Blue Bottle Coffee (Mint Plaza)

While Blue Bottle Coffee may be commonplace to those in the Bay Area with over 16 locations there, it was a new coffee destination for this guy from Chicago. On my short trip to San Francisco, I found myself with a few free hours and a need to add the first California coffee house to this blog.

I was staying at the Hotel Union Square, in, you may have guessed, the Union Square neighborhood. I was walking south toward Market Street when I decided to Google coffee houses near me. Blue Bottle coffee popped up with over 1,800 reviews and 4.5 stars, and they had outdoor seating. Done.

The perfect place to chill in between appointments. I journeyed a few blocks south, just past Market Street, around Mid-Market, by the old US Mint. On the day I was there in October, it was sunny and 68º and absolutely beautiful.

This little gem is located in the 1912 Provident Loan Association building—which makes an appearance in Dashiell Hammett’s pulp fiction classic The Maltese Falcon.

Approaching the coffeehouse, I saw tables lining the wall of the building on the sidewalk filled with people enjoying the gorgeous weather.

While this is a great place to meet friends, get something to eat and have a great coffee, and converse, it may not be the best spot to get your work done. It’s a bit loud inside, and there’s no wifi. If neither of those things affects your ability to get things done, then this just may be your next spot to duck into for a nice escape into a book, writing, or meeting up with old friends.

The overly complex and super cool-looking Rube Goldberg of coffee makers.