Metreon

Metreon is a shopping, dining, cinema, and event complex at the intersection of Fourth Street and Mission Street in downtown San Francisco, California. The four-story building occupies approximately 350,000 square feet and was constructed above the corner of the underground Moscone Center convention complex. It opened on June 16, 1999, as Sony's first urban entertainment center and was intended to demonstrate a new kind of branded public venue combining retail, technology, games, food, exhibitions, and film. Sony invested approximately US$85 million in the project and promoted Metreon as more than an ordinary shopping mall. The concept was designed to strengthen Sony's sophisticated, innovative image by placing its products and entertainment properties within an immersive architectural and cultural setting. Original attractions included Sony and PlayStation retail stores, a multiplex cinema with standard and IMAX screens, themed children's attractions based on Where the Wild Things Are and In the Night Kitchen, an interactive presentation based on David Macaulay's The Way Things Work, and the Airtight Garage arcade and bar, whose design drew on the work of French artist and comics creator Jean Giraud, also known as Moebius. The concept generated publicity and drew visitors, particularly around major PlayStation and consumer-electronics releases, but it did not achieve the financial performance Sony expected. Sony had projected first-year attendance of six million people, yet several of the high-concept attractions closed or struggled. The Way Things Work presentation had ended by 2001, and the Where the Wild Things Are attraction disappeared later. The Airtight Garage's original games had limited popularity apart from HyperBowl, a distinctive three-dimensional bowling game, and the venue went through several later arcade identities, including Portal One and Tilt. The cinema was more successful and became one of the country's stronger-performing theaters, although the original lease structure meant that ticket and concession revenue did not flow to Metreon in the same way as ordinary mall sales. In February 2006, Sony sold the property to Westfield Group and Forest City Enterprises. The new owners moved the center away from its original Sony-centered identity and toward a conventional food-and-retail model. Sony subsequently announced the closure of its Sony and PlayStation stores, and San Francisco authorities approved renovation plans in March 2009. The proposed redevelopment emphasized restaurants, a food terrace facing Yerba Buena Gardens, and a relocated street entrance. Some plans changed after the proposed Tavern on the Green tenant entered bankruptcy proceedings. Most remaining businesses closed during the 2011 redevelopment. The renovated center reopened with Target as its principal retail tenant, occupying much of the second floor, alongside the AMC cinema, food outlets, event facilities, professional and educational tenants, and other service businesses. Westfield sold the property to Starwood Capital Group in April 2012 but continued to manage it; management later remained associated with Westfield's successor, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. The complex continues to function as a downtown retail, dining, cinema, and events destination. Its later uses have included the Michelin-starred Japanese ramen brand Tsuta, which opened a Metreon location in 2019, and Cal Hacks' annual hackathon, hosted at the site from 2023.

