San Francisco Neighborhoods · Sunnyside
Sunnyside
Persistent Fog zoneA small, sunny, low-key residential village on the south slope below Mount Davidson, where rows of early-1900s cottages line quiet streets above an unhurried Monterey Boulevard.
- Quiet residential streets
- Among the city's more affordable single-family homes
- Glen Park BART close by
- Hidden Victorian conservatory
On the map
Open Sunnyside on the map →The story
Sunnyside was laid out in 1891 by the Sunnyside Land Company, whose president, Behrend Joost, had bought the farmland from Leland Stanford. Joost's real ambition was transit: in 1892 he built the Sunnyside Powerhouse on what was then Sunnyside Avenue (today's Monterey Boulevard) to power the San Francisco and San Mateo Electric Railway, the city's first electric streetcar line, which opened April 27, 1892, running from Steuart and Market out past Glen Park to the Colma cemeteries. The streetcar drew buyers to the new subdivision, and through the early 1900s the tract filled in with modest cottages and single-family homes. Around 1901, British mining engineer W.A. Merralls built the octagonal redwood Sunnyside Conservatory, which still stands amid its palms as a city landmark.
Things most people don’t know
City's first electric streetcar
The San Francisco and San Mateo Electric Railway, powered from the Sunnyside Powerhouse on Monterey Blvd, opened April 27, 1892.
Planned in 1891
The Sunnyside Land Company, led by Behrend Joost, subdivided the tract from former Leland Stanford farmland in 1891.
Sunnyside Conservatory
An octagonal redwood Victorian conservatory built around 1901 by engineer W.A. Merralls, now a city landmark surrounded by mature palms at 236 Monterey Blvd.
Monterey Boulevard was 'Sunnyside Avenue'
The neighborhood's main commercial street was originally named Sunnyside Avenue before becoming Monterey Boulevard.
Named for its sunshine
The 'Sunnyside' name reflects the open, sunny south-facing slope the subdivision was marketed on.
Eating and drinking
Restaurants
- Big Joe's · 717 Monterey Blvd
- Won Kok Restaurant · 700 Monterey Blvd
- Shanghai Dumpling King · 696 Monterey Blvd
Bars
- Friends Bar · 558 Monterey Blvd
- Railroad Expresso · 705 Monterey Blvd
Getting around and getting care
Transit. Glen Park BART (Daly City/Millbrae and SFO lines) sits just east of the neighborhood. Muni buses 36-Teresita and 43-Masonic serve Sunnyside directly; the 44-O'Shaughnessy and 52-Excelsior connect at Glen Park station, and the K-Ingleside Muni Metro runs nearby along Ocean Avenue.
Nearest hospital. CPMC Mission Bernal Campus, 3555 Cesar Chavez St (about 2 mi)
Thinking about Sunnyside?
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.