News from the Heart & Soul of San Francisco
SALOONS | Chris Barnett What is a gentlemanly ex-plumber from the Sunset doing running a hot new Hawaiian-themed saloon, eatery and live music lounge in the Fillmore? And at a time when many publords are quietly pushing up prices and skimping on portions and pours, how can James Cheng’s Pa’ina Lounge & Restaurant host an…
By Christine Lunde WORKING FROM A recipe tested and perfected in her apartment just off Jackson Street, Susan Gabiati has launched Kettel Krakkers, a line of gluten-free, mostly organic, traditional Danish crackers offered in four flavors: sesame, caraway, garlic and rosemary. Although the traditional Danish cracker is gluten-based, Gabiati decided to adapt the recipe when…
ONE GREAT DISH | MICHELE MANDELL The rapid-fire pace at which new restaurants open in San Francisco can make a three-year-old spot seem like yesterday’s news. But Baker & Banker, named for its husband-and-wife team — pastry chef Lori Baker and chef Jeff Banker — opened to critical fanfare in December 2009. And the place…
“We’ve begun to long for the pitter-patter of little feet — so we bought a dog. Well, it’s cheaper, and you get more feet.” — Rita Rudner FIRST PERSON | DAVID LANDIS It all began when we put up the Christmas tree in December. My partner Sean Dowdall is a cafeteria Catholic and I’m a…
SUPERCHEF CHARLES PHAN “doesn’t have to go far to raid his restaurant pantry for ingredients,” The New York Times reports, since the family lives in an apartment above his Out the Door restaurant on Bush Street.
FILM | Ruthe Stein Jack Bair — a co-founder and director of the Mostly British Film Festival, which opens at the restored Vogue Theatre at 3290 Sacramento Street on January 17 — leads two lives, at least. His day job is as senior vice president and general counsel of the San Francisco Giants, a team…
By Chris Barnett IF YOU NEED a new hideout with plenty of space to chill over a hot coffee, feast on fresh, fairly priced food and connect with fast, free WiFi — without your train of thought being derailed by a room full of chatterboxes — the recently opened Fillmore Fine Foods Cafe could be…
ITS CHEERFUL and hard-working employees got the word a week ago: Today is the final day for a burger and a chocolate shake at the counter at Johnny Rockets on Fillmore. The retro diner is out of time, with its fried food, juke box and neon signs — especially since Roam Burgers opened across the…
By Donna Gillespie FILLMORE STREET will soon lose a landmark, a warm and friendly neighborhood destination that still offers meticulous, old-fashioned mailing services — a place that’s so much more than just somewhere to mail a box. After 22 years, Jet Mail is moving. The good news is that it’s not going very far. January…
ART | MICHAEL SCHWAGER The history of Bay Area art is filled with stories of unique individuals, influential institutions and the social and political climate where artists congregated to live and create. An exhibition now at the Di Rosa Foundation in Napa tells one of those stories: the story of an exceptional group of artists…