Metreon was conceived by Sony during the 1990s as an ambitious experiment in branded urban entertainment. Rather than operating only as an electronics store or cinema, Sony wanted the San Francisco project to combine shopping, dining, games, educational media, children's attractions, exhibitions, and film. The site was built over part of the underground Moscone Center complex at Fourth and Mission Streets, placing it in the Yerba Buena district near major cultural and convention destinations. The building opened on June 16, 1999, as the first of a proposed chain of Sony urban entertainment centers. Sony later opened related centers in Tokyo and Berlin during 1999, but the San Francisco location remained the most prominent example of the concept in the United States. The original Metreon presented Sony's brand and content portfolio through several themed experiences. The building included Sony and PlayStation retail spaces, a multiplex with IMAX capability, an interactive educational attraction derived from The Way Things Work, and a children's environment inspired by Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are. A related In the Night Kitchen restaurant occupied part of the children's area. The Airtight Garage provided an arcade and bar with an industrial-futurist design connected to Moebius's graphic work. The venue's most successful original game was HyperBowl, which used air-supported bowling balls as trackballs in a three-dimensional obstacle-course game. Other games were less successful, and the arcade later changed names and formats, becoming Portal One and eventually Tilt. Sony's expectations for the center were high. The company projected first-year attendance of roughly six million visitors and hoped the building would function both as a profitable destination and as a public demonstration of Sony's design, technology, and entertainment credentials. In practice, the complex's attractions produced mixed results. The Way Things Work installation closed by 2001, while the Where the Wild Things Are attraction ended later. The cinema generated strong traffic and became one of the more profitable theaters in the United States, but its lease terms did not give the mall an equivalent share of ticket and concession revenue. This reduced the benefit that the successful theater provided to the wider property. By the early 2000s, reports circulated that Sony wanted to withdraw from direct management. The property changed hands in February 2006, when Westfield Group and Forest City Enterprises acquired it. The new owners sought to replace the underperforming Sony-centered model with a more conventional shopping-center strategy focused on food, retail, and everyday visits. Sony's remaining Sony and PlayStation stores were eventually closed. In March 2009, San Francisco's redevelopment authorities approved a renovation concept that emphasized restaurants, a food terrace facing Yerba Buena Gardens, and a new position for the Fourth Street and Mission Street entrance. A proposed Tavern on the Green restaurant became uncertain after that business entered bankruptcy proceedings in September 2009. A farmers' market also occupied the former Discovery Channel Store space temporarily during 2009. The center underwent a substantial redevelopment in 2011 after most remaining businesses closed. The new plan made Target the principal retail anchor, with the retailer occupying a large part of the second floor. Metreon reopened in 2012 with Target, the AMC cinema, food vendors, event space, service businesses, and other tenants. The cinema gained a separate entrance and was later upgraded with laser projection for its IMAX auditorium, Dolby Cinema, and reclining seats. The Walk of Game, an attraction honoring figures and fictional characters from the video-game industry, had previously celebrated people such as Shigeru Miyamoto, Nolan Bushnell, Sid Meier, John D. Carmack, and game properties including StarCraft, Super Mario, Sonic the Hedgehog, and The Legend of Zelda's Link; its long-term continuation became uncertain after the redevelopment altered the second floor. Westfield sold Metreon to Starwood Capital Group in April 2012, while Westfield retained management responsibilities. The property subsequently continued as a mixed-use downtown destination rather than as a Sony product showcase. Its later tenant mix included restaurants, the AMC cinema, Target, educational and professional services, and event facilities. Tsuta, a Michelin-starred ramen brand from Tokyo, opened at Metreon in October 2019. From 2023, the building also hosted Cal Hacks' annual hackathon, reinforcing its continuing association with technology and public events. Metreon's history therefore reflects a transition from experimental corporate brand theater to a more conventional but still entertainment-oriented urban shopping center.

• 2023

  Cal Hacks adopts Metreon as a hackathon venue

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  The annual Cal Hacks event begins hosting its hackathon at Metreon.

• 2019

  Tsuta opens a Metreon restaurant

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  The Tokyo ramen company Tsuta establishes a location at Metreon, broadening the center's dining offer.

• 2012

  Target anchors the renovated Metreon

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Target opens in the redeveloped building, alongside the cinema, food outlets, services, and event facilities.

• 2012

  Starwood Capital Group acquires the property

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Starwood Capital Group buys Metreon from Westfield, with Westfield remaining responsible for management.

• 2011

  Major redevelopment closes most remaining businesses

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Most existing tenants close during a large renovation intended to create a food- and retail-led center.

• 2009

  Sony stores close and redevelopment begins

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Sony announces the closure of its Sony and PlayStation stores, while owners and city authorities advance a restaurant-centered renovation.

• 2006

  Ownership transfers to Westfield and Forest City

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Sony sells the property as the original urban entertainment-center strategy gives way to a redevelopment-oriented ownership model.

• 2005

  Walk of Game events are held

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Metreon hosts special Walk of Game events honoring notable video-game creators, characters, and franchises.

• 2001

  The Way Things Work attraction closes

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  The interactive educational presentation based on David Macaulay's book is closed after failing to become a lasting anchor attraction.

• 1999

  Metreon opens in downtown San Francisco

  [1]Metreonen.wikipedia.org

  Sony opens Metreon as its first urban entertainment center, combining consumer technology, retail, food, interactive attractions, games, and cinema.

A downtown urban entertainment and retail destination. It originally positioned itself as Sony's immersive showcase for technology and entertainment, and later repositioned as a food-oriented shopping center anchored by Target, cinema, restaurants, services, and events.

• Consumer electronics and video-game retail · 1999

  Sony and PlayStation stores

  The original Metreon included flagship Sony and PlayStation retail spaces designed to place the company's electronics, game systems, software, and entertainment properties in an immersive public setting. These stores were central to Metreon's original brand identity and attracted visitors during launches and periods of high demand for PlayStation hardware. Sony announced their closure in 2009 as the property moved away from a Sony-operated retail concept.

• Cinema and entertainment · 1999

  Metreon cinema

  The multiplex was one of Metreon's most commercially successful original components. It included standard screens and an IMAX auditorium and later operated as AMC Metreon 16. Subsequent improvements included a laser projector for IMAX, a Dolby Cinema auditorium, and reclining seats. The cinema remains a major source of traffic and a defining entertainment use within the complex.

