumb in French), this has been a Ferry Building mainstay since the very beginning, arriving in 2005.
What started as a Berkeley farmers’ market pop-up is now a beloved Bay Area go-to for French macarons, cookies, candies, cakes, and more.
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