FEBRUARY
5, 2008 | SAN FRANCISCO Whoa.
Big major bummer here: this remains officially unconfirmed, but
I heard from a couple folks ~SCOTT
HOWARD RESTAURANT~ has closed. Thud. Damn. Howard
was reportedly personally calling all the employees yesterday to
tell them the unfortunate news that they wouldn’t be open
today. I didn’t get an email
back to confirm the sad what and why, but I do know business in
January has been rough for some places around town… Will
let you know next week once I hear back from him. I know a lot
of local people are really sorry to hear it didn’t
work out—so many folks love his cooking, and have a lot of
respect for him. Best to you, Scott, thanks for all the heart and
soul you have put in your food and restaurant. I look forward to
seeing where you land next—and I know I’m not alone!
500 Jackson St. at Montgomery, 415-956-7040.
Let’s
cut to some really good news: the staff of A16 and SPQR want
to give a “Big happy returns” to ~CHRIS
GERWIG~, the sous chef from A16 who was rescued on Monday
morning—he is thankfully ok after being reported missing
this past weekend while skiing at Alpine Meadows. His friend and
ski buddy, Patrick Frost, is also reportedly fine and they only
had a little frostbite. Amazing. Read the harrowing tale of their
lost weekend surviving in snow caves here.
Been hearing some buzz about ~CANTEEN’S
DENNIS LEARY~ opening
a new place, one rumor placing it downtown. At the moment, Leary
is being muy silencioso about the project, so I’ve got nothing
definitive. The details are getting worked out, and he promised
he’ll be sharing the concept and name and design details
once those things are final. Soon. Can’t wait!
OK, more big and slightly mysterious news: executive chef ~SEAN
O’BRIEN OF MYTH~ has partnered with Sprezzatura
Restaurant Group (i.e. Joe Hargrave and Andrew McCormack of frisson
and Laiola). All right! They are reportedly not working on a
set project at the moment, and just getting the partnership thing
underway. BUT, I couldn’t help but ask if they were planning
to make changes to frisson. My little inquiry has to remain unanswered
and unconfirmed at the moment—they said to sit tight and
all will be revealed in the coming weeks.
But
wait, there’s
more! (I feel like a Ginsu commercial). Executive chef ~TYSON
GREENWOOD OF PLUMPJACK CAFÉ~
is no longer at the restaurant. I’ll keep you posted on where
Greenwood lands. 3127 Fillmore St. at Filbert, 415-563-4755.
Also heard that ~1300
ON FILLMORE’S~ chef de cuisine, Shawn
Paul, is no longer with the restaurant. They are currently interviewing
for a candidate to take his place. I’m waiting to hear back
from him where he is landing.
Since
we’re talkin’ 1300,
the restaurant is celebrating ~BLACK
HISTORY MONTH~, running through February 29. A four-course
tasting menu will be offered ($85 per person, plus tax and gratuity),
paired with wines from African-American-owned wineries (Black
Coyote, Esterlina, Vision Cellars, and Brown Estate)—there
will also be a special flight available of these wines. 1300
Fillmore at Eddy, 415-771-1700.
Opening
today in Hayes Valley, in the former “friend” space,
is ~CHRISTOPHER
ELBOW CHOCOLATES~.
This is the first store out west for the Kansas City chocolatier.
This combination chocolate boutique and café will have everything
from artisanal caramels (hello, strawberry balsamic) to gorg ganache
little numbers to truffles to an array of hot chocolates to coffee
(a special blend from The Roasterie in Kansas City). The modern
look is done up in chocolate brown (natch) and red accents, and
there are tables and chairs, plus a long bench with armrests and
light-up tables. Hours are Mon–Thu 11am–8pm, Fri-Sat
11am–10pm, and Sun 12pm–6pm. 401 Hayes St. at Gough,
415-355-1105.
