Category: (5)

Summer in the City by the Bay!

Apr 17, 2017

 

When planning to come to San Francisco during the summer, the first thing that came to my mind was the Hollywood image of the “always sunny California”…… but to my surprise, I was really wrong.
Basically, San Francisco is globally known by having cold and foggy summers. There is even an American saying that says “the coldest winter I ever saw was the summer that I spent in San Francisco” (quote that has been attributed to Mark Twain). Fortunately, this city and its surroundings have plenty of summer activities to offer. Below are some of my favorite sports and recreational activities for this summer:

  • This year San Francisco will be hosting the first races of the America’s Cup in mid-August, and will continue next year. The race will start in August 12th, and everybody will be able to watch it from the new Pier 23. http://www.americascup.com
  • The great San Francisco Giants will start the second half of the season by hosting three matches against  the Houston Astros from Friday 13th to Sunday  15th at the AT&T Park, followed by two more home series at the end of this month. Remember to come to the stadium and live the Giants experience, particularly after the great success of Giants players in the All-Start game last night. http://sanfrancisco.giants.mlb.com
  • The WTA Bank of the West tennis tournament at Stanford started this Monday, and will be on until the end of the week. Take a chance and drive south to watch some great tennis matches and enjoy of the great weather of Stanford. While driving South by the highway 280, there are also plenty of places to hike and picnic, so you can enjoy a full day of summer. http://www.bankofthewestclassic.com/
  • Making a day escape to Marin county and Point Reyes. Throughout this route you will be able to do virtually everything like hike, bike or any other outdoor sport, enjoy of a relaxing day at Stinson beach, visit Muir Woods Park and finish the day eating the most delicious oysters at Tomales Bay Oyster Farm.

So we invite you to come here and enjoy with us a different summer………. A San Francisco Summer 😉

By Mats Nalsen

Who’s Hungry?

Apr 17, 2017

Hi, I’m Ping, I’ve been with Latitude 38 Group for a little over 2 years and my blog post is well overdue. But for good reason! Since I didn’t move here as a student looking for housing, I had to think of a topic that would benefit our readers. I came up with FOOD. Who DOESN’T love food?

I moved to San Francisco from Pennsylvania in February 2003. I was a December graduate with no job. I came to SF broke, intending to crash on my sister’s couch, and hopefully to land my dream job. I moved here with my cousin and since we had to eat, we went on a hunt for the best and cheapest places to eat in the City. One of the first things we learned about SF was that if we ate at a different restaurant for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, it would take us over seven years to get through everything. This driving us even more to start our hunt.

Fast forward to 9+ years down the road; I still have yet to go to some of the most well-known restaurants, but I do have a pretty extensive list of favorites that I can share. I’ll list a few from the top of my head, in no particular order. And please excuse the veer toward Asian Food; we didn’t get much of the good stuff in PA, so I’m like a kid in Candyland here in SF.

  1. Roy’s – Hawaiian Fusion, SOMA: Must try: the Butterfish! It melts in your mouth
  2. Cha Cha Cha – Caribbean/Cuban Tapas, Mission or Haight: Must try: Plantanos, Cajun Shrimp, the sauce is amazing; ask for more bread so you can use it for dip, Potatoes, YUM!
  3. Barbacco – Italian, FiDi: Learned to love Brussel Sprouts here. Then again, what isn’t wonderful when fried in duck fat?
  4. San Tung – Chinese, Inner Sunset: Must try: the Chicken Wings. Who’da thought a Chinese restaurant would have the best chicken wings in town?
  5. Saiwaii Ramen – Japanese, Outer Sunset: Must try: Pork Belly with any Ramen dish
  6. Sweet Maple – Korean Fusion Breakfast/Brunch: Must try the Millionaire’s Bacon and the Bulgogi scramble. Expect a wait, unless you’re a party of two.
  7. R&G Lounge – Chinese, Chinatown/FiDi: MUST HAVE THE SALT AND PEPPER CRAB!! So delicious. And their Peking Duck is amazing too.
  8. Credo – Italian, Fidi: Love this little place. Their pastas are delicious.
  9. PPQ – Vietnamese, Outer Richmond: Their Crab and Garlic Noodles are to die for!
  10. Gott’s Roadside – American, Ferry Building: I always get the Cobb Salad, Sweet Potato Fries, and either a milkshake or a beer 🙂
  11. House of Dumplings – Chinese, Outer Sunset: Dumplings!
  12. Curry Up Now – Indian Food Truck, FiDi: Must try: the Tikka Masala Burrito (Paneer is Mild, Chicken is SPICY HOT)
  13. Focaccia Market & Bakery – Deli, FiDi: Make your own salad or sandwich, how can you go wrong?
  14. Spices – Chinese, Inner Richmond: Go to the one on 8th Ave and get the Spicy Beef Noodle Soup, it is truly amazing.
  15. Naan n Curry  – Indian, various locations: You can order anything, its all good. Esp the Naan.
  16. Tawan – Thai, Inner Richmond: Must try the Sweet Chili sauce Fish. I crave this on various occasions.
  17. Singapore Malaysian Restaurant – Singapore/Malaysian, Inner Richmond: Get the Roti Prata, the Kway Teow, some kind of Curry.
  18. Michelangelo’s – Italian, North Beach – Such a great little place, with gummy bears as dessert.
  19. 21st Amendment – Microbrewery, SOMA – Great place for drinks and food. I always get the butternut squash soup and the goat cheese appetizer and a couple of beers 🙂
  20. Anchor & Hope – Seafood, SOMA – Dollar Oysters!
  21. Moshi Moshi – Sushi, Dogpatch – Sea Urchin, yes!


