The Cliff House is a restaurant perched on the Point Lobos headland just north of Ocean Beach, overlooking the site of the former Sutro Baths, in the Outer Richmond neighborhood of San Francisco, California. It has had five major incarnations since its beginnings in 1858 and is now part of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area operated by the National Park Service.
The first Cliff House was built in 1858 using salvaged timber from a ship that foundered on the cliffs below. New or significantly altered structures were built in 1863, 1896, 1909, 1937, and 2003. Today, the Cliff House is operated by a concessionaire for the National Park Service. The Cliff House features two restaurants, a gift shop, and a historic camera obscura located on a deck overlooking the ocean.
Next to the Cliff House are the former Sutro Baths, a large privately-owned public saltwater swimming pool complex built in 1896. The Sutro Baths were opened to the public as the world’s largest indoor swimming pool establishment. The baths were built by Adolph Sutro, a wealthy entrepreneur and former mayor of San Francisco. The structure was located in a small beach inlet below the Cliff House. The facility burned down in June 1966 and is now in ruins within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area and the Sutro Historic District. Read more here and here. Explore more of the Cliff House and Sutro Baths here:
