San Francisco 12

Let it snow elsewhere — the City rocks the holidays

BY ANGELA HILL

The warmest season you’ll ever know is December in San Francisco. Not so much the temperature, but the festivities, the lights, the grand hotels, the drag queens performing “The Golden Girls: The Christmas Episodes.” That’s sure to make you warm all over.

The City by the Bay is a favorite, quirky and, yes, expensive place to visit any time of year, but it’s something extra special at the holiday season. When the fog curls over the Golden Gate, it swaddles the city in a magical calm. Streetlamps, ferryboat beacons, the holiday lights that rim the Embarcadero Center towers like a vertical game of “Tron” –all are amplified with glowing coronas.

Our fog is the closest we get to a winter wonderland. It’s moist, it’s chilly, it’s gray as the driven-over snow, but you never have to shovel 2 feet of it off your windshield. Against this cotton-ball backdrop, cable cars twinkle with tinsel and wreaths. If you’re lucky, your conductor will clang out a ringing endorsement of “Jingle Bells” as you climb halfway to the stars along the Powell Street line, up to Union Square and Nob Hill. There, magical realms of holiday warmth, glitter and elegance are just a revolving door away, free for all to view. From an enchanted-castle confection in the lobby of the Westin St. Francis to the two-story gingerbread house at the Fairmont, the city’s grandedame hotels are packed with extravagant decorations to lift the coldest of hearts.

Of course, Union Square is holiday central, despite some ongoing construction. Every year, there’s a giant Christmas tree glittering with 33,000 LEDs, a 25-foot glowing menorah where people gather for the annual Hanukkah Festival of Lights. There’s music from the San Francisco Boys Chorus, the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir and an ice rink in the middle of it all. Fog or no, the temps are often balmier in December than they are in the socked-in summer months. But even on a nice day in this town, always bring a jacket to fend off the evening chill.

People may be shopping more online, but window watching at the big, glamorous stores is still tradition. Saks Fifth Avenue never disappoints with stunning arrays. Diminutive diamond chandeliers twinkle in Tiffany & Co.’s tiny jewel-box windows. (Stop next door at Williams Sonoma for a free sample of hot cider.) And a definite must-see are the SPCA holiday windows at Macy’s at the corner of Stockton and O’Farrell, where adoptable, adorable kittens and puppies frolic in festive displays.

But holiday spirit is not just downtown. San Francisco’s many neighborhoods put their own stamp on this festive season: The Mission, Chinatown, Dogpatch, the Sunset, even Fisherman’s Wharf where a cup of shrimp cocktail from a sidewalk stand can bring a singular sense of joy. In Cow Hollow, Union Street shines with its annual Fantasy of Lights. On the cusp of Hayes Valley, small children dressed in velvet and frills make their way to the War Memorial Opera House for their first glimpse of sugar plum fairies, a regal Mouse King and a magical Nutcracker.

Page 65: A firehouse along the Embarcadero is lit up with Christmas lights in San Francisco.

At left: San Francisco’s Pier 39 dresses up for the holidays with, among other things, a grand tree in the welcome plaza.

In recent years, the city has indeed been changing with the influx of the tech industry. It’s brought a new vibe, a new energy and plenty of bustle wherever you go. So be prepared for the hustle of traffic, lines at restaurants, packed cable cars, crowds at events. Take public transit whenever possible.

Even so, distinctly San Francisco elements remain: Things like “The Golden Girls” parody, irreverent Beach Blanket Babylon shows and Kung Pao Kosher Comedy on Christmas Day – Jewish humor at a Chinese restaurant. The vibrant arts community shines, with light sculptures all around town. And the city is a virtual box of chocolates, from classics like Ghirardelli to today’s bean-to-bar artisan chocolatiers.

For Bay Area locals, instead of the usual day trip or in-and-out for a specific event, consider a more immersive experience. Stay a night. Splurge on a fancy dinner at Jardinière — an SF classic now in its 20th year — or take high tea at The Palace Hotel, or an elegant lunch in the Rotunda restaurant atop Neiman Marcus where every meal begins with the traditional puffy popover with strawberry butter.

And if the holidays aren’t your thing at all, December is a fine time to visit some of the popular tourist attractions while everyone else is in merry madness mode — the museums, Golden Gate Park, Alcatraz and more.

