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Gentrification Nation
Sensing the state of the Mission on 22nd street.
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by Vanessa Brunner
posted on September 20, 2007
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| Like coats of paint on an oft-renovated Victorian, the Mission exists in layers. On the 22nd Street strip, the original layer is evident in the form of Mission Market, one of the city’s oldest, where day laborers still shop for rabbit, oxtail and whole chickens at un-yuppified prices. While the dot-com layer installed sushi joints, a gourmet ghetto and bar-lines-out-the-door farther north on 16th and 18th streets, 22nd remains more low-key. But skinny-jeans-clad hipsters still make their way here for homegrown fashion, local art and the funky vibe that’s flourishing more than ever in this shoulder neighborhood. Newcomer Spork dishes out house-made mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes where a KFC used to stand, and Lorax (the developers behind SF’s “greenest house,” up on Clipper) recently renovated a super-mod triplex at the anchor corner of Valencia and 22nd. The layers just keep coming. |
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(LEFT): enjoying the scene at Revolution Café; (RIGHT): eye-catching local art at Fabric8 costs less than dinner.
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photography by Stefanie Michejda
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Gorditas, tostadas and tortas are on the menu at the newly opened Tortas El Primo, where a full meal, from chorizo con papas to chicken mole, tops out at about $6. Try the superlative melon agua fresca and bask in the glow of the Virgin Mary in the corner. La Provence owner Lionel LaFite stays true to his Provençal roots with roasted rabbit served with lavender honey, chilled organic cauliflower soup and moelleux au chocolat with a custard shooter for dessert. If Ritual is, as usual, too crowded, head over to Cafe Que Tal. The atmosphere is relaxed—diligent students huddle over their laptops to the sound of a burbling fountain. Try the bagel with chive-and-tomato spread for lunch. Hidden behind a graffiti-esque mural, Revolution Café is always chock-full of sippers taking advantage of the free WiFi and getting their caffeine fix. While most go for the coffee (try the ginger-beer latte), evenings bring live local bands and pitchers of sangria. Even non-sushi-lovers flock to the lone red lantern on Guerrero that marks Kiji Sushi. Give your taste buds a break from California rolls and try the Kiji shooter, a tongue-tickling blend of oyster, uni, tobiko and quail egg, topped with a spicy ponzu sauce. Bruce Binn’s Spork takes comfort food to a new level with its location in a revamped KFC on Valencia. Fans rave about the inside-out burger (meat, bun, meat) and the “pot brownie,” a warm treat served in atiny pot with vanilla gelato. But we think the real finds are the light-as-air dinner rolls with honey butter—you have to know to ask for them. Brunch at Boogaloos is a tradition. The Caribbean cafe still displays old pharmaceutical signs from its former incarnation, but inside it’s all Mission funk. Start off with a Cyprus (grapefruit juice and sparkling wine), then try the Desayuno Típico, two eggs served alongside a plantain cake topped with tamarind cream. Get there before 10 on weekends to avoid the line. While partygoers crowd Medjool’s Sky Terrace for elbow-to-elbow mojitos on weekends, the panoramic view can be just as easily enjoyed during the week. Watch the sun set while enjoying a plate of grape-leaf-wrapped halibut skewers.
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(TOP): the Kiji shooter at KIji Sushi is not for the faint of heart: (BOTTOM): cheap, delicious mexican food fills the menu at Tortas el Primo
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| (LEFT): vintage finds at Josephine and Debudda; (RIGHT): browsing at Aquarius Records. |
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The tiny Aquarius Records is somehow fi lled to the brim with every CD and record imaginable, from ABBA to Zdrastvootie. Check out the staff commentaries taped to jewel cases to point you to your new favorite artists. At Josephine and Debudda, owner Jessica Goldberg mixes vintage jewelry from estate sales with pieces from such up-and-coming designers as Hayden Harnett and 31 Corn Lane. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch a glimpse of the store’s namesake: Goldberg’s French bulldog, Josephine, who has quite a neighborhood following. Dema has become a Mission staple for good reason. The shop does feature such brands as Drifter, Velvet and Splendid, but you can see Dema Grim herself making most of its clean-lined, brightly patterned clothing in the back workroom. Laku, a whimsical shop bursting with colorful goods, features original designs by Tokyo designer Yaeko Yamashita. Since everything is handmade, no two items are alike, giving you an excuse to splurge on cotton baby jumpers—or that perfect knit cap for you. Its shelves full of herbs, tinctures, flower essences and oils, Scarlet Sage Herb Company has almost convinced us to shun Advil and head back to nature. Its 50-plus essences for aromatherapy make it the antidote to urban chaos. After supplying us with the latest trends online for 10 years, Fabric8 finally decided to open a store. Decorated with murals by Brian Barneclo, Ursula Young and others, the store features a huge collection of locally designed SF tees as well as incredibly affordable artwork by local artists—prints start at just $20.
