Wu-Tang Flan
Broad Street Oyster Co, Hardware Coffee, Chicano Nuevo, Saltwater Bakeshop, Santa Cruz dining, MORE
The FOUND 45 is our list of favorite restaurants in SF — Essentials, New Guard, Neighborhood, Fine Dining/Special Occasion, Subscriber Favorites.
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Today, recent subscriber answers to the query, I need a caterer for a casual summer party. Any ideas?
Garrett Adair: “Simply the best around! We’ve used Garrett for events over many years, small and large, and he has always done a great job. And he’s a great guy to work with!”
Today, two more PROMPTS for which we continue to seek your answers:
What Bay Area store or service do you love to recommend?
What’s your favorite specialty bookstore in the Bay Area?
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RESTAURANTS • First Word
Baja baby
The Skinny: With the long-awaited opening of Chicano Nuevo, SF’s best fried fish taco finally has a permanent home. Husband-and-wife team Abraham Nuñez and Courtney Fujita have been popping up since 2015, including a popular residency at Broken Record. The couple first snagged the keys to their Bernal Heights brick-and-mortar in 2022, opening the front bar last December and back dining room this June, with a liquor license still in the works.
RESTAURANT LINKS: Jennifer Garner lingers at Epic Steak • Chicken Fried Palace shutters two months after massive city grant • The last Horn Barbecue has closed.
WORK • Wednesday Routine
Local catch
THOMAS EDGINGTON • executive chef • Broad Street Oyster Company
Neighborhood you live in: Nob Hill
It’s Wednesday morning. What’s the scene at your workplace?
Like most mornings, I come in early, have a cold brew from our friends at Hardware Coffee, and get eyes on the day’s seafood delivery. When it comes to fresh seafood, I like to personally check and process just about everything we receive, from local oysters and halibut to the king salmon that we get almost every day.
What’s on the agenda for today?
I’m scanning invoices for our finance department and working through some small menu adjustments for late summer. We’re in a very luxurious position here in San Francisco when it comes to seafood and produce, but I still think it’s important to switch it up and try new things.
Any restaurant plans today, tonight, this weekend?
As a chef, I don’t get to eat out as much as I’d like, but I’ve found a few places I love to grab a late-night bite after work. Brazen Head is a quick walk away, and treating myself to a slab of prime rib after a long day is very rewarding. The Public Izakaya on Post Street is another go-to: Japanese food has always been very comforting for me, and they serve late into the night.
Any weekend getaways?
Chico is a home away from home for me. I have friends and family out there whom I love to visit, plus hiking in Bidwell Park is phenomenal.
What was your last great vacation?
I’ve had a few very fun road trips and adventures, but my last great vacation was to Madrid. I spent about two weeks staying in a flat right near Puerta del Sol. The food in Spain is the pinnacle of quality through simplicity, and the Prado might be my favorite museum I’ve ever visited.
What’s a recent big-ticket purchase you love?
A Gore-Tex rain jacket. While we didn’t get rained on too badly this year, it’s an essential item for any full-time bike commuter.
WORK LINKS: JPMorgan ramps up SF presence • Employee happiness is on the rise • Lululemon’s war against itself.
CULTURE & LEISURE • Hour of chaos
Danny Jolles • Punch Line (FiDi) • Fri @ 945p • Preferred, $46 per
Public Enemy • Big Picnic Weekend Day One • Stern Grove (Parkside) • Sat @ 12p • Free
Giants v Rockies • Oracle Park (Embarcadero) • Sun @ 105p • FC115, Row L, $209 per
GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Bakery
Overdue dough
Brittany Dunn-Holden’s Saltwater Bakeshop journey began in 2018, when the Mr. Holmes veteran launched her wholesale and farmers market operation. She signed a lease for a Richmond District storefront in 2023, but permitting issues snarled that plan. In May, she opened that long-awaited brick-and-mortar in SoMa, on an industrial stretch of Howard St.
Inside you’ll find her farmers market favorites: seasonal danishes, chocolate-pistachio croissants, and golden country loaves. I beelined for the new menu items, ordering a turkey baguette with toum and pickled onions, and the burnt sugar cake with a tender crumb, caramelized flavor, and tall layers.
While the space’s former tenant, Chantal Guillon Patisserie, was clean and minimal, Saltwater Bakeshop has added pops of color with a mural of the Golden Gate Bridge, as well as tables, couches, and cushions scattered throughout the large shop. –Becky Duffett
→ Saltwater Bakeshop (SoMa) • 1309 Howard St • Tue-Fri 7a-3p, Sat-Sun 8a-3p.
CULTURE & LEISURE LINKS: SF to host Vogue World in 2027 • Reconsidering the San Francisco ‘Godzilla’ • George Lopez returns to the Bay Area stand-up stage.
GETAWAYS • The Nines
Dining, Santa Cruz
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.
Bad Animal (Downtown), natural wine bar and used bookstore w/ farmers market bistro fare, order the gougères, reserve