Month: June 2021

It’s no secret that the San Francisco brunch scene is having a moment in the limelight — especially with dine-in back in business. Whether you find brunch to be a holy weekend institution or just another scrumptious midday meal, there’s plenty of local options that bring the best of dense flavors and bubbly cocktails to your palate. From steaming dim sum plates to seafood-Hollandaise combos to die for, we’ve put together a brief list of some of our favorite brunch options in the city.

Yank Sing

Starting off right here in the SoMa neighborhood, Yank Sing at the Rincon Center is now open for both indoor and outdoor dining on weekends from 11AM to 3PM. Dim sum is a deeply beloved brunch staple in San Francisco, and this family-owned restaurant delivers on locally-praised xiao long bao and cabbage dumplings via pushcarts. And while you enjoy their tasty chili pepper sauce, soak in the brunch-worthy atmosphere of Rincon Center’s light-filled Art Deco atrium.

Foreign Cinema

Living in SF, you’ve probably already heard of Foreign Cinema and its reputation as one of the best brunch spots in the city. Sip on wine and oysters out in the open-air courtyard or indulge in caviar and tartare tapas inside their dining room — Foreign Cinema is fully open again and in full swing for any type of brunch outing. Try their lavender baked goat cheese and their homemade “Pop tarts” if you’re leaning towards a lighter breakfast, or go for grilled wagyu and a Croque Madam for a heartier lunch. Be sure to make a reservation ahead of time, as this place is as popular as it gets!

Mymy

Mouthwatering is probably the most fitting adjective when it comes to describing brunch at Mymy. Under the guise of a simple coffee shop in Nob Hill, Mymy is a knockout choice for brunch, offering tantalizing Dungeness crab benedicts and a filling Challah French toast among its popular selection. Top it all off with a round of mimosas, and you’re in for a good time all morning long.

Brenda’s 

Sometimes, a delicate brunch menu just doesn’t cut it. Luckily, weekday brunch at either Brenda’s French Soul Food on Polk Street or Brenda’s Meat & Three over on Divisadero Street is sure to satisfy. Both owned by the legendary Chef Brenda Buenviajé from New Orleans, these are the town’s prime destinations for comfort brunch. Beignets, low country gumbo and stuffed johnnycakes? Say less. Meat & Three has more of a no-frills breakfast menu, while French Soul Food has the classic original brunch menu. Either way, bring a plate of heartiness to your regular brunch routine by dining in at Brenda’s.

Son & Garden

A large part of what makes brunch brunch is the ambiance. So we had to recommend the gorgeous Son & Garden that just opened last year for its gorgeous plating among its blooming floral interior. And it’s not just for show of course — Chef Kasem Saengsawang’s colorful and thoughtful creations are just as delicious as they are pleasing to the eye. Sate your sweet tooth on Matcha Mochi Pancakes or go savory with a slow-cooked pork belly benedict. There’s also a Cherry Blossom Tea Party set meal priced at $90 for two people that you may still reserve until June 30th. But no matter what you order, you can count on Son & Garden to deliver on fresh ingredients sourced from local farmer’s markets alongside delectable specialty cocktails.

As San Francisco celebrates pride and inclusivity this month, we recommend making it a part of your routine to connect with your neighborhood’s queer-owned businesses to not only show out for them following the pandemic, but to have a tremendously fun time while you’re at it. There’s a growing sentiment in our society to align our spending power with our ethical voice, so here our some of our favorites for shopping local, sustainable and queer.

1. Pentacle Coffee & Oros Gallery

Right here in our very own neighborhood of SoMa is Pentacle Coffee — a queer owned coffee company that also doubles as an art gallery. Serving Four Barrel coffees and vegan-friendly bites Monday through Friday, this charming spot currently has a open coffee window and courier delivery — and when its indoor reopens, sip your brew among bright murals.

2. Sui Generis Designer Consignment

“Make great luxury affordable” is the mantra of this award-winning fashion resale store. Started by owners and partners Miguel Lopez and Gabriel Yanez, Sui Generis Designer Consignment on Market Street is recognized as one of the finest consignment stores in the nation, offering pieces from European Classics like Prada, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, to Japanese Fashion houses like Comme des Garcons and so forth. Sui Generis also hosts a dedicated team of stylists to grant patrons a personal shopping experience.

3. Bolerium Books

Bolerium Books is quite legendary in San Francisco for carrying rare titles on social movements as well as political memorabilia such as historical pamphlets. Describing themselves as “purveyors of rare and out-of-print books, posters, and ephemera on social movements,” the folks behind Bolerium Books make it their mission to collect and curate knowledge surrounding internal and international social movements, radical in all directions.

