The Chatterbox

Last week I was invited by Josh Birch—a partner in Club Deluxe and Orbit Room Cafe with owner Jay Johnson—to check out the new menu for CLUB DELUXE. (Birch is responsible for all the delicious changes that happened in the kitchen at Orbit Room Cafe.) While some folks…

Some random bits of news for you: first, you ready for the big reveal on where SHORTY GOLDSTEIN’S will be opening? (It’s the fab new Jewish deli I mentioned back in November that Michael Siegel—formerly of Betelnut—is opening in the FiDi.) It’s at 126 Sutter…

AXIS CAFÉ is no more, but it has been reopened by general manager Linda Edson and renamed ARACELY. Originally, Scoop caught the rumor that Edson would be opening Aracely on Treasure Island, and taking over Axis before and after the demolition of its current space. Now, Edson says that she…

Some new meals to add to your roster: starting Sunday February 10th, ~COTOGNA~ will be serving Sunday brunch from 11:30am-2:30pm. You can check out the menu here, which includes Lindy’s fried chicken and waffles ($16) and pork shoulder hash with rutabaga and baked egg ($16). An extra…

Across the Golden Gate in Sausalito, COPITA is getting a new chef. Gonzalo Rivera Jr. is an alum of the Michael Mina empire and has worked extensively in both Mexico and the United States. He has already worked with Joanne Weir to create some new dishes for the menu, including…

Yesterday I took a look at the brand-new ~SAISON~, opening this evening for service in its new home in SoMa/South Beach. And what a grand home it is. The historic pre-Quake building was built in 1888, and originally served as the California Electric Light Company Building. (For my fellow…

Sunday evening, I had a chance to take a preliminary peek at the new ~B. PATISSERIE~, a fabulous new addition to our city’s exploding bakery/pastry scene. The project is from Belinda Leong (Gary Danko, Manresa, and numerous places in Europe), who, after holding a series of successful pop-ups,…

A report from Dana Massey-Todd. As previously reported on tablehopper, the wonderful candymaker Chuck Siegel is back in action, this time in the Mission. His new location for CHARLES CHOCOLATES is on Florida Street in the former Potrero Brewing Co. space, just down the way from the new Heath Ceramics…

I was happy to learn Alison McQuade of McQuade’s Celtic Chutneys is on the hunt to open up a Scottish café called THE BUT ‘N BEN (it’s Scottish for “a little cottage”). It will be open for breakfast and lunch, serving everything from potato scones with a variety…

Some news bits around town for you. First, some details are coming out about what’s moving into the former Bia’s in the Upper Haight: according to Uppercasing, it’s going to be SPARROW BAR AND KITCHEN. There are a lot of details on the website, starting with the…