If You're Going To San Francisco: Hayes Valley

The last time we were in Hayes Valley, Hayes Valley wasn't Hayes Valley. It was two or three blocks on Hayes street just east of the Civic Center and Opera House. Now, with the completion of the Octavia Boulevard project the neighborhood has exploded into a full scale neighborhood, a model of gentrification if we ever saw one. Hayes is now (or rather will soon be) among the best represented SF neighborhoods in our guide.

Clothing Stores

Quite fittingly, the gem clothing store of the neighborhood is hidden away a few blocks away from the main drag. MAC (387 Grove Street) stands for Modern Appealing Clothing but they're being modest. We think we would name it Modern Awesome Clothing but then again we are from Southern California. Anyway, the 20-year old institution stocks a smart mix of niche New York labels, bohemian European brands, up and coming indie designers and hip American brands. The front of the store is mostly women's but turn the corner and you'll find a ton of men's clothing. And the best part: the clothes don't come with pretense.

The other go-to clothing spot on the block is Azalea (411 Hayes Street). Known to shoppers around the country for its online shop, Azalea has a massive stock of stylish, mostly casual clothing for men and women and a enviable denim selection.

Also in the neighborhood are RAG (541 Octavia Street), which collects the T-shirts and cut-and-sewn works of local designers and Nida (544 Hayes Street) which you'd like very much if casual clothing for rich people is your thing.

Shoe Stores

Now that you're fully clothed from the ankle up, it's time to put some shoes on, you filthy hippy. Our favorite stop is Huf (516 Hayes Street) and its selection of exclusive sneakers for men and women. The other two Hufs on Sutter street are sort of out of the way and they can be imtimidating for those of us who don't horde sneakers like crack cocaine.

Nearby are the two Bulos (418 and 437-A Hayes). Their leather European shoes are a perfect complement to the clothes of Nida and the pricepoints are pretty reasonable. Also checkout Gimme Shoes (416 Hayes Street) for high-end European faire.

Home Stores

It's a close call, but Propeller (555 Hayes Street) is our favorite home store on the block. It's a bright, colorful, crowded space filled with cool vases, tableware, candelholders and placemats, along with a small collectio of premium modern furniture.

Find carries furniture with a more local feel. The expansive space is dotted with attractive, contemporary furniture, many from local design houses. Some are sort of boring contemporary, some are strangely beautiful.

Friend has the strongest accessory selection of the block. From the Bay Area's own Heath Ceramics' line of attractive earthenware to Los Angeles designer Helene Ige's Beetle Pillow, their focus is on how well an object is designed rather than party affiliations (modern, traditional or independent).

Finally, there's Scandinavian Details (364 Hayes Street). We've longed yearned for a store to go beyond the now far spread Scandinavian brands (Iittala, anyone?) and delve a bit deeper into their design world and Scandinavian Details does a yeoman's job. Aprons to bars of soap, tumblers to water bottles those Scandinavians give all sorts of everyday items a design makeover.

Detours

Go to the Blue Bottle Coffee kiosk (315 Linden Street) for the best coffee ever. Walk west to Alamo Square to see the Six Sisters.