(Courtesy of True Laurel)
23 Fun Things: SFMOMA's Art Bash, a Pair of Bomb New Brunches + More Bay Area Events
20 May 2019
This week, learn how to make the perfect spritz, line up for the city's hottest new brunches at Prairie and True Laurel, and celebrate The Commissary's fifth birthday with a paella extravaganza. Plus, catch SFMOMA's Art Bash, a pool party at the Phoenix Hotel, and BottleRock Napa Valley.
Have a great week!
Eat all the caviar.
Various seating times starting at 6:30pm
Tartine Manufactory, 595 Alabama St. (Mission), tartinemanufactory.com
Tartine Manufactory executive chef Christa Chase and The Caviar Co. cofounder Petra Bergstein are teaming up for a special tasting menu with, you guessed it, caviar in every course. // Tickets are $165 per person; reservations can be made at opentable.com.
Sound Meditation
7pm to 10pm
Conservatory of Flowers, 100 JFK Dr. (Golden Gate Park)
The Conservatory opens at 7pm to give you time to wander amongst the blooms before the sound bath begins around 8pm. Can't arrive early? You'll have a little under an hour to explore afterward.
// Tickets ($33) are available at eventbrite.com.
The Spritz
7pm to 9pm
Alembic, 1725 Haight St. (Haight Ashbury)
You may have seen the NYT's viral takedown of the Aperol Spritz; and perhaps you saw the many articles that followed in its defense. Not sure which camp you belong to? Head to The Alembic tonight where you'll learn to make four variations on Italy's famous summertime refresher. // Tickets ($85) are available at eventbrite.com.
The Shining 4K Restoration
5pm and 8pm showing
Castro Theatre, 429 Castro St. (Castro), castrotheatre.com
See the wild and bloody classic starring a seriously unhinged Jack Nicholson again but this time, truly, in all its glory; the film has been fully remastered using a 4K digital scan of the original 35mm negative. // Tickets ($13) are available online.
Salt & Straw Ice Cream Pop-Up
6:30pm to 8pm
Williams-Sonoma, 340 Post St. (Union Square)
Salt & Straw has a new cookbook out and they're celebrating with a special event. Cofounder Tyler Malek will be on hand for a demo and tasting. // Tickets ($25, including a copy of the book) are available on Eventbrite.
Weekday Dinner Deal at a Michelin-Starred Restaurant
Coi, 373 Broadway St. (North Beach), coirestaurant.com
After 13 Michelin star-studded years, Coi has a strategy to be a little more accessible. On weekdays, you can now partake of an abbreviated tasting menu, just five-courses, for $175 per person instead of the usual $225 meal. There is also a newly extended caviar menu. // Make a reservation and view the current menu at coirestaurant.com.
Family-Style Farm Dinner
6:30pm
The Village Bakery, 3052 Woodside Rd. (Woodside), tvbwoodside.com
At this al fresco farm dinner you'll sample the spring bounty of Woodside's SMIP Ranch in dishes—think grilled spring onion agrodolce and strawberry-rhubarb tart—prepared by Michelin-starred chef Mark Sullivan. The views of the Peninsula from the mountaintop venue are also something to write home about. // Tickets ($85, exclusive of tax and gratuity) can be purchased at smipranchdinner.eventbrite.com.
The Commissary turns five.
6pm to 9pm
The Commissary, 101 Montgomery St. (Presidio), thecommissarysf.com
Traci Des Jardins may have closed Jardinière, but today she's celebrating five years at her casual-ish Spanish-inflected restaurant, The Commissary. Look out for guest chefs, plenty of cava, tapas, and a "paella extravaganza." // Tickets ($85) are available at thecommissarysf.com.
SFMOMA Art Bash
6pm to 1am
SFMOMA, 151 Third St. (SoMa), sfmoma.org
Every gallery of the seven-story museum will be open till 1am for this year's epic party, just in time for the opening of Andy Warhol—From A to B and Back Again. You can check out JR's new Chronicles of San Francisco mural, Nick Cave's Soundsuit Invasions, and catch live performances from the likes of Thao & the Get Down Stay Down. // Tickets ($95 and up) are available at eventbrite.com.
So Much Chocolate!
9am to 6pm, daily
Bloom Chocolate Salon at Dandelion Chocolate, 2600 16th St. (Mission), dandelionchocolate.com
Now open inside Dandelion insane new chocolate factory is Bloom, a sleek cafe serving a handful of breakfast dishes with chocolate at play—think chocolate chip pancake cake (yes, that's what we said), chocolate granola, and more savory items like roasted veggie hash with cocoa nib basil pesto. You can also pop by in the afternoon for the chocolate tea tasting with macarons, chocolate soufflé, Earl Grey profiteroles, and an almond raspberry napolean or the three-course ice cream tasting.
Canopy's First Anniversary Fete
6pm to 8pm
Canopy, 595 Pacific Ave., #F5 (Jackson Square), canopy.space
The designer-hip coworking space located in Jackson Square is celebrating one year in biz. Open to non-members with an RSVP, now's the time to check out this posh office area. There will be mezcal, wine, a DJ music, and some fun light installations. // Free to attend, RSVP required via Eventbrite.
