for all your fancy pencil needs. In the same building, you have a bunch of nice other stores (fancy japanese object, magazine, ceramics & a brunch place.)

#1 in the city for old book smell and creaky wooden floors. Too small to find anything specific you’re looking for, good enough that you’ll find something else instead.

If you can get past the bourgie factor and/or you work down the street like I do, you will come to love this place. It has some of the best food in the city, a Blue Bottle coffee, and an observation deck from which you can watch the ferries come and go, emitting their weird beeps and disgorging tourists. The people who work here are great too (whether or not I dated a baker from the Acme Bread kiosk because of a Craigslist missed connection will be left to history).

the best french bakery in town, owned by a very cute french family

Reliably divey, with an ample back patio, ill-advertised punk shows and the occasional appearance of dollar oysters.