This is SF Made Week, a week-long celebration of San Francisco’s manufacturing companies and people that bring locally produced products to fruition.

In addition to offering educational events and factory tours at local businesses, the event also puts on SFMade day, in which participating businesses host special retail events.

This Saturday, several businesses here in the neighborhood will participate in “Shop SFMade Day”, spotlighting their manufactured goods and donating 10% of their proceeds to SFMade, a non-profit that “sustains companies producing locally-made products, encourages entrepreneurship and innovation, and creates employment opportunities for a diverse local workforce.”

Stop by these businesses on Saturday to check out their unique, made-right-here-in-SF goods:

Paul’s Hat Works | 6128 Geary near 25th Avenue
Kumquat Art | 147 Clement
Foggy Notion | 275 6th Avenue
Covet Boutique & Design Studio | 391 Arguello
Table Asia Gallery | 1101 Lake Street

To see the full list of San Francisco businesses participating in SFMade week or Shop SFMade Day, visit the event website.

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.

Come on, this is in our backyard!? Awesome.

Little bits of Richmond District randomness in today’s list of hyper-super-seriously local links:

• Cal’s Pet Supply’s owner, Tricia Principe, is celebrating her first year in business with a party this Saturday. Stop by the shop (Calif. & 22nd Avenue) to enjoy cake, refreshments and prizes from 10am until 6pm. Bring in this flyer and get $10 off a purchase of $100 or more (good thru March 31).
• Get zen… for free at the Westside Art House (540 Balboa) this Sunday from 10am until 12noon. It’s a “Mind & Meditation” workshop (view flyer) put on by the Art of Living. Can’t make it? The next one is on April 8.
• Wash & fold… and win! Amybelle’s Wash & Dry (3220 Balboa) is running a promotion where customers can win an Amazon Gift Card. Use the change machine and when you get a blue quarter, and use it to wash your clothes. Then visit Amybelle’s Facebook page and tell them which machine you used. Once they retrieve your blue quarter and confirm it, you’re a winner! Just like lucky Brian Delaaney. Who knew washing clothes could be so rewarding!
• Remember Foggy Notion, the art studio and shop that popped up briefly in December on 6th Avenue near Clement? They’ll be officially returning on March 21 and celebrating with a grand opening party on Friday, March 23 from 6-9pm. The shop will feature jewelry, recycled vinyl and leather goods, and showcase designers and artists from SF and beyond who create handmade, organic, and environmentally-conscious products. Bonus points if you know who inspired the shop’s name…
• Know someone who could use help with their English skills? The Richmond Village Beacon offers free ESL classes every Tuesday and Thursday night at George Washington High (6-8pm). Additional evening classes will soon be added at Roosevelt Middle School on Arguello. For more details, call 750-8554 or email sarah@rvbeacon.org.
• Let it bleed: There’s a blood drive at the VA Hospital (4150 Clement) on Wednesday, March 14 from 9am until 2pm. Schedule an appointment online or drop-in (after a good meal and lots of water beforehand of course).
• The darling of the food blogs lately has been Cassava Bakery, which just opened on Balboa at 36th Avenue. Grubstreet has pics and says they’ve “got a daily changing menu of unique sandwiches, soups, Ritual coffee, pastries (think peanut-butter-cornflake cookies and other fun stuff), Japanese-style breakfast items, and more.” Closed Tuesdays.

Sarah B.

A 2 Clement Muni t-shirt available at Park Life (220 Clement). $26

Some local links to get you through your Wednesday…

• Turkish / Mediterranean restaurant Troya (349 Clement) will be opening a second location on Fillmore in the former Vivande and Citizen Cake space. EaterSF reports that it will be more “modern and hipper” than the original. Troya Fillmore is targeting an April 2012 opening.
• Oozora Sake House didn’t last, so veteran shabu spot Shabuway will be taking over the space at 5120 Geary according to GrubStreet. It will be the fourth opening for the Shabuway chain, and let’s hope experience wins out. The last two shabu concepts in that space have failed.
• How many people are needed to truly make a meeting “public”? SFCitizen says more than one but that’s all that showed up at the recent meeting about the upcoming renovations at the Stow Lake Boathouse which includes a new cafe. There was some buzz about it in the Chron but in reality, they’re the same plans and drawings we saw in July of last year. Still, exciting that it’s finally happening.

