News from the Heart & Soul of San Francisco
ART | LUCY GRAY You visit the exhibition. The first picture you come to, you see the woman’s mouth open and she’s waiting — maybe waiting to hear what you have to say, that cigarette poised between her fingers. It’s Billie Holiday, looking radiant, in Awaiting Arraignment. Created by Monica Lundy out of 22 karat…
LONGTIME LOCAL business owner Kelly Ellis has died after a long illness and his Lion Pub at 2062 Divisadero is now closed after 48 years. The Lion Pub holds a storied place in the city’s gay history, tucked discreetly off the beaten path in a jungle of greenery at Divisadero and Sacramento. More recently, it catered…
NEARLY TWO YEARS ago, the firm announced: “Blue Bottle Coffee is excited to be pursuing a new cafe located at Jackson and Fillmore Streets.” Since then, nada. A PR rep says only what she has said for months: “I will be in touch as soon as I have more details.” Confirmation, of a sort, that…
FIRST PERSON | BARBARA WYETH Funny how habits form. They revolve around responsibilities and chores, but also the small pleasures that brighten our daily routines. I have been working for several years at a beautiful flower shop in the neighborhood. In addition to spending time with a great team of co-workers and the lovely flowers…
SALOONS | CHRIS BARNETT Eternally preppy saloon impresario Perry Butler’s landmark joint at 1944 Union Street is a museum of all things newsworthy in San Francisco for the last 47 years, with nary a square inch of empty wall space. But he’s long felt something was missing. “I’ve always wanted a poster,” he says, “A…
By JESSICA ZIMMERMAN GRAF I grew up in this neighborhood. I used to go to Gino’s grocery store at Fillmore and Jackson after school to get gummy worms in the ’80s when they were all the rage. I’ve walked around this neighborhood for years — decades, in fact. And now, I’m delighted to be back…
By FRAN JOHNS It’s hard to find people in Japantown these days who remember when the water stopped flowing and the once-lovely fountains on the Buchanan Street pedestrian mall became two interesting but somewhat curious sculptural objects. This is not what widely beloved, internationally renowned San Francisco Japanese-American artist Ruth Asawa had in mind when…
SOME NEIGHBORHOOD CRITICS of a plan to create a memorial Zen rock garden on the Sutter Street side of Cottage Row have disputed historical sources that say Cottage Row was primarily occupied by Japanese-Americans before they were evacuated and interned during World War II. The critics are wrong. A review of census records and city directories…
SAD NEWS from one of Fillmore’s few remaining old-school shops: SF Boot & Shoe Repair at 2448 Fillmore has closed after 34 years. Owner Ed Nahigian died early on September 27 while walking his dog in Alta Plaza Park. EARLIER: “Still Standing“
By DANIEL SCHILLER Visible from several points across the city, the former Sacred Heart parish at 548 Fillmore near Fell Street today provides another type of spiritual guidance. Instead of bingo, signs promote the Church of 8 Wheels, a weekly roller-skating party and yoga classes. A membership gets you all the tea you can drink…