21’s good. “Ping” me for more suggestions. 🙂

Click here to check out the map below with L38’s restaurant recommendations.

Cool Happy Hour Locations in San Francisco

Apr 17, 2017

 

The city by the bay is well known for its great restaurants and food diversity. Its reputation has been well backed up by urban legends like the one that says that you can eat breakfast, lunch and dinner in different places for 3 years without repeating the same restaurant. Sadly, life and restaurants in San Francisco are not exactly cheap, but there are some tricks that allow you to enjoy them without spending your entire budget.

Tons of restaurants around the city offer happy hour menus where you can have nice appetizers and great drinks (only if you are older than 21 years, if not…..soda or water for you….sorry; anyway the food is worth the try) at an accessible price. You can find any type of places, and for any type of food. For example; you can eat a real Italian pizza for $5 at Il Fornaio from 4:30 to 6:30pm (same pizza that will cost you $19 at regular time), and all this can be enjoyed with a nice drink at a reduced price as well (additional special treatment will be available if you talk to Jorge and tell him that Mats sent you ;)).

If you are in the city, I will definitely recommend checking around the financial district. There you will find locals relaxing after long work days. My favorite places are: Osha at Embarcadero, Il Fornaio, Waterbar and their $1 oysters, and Sens on Friday nights; but I’m still trying new places and no regrets so far (it has been more than a year and a half by now).

So please, go out and enjoy the incredible and unpredictable weather of this amazing city, with a nice food and great glass of your favorite drink……..Cheers!

By Mats Nalsen

Baseball Season is on! Hail to the Giants Fans!!!

Apr 17, 2017

 

Ladies and Gentlemen, the best time of the year has arrived. It is not because of the spring, neither because of the better weather; it’s because Baseball has just started!!!!!! Last Thursday was the opening game in the brand new home of the Miami Marlins, and it showed us a preview of a new and exciting season. This is coming after one of the most incredible two month season finale, where the Cardinals (team which I happen to be a fan of) made an amazing come back to become the Champion. For all of us, Baseball fans, last season will be remembered forever; particularly the fifth match of the division series between Cards and Phillies, or the game sixth of the epic world series, both instant classics.

I know that you might not be related to this amazing sport, but San Francisco is a big baseball fan. Actually, to be honest, if you are coming to this great city, you have to watch and live a Giants game “live”(either at the Stadium, or in one of the nice bars around). Giants are one of the most traditional and famous teams in the Major League Baseball. Originally from NY, they moved to SF in 1957 as part of the League expansion to California. The Giants were the 2010 Champions.

Following an excitement pre-season and a great first week, this Friday will be the first home match for the Giants. Even though the Giants have a slow start, they will definitely pick up this season. I really believe that they have a great team this year, and a nice chance to get to the post season. They will be playing at home from Friday till Wednesday, so come to support the Giants and enjoy a live game at the AT&T Park.

By the way, remember to support the amazing Panda…………

For tickets you might go to www.stubhub.com; or as I told you in the article, all bars around have a great ambient (never as the stadium, but it is a great substitute).

By Mats Nalsen

Latitude 38 Group is Proud to Announce our New Student Housing Division

Apr 17, 2017

While doing a study on housing in San Francisco, Tony and his team noticed a huge supply constraint of viable, affordable housing for students in the City.

San Francisco’s population has 68% of renters. The new tech boom has created further overwhelming pressure on the housing market and as a result skyrocketing rentals. The affordable end of the market namely student housing, has not been immune from this pressure. With over 110,000 tertiary students, San Francisco is a hotbed for language schools, Art Institutes, Music Academies and graduate and under graduate degrees. A large proportion of the student population come from out of town and overseas, excited to come here only to find housing extremely over priced and /or unavailable.

Latitude 38 group is now focused on being the leading provider of safe, clean and convenient accommodation for students, Interns and short terms stays. We serve schools and companies especially tech to fulfill their housing needs. Our Housing Services team led by Mariya Nesheva, is now developing a full service platform to create a living experience that befits the standards and qualities of San Francisco.