Weather in the City by the Bay is famously fickle — foggy one moment, gloriously sun-splashed the next — but San Franciscans know how to enjoy the great outdoors (dress in layers). The waterfront beckons at every turn, and there are endless ways to take it in, whether it’s with a ferry ride around the Golden Gate Bridge, a surf session at the beach, or a bike excursion in search of neighborhood eats. Food fuels every activity, and Bay Area chefs and producers have long been leaders in how to eat local; an ever-excellent roster of restaurants means it’s high time for a taste test.

DAY ONE

1. 1:30 p.m. The Rock Beckons: No visitor should miss the boat ride to Alcatraz Island with Alcatraz Cruises (Pier 33, Hornblower Alcatraz Landing, 415-981-7625, www.alcatrazcruises.com, $30). En route, day-trippers get knockout views of The Rock and the rust-hued Golden Gate Bridge. The cruise includes a terrific 45-minute cellhouse audio tour featuring actual wardens and prisoners (the personally guided night tour, Thu-Mon evenings for $37, is especially atmospheric).

2. 4 p.m. Water Walk: Get a sense of place with a leisurely mile-and-a-half-long stroll along the Embarcadero waterfront from Fisherman’s Wharf (Pier 39, 415-674-7503, www.fishermanswharf.org) to the Ferry Building Marketplace (1 Ferry Building, 415-983-8030, www.ferrybuildingmarketplace.com), with its own stellar views of the newly beautified Bay Bridge. Built in 1898, the Ferry Building is now a skylit European-style food hall, with local specialty purveyors, restaurants, and culinary-oriented shops inside, plus an outdoor farmers’ market in Ferry Plaza that attracts more than 25,000 people a week. Sample the rich, creamy cheeses at Cowgirl Creamery’s artisan cheese shop (No. 17, 415-362-9354,

www.cowgirlcreamery.com), which sells award-winning handmade cheeses from two nearby creameries in Petaluma and Point Reyes Station. Then browse the handcrafted mid-century-style pottery you’d serve them on, at Heath Ceramics (No. 12, 415-399-9284, www.heathceramics.com), a design-minded tableware shop that has a live-video feed from the original Sausalito factory just across the Golden Gate.

3. 5 p.m. Cocktails Al Fresco: The outdoor patio at Americano Restaurant (8 Mission St., 415-278-3700, www.americanorestaurant.com), right on the Embarcadero, is one of downtown’s liveliest happy-hour spots. Chef Kory Stewart sources much of his menu’s local ingredients at the Ferry Building Marketplace; his specialty cocktails include the Miners Gold ($12), made with Casa Noble Crystal tequila, organic Vida Mescal, lemon juice, and agave ginger syrup.

4. 7:30 p.m. Fusion Flavors: James Beard award-winner Charles Phan serves up elegant, modern Vietnamese fare at the Slanted Door (1 Ferry Building No. 3, 415-861-8032, www.slanteddoor.com). In the last two decades, Phan has created a beloved mini-empire of restaurants around the city, but this location in particular wows with beautiful plates of bright, fresh flavors; among the best are the grapefruit and jicama salad ($12) and the grass-fed estancia shaking beef ($36). At sundown, you can view the glittering Bay Lights (www.thebaylights.org), artist Leo Villareal’s gorgeous new light sculpture on the Bay Bridge; officially launched on March 5, the art installation will shine from dusk until 2 a.m. each night for the next two years.

DAY TWO

5. 8 a.m. Breaking Bread: Customers start lining up early for the gorgeous breakfast pastries — tea cakes ($3.75), double pain au chocolate ($4.50), morning buns ($3.85) — and organic Four Barrel coffee at the Mission District institution Tartine Bakery (600 Guerrero St., 415-487-2600, www.tartine bakery.com). Come back at 5 p.m. if you want one of baker Chad Robertson’s fresh-out-of-the-oven country loaves ($8.25).