| Today's News |
| Sports |
| Entertainment |
| Technology |
| Live Views |
| Traffic |
| Weather |
| Health |
| Business |
| Bay Area Travel |
| Columnists |
| Classifieds |
| Search |
| Index |
|
THE INSIDE SCOOP | ||
| The year of the
restaurant Value is the key word as owners and chefs regroup, revamp GraceAnn Walden |
Wednesday, December 25, 2002
 | |
|
| ||
|
Value is the key word as owners and chefs regroup, revamp A couple of weeks ago, I had a wide-ranging chat with a San Francisco chef and at one point he asked, "What do you think 2003 will bring as far as the restaurant scene?" Well, with issues facing us such as a threat of war, the stockmarket's roller coaster ride, the specter of terrorism and, as always, the economy, I'd rather guess next week's Lotto numbers than predict the restaurant scene in 2003. Rather than predictions, here's what we know. Chef-partner Gordon Drysdale will leave Gordon's House of Fine Eats around the first of the year. The future of Gordon's has not been decided, according to Bill Higgins of Real Restaurant Group. Higgins and Bill Upson are the majority owners. Drysdale said that being located in Multimedia Gulch at the height of the dot-com boom was sweet, but the last year has been challenging. Earlier in the year, Gordon's did a total re-do and lowered prices. Now, Drysdale has partnered with Tim Stannard of Woodside's Village Pub and Brannin Beal to open Pizza Antica in San Jose's Santana Row dmevelopment, then roll out a slew of them in the future. For local restaurateurs, this has been a year of stress, bankruptcies, renewal and repositioning. Owners have reported a drop in business of as little as 3 percent or as much as 35 percent. With the bottom line in this business always slim, times have been tough. The biggest trendsetter of the year was the evolution of JohnFrank restaurant in the Castro into Home. Owner John Hurley and chef-partner Lance Dean Velasquez jettisoned JohnFrank's moderately priced menu and white tablecloths for lower-priced homey food and a casual look. The city embraced Home like nothing else, and patronage went through the roof. Taking note of that, Michael Harrity, owner of the nearby Carta on Market Street, changed the name of his restaurant to Paisley's and focused on reducing prices. The year saw openings of some really groovy restaurants. Former Dine restaurant mojos Julia McClaskey and Robert Hill knocked our socks off at Julia in the Mt. Zion neighborhood. After they left Dine on Mission Street, it limped along for awhile, then closed. Pascal Rigo, who owns Bay Bread and a flock of restaurants and cafes, opened a bistro called La Table and the upscale La Table du Chef, both in the former Tortola space on Sacramento Street. Rigo also opened the casual Marinette in the Marina. No restaurant was more to our taste than the sexy-looking Beaucoup on Nob Hill, from the owners of the Real Restaurant Group. After a fall-out with opening chef Bruno Chemel, Los Angeles chef Bruno Davaillon assumed the reins in late fall. The front space has French brasserie food, while the Salon is small, upscale and modern French. The French theme continued downtown, with Philippe Jeanty resurrecting historic Jack's as Jeanty at Jack's, serving bistro-style French food. Next year, he'll open a Provencal bistro not far from his Bistro Jeanty in Yountville. Another blockbuster opening was Acme Chophouse, adjacent to Pacific Bell Park, managed by renowned chef Traci Des Jardins and Larry Bain of Jardiniere in the Civic Center. It replaced 24 restaurant. On the other end of the scale in size, chef Laurent Katgely, formerly of Foreign Cinema in San Francisco and Alfy's in Marin (the latter closed in January), took over the original South of Market location of Citizen Cake and opened the tiny Chez Spencer. Another little spot that caught on like wildfire was Chez Papa on Potrero Hill. Sadly, on its opening night chef Randall Brown died suddenly. He was only 31. Two savvy operators also died in 2002 -- the legendary Antonio Latona, founder of Caffe Sport; and Michael Deeb, who owned several restaurants, including the now-closed Le Bistrot. Two of our favorites were not totally new, but were restaurants that in one case morphed into something new and in the other case something old. Owner- chef Gerald Hirigoyen turned Pastis, near Levi Plaza, into the Basque-flavored Piperade, and Guy and Rose Ferri recast their Cobalt Tavern into what it was before -- Washington Square Bar & Grill. MC2, on Pacific Avenue, also got a complete makeover and reopened with an American menu from executive chef Todd Davies. All over the city, and especially in the neighborhoods, restaurant owners with a dream threw open their doors. We liked O Mythos, a taverna that opened on Van Ness, and we snacked and cocktailed at Olive, a cute place on the edge of the Tenderloin. Chef Bruno Feldeisen took over the 65-seat Solea in the Orchard Hotel on Bush Street. He also acquired the former Oritalia in the Hotel Juliana, also on Bush, and renamed it Malisa Restaurant & Lounge. Chef-owner Jeff Rosen left the Inner Sunset and his Avenue 9 to open Succotash in the former Potrero Brewing Co. space on Florida Street, which had closed earlier in the year. North Beach is a draw for locals and tourists, and so there is always a lot of news. Truly Mediterranean opened on Vallejo Street. Not far away, three veteran bartenders, Michael DiBenedetti, "Wizz" Wentworth and Erik Boardman opened Amante on Green Street and hipsters flocked to it. In late fall, Alfred Schilling took over a former Carl's Jr. at the corner of Columbus and Broadway, and opened a restaurant, cafe and chocolate shop. It took a branch of Fresca Peruvian Cuisine on Fillmore Street