Neighborhood Marketplace Initiative

EXCELSIOR

The Excelsior is a growing neighborhood situated between Balboa Park and McLaren Park. Home to over 30,000 residents from a diversity of backgrounds, the neighborhood beams with multi-cultural pride.  Marked by streets named after international cities, the neighborhood has a long history as a place where immigrants from around the world have settled. Residents and business owners alike are fond of the small town feel in this residential enclave of a bustling city.

Famed as the birthplace of Jerry Garcia, leader of the Grateful Dead, today the Excelsior is home to a high concentration of families with children and provides abundant educational and recreational opportunities for all ages. The nine-block corridor of Mission Street, immediately south of Interstate 280, is the commercial heart of the Excelsior. It is best known to area residents for its vibrant produce stores and authentic restaurants including long-time establishments Granada Café, Italian-American Social Club, and Joe’s Cable Car Burger. Restaurants serve a range of international cuisine including Japanese, Chinese, Filipino, taquerias and Central American pupuserias.  The area is also becoming known regionally for its affordable and eclectic home furnishing stores.