That should keep you busy ‘til the chilly days of summer.

UMMMM, CHOCOLATE

1

Ghirardelli Chocolate

You can’t beat a classic. Beneath the glittering Ghirardelli sign that’s graced many a postcard, the chocolate company has been In business for 160 years and they know what they’re doing. At the old-fashioned soda fountain, soda jerks in crisp white hats go speeding around, compiling mountainous sundaes and splits. Plus there’s the retail shop with walls of everything from Dark Cocoa Nibs to Cherry Tango bars for the perfect gift. Even if you just walk in the door, you’ll be handed a sample. And the square itself is filled with holiday spirit, a towering sparkling tree, special events and more.

Details: Ghirardelli Square at Fisherman’s Wharf; www.ghirardelli.com.

Within this Mission District storefront is an expansive haven of dark and bitter goodness, where its small-batch single-origin chocolates are made. It’s possibly the only chocolate company in the Bay Area that offers factory tours right now. The front of the building is decorated to look like a chocolate bar studded with treats, cookies, confections and hot chocolate. There are classes and workshops available for adults and Oompa Loompas, I mean, children. Dandelion also has a stand at the San Francisco’s Ferry Building Marketplace. And for the holiday season, there’s usually a pop-up shop and hotchocolate stand on San Jose’s Santana Row. Details: 740 Valencia St.; also at the Ferry Building, at The Embarcadero and Market Street; www.dandelionchocolate.com.

Above left: Fog City News in San Francisco’s financial district is known for its collection of more than 200 kinds of ultra-premium chocolate bars from around the world.

Above middle: An “Urban UFO’s” Lightmobile is a light sculpture from the Illuminate SF organization.

3 Recchiuti Confections

Michael Recchiuti, often called the Picasso of chocolatiers, gets creative with artistic chocolates and truffles almost too beautiful to eat — almost. He’s known for repurposing a vintage, children’s spin-art machine, placing a chocolate bar inside and setting it whirling. Then he drizzles layers of tinted cocoa butter on top for an edible work of art. You probably know his fetching chocolates and truffles from the flagship booth at the Ferry Building Marketplace, but he and co-founder Jacky Recchiuti also reopened their renovated shop named theLab in the Dogpatch district.

Details: Ferry Building Marketplace on The Embarcadero at Market Street; theLab, 801 22nd St.; www.recchiuti.com.

The Lights Fantasticdont Miss

1 Festival of Light

The Illuminate SF organization showcases the city’s public light-art and sculpture installations year-round, but there’s never a better time to see the works than during the Festival of Light, held from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day in 12 neighborhoods.

Details: www.illuminatesf.com.

2 Union Street Fantasy of Lights

Thousands of holiday lights set off the Victorians and shops that line this Cow Hollow district street. Santa makes an appearance, along with jugglers, ponies dressed as reindeer, horse-drawn carriage rides, face painters, and an “elf hunt” in various shops.

Details: Kicks off Dec. 2; Union Street and Fillmore Street; www.sresproductions.com/ events/union-street-holiday-program.

Fairmont Hotel

If you do nothing else holiday-related this December, get thee to the gingerbread house at San Francisco’s Fairmont hotel. It’s simply festive overload, in the best possible way. The 22-foot-tall, two-story house in the Grand Lobby will knock your Christmas socks off. It’s huge. You can even walk through the middle of it and look in the windows to spy a mini kitchen with cookies ready to enter an oven, a giant nutcracker and a train circling through a snowy village.

This delectable edible abode (don’t nibble it, though — Santa frowns on that) is crafted fresh each year by the hotel’s culinary and engineering teams, with more than 7,500 baked gingerbread bricks, hundreds of pounds of candy and more than a ton of royal icing. The sweet, sweet cookie aroma fills the lobby.

But that’s not all. There’s a towering, glittering tree, every banister in the lobby is clad in lights and foliage, reindeer stand atop the registration desk and there’s a kids area called the North Pole Nook complete with a gingerbread doghouse. For even more holiday swank, make reservations for one of hotel’s holiday tea times, available Nov. 24 through Jan. 1.

Details: It’s free to view the gingerbread house and decorations. The display opens Nov. 25; 950 Mason St. Check the website for pricing on holiday teas and for room rates; www.fairmont.com/sanfrancisco.