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Subscribe to tablehopper and discover why it’s a must-read, insider newsletter for anyone who lives to eat in San Francisco, for 19 years and counting. Every Tuesday, columnist and curator Marcia Gagliardi serves up the latest SF Bay Area restaurant and bar news, events, culture tips, travel guides, and more.

The Regular

No Restaurant Required

No Restaurant Required There is an explosion happening in San Francisco of irreverent and inexpensive places for food, whether it's delicious bites in bars (like Broken Record, Taco Shop at Underdogs, 15 Romolo) to curry and crème brûlée from carts. Here's a little recap of five…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 13, 2009

The Chatterbox

April 7, 2009

I was riding my bike down Haight Street this weekend and noticed a few changes in the Lower Haight: ~VISIT THAI~ has now morphed into ~BISTRO SAINT GERMAIN~. The owner is Laurent Legendre, who also has ~LE P'TIT LAURENT~ in Glen Park. He will have the same chef,…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 07, 2009

The Lush

April 7, 2009

Over in the Polk Gulch, the N’Touch Bar is going to be converted into the ~KOZY CAR BAR~. Yup, Kozy, like those vans in the 70s. The new owner is Sam Young, who currently owns the DragonBar (he was the half-owner of the following venues until 2006: The…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 07, 2009

The Starlet

April 7, 2009

It’s not every day you have a Pulitzer prize winner and nun spotting all rolled into one: Sister Helen Prejean (whose book was turned into Dead Man Walking) dined at Lark Creek Walnut Creek after speaking at the Mt. Diablo Unitarian Universalist Church. She ordered the baby field greens…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 07, 2009

What’s Cookin’

April 9, 2009

This weekend it was clear, Spring has sprung. All you had to do was look at the farmers’ market and Dolores Park on Saturday to confirm it. I had fun riding my bike all over town this weekend—highlights include Jordan Mackay’s reading (Passion for Pinot) and wine tasting…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 06, 2009

The Socialite

Star Chefs and Vintners Gala

Mark your calendar and reserve your spot for the ~22ND ANNUAL STAR CHEFS & VINTNERS GALA~ benefiting Meals On Wheels of San Francisco (MOWSF). The Gala is MOWSF's largest fundraiser, and its main source of charitable contributions for the year. Boulevard's Nancy Oakes is the gala…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 06, 2009

The Socialite

April 7, 2009

Tamales: definitely one of those things you don’t just whip up at home—and if you are going to make them, you need a posse of pals to help. Why not leave the handiwork to the pros? At the third annual ~A TASTE OF TAMALES BY THE BAY~, guests…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 06, 2009

The Regular

Phat Philly

Do you eat your pizza with a fork and knife? Then you're gonna have a problem at PHAT PHILLY, because you're about to eat one of the messiest, drippy, meaty sandwiches I've encountered since I had an Oki Dog in L.A. one stoned…

Marcia Gagliardi • Apr 06, 2009

The Chatterbox

March 31, 2009

~BLUE BOTTLE COFFEE~ is due to open their Ferry Plaza Marketplace café this Thursday April 2nd (it’s going into the former Oak Hill Farm spot). Now, while it’s not going to be as swish as the Mint Plaza location, it’s going to be a step up from…

Marcia Gagliardi • Mar 31, 2009

The Lush

March 31, 2009

Photo: Mathew Sumner Does this springtime weather have you in a tropical mood? Tonight, tiki legend Martin Cate is pouring a menu of vintage exotics in the library at ~BOURBON & BRANCH~. Get your Hawaiian shirt or hula skirt on and head over for some tiki classics—you can read…

Marcia Gagliardi • Mar 31, 2009