Hope you are all surviving this Bay Area cold. Luckily the weather seems to be calming down after those rain storms. At least there are a few things to enjoy outdoors if you’ve got a nice coat and a sturdy umbrella.

I’m not sure what’s more exciting, the long weekend of celebrating the great Martin Luther King’s life, laughing to tears or all the food that’s involved.

HAPPENING AROUND TOWN

Martin Luther King week is already in full gear! Tomorrow, January 21st, the MLK march will start at 11am at 4th and King Street before ending at the Yerba Buena Center. This is where the celebration festivities will be held until about 5pm. Some may head straight to the center but you don’t want to miss Caltrain’s Celebration Train that’ll be at the King Street Station just before the march. There are more activities, festivals and celebrations to partake in as listed by the NorCal MLK Foundation.

Want to explore the San Francisco African American Freedom Trail? As recommended by San Francisco Travel, this is a great way to not only learn about how African Americans changed the world from our humble Bay Area, but a great way to explore the city on foot. This is a great learning adventure for the whole family, just wear good, comfortable shoes.

If you haven’t already, the 18th Annual SF Sketchfest, founded by David Owen, is still happening now through January 27th. With this shutdown mess, we could all use a laugh from the likes of Andy Kindler, Sasheer Zamata, Michael Ian Black and local favorite, Peaches Christ.

YUMMINESS ACHIEVED

San Francisco Restaurant Week is starting just as Oakland Restaurant Week comes to a close. From January 23rd through the 31st, almost 130 restaurants will participate in showcasing what makes this city the most gastronomic city in the country!

During the week, participating restaurants will be serving exclusive menus for either lunch and/or dinner. Two course lunches will be between $15 – $25 and three course dinners between $40 – $65. It that isn’t a biting deal, I don’t know what is! When you’re out and about, show off your eats by using the hashtag #SFRW on Instagram or Twitter.

Disclaimer: This rant was not sponsored or paid for by the events or restaurants listed. If you’d like me to check out and rant about a happening around town or an eatery in town for my SF Sundays series, please email me at ha@mshala.co.

Happy New Year! Welcome to San Francisco in January. It’s cold! I’m reminded of how cold it can get this time of year in the city every morning I leave for work before the sun. I’m also quite surprised at the number of tourists I’ve come across this cold season. Then again, we can still head out and enjoy the city despite a few rain showers and cold breezes, am I right?

So what to do when it rains? When it’s oh so cold outside? Here are a few ideas to stay warm, cultured and with a full belly this season.

HAPPENING AROUND TOWN

If your new year’s goal is to get more cultured, look no further then the city’s many beautiful galleries and museums, with most offering free admission days. The GLBT Museum offers free admission on the first Wednesday of the month while the Asian Art Museum does so on the first Sunday of every month.

Tuesdays have a few contenders such as the Contemporary Jewish Museum, de Young Museum, Legion of Honor, and Museum of Craft and Design. Check the museum’s website for exact schedules of free admissions days.

Still want to go outside? The San Francisco City Guides‘ is a group of volunteer tour guides showcasing their pride in the city. They have walking tours scheduled throughout the day at varying points of the city, such as the Golden Gate Bridge and the Japanese Tea Garden. They even guide you back in time to the 1906 earthquake and fire.

YUMMINESS ACHIEVED

Foodies, rejoice! Over 100 restaurants are participating in this year’s Oakland Restaurant Week, happening January 11th through the 20th. That’s two whole weekends for us to get hungry, eat it all up, walk it off, and repeat! There will also be a few special events throughout the week.

On January 12th, Brotzeit Lokal will donate a portion of the sales from their “prix fixe menu” to the Alameda County Community Food Bank (ACCFB). Also supporting the ACCFB is Baro on the 14th with a special benefit dinner. Then on the 15th, you can journey through Old Oakland Progressive and enjoy a multiple course dinner across three different restaurants.

San Francisco’s restaurant week returns soon after but I’ll more on that next week. If all that is not achieving yumminess, I don’t know what is. All I know is that I’m really hungry right now! Is it the 11th yet??

Disclaimer: This rant was not sponsored or paid for by the events or restaurants listed. If you’d like me to check out or rant about a happening around town for my SF Sundays series, please email me at ha@mshala.co.