Secret bars
Laurel Heights listings, San Francisco Design Week, Tartine Manufactory, Okaeri, MORE
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Above it all
It’s an interesting time for Laurel Heights and bordering neighborhood Jordan Park. Once home to two massive hospitals, both are now shuttered. The land they occupied is set for redevelopment, with apartments, condos, and townhouses planned for large swaths of space along 3333 and 3700 California St. Eventually, those construction projects will manifest, perhaps bringing fresh interest in the Edwardians and Victorians just up the hill. Within the past year, 31 of those storied homes have changed hands, Compass reports, at a median price of $3.72M. Here, three listings of interest to those who want to get in pre-boom:
→ 22 Wood St (Laurel Heights) • 2BR/1BA, 1120 SF house • Ask: $1.595M • 1925 build on corner lot, old-school wood-burning fireplace • Days on market: 36 • Agent: Tobias Green, Compass.
→ 3657 California St (Laurel Heights) • 3BR/3BA, 1970 SF condo • Ask: $2.595M, down from $2.875M on 03/21 • new construction penthouse with private roof terrace • Days on market: 72 • Agent: Ted Bartlett, Compass.
→ 555 Laurel St (Laurel Heights, above) • 3BR/3.1BA, 2525 SF house • Ask: $3.65M • fully detached 1941 build on extra wide lot • Days on market: 18 • Agent: Rebecca Schumacher, Sotheby’s.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: Condo prices drop to 2015 rates in SF and Silicon Valley • Twin housing towers proposed for 88 Bluxome • 525 Market owner adds $20M lounge floor to attract offices • The race to convert downtown offices into housing.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Neat Neat Neat
The Damned • The UC Theatre (Berkeley) • Fri @ 7p • GA, $51 per
Melissa Villaseñor • Cobb’s Comedy Club (North Beach) • Sat @ 915p • preferred, $50 per
Golden State Valkyries vs. Minnesota Lynx • Chase Center (Thrive City) • Sun @ 530p • sec 15, row A3, $665 per
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: ‘Koons Ruins’ takes over Salesforce Tower • Five new entertainment zones for SF • India Basin Waterfront Park boosts SF’s parks rankings • ‘Twin Peaks’ cast heads to Napa 10/17.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Friday Routine
Uphill both ways
DAWN ZIDONIS • co-founder and CEO • Design Bay Area
Neighborhood you work in: North Beach/Telegraph Hill
It’s Friday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
Our offices, which were designed by Yves Behar and Amir Mortazavi, are at Canopy Jackson Square across from Francis Ford Coppola's green copper Sentinel Building in North Beach. We have an amazing outdoor rooftop and natural light that reflects my creative work life and the spirit of the design community that our organization serves.
What’s on the agenda for today?
I’m heading to Hayes Valley for a meeting with a design studio on Linden Street. I’ll grab a coffee at the Blue Bottle kiosk and check out the latest sculptures at Patricia’s Green, then stop by MMclay’s showroom to pick up a birthday gift for a friend.
Right now, I’m deep in preparations for San Francisco Design Week (06/02-08). In its 19th year, it’s a citywide celebration with hundreds of events hosted by design studios, retailers, restaurants, cafés, galleries, and museums — all opening their doors to create unique experiences for industry professionals and the design-savvy public. Today, I’m fielding questions and brainstorming ideas with local businesses about their participation in the weeklong program. Hearing their visions and helping bring them to life is one of the most fulfilling parts of my work.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Today we went to the Cambodian restaurant Lunette in the Ferry Building for a late lunch. Chef Nite Yun can usually be spotted behind the counter. There’s almost always a line, but it moves quickly and the staff is friendly.
A perfect evening in North Beach means dinner at Cotogna, my favorite spot for outdoor dining in San Francisco. You do have to commit and plan ahead — their cancellation fee is a doozy. When I’m looking for something sweet, I stop in at Maison Nico, a modern épicerie on Montgomery Street. For special occasions with a group, Kokkari is our go-to in the neighborhood — warm, welcoming, family-style, and always memorable. And if the night calls for a little more, we end at Bix for cocktails and jazz.
On weekends, one of my favorite routines is lunch at Tartine Manufactory, followed by a visit to the Heath Clay Studio to see what the resident artists are creating. If we’re in the mood for something heartier, we’ll go to True Laurel for a boozy brunch.
