"Noe Valley Bakery (with another location in West Portal) has been serving a long list of pastries and breads since 1995, including excellent pumpkin-centric items every fall. Among them are pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin bread, pumpkin spice cookies, and pumpkin-shaped sugar cookies. We suggest getting one of each, but if you’re avoiding gourd overload, prioritize the cheesecake and bread. The two-person cheesecake is light and airy, and the graham cracker crust has hints of spiced ginger. The loaf is springy and topped with cream cheese frosting. There’s no seating, but plenty of public benches right outside. " - ricky rodriguez, patrick wong, julia chen 1