Yee Tock Chee Park
639 Bridgeway, Sausalito CA 94965 (See Map Below)
Neighborhood: Bridgeway Promenade. Public rest rooms 2 blocks north on Bridgeway. Limited metered street parking nearby, City lots and private lots nearby. Click here to return to the Sausalito Parks Index Page.
Yee Tock Chee Park is about the size of an elementary school classroom, but its location on a concrete abutment jutting out into the Bay gives it commanding views of San Francisco from the Bridgeway Promenade. It’s one of the most popular photo spots in Sausalito, although the day when we took the newest photo above for this page the City was swathed in late afternoon fog.
Who was Yee Tock Chee? The park was created in 1968 when the old Purity Market was converted into a restaurant and retail stores as part of a zoning variance approval deal. Yee Tock Chee was the grocer who originally opened Purity Market in 1941. The spot originally held the Sausalito Land and Ferry Co., which had bought most of William Richardson’s Mexican-era Rancho from him when he had financial troubles, and which then subdivided and sold land to expand the village into a town.
Why are there stairs leading nowhere at Yee Tock Chee Park? Starting in 1868 this is where the ferry boat Princess docked when it shuttled passengers between Sausalito and San Francisco. In fact, the boat named Princess gave Princess St, which runs up the hill from this spot, its name. The concrete stairs that lead down intoi the Bay were used by crew members and dockhands securing the Princess and casting off its lines.
Although there are some restaurants nearby with sidewalk tables, this area of benches is a public park and open to everyone for free. Our favorite fast meal if we feel like sitting here is to go across the street to Venice Gourmet Deli (or another restaurant on the Bridgeway Promenade) for a great sandwich and soda to enjoy in the noonday sun.
Note: A small restaurant adjacent to the park sometimes claims that the tables and chair there are for restaurant guests’ use only. They are part of the public shoreline and are open to anyone.
We included a close-up satellite image below to help you spot this tiny park.