Pop-up Beer Garden
11am to 8pm
Fort Point Beer Company, 1 Ferry Building (Embarcadero), fortpointbeer.com
For one day only, Fort Point is expanding its Ferry Building taproom to take over the promenade outside for a beer garden that will channel the vibes of Berlin in summer. Try their limited draft-only beer Darling, a Berliner Weisse style that traditionally is served with syrups, infused with flavorful fruit additions from Juice Shop. Also look out for currywurst -- a traditional German drinking snack. // Free to attend; beer and food available for purchase. RSVP via Facebook.
BottleRock 2019
BottleRock, 575 3rd St. (Napa), bottlerocknapavalley.com
Wine Country's poshest music festival kicks off its three-day return today. Musical headliners include Imagine Dragons, Neil Young, and Mumford & Sons, and of course the eating and drinking will be epic as ever. // Single day tickets ($159) are available at frontgatetickets.com.
Pinoy Heritage 8-Course Tasting Dinner
7pm in SoMa
If you haven't tasted the Filipino eats at Pinoy Heritage, you've been missing out on one of the hotter pop-ups of late. End the week with their eight-course tasting menu of creative dishes like Dungeness crab tamales, pork coppa with spiced coconut espuma, and twice-baked carrot cake. // Tickets ($80) can be purchase on eatfeastly.com.
Aasif Mandvi
7:30pm
Cobb's Comedy Club, 915 Columbus Ave. (North Beach), cobbscomedy.com
Get ready to laugh with stand-up performer Aasif Mandvi, whose impressive background includes a stint as correspondent on The Daily Show and such movies as Drunk Parents and Mother's Day, anda reccurring role on CBS's Blue Bloods. // Tickets ($25 and up) are available on livenation.com.
Sit at the chef's table.
5:30pm to 7:30pm
CIA at Copia, 501 1st St. (Napa), ciaatcopia.com
Head over to the Culinary Institute of America for an intimate and interactive dinner where their chefs will teach you various tips and tricks for creating flavor and pretty presentation as they pull together a delicious meal to enjoy. // Tickets ($125) can be found on culinary.edu.
Ooey Gooey Brunch
11am to 2pm, Saturdays and Sundays
True Laurel, 753 Alabama St. (Mission), truelaurelsf.com
True Laurel has been on our favs list since it opened, and we're beyond pumped that they've finally added an anything-but-basic brunch. Look out for dishes like a grilled cheese and omelette sandwich (drool); heirloom cornmeal pancakes with sweet corn butter and smoked maple syrup; and the obsession-worthy TL patty melt with an optional beef-fat-fried egg. There's also a new menu of six breakfast cocktails. The kitchen closes at 2pm, but the bar will stay open right up until dinner service, so plan to linger awhile.
41st Annual Carnaval
All day, Saturday and Sunday
Harrison St. between 16th and 24th streets
Celebrate international cultures via music, costumes, dance, and art. There are tons of things happening all weekend. Today make sure to catch a free performance from Latin Grammy Award winners Los Tigres del Norte (3pm); tomorrow clear your schedule for the grand parade (9:30am). // Full event details on carnavalsanfrancisco.org.
Another Bomb Brunch
11am to 2:30pm, Saturday and Sunday
Prairie, 3431 19th St. (Mission), prairiesf.com
We love the off-beat Italian dishes at Prairie. Stave off the Sunday scaries with rice waffles with an XO-fried egg or guanciale; pressed omelette sandwiches; and flash-grilled avocados. Also look for their trademark guanciale-wrapped mochi.
Pool Party!
Noon to 6pm
Phoenix Hotel, 601 Eddy St. (Tenderloin), phoenixsf.com
Do your Sunday Funday right with a pool party at The Phoenix DJed by tropical house legend Sam Feldt. Soak up your cocktails with barbecue. // Tickets ($30-$40) are on Eventbrite.
Dollar Days at the Races
Golden Gate Fields, 1100 Eastshore Hwy (Berkeley), goldengatefields.com
10am to 5pm
Spring is the perfect time to head to the always-warmer-than-SF East Bay for some good ol' horse races. Stop by for Dollar Day Sunday at Golden Gate Fields with $1 admission, parking, hot dogs, beers, and mimosas. // Admissions ($1) can be paid at the door; find more event info on goldengatefields.com.
47th Annual Muir Beach Volunteer Firemen's Barbecue Fundraiser
Noon to 5pm
Santos Meadows, 2704 Muir Woods Rd (Mill Valley)
Help raise funds for local firefighters at this north bay BBQ. There will be food and drink for purchase (including chicken and vegetarian tamales, dessert, beer and wine), plus bounce houses and climbing walls for the kids. Relax in the sunshine with live music by bands Soul Ska and Andre Pesis. // Free to attend, food and drink purchases support the Muir Beach Volunteer Fire Department. Find event details on muirbeachfire.com.
Knife Fight Gauntlet
10am to 2pm
Jack London Square Stage, 1 Broadway (Oakland), jacklondonsquare.com
Things are going down at this three-part cooking competition, each featuring a chef from a local restaurant at Jack London Square vs. an outsider chef. Today, chefs will incorporate a mystery spice from Oaktown Spice Shop, a mystery protein from Belcampo, and a mystery wine or beer from Dashe Cellars, Urban Legend, or Old Kan. There will also be DJ music, local vendors, and presentations from Slow Food. // Free to attend and watch, tasting tickets ($25) available on Eventbrite.