Everything clever
The Eighth Rule, Berkeley listings, fireplace bars, John Cusack tix, MORE
ABOUT FOUND • Help Wanted
We’re looking to add a fractional growth lead to help with organic email acquisition and paid conversion. FOUND is currently live in six markets (NY, LA, SF, Miami, London, and Paris), plus the newly launched Global edition, with an audience of over 100K subscribers. Experience in media is a plus but not required. Interested parties should hit reply or email us at found@itsfound.com.
BARS • First Round
Warrior’s Hideout
The Skinny: NBA all-star Steph Curry has teamed up with Michael Mina for his first bar, a compact, semi-hidden cocktail spot at the Westin St. Francis called The Eighth Rule — a reference to the seven rules of bourbon production.
The Vibe: The long and narrow bar space is tucked a few steps from the new and bustling Bourbon Steak and the Westin lobby. Taking a cue from the golden age of train travel, it’s designed to resemble an old-timey bar car: barrel-vaulted ceilings, dark wood paneling, and Deco-inspired sconces. A back room is set up more like a lounge, with a leather sofa and several seating areas.
The Drink: The menu features options on the citrusy end of the spectrum, like the Professor (rye, blackberry liqueur, lemon, and Herbsaint), that come with glitzy, arguably unnecessary garnishes like edible silver and gold leaf. There’s a six-course cocktail tasting option ($145 per), featuring a spiced apple bourbon highball, a clarified milk punch, and several barrel-aged cocktails like one with bourbon, amaretto, vermouth, and pear. (All of these can be ordered a la carte as well.) The menu is something of a marketing effort for Steph Curry’s bourbon brand Gentleman’s Cut, which you’ll see featured in more than half the cocktails, but there’s also a fairly extensive spirits list if you want to go off-menu.
The Verdict: With the Westin St. Francis’s Clock Bar long gone, it’s cool to have a new fancy cocktail spot to hit up when you’re in the neighborhood. And the cozy, dimly lit train car atmosphere makes it a prime date-night spot. –Jay Barmann
→ The Eighth Rule (Union Square) • 335 Powell St • Sun-Mon 4-10p, Tue-Sat 4p-12a • Reserve.
REAL ESTATE • First Mover
Three properties that came to market in Berkeley in the last 30 days.
→ 479 Kentucky Ave (Cragmont) • 3BR/2BA, 1784 SF • Ask: $1.495M • updated 1927 build w/ Bay views • Days on market: 14 • Agent: Asila Sayedi, KW Advisors.
→ 1833 Sonoma Ave (Northbrae) • 3BR/2BA, 1974 SF • Ask: $1.995M • 1920-build Craftsman, 2-car garage w/ ADU potential • Days on market: 9 • Agent: Eric Silverman, Sotheby’s.
→ 912 Indian Rock Ave (Northbrae, above) • 4BR/3.1BA, 2282 SF • Ask: $2.125M • home of architect Hans Ostwald and family for 80+ years • Days on market: 14 • Agent: Arlene Baxter, The Agency.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: SF’s hottest real estate trend: living solo • New owners of 20 Cosmo Place seek drinking, dining tenants • Market St’s Four Seasons Hotel sold to Blackstone for $130M • Astonishing sculptural home in Silicon Valley by Frank Gehry (RIP) • Global luxury home collectors head to Palo Alto.
RESTAURANTS • The Nines
Bars, with fireplace
The Nines are FOUND’s distilled lists of the best in the Bay Area and surrounds. Additions or subtractions? Hit reply or found@itsfoundsf.com. For the full archives, click here.
Park Chalet (Ocean Beach), house-brewed beer, holiday-themed cocktails
Riptide (Outer Sunset), classic, well-loved surfer dive
White Cap (Outer Sunset, above), cozy and cool cocktail spot w/ seaweed martini
Left Door (Cow Hollow), living room vibes, takes reservations
Last Call (Castro), queer, famously great jukebox
Peacekeeper (Lower Nob Hill), loft-like neighborhood crowd, central fireplace
Zeki’s (Nob Hill), 80+ years old, Wed trivia night
Swig (Tenderloin), always busy, frequent DJs and live music
25 Lusk (SoMa), scene-y after-work, business-dinner spot w/ a fireplace lounge
CULTURE & LEISURE • Gave me a pen
Warriors v Timberwolves • Chase Center (Thrive City) • Fri @ 7p • SEC104, $324 per
Santa Con • Mission District (multiple locations) • Sat @ 12p • $34 per
Unscripted: John Cusack • Golden Gate Theatre (Tenderloin) • Sun @ 730p • ORCH, $97 per
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: Anglim/Trimble joins Minnesota Street Project closures • Everyone loved Claude • Godzilla’s Seven Decades celebration launches in Japantown.
GETAWAYS • San Diego
Be our guest
The Skinny: Across the street from the recently renovated landmark Hotel del Coronado, The Bower is a more exclusive, discreet stay in the cheerful Coronado neighborhood, transforming a 1950s motel and historic Japanese tea garden into a 39-room boutique hotel.
The Scene: The lobby feels like an indoor-outdoor living room, flowing freely to a serene garden and stone fireplace. Arriving guests are invited to relax on plush couches with a glass of sparkling rosé while reservation details are confirmed. The wabi-sabi aesthetic includes a ceiling art piece crafted from rice paper with hand-dipped ink edges.
Coronado’s first and only rooftop bar and restaurant, Dive, is located on the fourth floor and open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a new executive chef from the Four Seasons Residence Club Aviara. You can (and should) perch at a high top table under scalloped white umbrellas and sip Champagne from chilled coupe glasses. The neon “Villa Capri” sign behind the bar is a relic from the former motel that occupied the space before Bower’s two-year glow-up.
The Rooms: Rooms are small but stylish, with the same warm neutral color palette as the lobby, plus floor-to-ceiling windows, natural wood furnishings, and textured wallpaper. I especially appreciated the chic fold-down luggage rack attached to the wall, which was sturdy enough for my hefty checked bag, and a much better alternative to flimsy standard luggage racks.
Full-size Le Labo bath amenities, Frette bathrobes and linens, and Dyson hair dryers check all the boxes. Thoughtful local touches include coffee mugs from The Wheel Stoneware, pour-over kits by Genteel Coffee Co. (accompanied by Fellow kettles), and stationary from Seaside Papery down the street.
The Amenities: A fleet of beach cruisers (including two e-bikes) are perfect for exploring the Coronado peninsula. Any special requests — like the yoga mat I asked for — can be made prior to arrival via text with a concierge who’s available 24/7.
Why It’s FOUND: Personalized service that goes above and beyond, an executive team with big brand experience (Four Seasons, Auberge, Ritz-Carlton), and now the creative freedom to redefine luxury tropes by focusing on what matters to guests. –Amber Gibson
→ The Bower Coronado (San Diego) • 1417 Orange Ave • Rates from $400/wknd night.
GETAWAYS LINKS: Nob Hill’s Huntington Hotel to reopen after six-year closure • Anticipated new hotel Park Hyatt Los Cabos at Cabos Del Sol has opened • A Sierra retreat that lets the landscape do the talking • Vegas, baby: NoMad rebranding as The Reserve at Park MGM… new Chase Sapphire Lounge opens at LAS • Netflix kills travel-fave casting option • Kimpton plans Indiana debut • Otto The (AI) Agent opens to public.
LOST & FOUND • Behind the paywall
→ A handful of favorite Bay Area restaurants from new subscribers: Supreme Dumpling (Stonestown) • Tasting House (Los Gatos) • Little Shucker (Fillmore) • Chef Chu’s (Los Altos) • Blue Line Pizza (San Jose).