Yet Wah restaurant on the corner of Clement and 23rd Avenue closed their doors last November after decades in business. For a short while there was a sign stating that they were remodeling, but by January, a for sale sign replaced it.

EaterSF reports today that a liquor license application has been filed against the 2140 Clement Street address by Chinatown Restaurant. They already have one location in San Francisco at 744 Washington.

According to their website, they’re a “restaurant landmark” that has been in business since 1919:

Chinatown Restaurant serves Traditional Chinese Cuisine, Northern Chinese Specialties, as well as Spicy Szechuan Favorites. We believe that the best way to enjoy Chinese food is to eat it family-style. When you’re here, sample our spicy Kung Pao Chicken and Mu Shu Pork. Feeling adventurous? Try the Crispy Peking Duck and the Salt & Pepper Crab, a local favorite. With over a hundred unique dishes on our menu, you will be sure to find something for everyone.

The former Yet Wah with its second floor should be a good fit for them, as it can be used for large, banquet parties. You can check out the restaurant’s Party Combination, Student Group Party and Take-Out menus here.

Unfortunately the Washington Street location is not well reviewed by Yelp users. After 198 reviews, they’ve only earned 1.5 stars out of 5 – ouch. Many of the negative reviews mention poor service and being lured into the restaurant by a woman passing out coupons on the street. Clearly they’ve got their marketing strategy figured out…

No word yet on when the new Chinatown Restaurant will open.

Sarah B.

We got word this week of two businesses on or near Clement Street that are closing their doors.

Inside Scoop SF first reported on the closure of Prime Rib Shabu (305 5th Avenue), a well-reviewed restaurant from star chef Luke Sung (formerly of Isa fame) that opened in late 2009.

The good news is that the 305 8th Avenue won’t be empty for too long. A sign in the window indicates a new eatery will be moving in called Cajun House Louisiana Crawfish.

Cherish (115 Clement), a retail store that offers “cards, invitations, scrapbooking, studio”, is also closing its doors. It sent out an email saying they had lost their lease, and as a result, are hosting a final 40% off sale.

RichmondSFblog reader Susan forwarded us the email, saying “we’re losing a great shop on Clement”. No word on whether Cherish will re-open elsewhere or who will take over the 115 Clement Street space.

Sarah B.

RichmondSFBlog reader Todd sent us a note today about Angelo’s Cafe, located at 2314 Clement between 24th and 25th Avenue.

“My wife and I had breakfast there most sundays, and we went by yesterday and it was closed up. I peeked in thru the blinds and it was nearly empty,” Todd wrote.

Looks like the eatery has closed its doors – their website is gone and their phone number is disconnected. Their Twitter account is very outdated.

I never got a chance to eat there, but the cafe – including Ana who worked there – seemed well-liked with a 4 out of 5 star review on Yelp, and mentions of praise for their breakfast sandwiches. Judging from their twitter feed, sounds like they hosted live music every now and then as well.

Were you an Angelo’s customer or neighbor? Leave a comment to let us know how you feel about them closing down.

Sarah B.

City Burning, from Alamo Square, Hayes Street & Pierce Street, April 18, 1906. Courtesy SFMTA

