SFist called it last week when the story came out about a high-end omakase pop-up at the quirky Flintstone House down in Hillsborough: Sounds like owner Florence Fang, or the team working on the pop-up, did not seek any permits for this.

A couple of influencers got to enjoy a fancy, promotional omakase meal from Michelin-anointed sushi chef Masa Sasaki last month. But they may be the only ones who get to enjoy Stoneage Omakase, as the Hillsborough Town Council has shut the party down before it began.

Stoneage Omakase posted to Instagram Monday that they have "temporarily paused" operations at the Flintstone House due to "concerns raised by the city of Hillsborough." And all those who have made pre-paid reservations will be refunded.

They are careful to say, "As a catering business, not a restaurant, we are diligently working to address these issues with Hillsborough," and they hint that there may be some other pop-ups happening at "new venues." Though the name "Stoneage Omakase" seems like it was tailor-made for this venue in particular.

The pop-up sushi experience — not a restaurant! — was scheduled to start service this weekend, on July 12, with a 15-course, $230 omakase menu served by Sasaki. Sadly, for Sasaki, whose work at Maruya and his eponymous restaurant Sasaki received much acclaim and a Michelin star, it looks like this latest project is on ice for a while. Sasaki was previously attached to that spuriously planned NFT-backed private club and sushi bar that was proposed for Salesforce Park a couple years back.

Reservations were made publicly available last week, but I had to wonder whether this was all on the up and up, given that the Flintstone House's owner, Florence Fang, has a history of doing things at the house without permits and asking for forgiveness later.

That was the case in 2019 anyway, after Fang had installed a series of cartoony, Flintstone-themed lawn ornaments that could be seen from I-280 as one drove past the highly visible, oddly shaped home. Fang, who lives elsewhere in Hillsborough and said she bought the house as an entertaining space and her "happy place," was sued by the wealthy Town of Hillsborough both over the "eyesore" of the lawn ornaments, and for the installation of some railings and other work that was apparently done on the property without permits.

Fang, who is a former owner of the SF Examiner and has been a general power broker in San Francisco for years, was not going to back down quietly. She hired former SF Supervisor Angela Alioto as her lawyer, and the battle with the town went on for two years. In the eventual settlement, Fang agreed to get permits for the work that was done, and the town ponied up $125,000 to cover Fang's legal expenses.

In the meantime, Alioto had attacked the town for its "intolerance and elitist behavior," and also suggested that it was unconstitutional and racist.

Three years on, and it seems that a sushi pop-up and "Stoneage"-themed catering operation will be the next thing that Fang does battle over.

Besides Fang and Sasaki, the other person we know is involved with this project is Sean Fang, who was listed on the pop-up's website as CEO and co-founder of Steonage Omakase. Neither he nor Florence Fang herself has given any public comment about this project.

The home, which was briefly available on Airbnb some years back, has never really been open to the public before. Designed and built by architect William Nicholson in 1977, it wasn't necessarily supposed to look like The Flinstones' cartoon home — and it was originally painted off-white, no the orange and purple colors it has today. The three-bedroom home has cave-like, domed rooms, all with different ceiling heights and originally without any doors, which were created by using shot concrete sprayed over large balloons.

Reportedly, the house has always been controversial in tony Hillsborough, where one resident founded a town architectural review board after this home's construction, specifically to keep out any future experimental designs.

Stay tuned for more on this sushi drama to come, and if you want updates about what's next for Stoneage Omakase, you can submit your email here.

Update: The Chronicle obtained a copy of the letter from the Town of Hillsborough that was delivered by town police on Friday to the Flintstone House. It states, "Restaurants and other commercial uses are not permitted in a residential zone, even on a temporary basis. You and the restaurateurs may not have been aware that this use would be illegal. Since you are now on notice about this restriction, please inform the operators that they may not open for business."

Stoneage Omakase has responded saying that they have been "incorrectly classified as a restaurant, which has led to this misunderstanding," and they "look forward to working with the city to resolve this issue."

Previously: Flintstone House to Open to Public as Stoneage Omakase, a High End Sushi Pop-Up