The Chatterbox

Back in October, we heard a rumor that Lindsay and Michael Tusk were taking over the closed Barrique, which is across the street from Quince. When we followed up, they couldn’t comment on it at the time, but now they confirmed the news with the Scoop, which reports they…

The last time I ran into chef Dennis Lee of ~NAMU GAJI~ at an event, he alluded to a project that would be coming soon, one that would launch before Namu Noodle in Dogpatch. Now that the ABC license application has hit the wires, we learn that it’s going…

By Dana Eastland. 3RD COUSIN, the brick-and-mortar restaurant from chef Greg Lutes in the former Kinfolk space in Bernal, is now open. According to Facebook, they opened on November 19th, with a menu informed by Lutes’ pop-up, Kinfolk. The dishes are hearty California style, and a chef’s tasting menu…

By Dana Eastland. North Beach classic ORIGINAL U.S. is returning after closing earlier this year. The Chronicle reports that it is being reopened by former general manager Alberto Cipollina and San Francisco Giants Executive Vice President of Business Operations Mario Alioto, though not in the same location. The old…

By Dana Eastland. A fab tablehopper reader and tipster sent us the news that NOETECA in Noe Valley has been sold to a new owner. According to a note in the window, the owners have sold it to Michele D’Amico while they focus on the upcoming Mission Brasserie (which…

By Dana Eastland. Yikes. Scoop reports that Oakland’s brand-new GRAND FARE MARKET has (hopefully only temporarily) closed. According to a note on their website, the closure is “until further notice” and “the market’s current incarnation simply required too much cost to keep up basic operations, and we couldn’…

THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT, THANKS EVERYONE. PLEASE DO NOT CALL THE RESTAURANT, THERE AREN’T ANY MORE TICKETS, SORRY. STAND BY FOR FUTURE TABLEHOPPER EVENTS! Anyone who knows me knows how much I j’adore Champagne (just doing my part to delay the onset of dementia and improve spatial…

By Dana Eastland. This is some pretty cool news! Los Angeles-based food personality and forager Erik Sun has filed permits for two restaurants in San Francisco. Hoodline caught the news and mentions that there are two separate projects under way: ARSENAL and THE HUNTED. Based on some social media stalking,…

By Dana Eastland. As reported earlier this year, there are changes afoot at the former Pizza Inferno on Fillmore. The New Fillmore reports that it’s now softly open as ACADEMY, from chef Nick Pallone and Peter Fogel. They’ve revamped the space, giving it a more open feel, with…

Exciting things keep happening at ~CALA~: today Gabriela Cámara and her team opened for lunch during the week. The back-alley taco spot is called Tacos Cala and is in the back of the restaurant (enter through Hickory Street). The menu is focused on tacos de guisado, with three different options—…