I've spent a decent amount of time in both cities (more than any other cities, in fact) and never gotten that impression, but I adore San Francisco and don't really care for Washington much at all. To me Washington seems awfully artificial; the immense tourist trap that is the federal buildings in the heart of the city serves as a real impediment to the creation of real communities like San Francisco has.
I've always felt it strange when people talk about "real communities" in a city. For one thing, if you are not a part of those communities, why do you care? What value does it bring to you? On the other hand, if you are a part of a community, then again, I would say it's more about your personal connections than the physical space. I can see myself living in the middle of a relatively close residential "community" and yet still be quite isolated. So what you're talking about is really the snobbery of preferring one type of city to another.