The
Western Addition, excuse me, NOPA, will have some jazz coming
to the neighborhood, ironically not too far from the previous location
of the Saint
John Coltrane Church, before it moved to Fillmore
Street some years ago. This project is a jazz café that’s
moving into the former liquor store on the corner. Funny, the café will
be called ~ON
THE CORNER~, inspired by the Miles Davis album. Owner,
Rich Hohl, a jazz guitarist, is partnered up with Jean O’Rourke,
the former owner of O’Rourke’s Bar, which later became
my pal Jamie’s 540 Club on Clement Street. The 1400-square-foot-space
will have a café atmosphere by day, with Wi-Fi and coffee,
and by night, will have more of a living room/loungey atmo, with
couches, armchairs, and tables and chairs for eating. The owners
plan to have live music nightly, and since there isn’t a
stage, the musicians will be right there, very close and in the
mix. It doesn’t have a full kitchen, but they will be offering
sandwiches, bagels, hummus plates, plus personal pizzas will be
available in the evening. And since O’Rourke is 100% Irish,
look for a tasty sausage breakfast in the morning. They are applying
for a beer and wine license, which will hopefully happen soon.
The opening is slated for the last day of February—yup, it’s
a leap year, which should make for some interesting anniversaries
if they meet the date. 359 Divisadero St. at Oak.
If
you are craving some jazz in the 94117 right now, my favorite
new bicycle café, ~MOJO
BICYCLE CAFÉ~ has
Tuesday night Jazz Night each week with the Jack Tone Riordan Trio
starting at 8pm. Jack Tone Riordan has been playing
in the San Francisco Jazz Scene for eight years, and is an indispensable
member of multiple performing groups. His own band includes Smith
Dobson Jr. and John Shifflet. 639-A Divisadero St. at Grove, 415-440-2338.
And now, some updates about some SF stalwarts. First, ~KIMO’S~ on
Polk is under new ownership as of February 1. The two partners
in the project are currently revamping the upstairs, redoing the
bar, and putting in new tables and chairs, and adding lots of TLC.
Once the upstairs is complete, the downstairs refresh will begin.
The punk format will be gone, and more rock and blues will be on
the playbill. Drag too, yay, just like old times! The name will
remain. 1351 Polk St. at Pine, 415-885-4535.
Second,
I can finally reveal the new owners of ~GINGER’S
TROIS~: Dahi Donnelly, Brian Sheehy, and Doug Dalton
of Future
Bars
(i.e. Bourbon & Branch, Anu, Swig, and the upcoming Cask
Spirits).
They just took over last Tuesday, and are planning to keep everything
status quo in the coming months while they are getting Cask up
and running and the extension to Bourbon & Branch—no
details to reveal on the latter, yet. The only changes at Ginger’s
mentioned for now are “new barkeeps, cleaner restrooms, and stiffer
pours.” I know they have a lot of respect for what an institution
Ginger’s is, and are sensitive to keeping the loyal long-term
clientele happy. 246 Kearny St. at Sutter, 415-989-0282.
Over in Glen Park, a ~FAMILY-STYLE ITALIAN RESTAURANT~ will
be moving into the old Bird & Beckett bookstore location. I
spoke with owner Monhal Jweinat of Higher Ground Coffee House,
and he said to look for an opening in the end of April or so. Jweinat
lived in the Friuli region and in Milan for six years, but he said
the restaurant will pull from all kinds of styles, from pesto to
puttanesca. The name is still undecided, and the chef hunt is on,
so expect more details in the coming months. 2790 Diamond St. at
Chenery.
Looks like two ramen shops are brewing: moving into the Dragon
House space on Geary in the Richmond will be ~WATAMI~,
which has Chowhounders wondering if it’s a spin-off of the big izakaya chain in Japan, or
perhaps just inspired by it. Meanwhile, a second ramen place, ~ASUKA
RAMEN~, is reportedly opening in March in Nob Hill, in
the former Asuka Mart space. Are we finally going to have multiple
ramen choices in this town? Shocking. Watami, 5344 Geary Blvd.
at 17th St.; Asuka Ramen, 883 Bush St. at Taylor.
Also
on Bush Street, downtown’s ~POPOLO~ (375 Bush St. at Belden)
has closed… After ten years of business, the owner decided
to close when the landlord renegotiated the lease and raised
it to an impossible amount. Guests are being referred to their
sister restaurant, Pasta Bene, 88 Hardie Place at Kearny, 415-989-2222.
