San Francisco Vacation Day 3

In-N-Out animal fries: The most over the top food

Of course we needed to start the day with a great cup of coffee. Z. and I each went with an americano from the Blue Bottle in the Ferry Building. While waiting for our coffee, we discovered the Acme Bread Company. And by "discover", I mean we had walked past Acme upteem times between this visit and our first San Francisco adventure and that morning finally decided to actually see how much the bread cost. What a find for cheap travelers! Their product is amazing and inexpensive (and not just be big city standards). Z. and I enjoyed two rolls each, spending less than 4 bucks total on breakfast. The bread was so delicious and cheap, we even made a point to pick up rolls to eat on the plane the next day. I'm not even going to attempt to describe the experience of eating this bread. I trust you to understand what I mean when I say that if you appreciate high-quality, crusty, artisanal  bread, you will love the bread from Acme.

Blue Bottle americano and rolls from Acme Bread

Cheap Travel Tip #387: Interested in visiting some museums but the admission price has you feeling down? Don't forget the National Park Service! Some National Park locations do not have fees, one such location being the S.F. Maritime National Historical Park. While there is an admission charge to the historic vessels, the visitor center at Jefferson and Hyde is free. Those of the Justin Bieber - demographic may find the lack of glitz and glamor boring but us old folks enjoyed wandering through the exhibits. I am from the dirt and sage encrusted hills of the mainland, so I appreciated the opportunity to see basic sea-faring items like rope and a propeller up close. They were enormous!

I can't imagine there were people who wore these!

We stayed down by the water for a little longer to enjoy one more lunch at the In-N-Out. Z. explored the secret menu further with a grilled cheese animal style with extra spread, while I had animal fries for the first time. Let me tell any of you uninitiated a little bit about In-N-Out's animal fries. First of all, this was THE MOST over the top food I have ever eaten. Why, yes, to answer your question, I am a very sheltered foodie. The animal fries start out innocently enough with an order of their fries, thin and golden. These are then topped with cheese, grilled onions, and spread. It's messy, salty, and requires a fork...


The highlight of our second day in the big city was seeing the San Francisco Opera's production of Nixon in China. Adams' music was amazing! I still cannot get over how well that orchestra can play or how impressive the singing was. One of my favorite parts of going to the S.F. opera is just being in the War Memorial Opera House. The building is grand and old-fashioned in a good way. Go to the bottom floor and you won't even have to close your eyes to imagine men in tales and women rustling in silk enjoying their dinner before the opera. Or, if you want to feel like a damsel in a castle, stop by a window in the stairwell.

I still have one more day of adventuring and great food to share with you. I am saving my tales of embarrassment for next time. Let's just say that putting my foot in my mouth led me to discovering how nice the folks were down in San Francisco.