The Chatterbox

Big news in North Beach: ~ENRICO'S~ has been taken over by Christina Deeb (one of the owners of Bambuddha Lounge, plus Nob Hill Café, Venticello, and the former Maroc in the Haight). Chef Seamus Cronin of Venticello Ristorante will also have some involvement in the project. Enrico'…

I wanted to clarify a couple things about the 2007 ~COZMO CARDS~ offer I mentioned last week—you actually get a deck of 50 cards (not 52, my bad), and two of those cards are joker cards that can each be redeemed for three restaurant cards of your choice. (You…

Okay, this is a tough one. Folks all over the city have been saddened and shocked by the violent and very unfortunate car accident that involved three members of the ~BAR CRUDO~ team last week. Graciela "Gracie" Sholl was tragically killed when the driver of a minivan ran…

I reported a couple weeks back that Frisco Fish & Chips in North Beach bit the (saw)dust… well, check out who is moving in! How about the ~NORTH BEACH LOBSTER SHACK~? Yup, you 650-savvy folks will note this is a second location for the Old Port Lobster Shack in…

Over at the Westfield Centre, the Straits Group will be opening ~STRAITS UNDER THE DOME~ under the former Emporium dome. This open-air bar and lounge/restaurant will be a new hotspot for folks to meet up, maybe after a movie, where they can get a bite to eat or enjoy…

First it was Enrico's, and now another San Francisco landmark has closed its doors: ~THE MANDARIN RESTAURANT~ at Ghirardelli Square, founded by Cecilia Chang in 1968, served its last meal on Sunday night. The restaurant is being converted into the Fairmont Heritage Place at Ghirardelli Square, a private…

In North Beach there's a cool new restaurant opening called ~NUA RESTAURANT AND WINE BAR~; it's moving into the former New Pisa space, Dante Benedetti's old restaurant, right next to Gino & Carlo's. The menu will be primarily Mediterranean (dancing between dishes…

I am very saddened to report that ~ENRICO'S SIDEWALK CAFÉ~ has closed as of last night, October 30. Lavay Smith was the last performer, a fitting finale since she has been performing at Enrico's for some time. I spoke with the GM, Al Russek, who explained…

A slew of openings this week—exciting times, gang. First, and right on schedule I'd like to note, ~EUREKA RESTAURANT AND LOUNGE~ (the project from the chaps at Chenery Park) opened on Saturday in the old Red Grill space in the Castro. Open Tue-Sun for dinner, starting at…

The "best of" and "top-rated" flurry of  activity continues: this month is Esquire's annual issue with John Mariani's picks for the "Best New Restaurants in the U.S." NorCal landed four winners: Ame; Bong Su; Junnoon, Palo Alto; and Redd,…