Heath Ceramics Kitchenware Store in the Mission: $15 Tours

Heath Ceramics makes the plates it sells in the same building where you shop for them. The San Francisco showroom is at 2900 18th Street in the Mission, wrapped around the company's working tile factory, and it is open every day: 10 am to 6 pm Monday through Friday and 10 am to 5 pm on weekends. As a kitchenware store it leans toward the table rather than the stove, with a stoneware pasta bowl at $68 and a stack mug at $60.

Edith and Brian Heath started Heath Ceramics in 1948, the same year the Coupe line launched, and the company's original factory went up in Sausalito in 1959. The Rim line followed in the 1960s, and tile production began in 1967. In 2003, Robin Petravic and Catherine Bailey relaunched the business, and today Heath describes itself as a Purpose Trust owned company whose stated goal is to keep artisanal craft alive through designing and making.

The San Francisco site arrived in 2012. Heath calls it the creative heart of the company: a former linen supply and laundry with good bones and strong natural light, now a 60,000 square foot complex under one roof. The tile factory sits in the center, and the showroom, a gallery space, a chef's kitchen area with cookbooks and pantry goods, and a group of designer studios surround it. You can catch glimpses of production from several points inside the building.

The shapes on the shelves have long histories, and Heath dates them on its own site: the Coupe Dinner Plate from 1948, the Studio Mug from 1955 and the Rim Cereal Bowl from 1961. Current online prices give a sense of the spend. A Cereal Bowl in Sand costs $48, a Pasta Bowl in Redwood or Opaque White is $68, a Main Plate in Slate is $75 and a Tall Tumbler in Fennel is $50. The Deep Serving Bowl, a good centerpiece for a family table, is $120.

Our honest advice: skip the large statement salad bowls on a first visit unless you have a specific table in mind, since the Shallow Salad Bowl runs $236 and the Large Serving Bowl $219. Start with two pasta bowls and two mugs in one glaze, live with them, and add pieces later. Heath glazes vary piece to piece by design, so pick the exact bowl you like from the shelf rather than ordering blind online.

The tile factory tour is the reason many people plan a visit around a specific day. Tours are limited in size, require an advance RSVP through Eventbrite, last about one hour and cost $15. All participants must be at least 5 years old, closed-toe shoes are required, and Heath provides protective eyewear on the factory floor. At the end of the tour, guides lead the group back into the showroom to browse.

The tour walks through the tile factory that anchors the whole campus, which you otherwise only glimpse from the showroom floor. Book as early as you can, since group sizes are capped, and wear clothes you do not mind getting a little dusty. If every slot is full, the Clay Studio around the corner in the Boiler Room has a public observation area where you can watch the craftspeople work on weekdays.

Heath shares the complex with neighbors chosen for their craft. Tartine Manufactory, the culinary research and production space from Tartine Bakery co-founders Elisabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson, sits inside, and it serves its food on Heath Tile and the Tartine Collection dinnerware. The Heath Collective hosts studios for jewelers Julia Turner and Liz Oppenheim, fiber artist Windy Chien and the print shop Aesthetic Union.

The Heath Newsstand opened in 2017 and stocks magazines, snacks, cold drinks and stationery, and it doubles as a venue for brand pop-ups. The events calendar is busy this autumn: Heath lists a BEAMS Expedition Club pop-up from November 5 to 8, 2026, a Heath and Copper stove event on November 8, and a design conversation with writer Su Wu, Dung Ngo and Catherine Bailey on November 17. Check the calendar on heathceramics.com before you pick a date.

Weekday mornings right after 10 am are the calmest time to shop, with space to lay plates side by side and compare glazes. Tour groups finish their walk in the showroom, so on tour days the tables get busier right after each session ends. Plan about 45 minutes for the showroom alone, or two hours if you add the tour and a coffee at Tartine Manufactory. Bring a sturdy tote, since stoneware gets heavy fast.

If you cannot reach the Mission, Heath also runs a shop inside the Ferry Building on the Embarcadero, which is handy if you are already downtown. The Mission location is the one to choose when you want the factory, the full color range and the Clay Studio pieces in one trip. In-store pickup for online orders uses the same showroom hours, which is handy if you want to inspect a set before carrying it home.

The showroom sits on the industrial edge of the Mission, where 18th Street meets Alabama Street, so the walk out is a mix of warehouses, murals and taquerias. Head south on Alabama or Florida Street toward 24th Street, and turn west to reach Balmy Alley, a short lane between Treat Avenue and Harrison Street lined with murals painted since the 1970s. The 24th Street corridor beyond it is full of panaderias and produce markets.

Going the other direction, a few blocks north brings you to Franklin Square, a city park at 16th and Bryant Streets with a soccer field and a playground. The Muni 33 line runs along 18th Street past the showroom, and the 16th Street Mission BART station is a walk of about 20 minutes. Street parking is metered and fills up on weekends, so transit or a bike is the easier choice.

Address: 2900 18th Street, San Francisco, CA 94110, at Alabama Street in the Mission. Showroom and in-store pickup hours: Monday to Friday 10 am to 6 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am to 5 pm. Tile factory tour: $15, about one hour, advance RSVP required, ages 5 and up, closed-toe shoes. Sample prices: Cereal Bowl $48, Pasta Bowl $68, Main Plate $75.