Roof deck
Equal Parts, Tur, Rintaro, R3, Carneros Resort and Spa, top spots for outdoor music, MORE
WORK • Friday Routine
Divvy up
MELISSA PERFIT • executive chef • Equal Parts
Neighborhood you work in: North Beach
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
The usual morning scene during the weekdays in the kitchen at Equal Parts is centered on prep for dinner service and the week in general. We have 2-3 prep cooks following a prep list that either my sous chef or I write for them the night before. They’ve worked for me at previous restaurants, and I’m lucky to have them working with me again here at Equal Parts.
What’s on the agenda for today?
Once I get to work, I usually check in with the lead prep cook to see if he needs anything, has any questions, or if there were any problems with the orders. Next on the agenda is organizing the walk-in if needed, followed by general daily organization. I double-check the reservations for the day, check on any new parties, and review the menus to make sure we’re set up and ready to go. At 3p, the morning cooks leave for their night jobs, and the night cooks arrive after their morning jobs elsewhere. These cooks work so hard! After that, stations are set up, breaks are taken, I touch base with front-of-house to address any questions, and then, we’re ready to go!
Right now, I’m excited about a seasonal dish that’s about to hit the menu, a pluot and Early Girl tomato salad with a vegan miso bagna cauda, finished with black and white sesame seeds. Simple, but so delicious.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
Working so much in the first year of this new restaurant makes me happy to cook dinner at home and relax on the couch. But I did go to Hog Island at the Ferry Building for a late lunch yesterday, and it was great as always. My favorite restaurant in the city is Rintaro (a very common answer for most chefs, I’m told!) and I like to go there whenever I want to treat myself. The environment is fun and relaxed, while the food is always on point and completely different from anything I make.
How about a little leisure or culture?
When I can, I like taking quick overnight trips up to Guerneville and staying at the relaxed motel resort R3. Anytime I have the opportunity to get to a pool or other body of water, I’ll make it happen! This might be the Florida in me that I’ll never shake.
Any weekend getaways?
For a day trip I like to drive up to Tomales Bay and go to The Marshall Store for lunch. I worked with the owner, Shannon Gregory, years ago at Hog Island.
What was your last great vacation?
A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to go to Japan (above) to tour historic sake breweries in Fukuoka Prefecture — like Kitaya and Oga Shuzo — to see firsthand how sake is made. From washing the rice to fermentation, and finally, the finished product, it was one of the most amazing things to learn about and see up close. After that, I went to Tokyo for a few days. I wish I could’ve stayed longer, but I’ll never forget that trip!
What store or service do you always recommend?
I always recommend my chiropractor to people, probably too much because now it’s impossible to get an appointment! I’ve been going to Dr. Taylor Rabbetz, at Rabbetz Sports Chiropractic for 20 years, mostly to keep me healthy and on my feet since the long hours make it hard for me to take care of my body sometimes. He’s also helped me heal from multiple injuries.
Where are you donating your time or money?
I’m taking part in an auction for a private chef experience through North Beach Citizens. It’s a resource center for unhoused and extremely low-income people to help rebuild their lives and reconnect with their community. Equal Parts is also partnering with Up Hill Climb to donate to the Kilimanjaro Orphanage Center to feed the entire center every Monday, for an entire year.
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REAL ESTATE • On the Market
Three homes with city views that came to market in San Francisco in the last 30 days.
→ 55 Coleridge St (Bernal Heights, above) • 4BR/1BA • 2420 SF • Ask: $1.759M • 1908 build w/ legal studio and Sutro Tower view • Days on market: 6 • Agent: Jeffrey Salgado, Compass.
→ 239 Princeton St (University Mound) • 3BR/2.1BA • 2802 SF • Ask: $1.449M • MCM classic on cul-de-sac, Dogpatch view • Days on market: 7 • Agent: Kevin Wakelin, Compass.
→ 2833 Vallejo St (Pacific Heights) • 5BR/6.1BA • 6175 SF • Ask: $19.9M • glass-fronted modern build w/ elevator, roof deck, Marina view • Days on market: 6 • Agent: Nina Hatvany, Compass.
REAL ESTATE LINKS: Alamo Square home trades for $9.125M, setting new record • Massive mixed-use development planned at Bernal Heights Safeway site • Can you really buy a house with AI stock?
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GETAWAYS • Napa
Cottage core
As the weather heats up in Napa, thoughts turn to a weekend getaway at Carneros Resort and Spa, which boasts a recently expanded pool, and a lineup of upgraded amenities.
The property’s 100 private cottages, family suites, and residences are arranged across 28 acres, grouped into secluded neighborhoods named after local flora and fauna indigenous to the region (juniper, fig, lavender). Front porches with rocking chairs give the resort a distinct, small-town charm, but inside each cottage you’ll find not-so-small-town features: Heated bathroom floors, and floor-to-ceiling bifold glass doors that open onto private backyards with fire pits and outdoor showers.
As temperatures drop with the sun, request an intimate fireside booth at the FARM restaurant, which last month welcomed Franco Fugel (Per Se, PRESS) as its new executive chef. His arrival has prompted a slight shift in its Italian-inspired menu, including a new tagliatelle with Dungeness crab and Fresno chili, and a blackberry mousse cake with corn ice cream. After dinner, take a snifter of single-malt scotch or cognac to the heated patio, where live music plays five nights a week.
The resort’s adults-only heated pool and infinity-edged hilltop-perched hot tub (above) have some of the better views in Wine Country. The spa, which features 10 treatment rooms reserved exclusively for resort guests, was also revamped in 2024, and just might be worth the visit. –Allison McCarthy
→ Carneros Resort and Spa (Napa, CA) • 4048 Sonoma Hwy • Rooms from $1669/June wknd night.
CULTURE & LEISURE • The Nines
Music venues, outdoors
The Nines are FOUND’s distilled lists of the best in the Bay Area and surrounds. Paid subscribers have access to the complete Nines archive.
Stern Grove (Parkside), free summer Sunday festival concerts in lovely eucalyptus grove for 87 years