How about a little leisure or culture?
Lately, we’ve been exploring the Crosstown Trail in sections with friends, adding another layer to our urban explorations. There’s nothing quite like seeing the city unfold step by step.
We live in a touristy city, and sometimes it’s just fun to be a tourist. Coit Tower is in our neighborhood and I recommend walking any set of the many steps or sidewalks on Telegraph Hill up to the tower to view the murals; take the elevator up to the viewing platform to admire the city from above. Walk down around the other side of Telegraph Hill to find the small and very well-hidden Jack Early Park. It’s easy to walk right by it without even knowing it's there.
Any weekend getaways?
One of my favorite weekend escapes is the Russian River Valley. There’s something about this stretch of Northern California — the towering redwoods, the laid-back wineries, the misty river bends — that feels like a world of its own.
What was your last great vacation?
Every summer after San Francisco Design Week wraps, I like to take a quiet “introvert” vacation to Palm Springs and rent a house in the Mesa neighborhood. It’s quiet and sits at the base of the foothills surrounded by nature. We spend most of our time floating in the pool with a good book. To balance all the inactivity, we get out to the desert to hike in the mornings before it gets too hot and the sun too high in the sky. One of our favorites, Andreas Canyon, is a short hike through an oasis in the desert. Located in Tahquitz Canyon, it’s one of the most beautiful and culturally sensitive areas of the Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians Reservation.
Since it’s the middle of summer when temperatures are hotter than hot and many restaurants are closed, we sometimes escape to the Palm Springs Art Museum or the recently opened Agua Caliente Cultural Museum. Taking the tram up to Mount San Jacinto for a gorgeous mountain hike is always a treat (the temperature can be 30-40 degrees cooler).
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
Right now, I’m gushing over the Galanter & Jones heated lounge — specifically, the Helios Metreo. I keep going back and forth which color to choose, which is why I haven’t pulled the trigger yet.
GETAWAYS • Napa Valley
Japanese breakfast
The Skinny: Japanese-inspired bed and breakfast Okaeri Calistoga opened in March in a restored 1875 Victorian home, a short walk from downtown Calistoga. Kanpai Wines owners Peter Chiang and Azumi Kubo took over the former Pink Mansion Inn as a passion project, tapping interior designer Meredith Rebolledo for the interiors.
The Scene: A steep driveway and elevated deck built around existing trees hides the hotel from the main road, while an adze-carved bamboo front desk sits at the entry. Imported shou sugi ban panels and hand-painted linen shoji screens line the walls. Napa Valley’s largest indoor koi pond fills a former swimming pool, which is flanked by a black olive tree.
The Rooms: Each of the seven rooms and suites is named after one of Kanpai’s wines and outfitted in calm neutral tones punctuated by original artwork and vintage kimonos. Cedar soaking tubs come with custom bath salts, coffee is Cento Coffee single-serve pour-over bags, and the sheets are super soft bamboo. The options range from the economical Toki No Kawa, with a futon bed in the carriage house, to the Hi No Tori suite with a tatami platform overlooking the Palisades.
The Amenities: There’s a daily 430-530p social hour offering Kanpai Wines and bites like chardonnay-poached apricots stuffed with ricotta cheese. Breakfast each morning includes sweet and savory dishes like port-poached pears and ultra fluffy Gruyère soufflés along with cold-pressed juice, tea, and coffee. The basement karaoke lounge, hidden behind sliding shoji doors, also has a turntable and vinyl records, and leads to a stone-walled cellar for private wine tastings.
Why It’s FOUND: Okaeri offers an intimate alternative to larger luxury resorts. There’s nothing else quite like this in Napa Valley. –Amber Gibson
→ Okaeri (Calistoga, CA) • 1415 Foothill Blvd • Rates from $800/wknd night.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Major United-JetBlue partnership announced • Hipcamp’s CA inventory doubles • Yosemite access eases with reopening of Tioga Pass • Ranking hotel pet peeves.
BARS • The Nines
Bars, secret
The Nines are FOUND's distilled lists of the Bay Area’s best. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@itsfoundsf.com. For the full archives, click here.
Left Door (Cow Hollow), maximalist bar w/ museum-level art, reserve