And
a reader tipped me off that ~GUSTOFINO FINE FOODS~ on
Church has closed too. I emailed with owner Matt Rutledge, and
he said things just weren’t working out. The space has already
been leased to a café. Mrow. 248 Church St. at 15th St.
Some
good news in the neighborhood, however: I’ve had two
people tell me how happy they are with ~GOLDEN NATURAL
FOODS~, a market that recently opened on Church Street
right across from the behemoth Safeway, near Burgermeister. These
are the same owners of Golden Produce, and supposedly the meat
counter is amazing, highlighting organic, local, and sustainable
products, with unusual cuts available too! According to a post
on Yelp, “they
plan to add a hot foods counter for quick take-home dinner food,
[and] they do made-to-order sandwiches at lunchtime.” I gotta
check it out. 130 Church St. at Duboce Ave.
And ~BRANDY
HO’S~ new location in the Castro is having their grand opening party
this Friday—Saturday the dining room will be open to guests.
Hunan in the hizzy! 4068 18th St. at Castro, 415-252-8000.
After their December fire, ~VELVET CANTINA~ in the Mission is back open again! Swing by for a margarita and
say hello. 3349 23rd St. at Bartlett, 415-648-4142.
~KING-CHA
CHA~ has officially opened in the former
Citizen Thai space in North Beach. According to a Yelp
post,
it’s the same owner of King of Thai Noodle House. Eater has
news about the “Monkey” space, which is now Manchester City
English Pub. 1268 Grant Ave. at Vallejo, 415-364-0008 (King-Cha
Cha) and 415-391-8215 (Manchester).
~MIXT GREENS~,
the ever-busy salad outpost, will be opening its third location
in the Financial District, this one is slated to open April 7.
According to the Mixt Greens folks, this new location will have, “a
totally new look and feel and showcase a whole bunch of new green
building materials. We are also adding more tables to the JP Morgan
Courtyard so we will have plenty of outdoor seating. And we are
designing the restaurant to have a significant catering operation
to service SOMA.” The new location will be 580 Mission St.
at 1st St.
Nicole
Kosta was just appointed wine director/sommelier of ~SILKS~.
Kosta hails from Adelaide, Australia. She was general manager
of Valentino’s in Omaha, NE within one year of joining
the restaurant; worked under Master Sommelier Madeline Triffon
in Detroit where she studied and obtained her Sommelier Certification;
and at Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar in Livonia,
MI as wine director. Mandarin Oriental Hotel, 222 Sansome St.
at Pine, 415-986-2020.
In the event world, ~BATTLE OF THE CHEFS: ROUND TWO~,
a lighthearted cooking competition between San Francisco chefs
is underway. The lineup includes:
Monday, February 11: Rick Corbo of Ducca vs. Travis Flood of Moose's
Monday, March 10: Mark Sullivan of Spruce vs. Mark Denham of Laïola
Monday, April 7: Joel Huff of Silks vs. Ian Begg of Café Majestic
During their “battles,” the chefs are given 45 minutes
to prepare a dish using the night’s “secret” ingredient. Chefs
are allowed to bring ingredients that showcase their style of cooking,
as well as a sous chef to assist them in preparation. Marisa Churchill,
known for her role on Bravo’s Top Chef and currently
the executive pastry chef at Yoshi’s of San Francisco, will
provide the play-by-play commentary. The judges for each event
will consist of local and national food personalities. Admission
to each "Battle of the Chefs" event is $10 and includes
the competition, food, and wine samples. The bell sounds at 6pm
on the fight night dates above. Space is limited. For more detailed
information, including tickets, which are now on sale, please visit
rivera-pr.com.
~FOREIGN
CINEMA~
is hosting their anniversary party this Thursday, well, 8 ½ years,
screening what else but Fellini’s 8 ½. Bites will
be passed on the patio, plus some drinks, and a variety of entertainment,
like the Jazz Mafia, Vau de Vire Society, and acrobats
will be performing. 6pm–late. $40. All of the evening’s
proceeds will benefit StreetSmart
4 Kids of San Francisco.
2534 Mission St. at 21st St., please RSVP, space is limited: 415-648-7600.
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