Happy Friday to everyone! Here are some local links to kick off your weekend…

• It was the anniversary of the 1906 earthquake on Wednesday. The SFMTA posted some new historic photos that have surfaced from the aftermath. Amazing stuff.
• This Saturday, Enjoy Vegetarian will be opening their third restaurant at 5344 Geary between 17th & 18th Avenues. Their press release boasts, “Enjoy has vegan food that not only looks but tastes like real meat. Lots of gluten-free options and a fair selection of Americanized-Chinese food, such as sweet-and-sour chicken. No MSG, garlic or onion in any dishes.” CNN even rated them the 7th best Chinese restaurant in California.
• Patricia Unterman may no longer be a food critic for the Examiner, but she has her own website for fans to catch her latest reviews. She recently reviewed Golden Gate Dim Sum (1829 Clement), and in her usual adventurous style said “most of the dishes I wanted to try were posted on the wall in Chinese.” Unterman concludes the review by saying that Golden Gate “has now joined my top comfort food list.”
• Untapped Cities has a nice feature on the architecture and murals at Beach Chalet. “The City of San Francisco built the Beach Chalet in 1925, at a cost of $60,000, to provide facilities for beach goers. The ground floor consisted of a lounge and changing rooms, while the upstairs held a 200-seat bar and municipal restaurant.”
• CurbedSF is running features on local parks, and spotlighted our own Muriel Leff Mini-Park on 7th Avenue. Did you know it was the first mini-park built in the city? I wonder if it’s jealous of the new parklet craze… Curbed also has a nifty post on pics of the Cliff House, Then & Now with a fancy sliding bar that lets you compare photos easily.
• The Anza Branch Library, which re-opened last June after a nice remodel, was recently certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council. What does it mean? That the library was “designed and built using strategies aimed at improving performance across all the metrics that matter most: energy savings, water efficiency, CO? emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts.” If you’d like a LEED tour of the library, stop by on June 16 from 2-4pm (it’s also their one year anniversary since re-opening).

A couple of local businesses are getting into the Earth Day spirit this weekend:

• The recently opened Ingenious Salon (389 Arguello) is hosting a grand opening party on Saturday night from 7 to 10pm. Stop by to enjoy “hors d’oeuvres and refreshments, modeling of cutting-edge hair styles and fresh spring make up by makeup artist Ananda Grant, goodie bags, music, and raffle for free and discounted service.”
• Foggy Notion (275 6th Avenue), a new boutique that specializes in recycled and vintage items, is hosting an Earth Day Vintage Sale on Sunday from 12noon until 6pm. Little Eagle Vintage will create a pop-up store on site, vintage vinyl records will be on sale, and all mittenmaker handmade jewelry will be 50-75% off. Plus complimentary Mimosas and other champagne cocktails.

Keep it green!

Sarah B.

If you’ve noticed things have been a little quieter on the 400 block of Clement in the evenings, it may be because the Rockit Room is taking a 30 day break from offering live music shows.

After complaints from neighbors and increased police calls, the Rockit Room has been under the microscope of the Entertainment Commission over the past several months. In March, the Commission outlined a long list of conditions that the club needed to meet in order to hold on to their right to host live music events.

Most of the conditions required increased security (“Install surveillance cameras inside and outside the door to the venue “, “All security must wear distinctive clothing”, Must pat down and electronically scan every patron”) as well as better handling of the acts that perform at the club (“If using outside promoters, there must be a contract in place prior to event, and they must have special event insurance and be registered with city”).

The Commission also mandated that the club end any live entertainment by 1am and have lights on in the club and bar by 1:30am every night.

But within two weeks of receiving their directive from the Entertainment Commission, the club was already falling short according to local police. Which could spell death for the Rockit Room if their entertainment license were to be revoked.

To avoid further censure by the Commission, the Rockit Room has voluntarily agreed to a 30 day hiatus from live entertainment. Entertainment Commission Executive Director Jocelyn Kane told The Examiner that the club owners voluntarily suspended their permit for one month in order to “rebrand and reprogram” the music venue.

The Rockit Room remains open as a bar and lounge, but live music shows won’t start up again until May 6. During their hiatus, owners will need to continue to make changes to satisfy the conditions laid out by the Entertainment Commission.

The clock is ticking – let’s see if the club can get their act together both as a venue, and as a better neighbor.

Sarah B.