4. Alexander Nurseries

Another LGBTQ-owned business that may be found right in our neighborhood is Alexander Nursuries — a planting design business that specializes in vertical garden design and landscaping. Owners John Alexander and his partner Jai Alltizer grow everything at a local, private propagation nursery, and sell at local farmer’s markets, as well as at the new wellness space Kapwa Gardens right here in SoMa. An online store is in the works for them, so keep out an eye for that as well!

5. Hella Bay Clothing

Placing full emphasis on colorful and bold Bay Area Pride, Hella Bay Clothing is a local brand that mixes street culture with a spirit of inclusion and social justice. Unique and iconic, Hella Bay celebrates a type of pride that comes from our local community. We especially are fans of their bold Summer Tie-dye collection for this month in particular. Hella Bay clothing can be ordered online and from retailers in the city and around the Bay.

6. Lion Dance Cafe

While this business is located over in Oakland, we still had to place it on this list. Next time you’re in East Bay, drop by Lion Dance Cafe for plant-based Singaporean cuisine. Beloved by locals for its weekly new menu reveals of fare ranging from nostalgic family recipes to Eurasian-Californian fusions, Lion Dance Cafe is a gem owned and operated by queer immigrant woman of color C.Y. Marie Chia, who previously has worked in Michelin-starred kitchen in Paris. Celebrate pride and dining by scoping our their Instagram for menu reveals!

San Francisco is a sort of haven for art lovers — in addition to housing reputable fine art collections, the city is also host to incredibly innovative and dynamic curations that draw the public’s cultural eye. From the SFMOMA to the de Young Museum, a different kind of air is abuzz this summer in current and upcoming exhibitions, and we’re excited for all SF residents to set out to witness the current cultural moment and find wonder in eye-opening works of media. Without further ado, here are 4 local art exhibitions that we’re excited about:

Close to Home: Creativity in Crisis

Currently on at the SFMOMA, Close to Home: Creativity in Crisis unites the works of seven local Bay Area artists investigating their own introspective reactions to the COVID-19 pandemic and social upheaval of 2020. Each project arose from the disruptions, the anxieties and the instabilities of the global health crisis. The exhibit’s official page states: “Individually, the artists demonstrate a startlingly wide range of artistic, emotional, and political responses, a reminder of how this unprecedented period affects each of us differently. Taken together, their work emphasizes our shared experience in this collective crisis.

Lineage: Paul Klee and Ruth Asawa

Upcoming at the SFMOMA is a very special exhibit that examines the dynamism that splurges forth from creatives that focus upon line and pattern work. Combining works from the legendary modernist Paul Klee and California-born Ruth Asawa, Lineage: Paul Klee and Ruth Asawa looks to be a splendid curation of a modern founding father of spatial composition and one of the successors of his ethos — California’s very own Ruth Asawa, whose work is heavily interested in “the economy of a line.” For modernist art enthusiasts with a hunger for composition theory and a taste for eye-catching line work, this exhibit is not to be missed. This exhibit will be from July 10 to December 5.

Hung Liu: Golden Gate

Hung Liu: Golden Gate at the de Young Museum starts on July 17, and will run until early next year. Born under the Maoist regime in China, artist Hung Liu utilizes her training in the Socialist Realist style of painting to re-imagine traditional archival narratives. The de Young Museum introduces this exciting diasporic exhibit: “Reimagining some of her most iconic paintings…through the lens of her personal trajectory, she places herself among and celebrates the people who arrived in California from both land and sea.” Hosted in a city with a rich history of Chinese immigration, this exhibit is something we’re very excited to experience and learn from.

teamLab: Continuity

Coming soon to the Asian Art Museum is the futuristic exhibit titled teamLab: Continuity. An immersive and interactive technological art experience, this exhibit places the viewer into a digital environment of “blooming flowers, darting fish, and soaring crows.” From the renowned Tokyo-based collective teamLab, known for their genre-bending works, “Continuity” is whole new type of experience that melds East Asian art principles with technology to connect viewers to the feeling of nature.

One of the few remaining 2-bedrooms left, Residence 43A features a state-of-the-art kitchen, light-filled dining and living rooms framed by floor-to-ceiling windows, and two bedrooms boasting dramatic city and Twin Peaks views. Complete with diagonal-planked Siberian Oak floors, polished white slab Carrara marble countertops and unlacquered Waterworks brass fixtures, 43A is an elegant retreat to the sky. Set high above the city, yet moments from San Francisco’s most sought-after restaurants, shops and local attractions, 43A enjoys the best of luxury living, marked by five-star amenities, 24/7 concierge service and inimitable details selected by renowned designer Ken Fulk.