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(LEFT): Scarlet Sage Herb Company; (RIGHT): shoes at Laku |
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"THE LATIN AMERICAN CLUB IS LOW-LIT AND QUIET ENOUGH FOR ACTUAL CONVERSATION. The bar staff are nice—and by nice, I mean they pour stiff drinks."
——Mission resident Kenny Sweet
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| etc |
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Valencia Healing Arts Center may be the Mission’s best-kept secret, offering treatments ranging from acupuncture to herbal medicine to cupping. Patients gush about Anne Angelone’s acupunctural prowess; she also offers at-home group acupuncture sessions for up to 10 people. The Yoga Tree has locations all over SF, but the Valencia spot has the widest variety of classes, including prenatal, children’s and restorative, and new students get a week of free unlimited classes after attending a Yoga 101 workshop. Little Tree Gallery features emerging local artists, and its monthly openings are informal gatherings where viewers can grab a beer and hors d’oeuvres while admiring the art—all free of charge. At night, the silver streamers and disco ball of the Make-Out Room start to sparkle after a few of its humongous margaritas. The hot spot attracts locals and FiDi business types alike with acts ranging from Willow Willow to Sean Hayes.Weekend happy hour brings $2 Pabst pints. A former speakeasy, Lone Palm serves a mean manhattan and a wide selection of single-malt scotches. With dark curtains, soundless black-and-white movies playing on the TV behind the bar and, of course, a lone palm tree marking the address outside, it’s a little patch of kitschy swank. The stiff drinks and neo-grunge vibe of the Latin American Club have kept locals coming back for years. Quieter than most Mission bars, the club aims for the quirky with a collection of mannequins and cuckoo clocks, plus marquee lights above the bar that spell out “SIN.”
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Valencia Healing Arts Center.
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| Like coats of paint on an oft-renovated Victorian, the Mission exists in layers. On the 22nd Street strip, the original layer is evident in the form of Mission Market, one of the city’s oldest, where day laborers still shop for rabbit, oxtail and whole chickens at un-yuppified prices. While the dot-com layer installed sushi joints, a gourmet ghetto and bar-lines-out-the-door farther north on 16th and 18th streets, 22nd remains more low-key. But skinny-jeans-clad hipsters still make their way here for homegrown fashion, local art and the funky vibe that’s flourishing more than ever in this shoulder neighborhood. Newcomer Spork dishes out house-made mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes where a KFC used to stand, and Lorax (the developers behind SF’s “greenest house,” up on Clipper) recently renovated a super-mod triplex at the anchor corner of Valencia and 22nd. The layers just keep coming. |
|
|
|
(LEFT): enjoying the scene at Revolution Café; (RIGHT): eye-catching local art at Fabric8 costs less than dinner.
|
photography by Stefanie Michejda
| eat |
|
|
Gorditas, tostadas and tortas are on the menu at the newly opened Tortas El Primo, where a full meal, from chorizo con papas to chicken mole, tops out at about $6. Try the superlative melon agua fresca and bask in the glow of the Virgin Mary in the corner. La Provence owner Lionel LaFite stays true to his Provençal roots with roasted rabbit served with lavender honey, chilled organic cauliflower soup and moelleux au chocolat with a custard shooter for dessert. If Ritual is, as usual, too crowded, head over to Cafe Que Tal. The atmosphere is relaxed—diligent students huddle over their laptops to the sound of a burbling fountain. Try the bagel with chive-and-tomato spread for lunch. Hidden behind a graffiti-esque mural, Revolution Café is always chock-full of sippers taking advantage of the free WiFi and getting their caffeine fix. While most go for the coffee (try the ginger-beer latte), evenings bring live local bands and pitchers of sangria. Even non-sushi-lovers flock to the lone red lantern on Guerrero that marks Kiji Sushi. Give your taste buds a break from California rolls and try the Kiji shooter, a tongue-tickling blend of oyster, uni, tobiko and quail egg, topped with a spicy ponzu sauce. Bruce Binn’s Spork takes comfort food to a new level with its location in a revamped KFC on Valencia. Fans rave about the inside-out burger (meat, bun, meat) and the “pot brownie,” a warm treat served in atiny pot with vanilla gelato. But we think the real finds are the light-as-air dinner rolls with honey butter—you have to know to ask for them. Brunch at Boogaloos is a tradition. The Caribbean cafe still displays old pharmaceutical signs from its former incarnation, but inside it’s all Mission funk. Start off with a Cyprus (grapefruit juice and sparkling wine), then try the Desayuno Típico, two eggs served alongside a plantain cake topped with tamarind cream. Get there before 10 on weekends to avoid the line. While partygoers crowd Medjool’s Sky Terrace for elbow-to-elbow mojitos on weekends, the panoramic view can be just as easily enjoyed during the week. Watch the sun set while enjoying a plate of grape-leaf-wrapped halibut skewers.
