Despite my protestations, Christopher convinced me to make* him a website. Of course SF Weekly awarded the Goat “Best Bar When You Want to Be Left Alone ” and somehow had my staging site as the link. Grumble grumble, redirects are in place, and I was forced to release without the automatically updating sports listings. There is, however, an about page with a nice pass of history for the address.
We built a little screening room, at the end of San Francisco, in an area called Dogpatch. There were some empty warehouses that the city let us use. There were some old abandoned offices that we moved into, and we had all of our people sitting in different offices. Our composer (Javier Navarrete) came from Spain and spent a lot of time there. The editor and the special effects people were there. It was this great, “Let’s make a movie,” feeling. All these guys were geniuses, really. The stages were unheated and we had the worst winter ever, in San Francisco. For scheduling, we had to shoot with all the rain and the cold, and keep the birds away from outside. It was under really difficult circumstances, but everybody was into it. We knew the movie we wanted to make, and it wasn’t that much longer than that, when we first cut it.
Apparently the frigid San Francisco winter (last year?) didn’t scare him away:
I’d love to work with the same group of people in San Francisco, who made the movie. It was a magical thing. There was such a good feeling. Peter [Kaufman] and I are trying to think about how we can keep this kind of filmmaking together, and not have to go to Hungary, Romania, Vancouver or Louisiana. We can do these movies in San Francisco. I did most of The Right Stuff in San Francisco, and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. I’m looking for something where we can do what we did on Hemingway & Gellhorn in San Francisco. We shot 100% of that in San Francisco.
Here’s hoping they can brave the cold and snow and make another one.
Cub Reporter Sarah spotted an open sign on the front door of the new Lasagneria at 22nd and Tennessee. I emailed Marcella at the end of April and got a very nice response, but so far haven’t gotten a chance to sit down and do an interview:
We have actually been on Tennessee street for over 20 years, and have had a few businesses within that space, all food oriented of course. At the beginning we had a cafe open for lunch that was extremely successful, and then we transitioned over into a full scale catering operatioon. There have been other projects since-production of all natural and organic artisanal products for local independent grocers as well as Whole Foods markets. So now, with this cafe, we are really returning to our roots, as a small, family owned and operated, neighborhood business.
My assumption is that some hot coals or a lit cigarette were in a city worker’s garbage bin, since they store them in the side shed after they do their rounds cleaning up the neighborhood. The other possibilities are a bit more nefarious, except for rats chewing through the wiring.
Gilberth’s Rotisserie and Grill is the first venture from Gilberth Cab to go beyond the lunch counter. As such, it’s not surprising that, barely three months after opening, the rotisserie is still experiencing some growing pains. What is surprising is that Michael Bauer would visit a fledgling restaurant with freshman owners and give it such a thorough review. Gilberth and Julia were sweating the outcome — when they could take breaks from running all three restaurants. If you stop in at Oralia’s, the New Spot, or Gilberth’s, chances are very high that one of the two will be right there: cooking or taking your order, six days a week, any hour of the day. Thankfully, sweat is only their metaphorical secret ingredient.
Anyway, expect continuous change and improvement. That’s what they do. Gilberth and Julia read the article, despaired, and then got back to work. Two stars is just a start.
I’ve set the company that is coming by for our last Friday tasting in May. It will be Don Pilar tequila. It is a small, locally imported brand that we carry and has received a nice amount of praise. Don Pilar himself will be here to talk about and sample his brand, and I’ll design a couple of special cocktails for them. That will take place Friday, May 25th from 6-8.
To quote emporer Palpatine: “everything that has transpired has done so according to my design.”
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on
Sunday, May 20, 2012.
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…while there hasn’t been an “official” announcement yet, it seems as though there’ll be a new bouldering gym on 3rd Street sometime soon.
Apparently Touchstone Climbing has been dropping hints, which is weird, because I thought that I had heard about construction on a new climbing gym a while ago. In any case, welcome to the neighborhood.
Please feel free to leave comments with what you would like the gym to be called. Obviously, “Mission Cliffs” is taken.