Related stories:
Mar 23, 2012: City tells the Rockit Room on Clement to clean up its act
Feb 13, 2012: Oakland rapper Philthy Rich + two others arrested on Clement, Sunday night

Emma’s Coffee Shop on Geary. Photo by Alan Turkus

Happy Wednesday everyone! Here’s some local links to keep you clicking…

• Thursday is Bike to School day so be mindful of more tots than usual out and about on two wheels.
• Just desserts: There’s a new dessert cafe in the outer Richmond, located on Clement near 32nd Avenue. It’s called Akiba, and reader Jason tells us: “Went in to check it out and was pleased to see that Japanese dessert does indeed mean crepes! Very fresh and yummy.” 50 Yelp reviews so far and they’re at a solid 4 out of 5 stars.
• EaterSF reports that Vietnamese restaurant Perilla is opening in the former Pho Clement 2 location at 5423 Geary. Like its other two locations, “the menu is pho-and-bun-centric, but also has a large selection of garlic noodle or rice plates with charbroiled meats and vegetables.” Owner Tin Truong also runs another restaurant in the Richmond District – PPQ Dungeness Island (2332 Clement).
• The Bold Italic has a colorful feature story on the ladies of Paul’s Hat Works. “As proprietors of a relatively new business, the four gals serve as their own best advertising, strutting their wares along with impeccable outfits. They temper Al Capone’s smooth outlaw style with a dash of feminine whimsy.”
• ScoutMob SF has a good deal for free treats at new Cassava Bakery on Balboa in the Outer Richmond
• Coyote hysteria? We had great pics of a Golden Gate Park coyote on Monday, but one woman’s scare with them is prompting the city to close off some trails in the park.
• A place for your next BBQ party: RichmondSFBlog reader Carolyn tells us that the Bazaar Cafe (5927 California) is renting out their lovely garden and new BBQ for group gatherings. You bring your own BBQ fixings, and buy your beverages from the cafe, plus pay $10 an hour to use the BBQ.

Sarah B.

Robert Mailer Anderson & President Barack Obama, wearing hats from Paul’s Hat Works. Photo by Jim Goldberg

Back in February, President Barack Obama rolled through town and attended a fundraiser at the home of Robert Mailer Anderson, a favorite customer of Paul’s Hat Works (6128 Geary). So much so that he told the four women that own Paul’s Hat Works to give him a fedora to pass onto the President as a gift.

The shop finally got a hold of a photo with President Obama wearing the fetching fedora at the event. Looking good, Mr. President!

Sarah B.

Photo by sf eyes

Some local links to perk up your Wednesday afternoon:

• We got word this week from a reader that the longtime owners of Joe’s Ice Cream on Geary, Mutsuhiko and Aki Murashige, have sold the business to another family. Their last day with scoops in hand will be this Friday. They’ve owned it for 33 years. With a calculation of them working 360 days a year and scooping 25 cones a day (conservative!), between the two of them they’re probably dished out at least half a million scoops. Thank you Murashige family!
• On Thursday night from 6:30pm to 8:30pm, the Richmond District Library will screen the documentary “In Search of Good Food”, featuring Antonio Roman-Alcalá, an urban farming activist from San Francisco, on his search for the “sustainable” food system in California. Supervisor Eric Mar will be there for the post-film discussion panel.
• Welcome Ingenious Salon to the neighborhood. Located at 389 Arguello near Clement, they specialize in precision haircuts and are certified organic color specialists. Video
• This Saturday, St. James Preschool (4620 California) is having a children’s used clothing sale from 8am until 12noon, gently used clothes for kids age up to 5 years old.
• This Saturday in Golden Gate Park there is a “March to End Capitalism” leaving from the County Fair Building. “Go around back to drop acid with John Zerzan and talk about robot sex,” they include in their description. No idea WHEN the march takes place because they didn’t specify, but if you’re into that type of thing, keep an eye on the 8 Days of Anarchy website for details.
• Also on Saturday in GGP: Join Park and La Puerta de Oro from 1pm until 3pm for a celebration event at the Pioneer Log Cabin Picnic Area, just north of Stow Lake, in a joint project to renew and revive Golden Gate Park’s historic “Arch of Colonial Trees.” Planted by the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1896, the “Arch of Colonial Trees” is a graceful allée of trees, each representing one of the original thirteen American Colonies. Golden Gate Park staff will gradually replace the original trees as needed. The first new trees to be dedicated will be a magnolia for South Carolina and a hemlock for Pennsylvania.
• Kookle Toys (6 Clement) will soon become “Sparky’s Toys”. That’s because Sparky’s Balloons, located right next door, has decided to expand their business.

Sarah B.