Cliff House

After a fire in 1894, a magnificent, eight-storey Victorian turreted palace replaced the original 1860s house on this site. However, only a year after surviving the 1906 earthquake, the second building also burned. Its subsequent ‘restorations’ involved more demolition and rebuilding; the current, contemporary structure, complete in 2004, includes an upscale restaurant and bar with floor-to-ceiling glass walls that make the most of its breathtaking Pacific views. Public walkways allow the less well-heeled to amble around the building. The whimsical camera obscura, a 19th-century optical marvel, was saved after a public outcry halted its demolition and is still accessible on the walkway; it projects an image of the outside world, including a large stretch of Ocean Beach, on to a giant parabolic screen using mirrors and lenses.