Some ideas to get you started:
Dogpatch Heights
Dogpatch Mountain
Dogpatch Climby Place with Ropes and Falling
Irish Hill
The Shipyard
Filed under Dogpatch
on
Wednesday, May 16, 2012.
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Shots Fired:
On May 11th at 10:12 pm, officers responded to the 800 block of Missouri on a call of gunshots. They met with a witness who told them that she had observed a black Lexus pull up and stop on the 800 block of Missouri. She observed two suspects get out of the car. Either one or both of the suspects then began firing a handgun south on Missouri. The witness did not see anyone else in the street at that time that they may have been shooting at. The suspects then got back into their vehicle and drove from the scene. The officers were able to locate a shell casing in the area but no additional witnesses or any possible victims or damage. They searched the area for the suspects and their vehicle but could not locate them that night. This incident is under investigation. (SFPD Case No. 120376165)
Thankfully, it sounds like no one was hurt.
What about the shots at the end of April? No report in the crime report, but I asked Officer Teper of the Bayview Police Station:
Does the SFPD or our district produce regular maps of shotspotter
detections of gunshots and/or similar-sounding noises? Should citizens
who hear bangs call 911? Should they call whether or not they know
that a sound is or is not a gunshot?
Officer Teper replied:
Shotspotter does not produce maps that are available to the public, that I am aware of. However, you absolutely should always call in and report any gunshots or other suspicious noise. The non-emergency number is 415-553-0123 and 911 in any emergency.
So, there you have it. If you hear something like gunshots, call the police.
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on
Monday, May 14, 2012 with tags crime.
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Benioff rejected the notion that it had been a lavish, out-of-control venture.
and
The campus was to be situated directly across the street from another project Benioff was deeply invested in: The University of California, San Francisco Benioff Children’s Hospital, which took that name after Benioff and his wife Lynne donated $100 million in 2010.
“There was a lot of momentum with the campus – the pictures, and the graphics, and the approvals,” Benioff said. “Every time we got one more approval, we kind of always came back and said, ‘Is this a good idea? This is a good idea.’ Let’s keep going.”
I’m pretty sure that it wasn’t a good idea.
If the City wants my advice*, it is this: figure out how to get the folks who run the American Industrial Center to build and manage office space on that site. We don’t need monolithic campuses to serve single entities, we need 1000 small companies and the service industries that would support them. Big companies build cafeterias**; small companies go out for lunch.
* I’m pretty sure that the City does not want my advice.
** “The Rosebud Café” would be an excellent name for Salesforce’s cancelled cafeteria.
This is the inaugural month of our Thursday Winemaker Dinners which will take place the third Thursday of each month.
Here is the deal:
$55 includes tip, tax, food and wine for a four course meal and a different offering from Qualia Wines paired with each course. Explanations from Chef Gilberth on each dish, as well as explanations on wines and pairings from winemaker Jordan Kivelstadt, will just begin to scratch the surface of what this evening has in store for our guests.
Menu:
Roasted squash and seasonal veggie crostini topped with parmesan cheese. Paired with 2011 Qualia Sauvignon Blanc – a single vineyard, barrel and lees aged, Sancerre style, Sauvignon Blanc that will rock your world with acid and tropical fruits balanced by a rare round mouthfeel. (88 cases)
Rubbed pork belly slider with hose made slaw (veggie option – portobello slider). Paired with 2010 Qualia Carignan, a single vineyard Carignan made from 125 year old vines that is expressive and complex (Wine club only, 50 cases produced).
Red wine braised short rib with mashed sweet potatoes (veggie option – stuffed pepper over yellow corn polenta). Paired with 2009 Qualia Pavo Estate Syrah, a nuanced cool climate Syrah expressing smoky, berry and pepper flavors that keep you searching for more.
Chocolate torte with a chilliancho crema that is as complex as the wine being served with it. The versatile 2009 Qualia Syrah-Grenache shows as well with dessert as it does with main dishes, this will be the perfect night cap.
Limited 10 seats so book quickly before they fill up. Contact Alex Pomerantz to make your reservations alex@qualiawines.com – 415.494.PAVO
Filed under Dogpatch
on
Sunday, May 13, 2012.
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