Financial District and SoMa

The skyscrapers of the Financial District create most of the San Francisco [1] skyline, which extends out to the waterfront, locally called the Embarcadero. It’s here that the major players of the San Francisco business world make and spend their money.

The Stock Exchange sits in the midst of the action, making San Francisco [1] not just rich but important in the international financial scene. But even businesspeople have to eat, and they certainly like to drink, so the Financial District offers a wealth of restaurants [2] and bars [3]. Hotels [4] tend towards expensive tall towers, and the shopping [5] here caters to folks with plenty of green.

SoMa (local shorthand for the South of Market area) was once a run-down post-industrial mess that rented warehouses to artists. Urban renewal and the ballpark have turned it into the neighborhood of the 21st century, complete with upscale restaurants and chi-chi wine bars.