: A must-see meeting place since its launch in the late 1930s as a penthouse lounge at the historic InterContinental Mark Hopkins hotel, this lofty landmark offers 360-degree panoramas through the towering windows comprising all of its walls. Amidst such visuals --- the bay-facing eastern windows are best by day, the western windows framing a city-lights jewel box by night --- dining and drinking could be almost an afterthought. Thus the Top of the Mark's carefully crafted, understatedly elegant fare is a surprise --- sometimes accompanied by live music and, in summer, movie screenings. The light dining menu offers a range of options from caviar to steak tartare to lamb meatball skewers to flatbreads. A trio of sliders includes a Dungeness crab cake with rémoulade sauce, baby arugula, avocado and tomato; Kobe beef with heirloom tomato, crispy onion, Point Reyes cheese and spicy aioli; and house garlic-pork sausage with tomato ragù. If you’re looking for something sweet, there are desserts like spiced baklava with Greek yogurt and candied apricot. Consider as well the bar's famous 100-Martini menu and the California-focused wine list. Sunday brunch --- add a pianist, carving stations and free-flowing Champagne --- is a special-occasion sine qua non.

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