Nob Hill

Photo by Michael Fraley

The tony neighborhood on a hill took out Viz Valley by a narrow margin in round 2. A neighborhood this unabashedly gorgeous could take top honors. It’s easy to see why: Homes in this neighborhood range from this restored Polk-Willis flat to this tiny home on John Street.

And Huntington Park, an unofficial town square for area dog owners, is smack dab between some of San Francisco’s most stately structures (e.g., Grace Cathedral, the Pacific-Union Club, Huntington Hotel).

“We have a healthy mix of rent-controlled apartments, newish condos, and opulent, over-the-top co-ops,” confirms Curbed cities director Sally Kuchar.

Bayview

After clobbering the Excelsior, former Curbed Cup winner Bayview once again advanced to the next round, this time besetting Noe Valley. The southside neighborhood will prove hard to beat in 2016.

As one reader pointed out, Bayview is “[o]ne of the last few affordable neighborhoods (by SF's standards), with lots of new businesses opening up alongside historic ones on walkable/transit-accessible 3rd Street and in cool converted industrial spaces."

What’s more, it’s one of the few neighborhoods in the city to score a coveted non-transferable liquor license in 2016.

In addition to being one of the few remaining affordable (“affordable”) neighborhoods in which to purchase a home, Bayview has saw the reopening of the historic Bayview Opera House. The circa 1888 building underwent a major overhaul.

Castro

Photo by Celine Nadeau

One of the city’s most iconic neighborhoods beat out one of it’s most ultra-hip as the Castro took down the Outer Sunset today.

A few reasons why the city’s LGBTQ ‘hood prevailed the victor: The filming of Cleve Jones and Dustin Lance Black’s newest effort, When We Rise, happened in 2016. And seeing as how its supervisor will be heading to Sacramento, a new supe appointee in 2017 should make this neighborhood the talk of the town, wonk-wise.

Those pretty new escalator rainbow lights couldn’t helped, too.

The Castro is also a neighborhood in flux. Rent prices are officially inaccessible here, especially to any queer youth looking for a safe space to call home. In a perfect world, however, the neighborhood’s pro-development stance and output will help to bring prices down in the near future.

Inner Richmond

Hayes Valley went into the quaterfinals expected to win. Well, perish the thought. The no. 2 seed got smacked down by unassuming no. 10 seed, the Inner Richmond.

In addition to being a neighborhood with choice eateries (Chinese, Cambodian, Korean, Burmese, and Russian restaurants galore) and nightlife options, the Inner Richmond’s Clement Street is one of the few remaining spots in San Francisco with an independent bookstore.

The central neighborhood, which borders Golden Gate Park, is also a great place for renters and college students. This underdog could be the one to beat.

Here’s how it all went down: