I live in SF and can make some recommendations...

Hayes Valley (Octavia/Gough-ish), Valencia Street (between 16th and 25th?) and Filmore (at California and north) are good areas to peruse local design. 

Good food can be found in every neighborhood.  I highly recommend Burma Superstar on Clement (and 3rd Ave) for lunch - dinner is hard to get in to and they don't take reservations. 

+1 for La Boulange. We ate there last year and it was great. Can be very crowded on weekend mornings, though.

Well, I can't tell you all the cool hot spots but on my last visit a month ago I enjoyed the most amazing brunch at a cafe called <a href="http://www.yelp.com/biz/la-boulange-san-francisco-2">La Boulange</a> in the Marina District. The Marina District is so cool that I can't fathom them not having really great craft shops.

By the way, I absolutely recommend the french toast and fruit salad with a small side of yogurt. It's AMAZING. The smoked salmon frittata and salad was delicious as well!