May 8, 2007

Okay, not to start on a negative note, but this purse-snatcher B.S. has got to stop. This lady is out of freaking control. I can’t believe how many more places she has nailed the past few weeks. She was all over the Mission: Andalu got hit, and she also got Tangerine, where she wandered in and said she was looking for a friend—after someone noticed their purse was stolen, members of the staff actually jumped in a car and tried to find her! They win the vigilante award so far. Both times purses were hanging on the backs of chairs. She also hit Regalito, where she was foiled by a waiter who sensed something was wrong and chased her out (she was with another African American woman while at Regalito). (Please see the issue of tablehopper from a few weeks go  for some details and a description about the purse-snatcher thus far; in addition, it seems sometimes she works alone, and other times with companions.).

Another reader reported she stole a purse at Koh Samui and the Monkey, and proceeded to spend two grand at Bloomie’s with the credit card. And yet another reader’s purse was taken off the back of a chair at the Westfield Centre, so if it’s the same person, she was busy shopping and stealing all at once.

Also, I heard this from Dylan MacNiven at Woodhouse, “Regarding the purse snatcher, I know this woman. She came into the Woodhouse in our first weeks and claimed she had some bad takeout. I had personally boxed most of the orders myself and didn’t remember her, but had been working so hard, I thought I might have forgotten. She was persistent about getting a replacement and wanted a cash refund for half of the items (she had no receipt). I ended up giving her some fish and chips to leave because she was making a stink. When I got around to checking the orders from the day she claimed to have come in, there was none that matched and she was long gone. I have since heard from two others that someone matching her description has tried the same thing with other new restaurants. Thanks for pointing this out, hopefully others will come forward and we can catch her.”

Scam artist extraordinaire, and a total thief. She really needs to be stopped. In the meantime, ladies, I’d invest in one of those Euro-style purse holders so you can hang your purse right off your table. I remember seeing them in use at Gary Danko, and a reader reminded me they are all over Europe—restaurants give them away to special clientele (hers has the name of a restaurant in Spain). Cool idea, no? I found this one for only $2.50, although I might upgrade to this one since it can hold up to nine pounds, easily the size off my bag. I’d say buy one for yourself and your girlfriends.

Here’s a fun little tidbit: ~RYAN SCOTT~ of Myth Café was one of the 29 finalists for the next season of Top Chef. Yumsugar had this link to video footage of the 29 finalists talking about why they should be on the show. Scott has still been hard at work at the cafe, so I am going to assume he didn’t make it to the end, but I am sure that’s okay by many because we need him around to make those killer BLTs, ha ha!

Update on some closures: the historic ~DAGO MARY'S RESTAURANT~ in Hunter’s Point closed on Friday, April 27, after 77 years of business. It’s one of those spots I always meant to check out, but didn’t. It’s supposed to reopen in another location in the next two or three years. Here’s more on the closure from a piece in the Chron.

Reportedly the ~FILLMORE GRILL~ has also closed. I wasn’t able to get in touch with anyone before leaving for my trip to find out the what and why. 2298 Fillmore St., between Clay and Sacramento.

~OTTIMISTA ENOTECA~ has to unfortunately close for a month for repairs—basically the floor is rotting out from underneath them. Bummer. It will be closed from June 11-July 10.

I swung by the new location of ~NAAN-N-CURRY~ at the corner of Turk and Van Ness for some take-out last week. Let’s just say my dinner looked like the Exxon Valdez spill got to it, and I’ve seen truck stop bathrooms that were cleaner. The free chai, however, is always nice. 690 Van Ness Ave. at Turk, 415-775-1349.

Next week I promise I’ll have a pile of gossip and updates—I’ve just got way too much going on this week!