April 23, 2008
LA Times Makes Us Hate San Francisco
There's nothing like outsiders pointing out what's wrong with your city in their news publication. Today's "Reasons Why San Francisco Sucks" article is brought to you by the LA Times: Last call for many classic S.F. Bars. In the article, they talk about the closures of many SF faves, such as John Barleycorn, Bobby's Owl Tree, Moose's and Washington Square Bar & Grill among others. Really, just reading the article made us depressed.
Some were classic dives that refused to acknowledge the passage of time. They were cash only and served up Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra standards on chrome jukeboxes. Others were upscale bars attached to restaurants but with their own distinct identities and clientele.
Many were peopled by full-service bartenders with encyclopedic memories for their regulars' favorite poison. They stopped fistfights and ran phone interference from pesky ex-spouses and bill collectors.
Reasons for the closures of neighborhood bars vary: Owners died or decided to relocate, buildings were sold. Rising rents play a major role, owners and city officials say.
We are weeping at our laptops. Dammit.
Not that any of these closures are news-breaking, but the article is wonderful because of the great quotes from Larry Ayre of John Barleycorn, Willie Brown and Ed Moose of Moose's. There's a PR-style quote from Luisa Hanson on why "the Corn" had to go, even. It makes us sigh with sadness at the thought of old school San Francisco being taken over for some flash-in-the-pan restaurant/bar/lounge with modern furniture and "mood lighting " or some fake Irish pub opened up by an Italian wantrepreneur. Ugh.
Pic of Ginger's Trois by elroySF.
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i tend to care less if places close down because change is fun and interesting, but if Ginger's officially shutters its door, i'll blow the city to pieces.
My neighbourhood dive has recently acquired a video jukebox and a quiz machine. It's not a promising sign...
"Former Mayor Willie Brown, a bachelor well-studied in the city's night life,..."
But isn't he still legally married, though estranged? Just nitpicking on those stupid LA bastards., talking trash about this town..
WashBAG!! That was a fuuuun spot. I wish they would bring Trader Vics back to The City.
At least we still have The Mark and The Frantic.
Old SF is dead, its official
You're more likely to find something approximating it in South City or San Mateo than you will in the Mission or North Beach
The saddest thing about this is that it was written by the LA Times. Way to totally ignore local issues of interest as usual, SF Chronicle.
Also, I worked at both Moose's and The Washbag. Their passings break my heart, but don't surprise me. Not enough people appreciate the joys of a three martini lunch anymore. Everyone is too busy jogging.
There's still Tosca's.
And Old SF still lives on while the Twins draw breath.
Besides, I have a theory that Herb Caen & Co. are alive in Beth Spotswood because she's one of those host bodies like in Being John Malkovich.
Um, didn't Spots grow up in MARIN? So not the same.
Plug1 -
Trader Vic's did come back, to the old Stars location on Golden Gate near Van Ness.
Didn't get enough business, though, and closed down again this past January.
Um, didn't Spots grow up in MARIN? So not the same.
Nothing is more San Franciscan than coming from somewhere else. Even Herb Caen grew up in Sacramento. Harvey Milk was from NY. Willie was from Texas. Emperor Norton was from London.
It ain't where you come from; it's where you end up.
"And Old SF still lives on while the Twins draw breath."
Frankly, I think the White Trash Twins who hang around the Embarcadero Center are more characteristic of old SF than Vivian "the Oppressor" and Marian "The Oppressed" Brown could ever hope to be.
I went into Gingers last week, just feels different, It might be something to do with the lack of people in there. Think I will go there after work for one. Come by and say hi.
I agree with generic. NO ONE appreciates San Francisco than someone who grew up in some inner state shithole.
How special is it to be native? It just means your parents f**ked here, it's not like you had much to do with it.
American by birth, San Franciscan BY CHOICE.
(Not to rant, but I get so sick of that "I'm a native, I'm superior" bullshit)
Nothing is the same since Fulton Street Bar closed down. They gave me a free whiskey as I walked by, out on the street, on the last day.
And that should be no one appreciates SF MORE than someone who grew up in an inner state shithole.
Hey Katerose, how many generations of your family are from SF? Spots is at least a third generation. She was born here and went to school here.
Do you need higher credentials to comment on the San Francisco bar scene? Trust me, Spots has got street cred in that department.
Yeah, but the good news is that there's now plenty of places you can get a mojito or chocolate martini.
Bluecanary: Although I do understand and appreciate your points, I do think there is something to be said about being native to anywhere. I don't know which state you hail from, but despite your obvious, um, distaste for it, I'm sure when you go back, when you smell the scents and see the sights and hear the sounds and taste the flavors, something comes alive in you.
You grew up there, you know the history, you know the people, you know the culture. You just know the place in a way that a wide-eyed outsider, no matter how enthused they may be, may not quite "get".
And although it is true that nothing is more San Franciscan than landing here from a distant port, there are the natives. And no, not all natives stay. In fact, just like people from all other cities, some people born and raised here can't wait to get the fuck out of dodge. And to them I'll quote Herb Caen: "Isn't it nice that people who prefer los angeles to San Francisco live there?" Or New York, or Chicago, or Seattle, or Austin, or Boston or inner state shithole.
But those of us that stay, damn, we love this City even if it becomes ever less recognizable to us. Shit, I'm only 29 but I remember stealing bubble gum from Petrini's when I was 7. I remember kicking back at my Mom's and Pop's store in the Richmond when I was 10. I remember running home from the park to catch the World Series when the quake hit in '89.
We got into fights, we kissed girls, we drank coffee, we drank beer. And we still do. The bars got a bit fancier, the restaurants a bit more expensive, the Giants moved to new digs, and Goodman's Lumber is gone.
But I know that San Francisco is a baby of a city and change is all this City has ever known since it was called Yerba Buena for the last time. I'll stay and watch, and I know, Bluecanary, you will too, and hell, maybe one day, we'll share a drink at an old-timey bar or a newfangled one and reminisce about those days when we were young, when those damned bloggers took up all the good seats and all the good cafes in town.
Cheers.
A native son:
I love you.