Photo by Elijah Ellis

• Free adult classes start at the Richmond Village Beacon on January 30th. Ballroom dance, yoga, tai chi, knitting, computers and English (ESL) instruction – all free! View class schedule
• Kisha Studio (210 Clement) has a spring sale event this Saturday. Free champagne, and hair mini makeover sessions from 1-5pm (call 422-0468 for an appt). Plus 10% off any purchase when you mention the Richmond Blog.
• Supervisor Mar’s latest resolution to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday was about the Grammy Awards and their limited selection of musical genres. No word yet on the Board’s reaction.
• SFCitizen reports that there will be a public meeting on January 26 about the remodel of the Stow Lake Boathouse. Hall of Flowers, 7pm.
• SF Rec & Park is planning a free tribute concert to Warren Hellman on February 19 from 11am until 5pm. Location will be either Hellman Hollow or Ocean Beach parking lots, depending on the weather. Organizers also hope to stream it live online.
• Feeling lucky? Enter to win a Green Apple $20 gift card from FunCheapSF.

The bridge from George Washington High School’s campus. Photo by Hugh Stickney

Some local tidbits for your Monday off work:

• The Surfrider Foundation is hosting an Ocean Beach volunteer cleanup event on Sunday, January 22 from 10am until 12noon. Meet up at Stairwell 17 across the Street from the Beach Chalet Restaurant if you want to help out.
• Bison unite! The new, young, hip bison were released from quarantine and joined their elders in the main paddock. Cute but still one of the strangest things we have in Golden Gate Park.
• A dramatic fire took place on 42nd Avenue and Balboa very early Sunday morning. Flames were bursting out of the building, SFFD had to cut through a neighbor’s wall to control it, and two firefighters were injured. To top it off, the one woman who lives there ran off and is MIA.
• Cafe Mereb (1541 Clement) is no more but the dust barely settled before a new tenant will move in. I saw some construction going on there Sunday and Grubstreet reports that a place called “Chomp & Swig” will be opening soon. No word yet on the menu or when it will open.
• Seedstore clothing on Clement is having a 50% off winter sale from Jan. 21 – 29. Attend their kick-off party the night before on Jan. 20 from 5-8pm and you get an additional $20 off purchases over $200.
• The Academy of Sciences is changing their free day policy this year. Rather than one weekday a month being free, they’ll offer four Sundays during the year: February 5, June 3, September 16, and December 9. Why the change? “To target more working families, who were previously unable to come on the Wednesday free days. We hope that this change to weekend dates will allow a wider range of people to attend,” says the Academy website.

  Don’t worry – they’ll still be offering free days each Spring and Fall to residents based on zip code. For 94118 and 94121, our first free days will be May 11, 12, and 13.

• Burma Superstar to expand… again! They’ve got two restaurants on Clement, one each in Oakland and Alameda, and Eater SF reports they’ll be opening a Valencia Street location this year. Tea leaf salad for all!
• Artful reminder: The Pissarro’s People exhibition at the Legion of Honor closes this Sunday.

Sarah B.

From Monday through Friday of this week, Argonne Elementary School (680 18th Avenue) is hosting their annual “Holiday Book Fair”. Shop their large selection of preschool through middle school grade books and gifts, in addition to adult titles including many cookbooks.

The sale is on daily in the school library from 8am until 3pm, and on Thursday night, they are open late until 8pm.

Proceeds benefit the Argonne Parent-Teacher Organization whichs support the school’s extracurricular programs.

Sarah B.

This Thursday night from 6pm to 8pm, merchants on Clement Street will be part of a special “ClemenTime” celebration. Bold Italic is organizing the event, which will take place on Clement Street between 3rd and 7th Avenues.

The evening will feature deep discounts on apparel, complimentary ice cream, free beer and wine, delicious Mexican hot chocolate, events highlighting books, music, original artwork, and home decor, and more than a few surprises.

Participating merchants include:

Green Apple Books – Complimentary beer and get a free tote bag when you spend more than $25.
Seedstore – Complimentary libations and free gift-wrapping.
Park Life – Free drinks, and a raffle to win a piece of original artwork or one of two limited edition prints (free raffle ticket with every purchase).
Blue Danube Cafe – Mexican Hot Chocolate will be $3, as will all beers and their house-made Sangria.
Fecal Face’s FFDG Gallery (New! 248 Clement)
Foggy Notion Gallery (New! 275 6th Avenue) – A special sneak peek of recycled leather and vinyl goods, Mittenmaker collection, and works from other great local designers. Plus free drinks.
Toy Boat Dessert Cafe – Free kiddie size cone of their Chocolate Salted Caramel Brownie Ice Cream.
Kumquat Art – Free treats and free gift-wrapping.
Abracadabra Lingerie – 30% off their unique lingerie from Japanese and European designers and locally made sleepwear.
Dirty Trix
Rockit Room – Draft beers will be $3 and they’ll also be slinging a number of festive $3 shot specials, plus tasty bites.
Cumaica Coffee – 50% off all coffee and espresso drinks

Come out on Thursday night to support your local businesses, get some holiday shopping done, and meet your neighbors!

Sarah B.