San Francisco Neighborhoods · Laguna Honda
Laguna Honda
Fog zoneTucked into the wooded hills above the city's deepest lagoon, where fog drifts through eucalyptus and the only traffic is the Muni gliding into the tunnel.
- Wooded hillside calm
- Reservoir & open space
- Forest Hill Station close
- Pure single-family quiet
On the map
Open Laguna Honda on the map →The story
Named for Laguna Honda, Spanish for "deep lagoon" — a natural lake along the old wagon road over the hills, later tapped as a city reservoir. Laguna Honda Hospital opened nearby in the 1860s as the city's almshouse, growing into one of the largest public skilled-nursing facilities in the United States. The surrounding slopes filled in through the early-to-mid 20th century with single-family homes, climbing the grades between Forest Hill, Midtown Terrace, and Twin Peaks.
Things most people don’t know
A real deep lagoon
Laguna Honda is one of San Francisco's few natural lakes, fed by hillside springs and later pressed into service as a city reservoir.
Pure residential
There's no commercial strip here — just curving streets of single-family homes set into the wooded grades.
Wild green edges
Mount Sutro's cloud forest and the Twin Peaks open space wrap the neighborhood in eucalyptus, coyote brush, and birdsong.
Through the tunnel
Forest Hill Station feeds the K, L, and M lines straight into the Twin Peaks Tunnel and downtown, minutes away.
A landmark institution
Laguna Honda Hospital, dating to the 1860s, is among the largest skilled-nursing and rehabilitation facilities in the country.
Eating and drinking near Laguna Honda
Laguna Honda is primarily residential — these sit in West Portal, the Inner Sunset.
Restaurants
- Elena's Mexican Restaurant · 255 W Portal Ave
- Trattoria da Vittorio · 150 W Portal Ave
- Fiorella Sunset · 1240 9th Ave
- Art's Cafe · 747 Irving St
- Arizmendi Bakery · 1331 9th Ave
Bars
- Philosopher's Club · 824 Ulloa St
- The Little Shamrock · 807 Lincoln Way
- Yancy's Saloon · 734 Irving St
Getting around and getting care
Transit. Forest Hill Station (K, L, M) sits at the neighborhood's edge, feeding the Twin Peaks Tunnel to downtown; the 36 Teresita, 43, 44, and 52 buses wind the hills.
Nearest hospital. UCSF Medical Center at Parnassus, 505 Parnassus Ave (about 1.5 mi)
Thinking about Laguna Honda?
Send me an address and I will come back with its sun, wind and fog, what is under it, and what has closed on the block.