If you've heard it once, you've heard it a thousand times—San Francisco is populated by transplants. In fact, running into a true-blue, born and bred San Franciscan is so rare, we made a list of spots to sight these geographic unicorns. Making the move to San Francisco can be a thrill, but relocating to a new city can also be a challenge, especially when it comes to establishing a new squad. Try our five ideas for broadening your SF social circle:
1. Join an adult athletic league: SF is so into adult sports leagues, we even have one for cornhole. Whether or not you're any good at soccer or softball, joining a team is an easy and quick way to make fast friends. Be sure to always say yes to a post-practice beer, as that's where the real bonding happens. ZogSports is a good place to start; they have a variety of leagues in San Francisco, the East Bay and even Silicon Valley.
2. Volunteer: Pick a charity or organization that strikes a chord and sign up to lend a hand with like-minded strangers. We've found friends and fun pitching in at Glide Memorial's dining room and various Bay Area food banks (food does indeed bring people together). VolunteerMatch is a fantastic resource to connect you with a cause—and future crew—that's a friendly fit.
3. Take a class at City College: SFCC classes are cheap and eclectic, which is an ideal combination when it comes to striking up a conversation with a potential bestie. Whether you test out self defense or ceramics, this friend-making idea is win-win: Even if you don't emerge from your first class with a new cohort, you'll have learned something new. And like mom said every winter break, "There's always next semester."
4. Join a club: San Francisco is full of social climbers, but some local clubs and young professional groups throw great parties with both arms open. We like F.O.G.G. (Friends of the Golden Gate), an organization dedicated to preserving the Golden Gate National Recreation Area by throwing totally adorable parties and friendly, casual mixers.
5. Embrace the cult of fitness bootcamp: If working out is kinda your thing, then why not work out in a group setting such as Barry's Bootcamp or SoulCycle? High energy, high impact classes bring out the bonding (and the sweat) in participants. Communal workouts, especially socially-driven ones, also lend themselves to post-cardio juice outings.
