This week saw a couple of exciting openings, including the debut of Tartine Manufactory, the opening of the St. Vincent replacement Barzotto but it did not see the opening of Nightbird, Kim Alter's much awaited spot in Hayes Valley, which is now aiming for next week. We also got news of The Bird, a new Adriano Paganini spot downtown devoted to fried chicken sandwiches, and an update on two new spots coming to the Castro, Nomica and Finn Town.
Also this week over at the Chronicle, Jonathan Kauffman published this lengthy, in-depth piece about the family behind Namu Gaji, the Brothers Lee.
And speaking of the Mission, the former Minako Sushi (sadface) space at 2154 Mission Street is becoming a new location of Naan N Curry, as Mission Local reports.
Also, the quirkily named Bon, Nene, a Japanese spot with French influences, has just arrived in the former L'Aviateur space at 2850 21st Street. They've got food service all day from co-owners and first-time restaurateurs Stephanie Chan and Miu Furuta, and Eater has the menus for you here.
A shack in the middle of the Bayview's Mendell Plaza (4801 Third Street) may be transforming into Bishop's Burgers next year, complete with walk-up window. This is if a current planning application goes through, per Socketsite.
In the Tenderloin, a new Nepalese and Indian restaurant has debuted called Newa, as Hoodline tells us, at 407 Ellis Street, from the same people behind nearby Red Chilli.
Lower Nob Hill's beloved, almost 20-year-old Coffee Cabin (899 Hyde) has called it quits according to Hoodline.
Eureka!, one of well over a dozen places to get coffee in the Castro, called it quits last weekend, as they announced on Facebook. One of the owners told the Bay Area Reporter he blamed the neighborhood's sidewalk expansion project of two years ago for killing their business, but maybe it was the fact that the coffee game is pretty strong at about nine other places nearby?
A sixth location of the "French-inspired" bakery with the unfortunate name of La PanotiQ has just opened in Noe Valley, according to Hoodline. The business started on the Peninsula, and this location is double the size of their other SF location on Chestnut Street, serving "pastries, sandwiches, savory dishes, salads, and brunch items like waffles, French toast and quiche."
Also in Noe Valley, per Hoodline, Hamlet has just reopened with a fresh look and a new, trimmed-down menu that includes fried chicken, and a short rib.
Over in East Oakland we have word of a new New York-style pizzeria from the owners of popular beer garden Portal, called Philomena. Per the East Bay Express, it's nestled on 14th Avenue at 18th Street among alot of Southeast Asian food, and it sounds pretty good.
Inside Scoop has the word on the menu at Limewood, the replacement restaurant for the short-lived Antoinette at the Claremont Club & Spa in Berkeley. It's being billed as "a casual gathering place," and the kitchen's being overseen by former Dixie, The Advocate, and Murray Circle guy, Joseph Humphrey.
This Week In Reviews
Pete Kane at the Weekly dropped in to give a relative rave to the cocktails at the new Orbit Room this week. He also reviewed Smokestack at Magnolia Brewery in the Dogpatch, which recently saw the addition of new chef . Kane says there's "something ineffable about Smokestack’s vibe that makes me very happy to be there," which he thinks is probably just the combination of beer, good meat, and a well designed interior. He says the brisket and the Thai cheddar pork sausage are tops, and the tri-tip and chopped pork are sometimes lacking.
Michael Bauer returned to be disappointed in the changes at Corner Store, where a simplified menu under new exec chef Matthew Rosson loses some of the edge of the original menu, which had fun things on it like Buffalo-style sweetbreads. Now there's just a burger, and a short rib, and Texas-style ribs he describes colorfully as "the gray meat had a warmed-over flavor and clung to the bone like a tick on a dog." Service was also pretty bad, apparently, earning the Corner Store that rare and terrible rating: one and a half stars.
And, not surprisingly, Bauer is thoroughly charmed and impressed with In Situ at SFMOMA, opening his review saying "Flavors and images of three decades as a reviewer swirled in my head" as he sat experiencing the restaurant-as-museum conceived by Benu chef Corey Lee. He calls it "probably the most ambitious and unique restaurant I’ve ever experienced," and the accolades just flow from there. He also adds, "Lee’s concept is genius in another respect: When a dish hits, diners marvel at the apparent sublimation of ego and talent that went into channeling another chef’s vision. When a combination isn’t as compelling... the diner assumes it’s simply a disconnect between the palate and the original chef’s vision." The verdict: three and a half stars. (See my review here.)