Fillmore St, Cow Hollow

Came here with the BF to dance the night away at the Matrix. It had been a little while since I had really gotten down to a night of fun and booze quite like this. I was really happy to be back in the city after a being stuck in the East Bay boonies for a while.

Here’s what to love about Fillmore Street in Cow Hollow. Let’s start of course with The Matrix--it is one of those cool couch be-clad lounges where the SF young people go to party down and work off the week’s work stresses.

But Matrix is only one of the beacons that draw people to this section of Fillmore. If you are hungry after working up a sweat at the Matrix, you can get burgers at the City Tavern, crepes at Castagna (a French place that is currently closed due fire), a very pricy night at the Atelier Crenn, or the hearty meals at the Balboa Cafe.

If you have the disposable income, there are also a number of boutiques on Fillmore, including Simply Chic, Bubble and a Child’s Delight. And if all that shopping wears you out, you will also find a one or two spas here just to re-charge your spirits. There are also all the usual things you would want in a neighborhood, a corner grocery, a notary, paint stores and all that kind of good stuff that you might want if you were making a life for yourself here.

And if you are an architecture buff, this is also one of those gorgeous San Francisco streets packed with old Victorian walk-ups whose bay window stare out at the street and well, at the bay--more specifically the entrance to the SF Bay just past the Golden Gate.

What would it be like living on Fillmore in Cow Hollow. Well, you should know that Cow Hollow is generally known as a young couple neighborhood. Lot’s of SF corporate climbers here, often in the early stages of marriage or just having had their first kids (think of it as a jr. Pacific Heights which is just up the slope to the south).

Of course, that means high rents and cost of living. I took a quick look and a two bedroom on or around Fillmore will run you between $2500 and $5000 per month. (One bedrooms seem to go for around $2500 as well.) So basically, you can expect to spend at least $30,000 on rent if you live here.

What about buying? I took a quick look into that as well. Basically any little condo here starts at $1 million. You might be able to shave off a hundred thousand from that if you get lucky.

Put simply, if you aren’t some kind of business executive type, you are not going to be able to afford living here. Heck, I felt outpriced just looking at the listings.

If you can afford it though, you can’t beat the fun. And for those of us who can’t we can always visit once and awhile and pretend to be one of the classy up-and-comers.