Ferry Building

📍 💰 Free 🎯 Food Market / Landmark

The Verdict

"Come for the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market on Saturday mornings, an outdoor market selling produce and fruit. Arrive early to beat the crowds."

What you need to know

The Ferry Building has stood at the foot of Market Street since 1898, its 245-foot clock tower marking the eastern edge of downtown. It survived the 1906 earthquake and was eclipsed for decades by the elevated Embarcadero Freeway, demolished in 1991, before a renovation reopened it as a marketplace. Before the bridges opened in the 1930s, ferries carried about 50 million passengers a year through here.

The Marketplace

The nave houses food vendors and shops: Acme Bread, Cowgirl Creamery, Blue Bottle Coffee, Recchiuti Confections, Far West Fungi, and Humphry Slocombe. Hog Island Oyster Company runs a raw bar inside with bay views.

The Farmers Market

The Ferry Plaza Farmers Market runs outside along the Embarcadero. Saturday 8am to 2pm is the largest; smaller markets run Tuesday and Thursday 10am to 2pm. Restaurant cooks shop alongside the public.

Getting There

The Embarcadero BART and Muni Metro station is across the street. The F-Market streetcar runs along the waterfront to Fisherman’s Wharf and inland to the Castro.