Name: Chris Forrette

Age: 22

Occupation: Graphic Designer

Hometown: San Francisco

Diva Minds Want to Know…

1. Where do you like to flirt?

At home, with my little lady.

2. Where’s your favorite table for two?

House of Nan King on the edge of Chinatown and Little Italy at Columbus and Kearny Streets. It’s definitely not the most romantic place in San Francisco, but the food is excellent! And you won’t find an experience like this at any other restaurant. Typically for newcomers, the waitstaff (which includes the owner himself) don’t even give you a menu, they’ll simply bring you food. For some people this might turn them off right away—myself being no exception—but it’s all great! I’m not big on seafood, so I tell them “no fish”, and we’re good to go. Sometimes when it’s busy, you’ll be seated with another party, and if they’re friendly, you can share each others’ dishes.

3. Where should we stay when we visit (besides your place)?

One of the tricky things about this question is that I live here so I never stay in any of the hotels here. But I had a bunch of my family in recently and they stayed at The Commodore Hotel on Sutter Street between Leavenworth and Jones, and from what I hear, the rooms were great and the price was excellent. It’s also centrally located—only about 6 blocks from Union Square and right over the hill from the Wharf. But if you’ve got some money to spend on a nice hotel, you might want to move closer toward Union Square, where you can’t miss the wide selection of fancy hotels.

4. What quality do you find irresistible in a woman?

Intelligence, sophistication, independence, selflessness, and overall sexiness.

5. Where can we find you on a free Sunday afternoon?

Usually my Sundays are my “lazy days” when I try to sleep in as late as I can and lay around all day. Me and my girl usually go out to a nice breakfast (though it might be somewhere in the afternoon), watch movies or take our dog to the park, go rollerblading along the Embarcadero, and then at night make cookies and watch CSI.

6. What do you love most about your city (besides our arrival)?

Just about everything! There is no city in the world like San Francisco! We’ve got every kind of person in the world, from every cultural background. We’ve got artists and liberal thinkers.

We’ve got awesome food! When you come here, DO NOT go to a place that you know—we’ve got too much amazing local food to pass up. Any fast food establishment in the city is usually very poor in quality, especially closer to the downtown area.

Moving here has caused me to lose all sense of seasons as they are in every other part of the world. During any time of the year, it could rain one day, and be sunny and warm the next. It’s basically between 50° and 75° year-round.

7. What should we bring when we visit your town? What should we leave with?

As mentioned in the previous question, the weather is unpredictable. Make sure to check the weather before you come and most likely bring some warm clothes and an umbrella. And I haven’t worn shorts since I’ve lived here so I wouldn’t worry about that. You should also bring an open mind! San Francisco has so much to offer, but it can be boring if you’re not willing to try new things.

And think about how you’ll get around. Having a car for your trip here will waste HOURS of your time, and the public transit here is absolutely incredible. The city is only 9 miles wide, so for anywhere that’s not within walking distance, there are the bus lines, the MUNI (subway-like under/overground transit), and of course the famous BART. You can take the BART right into the city from the Oakland and San Francisco airports. So bring plenty of money in small bills for use on public transit or for cab fare. OR if you can’t avoid bringing your car, bring large bills for parking lot fees and/or parking tickets for the insanely unpredictable street parking around the city—and plenty of patience for traffic and all the time it will take you to find an open parking spot in the first place.

You should leave with a good supply of Ghirardelli chocolate, some great photos and plenty of good food in your belly

8. What do we absolutely have to see while we’re there?

As I mentioned previously, the food! I have a nice strong list of great places that you should eat, but you can also look on www.yelp.com, where there is a thriving community of people rating all kinds of places including restaurants. And you’ve got to try Blondie’s pizza on Powell Street at Market. If you like thick pizza, this is the best pizza you will ever eat. By far the best pizza place in town.

Lots of tourists like the Wharf/Pier 39 and the downtown/Union Square areas, so those are probably a must. There’s also Golden Gate Park, the Palace of Fine Arts, SF MOMA, the Sony Metreon, the beach, and millions of other places to check out.

9. Any areas of town we should avoid?

The Tenderloin. You’re going to find homeless people throughout your visit here, but this is where the raunchiest and the craziest are usually focused.

10. Any local secrets you want to share?

Most of them have already been said! One thing I will say that most tourists don’t seem to be aware of is that we San Franciscans don’t use our sidewalks the way that most other cities seem to—we walk on them! Our sidewalks are our highways! I’ve seen it many times- tourists crowding a sidewalk as if it’s some kind of lounge area, providing difficult obstacles for us locals trying to make our way home. Just something to think about. And if you’re ever lost, just ask someone! We love giving directions and most of us are nice about it!