• Interactive educational attraction · 1999

  The Way Things Work

  This multimedia attraction adapted the mechanical and scientific concepts of David Macaulay's book The Way Things Work through audio-animatronics and three-dimensional film. It was intended to make the center an educational as well as commercial destination, but it closed by 2001.

• Children's attraction · 1999

  Where the Wild Things Are

  Metreon operated a children's play environment inspired by Maurice Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are. It shared space with a restaurant themed around In the Night Kitchen and formed part of Sony's effort to make the center a family-oriented entertainment destination. The attraction closed sometime after July 2004.

• Arcade and bar · 1999

  Airtight Garage

  The Airtight Garage was an arcade and bar whose visual identity was inspired by the graphic work of Jean Giraud, known as Moebius. It featured original games, including HyperBowl, a three-dimensional obstacle-course bowling game using air-supported balls as trackballs. After the original games lost popularity, the venue was reworked as Portal One and later relaunched as Tilt.

• Department store · 2012

  Target at Metreon

  Target became the principal retail anchor of the redeveloped Metreon. The store occupies a large portion of the second floor and helped shift the property from a Sony-branded entertainment showcase toward an everyday shopping-center format serving downtown residents, workers, visitors, and convention attendees.

• Restaurant · 2019

  Tsuta Metreon

  Tsuta, a Tokyo-origin ramen restaurant associated with Michelin recognition, opened at Metreon in 2019. Its arrival supported the center's long-term repositioning around dining and added an internationally known specialty restaurant to the tenant mix.

• 2009Temporary farmers' market

  San Francisco, United States

  A seven-day-a-week farmers' market used the former Discovery Channel Store space as an interim tenant between May and November during the property's transition.

  Outcome. The market was temporary and ended as the redevelopment and longer-term tenant strategy progressed.

  Source
• 2005Walk of Game

  United States

  Metreon staged special events around the Walk of Game, a video-game honors concept modeled loosely on Hollywood's Walk of Fame. Honorees and subjects included game designers, developers, characters, and franchises.

  Outcome. Events were held in 2005 and 2006, but the feature's continuation became uncertain after later redevelopment changed the second-floor layout.

  Source
• 2001Metreon–Animax anime festival

  United States

  Metreon partnered with Sony's anime television network Animax to present anime videos and related programming through the Action Theatre, using the center as a public-facing entertainment and fandom venue.

  Outcome. The festival demonstrated Metreon's ability to support Sony-linked cultural programming, although no continuing annual program is documented in the supplied material.

  Source

• 2012

  Transfer ownership to Starwood Capital GroupM&A

  Background

  Following the redevelopment and Target opening, the property changed institutional ownership.

  Action taken

  Starwood Capital Group acquired Metreon from Westfield in April 2012, while Westfield continued managing the center.

  Aftermath

  Metreon continued operating as a mixed-use shopping, dining, cinema, and events destination.

  Source

• 2009

  Reposition Metreon as a restaurant-centered mallStrategy

  Background

  Sony's flagship stores were closing and the original attraction mix had weakened, prompting a major change in the property's business model.

  Action taken

  Westfield and Forest City advanced plans for a food-oriented redevelopment featuring restaurants, a food terrace, revised entrances, and new retail and service tenants.

  Aftermath

  Most remaining businesses closed during the 2011 renovation, and the center reopened with Target as its major retail anchor in 2012.

  Source

• 2006

  Sell Metreon to Westfield and Forest CityM&A

  Background

  Sony's experimental center had failed to meet its original expectations, and ownership rumors had circulated for several years.

  Action taken

  Sony transferred the property to Westfield Group and Forest City Enterprises.

  Aftermath

  The new owners began shifting the complex toward food, retail, and more conventional shopping-center uses.

  Source

• 1999

  Launch an urban entertainment center around the Sony brandStrategy

  Background

  Sony sought to create a high-profile public venue that joined product retail with games, interactive education, children's entertainment, dining, and cinema.

  Action taken

  The company opened Metreon in San Francisco and used the property as a showcase for Sony hardware, software, entertainment content, and design.

  Aftermath

  The concept attracted attention and product-launch traffic, but several attractions closed and the center did not produce the expected commercial results.

  Project investment. US$85 million (1999 project opening)

  Source

1. 1Metreonen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Metreon gets new lease on lifesfgate.com
3. 3Metreon's Shattered Dreamssfgate.com