Entering through the light-filled entryway, one is drawn to the state-of-the-art kitchen, complemented with Studio Becker Ash Molina cabinetry, polished Carrara marble counters and Bertazzoni and Subzero appliances. Immediately neighboring the kitchen are the dining area and living room, ideal for both relaxation and entertaining, framed by unobstructed Twin Peaks views through floor-to-ceiling windows.

Both bedrooms also enjoy sweeping vistas of Twin Peaks, including the main suite which features a spa-like bath with porcelain Herringbone floors, custom unlacquered Waterworks brass fixtures, casted-glass wall sconces and beautiful Carrara marble countertops. There’s no better place to recline and rejuve than from residence 43A.

Learn more about The Harrison’s residences, explore the neighborhood or inquire about this particular floor plan.

The city is getting back on its feet just in time for the very much beloved annual celebration of LGBTQ+ Pride Month. This year, Pride festivities include in-person, outdoor and digital events, both in the city and all around the Bay. Whether you’re planning on going out to the bars, driving-in to public movie screenings or taking your celebration up to wine country, here’s The Harrison’s local scoop on SF Pride 2021. 

In the City

Pride Movie Nights, June 11-12

In lieu of a parade this year, SF Pride is provided adjusted programming, including two nights of movie screenings at Oracle Park. The outdoor cinema event will include screenings of “In the Heights” on Friday and “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie” on Saturday, along with live prescreening entertainment and concessions. Learn more about the event here.

Frameline 45 Festivities, June 10-27

In addition to the Oracle Park movie nights with SF Pride, Frameline is also hosting their 45th San Francisco International LGBTQ+ Film Festival with a mix of outdoor screenings and drive-in events before returning to indoor theaters later in June. The festival will also offer over 50 virtual screening programs for those who wish to celebrate from home as well. According to Frameline Director of Programming Allegra Madsen. “Representing 30 countries — from Argentina, Egypt, and India to Nigeria, Taiwan, and South Africa — this year’s slate of films will touch on themes ranging from the American Dream and gentrification to trans resilience and gender and race identity. Through these films, we believe we can cultivate a more compassionate and empathetic world.” Find out more here. 

Black Liberation Event with AAACC, June 18

On the eve of Juneteenth, SF Pride is partnering with the African American Art & Culture Complex to honor the dual struggles of the fight for LGBTQ+ equality and for racial justice.

“The African American Art & Culture Complex is proud to partner with San Francisco Pride, as we create space to celebrate and honor the collective freedom of our Black LGBTQIA sisters, brothers and sibs,” says Melonie Green and Melorra Green, co-executive directors of AAACC, who were named SF Pride 2021 Community Grand Marshals. Find out more here.

Thirst Trap Thursdays

A weekly series taking place on each Thursday this month from 5 to 10 p.m., Thirst Trap Thursdays at the Dirty Habit bar at Hotel Zeloshas everything from DJ music and craft cocktails to a specialty menu and an “adult photobooth.” A portion of the proceeds will got towards the SF Queer Nightlife Fund, a nonprofit network providing relief to LGBTQ nightlife workers and entertainers impacted by the coronavirus. Learn more here.

Digital

Bluegrass Pride’s 2021 Porch Pride Queer-antine Music Festival, June 6-27

Bluegrass Pride’s annual music and advocacy event has gone virtual this year. Hosting LGBTQ+ musicians and creators in roots music, the programming will include music showcases, jam-alongs, artist conversations and advocacy events. On the final weekend of June 26-17 is “Porch Pride” — the festival’s signature event is presented this year as a two-day live-streamed music festival from 3-6 p.m. Learn more here.

San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus Presents: Wired, June 24

Artistic Director Timothy Seelig and Executive Director Chris Verdugo will present an official San Francisco Pride-sponsored virtual showcase celebrating Pride month. The online presentation will feature uplifting videos from chorus members, gay men’s chorus special guests and more.

San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus will be hosting “Wired,” a virtual show dedicated to Pride month. The program includes a homage to RuPaul, renditions of Todrick Hall’s “Nails, Hair, Hips, Heels” and “28 Barbary Lane” from Julian Hornik’s 12-movement musical, “@QueerZ,” and more. Register here.

Around the Bay

Taste the Rainbow, June 19

Drive up to Cadet Wine Bar in Napa to enjoy a wine flight, raffles, rainbow party favors, Pride treats and live sets from DJ Rotten Robbie. And as you celebrate in wine country, a portion of the proceeds will benefit LGBTQ Connection Napa and the Rainbow Action Network. Find out more here.

Wine and Pride: An Evening With Jody Watley, June 26

Another Pride festivity in wine country, Blue Note Napa presents the Grammy-winning artist Jody Watley at Napa Valley’s oldest wine estate. A portion of sales will benefit LGBTQ Connection Napa and the Rainbow Action Network as well. Join in on the entertainment here.