DNA Lounge offshoot Codeword (917 Folsom Street), which debuted in SoMa in late 2015, will be shutting down at the end of July as owner Jamie Zawinski revealed in a blog post this week. Eater also caught the news, noting that the adjoining second location of DNA Pizza will also be closing Ā though DNA Lounge and DNA Pizza live on in their original 11th Street digs.
Zawinski announced in December that DNA Lounge was in some financial trouble, and it was clear that opening the second nightclub had not helped matters. And while things may have been looking up in late 2014 when Zawinski decided to expand, the new spot was beset with troubles of its own, namely, as he explains, "the interminable construction project next door made our side of the street invisible, unwalkable and filthy."
He explains further that while he could have been stuck with a long lease at Codeword, the landlord has been very generous, offering a rent reduction, and now offering to let Codeword out of its lease.
Zawinski hopes that this will enable DNA to stay open a bit longer, but how much longer is still an open question. "So, while extricating ourselves from the Codeword albatross will certainly help, please don't labor under the illusion that this fixes all of DNA Lounge's problems," he writes. "It helps, absolutely. But overall, we're still pretty fucked. Getting rid of Codeword staunches the flow, but we're still bleeding out, every damned day."
He's asked that fans of DNA help keep the place afloat by contributing to this Patreon campaign, where donors have helped him pay the club's liability insurance, at least.