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Next neighborhood up the hill: The Hill
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Bridgeway Promenade
If you Google “Sausalito” most of the “big view” photos you’ll see were taken from the Bridgeway Promenade, which runs along the water from Richardson Street (point A on the map below) to Princess Street (point B).
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The Bridgeway Promenade is the location of some of Sausalito’s biggest and most famous restaurants (see list below), which offer spectacular views of the Bay and San Francisco. Virtually every restaurant on the list below has at least a good view, and this neighborhood dominates our Best View Restaurants in Sausalito list. The shops beyond Princess St. are sometimes called “The South Shops” since they’re just south of the central downtown area.
The Bridgeway Promenade is sometimes referred to incorrectly as the Sausalito Boardwalk, but our two true boardwalks are at the southern end of the Promenade and about three blocks past its northern edge.
We love simply going for a walk here at any time of day to see the changing light and clouds across the Bay.
Check out our videos of a recent herring run off the Bridgeway Promenade! And this video shows us How Not to Park here:
Restaurants
| Angelino (Italian) |
| Barrel House (American) |
| Bridgeway Cafe (American) |
| Real Napa (Wine Tasting) |
| Sausalito Bakery and Cafe (Bakery, Sandwiches) |
| Scoma’s Sausalito (Seafood) |
| The Trident (Seafood) |
| Venice Gourmet Deli (Sandwiches) |
| Venice Pizzeria (Pizza) |
Hotels
| The closest hotels to this area are in the Downtown (Ferry Pier) neighborhood just to the north. |
Bus Stops
(Click here for more information)
| There are no bus stops along this stretch of Bridgeway. Buses stop just to the north at Bridgeway and El Portal, and just to the south at 2nd and Main. |
Landmarks
| Sausalito Boardwalk |
| The Sea Lion Statue by Artist Al Sybrian |
| Tiffany Park |
| The Trident Restaurant |
| Yee Tock Chee Park |
History
When rail yards were built in the 1870’s next to the Bay, near where the Ferry pier is today, this Promenade that draws visitors from all over the world was already “the road north to San Rafael” from Sausalito. Strange as it sounds now, 100 years ago San Rafael and Sausalito were the two largest cities in Marin County! The coming of the railhead to connect to the Ferries from San Francisco spurred the growth of “New Town” along Caledonia St., with the Promenade lying at the base of “The Hill” as the route north from Old Town, the original neighborhood of Sausalito. Check out the resources at the Sausalito Historical Society for more information.
The center area of the Promenade, where the Sea Lion Statue now stands, was at one time called Hearst Point, since William Randolph Hearst had built a mansion on the hill above it.
Princess St., which divides the Bridgeway Promenade from Downtown Sausalito and the Ferry pier, was originally named after the ferry steamer “Princess”, which local businessmen operated from a pier near the foot of Princess St. starting in 1868.
In fact, from the beginnings of Sausalito until the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937, our major thoroughfare was called Water Street. The name was changed to Bridgeway since, as we all know, it’s the way we go to the Golden Gate Bridge!
Note: Although this area represents what was traditionally a “promenade,” a popular term in the 19th and 20th centuries for a wide shoreline walkway, the term “Bridgeway Promenade” does not date back to the early history of Sausalito. We created the name in 2008 to distinguish between this part of the downtown area and the very different area north of Princess St., and it’s gradually come into use around the City.