|
(TOP): the Kiji shooter at KIji Sushi is not for the faint of heart: (BOTTOM): cheap, delicious mexican food fills the menu at Tortas el Primo
|
|
|
| shop |
|
|
|
| (LEFT): vintage finds at Josephine and Debudda; (RIGHT): browsing at Aquarius Records. |
|
The tiny Aquarius Records is somehow fi lled to the brim with every CD and record imaginable, from ABBA to Zdrastvootie. Check out the staff commentaries taped to jewel cases to point you to your new favorite artists. At Josephine and Debudda, owner Jessica Goldberg mixes vintage jewelry from estate sales with pieces from such up-and-coming designers as Hayden Harnett and 31 Corn Lane. If you’re lucky, you’ll catch a glimpse of the store’s namesake: Goldberg’s French bulldog, Josephine, who has quite a neighborhood following. Dema has become a Mission staple for good reason. The shop does feature such brands as Drifter, Velvet and Splendid, but you can see Dema Grim herself making most of its clean-lined, brightly patterned clothing in the back workroom. Laku, a whimsical shop bursting with colorful goods, features original designs by Tokyo designer Yaeko Yamashita. Since everything is handmade, no two items are alike, giving you an excuse to splurge on cotton baby jumpers—or that perfect knit cap for you. Its shelves full of herbs, tinctures, flower essences and oils, Scarlet Sage Herb Company has almost convinced us to shun Advil and head back to nature. Its 50-plus essences for aromatherapy make it the antidote to urban chaos. After supplying us with the latest trends online for 10 years, Fabric8 finally decided to open a store. Decorated with murals by Brian Barneclo, Ursula Young and others, the store features a huge collection of locally designed SF tees as well as incredibly affordable artwork by local artists—prints start at just $20.
|
|
|
(LEFT): Scarlet Sage Herb Company; (RIGHT): shoes at Laku |
|
"THE LATIN AMERICAN CLUB IS LOW-LIT AND QUIET ENOUGH FOR ACTUAL CONVERSATION. The bar staff are nice—and by nice, I mean they pour stiff drinks."
——Mission resident Kenny Sweet
|
| etc |
|
Valencia Healing Arts Center may be the Mission’s best-kept secret, offering treatments ranging from acupuncture to herbal medicine to cupping. Patients gush about Anne Angelone’s acupunctural prowess; she also offers at-home group acupuncture sessions for up to 10 people. The Yoga Tree has locations all over SF, but the Valencia spot has the widest variety of classes, including prenatal, children’s and restorative, and new students get a week of free unlimited classes after attending a Yoga 101 workshop. Little Tree Gallery features emerging local artists, and its monthly openings are informal gatherings where viewers can grab a beer and hors d’oeuvres while admiring the art—all free of charge. At night, the silver streamers and disco ball of the Make-Out Room start to sparkle after a few of its humongous margaritas. The hot spot attracts locals and FiDi business types alike with acts ranging from Willow Willow to Sean Hayes.Weekend happy hour brings $2 Pabst pints. A former speakeasy, Lone Palm serves a mean manhattan and a wide selection of single-malt scotches. With dark curtains, soundless black-and-white movies playing on the TV behind the bar and, of course, a lone palm tree marking the address outside, it’s a little patch of kitschy swank. The stiff drinks and neo-grunge vibe of the Latin American Club have kept locals coming back for years. Quieter than most Mission bars, the club aims for the quirky with a collection of mannequins and cuckoo clocks, plus marquee lights above the bar that spell out “SIN.”
|
|
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Valencia Healing Arts Center.
|
|
email page
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print page
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