a while to open. It replaced Mozzarella Di Bufala Pizzeria. Another Peruvian restaurant, Limon, on 17th Street near Mission, is a keeper, as are Sabella's on West Portal and RMN in the Lower Haight. On the Peninsula, chef-owner David Kinch and his partner Aimee Hebert launched Manresa in Los Gatos while continuing to operate Sent Sovi in Saratoga. In Palo Alto, Anne Le and Tammy Huynh opened Tamarine, a contemporary Vietnamese restaurant, and Avenir Group opened one of my favorites, D'Asaro in Redwood City. San Francisco's Kimpton Hotel and Restaurant Group (Masa's, etc.), opened Helios, its first South Bay venture, in Cupertino. It features Latino, Mediterranean and Asian flavors by chef Trish Tracey. Menlo Park's Wild Hare, Joey Altman's paean to game and other robust foods, closed. It was also a tough year for Dennis Berkowitz. Connors & Berk in Burlingame, managed and co-owned by Berkowitz of Max's and Max's Diners, was eviscerated by the lack of business travelers lodging on the Peninsula, and closed. Berkowitz also closed his 300-seat Max's Diamond Grill across from Pacific Bell Park, noting that neither the dining room nor the bar ever filled up. In the East Bay, the good-news shocker was the success of Zax, a neighborhood favorite in the North Beach-Fisherman's Wharf area, which moved to Berkeley's Telegraph Avenue, replacing the closed Mazzini Trattoria. But, after a nearly six-year run, Oakland's Autumn Moon Cafe closed at the end of October after a steep drop in business. In Contra Costa, Fred Halpert's Brazio in Danville became Brava Terrace. Cafe Esin expanded in San Ramon and secured a full liquor license. In the tiny hamlet of Glen Ellen, Debbie and Munther Massarweh closed the Bistro in Glen Ellen (in the Jack London Lodge), at the end of November. In Santa Rosa, Duskie Estes and John Stewart opened Zazu, where Willowside Cafe had shone. We've already mentioned a passel of closures, but other changes included Imre Mandoki closing the Hungarian Sausage Factory and Bistro in Bernal Heights because of illness. Buchanan Grill closed, but its sterling bartender, Michael McCourt, now graces the revived Washbag in North Beach. After almost 10 years, Mangiafuoco on Guerrero Street closed over a rent dispute. Rent was also the reason that the original Pasta Pomodoro on Chestnut Street closed in August. After limping along, Constellation Concepts pulled the plug on Ondine restaurant in Sausalito. But the town can look forward to a large Italian eatery from Il Fornaio founder Larry Mindel in 2003. The stalwart Panelli Brothers Deli closed after 82 years in business, and Oakville Grocery stores in Walnut Creek and Los Gatos also closed, although the stores in Oakville, Palo Alto and Healdsburg remain open. Prominent chef moves included Wolfgang Puck veteran chef Aram Mardigian replacing opening chef Michael French at Spago Palo Alto, and Paul Arenstam, a favorite from the now-closed Belon, replacing Victor Scargle at Grand Cafe adjacent to the Hotel Monaco on Geary. Chef Jason Miller left Moose's to take over the kitchens of Lark Creek Inn, and was replaced by Jeffrey Amber, former executive chef of XYZ restaurant in the W Hotel. At Valhalla in Sausalito, chef Jeff Freburg left, replaced by Rick Bruno. Scott Warner, Reed Hearon's main man and executive chef of Hearon's restaurant group, left to become the executive chef for Donna and Giovanni Scala at their Napa Valley Bistro Don Giovanni. Are more Don Giovannis on the drawing board? Now, our awards for the biggest stories of 2002. A Scoopee goes to Home's Hurley and Velasquez for rightly gauging the public's desire to continue dining out, but at lower prices. Their reworking of JohnFrank was a stroke of genius, copied all over the Bay Area. The Scoopee for design is a tie between the newly reopened Fleur de Lys restaurant and the dining room at Campton Place. The Scoopee taste of the year, hands down, is chef Laurent Manrique's foie gras cart at Campton Place. For $28, two people can taste four preparations of velvety foie. The bombshell Scoopee goes to the Aqua Development Corp., which had tongues wagging all over town. News included plans to take one of its concepts public, the firing of chef George Morrone from Redwood Park, and ADC executive chef- partner Michael Mina's split from the company. Mina wasted no time announcing plans to open his own San Francisco restaurant next year. The Scoopee for fire and brimstone goes to the Santana Row fire in San Jose, still under investigation, which delayed a slew of restaurant openings, many of them clones of current Bay Area favorites. The smart move of the year Scoopee is a tie between Guy and Rose Ferri's revitalization of the Washington Square Bar & Grill and chef-owner Charles Phan, who moved his renowned Slanted Door to South Beach to acclaim. He's remodeling and expanding the original restaurant on Valencia Street, but has hinted that he might keep the Embarcadero eatery as well. Our sneak thief hasn't been heard from since the district attorney's office and the San Francisco Police Department began investigating the spate of thefts of patrons in restaurants. We have to give her our Sayonara Scoopee for cooling it. By far the Scoopee award for the most fun we had in 2002, with our clothes on, has to be supping and chatting with Julia Child on her 90th birthday at the Fifth Floor. It was magical. GraceAnn Walden's walking tours of North Beach were named one of the 100 best things about San Francisco by Gourmet magazine. You can e-mail her at gaw@sbcglobal.net. The Inside Scoop appears three times a month in the Food section. |
· Printer-friendly
version · Email this article to a friend
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
