Crossroads Cafe   

Crossroads Cafe would be popular for its tasty food (including the infamous H&H bagels), its cozy couches and cheery garden patio, its books, artwork, and magazines alone, but when you add to those pluses the fact that this charming cafe is operated by and benefits the Delancey Street Foundation, it's easy to see why San Franciscans hang here on a regular basis. The Foundation provides ex cons, recovered addicts, and formerly homeless people with an apartment and a job in one of their businesses (all fairly upscale, like Crossroads, and in the same complex, including a flower shop, knick-knack store and fancy restaurant); money from the businesses keeps the foundation going. Neighborhood locals chill on the outdoor patio with their dogs and hip SF parents bring their kids here for the best grilled cheese sandwich in the city, Mitchell Brothers' ice cream, or an awesome (and reasonable -- $13 for two) high tea service, and some cozy hang time spent educating them about giving people a second chance.