Sure, mid-November seems a tiny bit early to be releasing the year's "Best of" lists, but EaterSF's Best of 2011 Awards are notable for at least one category you won't find in any of the print rags: San Francisco's Best Restaurant Bathroom. And behold, the winner is: Japantown's Bushi-Tei and its zen-like facilities. more ›

Adapting to the new Valencia Street, budding gastro pup Zeitgeist finally yanked their backyard porta-potties in exchange for comfier thrones recently. The new "wood, concrete, and sheet metal bathrooms" will now play host to a bevy of cyclists and Mission ilk looking to evacuate their waste in between sips of brew. This a refreshing change from the pastic fart catchers that used to pockmark the the popular beer garden. more ›

A United Airlines flight from SFO to Frankfurt, Germany needed to make an emergency stop in Chicago on Sunday. It seems that a crew member discovered a "sticker with a threatening message in a bathroom," so the plane was diverted as a precaution. After the plane was emptied and searched, wherein nothing dangerous uncovered, the flight then continued on to Germany. more ›

If you've recently found yourself questioning your continence while waiting for a bus back to the East Bay, then you probably found yourself out of luck with regards to the on-hand facilities at the temporary Transbay Terminal on Main Street. As the Examiner points out, the $18 million facility was purposefully left without benches or bathrooms to discourage the previous terminal's notorious homeless population from moving in again. Unfortunately, the strategy also deprives passengers of a basic human right: a decent place to pee while they wait. more ›

There are two ways to best judge a restaurant's quality: the soup and the bathroom. Both signify a venue's subtle, yet overall, attention detail. Visiting a new restaurant's bathroom is one of the most titillating moments of a meal for your editor. So, much to our delight, today 's Michael Bauer discusses restaurants' cans, giving top ratings to Gitane on Claude Lane. "The somewhat quirky interior, designed by Mr. Important Design, has a sexy aura that's also encapsulated in the bathroom. It feels like walking into an extension of the dining room, starting at the draped foyer," he gushes. Our favorite has to go to Orson. See, they have seven private bathrooms, all of them complete with low-lighting, black walls, and bowls of coffee grounds. Have a favorite? Let us know in the comments. more ›

San Francisco really does have a task force for everything. Even for public crappers. more ›

Submit your Bay Area finds to found [at] sfist [dot] com or tag them sfist and found on Flickr! Let us know where and when you found the item and any other helpful info. more ›