This 85-Year-Old Mission District Dive Is One of San Francisco’s Newest Legacy Businesses

As of last month, there’s a new Legacy Business in San Francisco. This time, it’s Pop’s Bar, the Mission District dive on the corner of 24th and York streets. According to BrokeAssStuart, owners Spike Krouse and Tom Tierney are of the mindset that they’re just stewards of the longstanding watering hole, and this special designation from the city will help them do just that. In order to qualify for Legacy Business status, San Francisco businesses must have been open for at least 10 years; the designation allows the city to offset any potential rent hikes that might otherwise force the longstanding businesses to close.

In a history published back in 2017, BrokeAssStuart reports the bar’s roots stretch back to Prohibition when the business’s namesake Carl Joseph Saxsenmeie, or “Pops,” served alcohol in the space, which was then operating under the name the Clubhouse. It’s since changed hands an impressive number of times, but always remained a classic neighborhood watering hole, beloved for its welcoming atmosphere, colorful cast of regular characters, and bustling dance floor. A handful of other local businesses also earned the Legacy Business title in the past month including Blazing Saddles Bike Rentals & Tours, Café La Bohème, Club Deluxe, Hotel Bohème, Larkins Brothers Tire Company, Mariposa Hunters Point Yacht Club, Outpost Studios, Piedmont Boutique, PO Plus, and St. John Coltrane Church.

Why some are calling for a boycott of this Korean bakery

Some Twitter users are calling for a boycott of Paris Baguette, a Korea-based bakery with multiple locations in the Bay Area after a worker at a factory in Korea was killed on the job. According to a report from SFGATE, the worker was crushed “when her upper body was caught in a sauce machine.” But after her body was discovered by other staff, they were asked to resume business as usual, resulting in outrage in both the United States and Korea.

Pour one out for Old Devil Moon

Old Devil Moon, a bar and restaurant located at 3472 Mission Street in Bernal Heights, is closing on November 19 after six years in business, SFGATE reports. One of the partners behind the bar told the outlet there are a few reasons for the closure, including the fact that the city has been slow to rebound from the pandemic. They own the building, however, and are now looking for new tenants to take over the space.

Santa Clara is getting Shawarmaji

Popular Oakland restaurant Shawarmaji is expanding with a second location at 2281 the Alameda in Santa Clara, per the San Francisco Chronicle. The restaurant serves some of the Bay Area’s best Middle Eastern food, according to the paper’s critic, including chicken shawarma that’s cooked on a vertical spit.

Introducing Nob Hill’s new Italian spot, Ciccino

Tablehopper has the scoop on a new Italian restaurant now open in Nob Hill called Ciccino. It’s from the executive chef of the local mini-chain Italian Handmade Company but offers a more upscale menu including plates like halibut carpaccio and spaghetti with caviar.

Baia’s back

And finally, good news for plant-based diners: As announced on Instagram, Baia, the plant-based Italian restaurant in Hayes Valley, is finally reopening on November 16. The restaurant has been closed since a man set the restaurant’s trash on fire in late August; the blaze spread to the trees outside the restaurant and then to the building.