Guess what? The Union Street Festival has become the Union Street Eco-Urban Festival on June 5 and 6. Look at this snippet from a press release Clyde received from the Union Street Festival: “This year the east entrance of the festival (beginning at Gough) will again feature arts and crafts created with recycled and sustainable materials and eco-friendly exhibits. Additionally, the festival showcases 150 arts and crafts booths, 25 gourmet food booths, two stages of live entertainment, and bistro-style cafes.”

Clyde showed this press release to several Cow Hollow residents and merchants and got the same response – laughter. One bartender told Clyde, “I’m sure the drunks are all about the environment.” Friend-of-Clyde and Golden Gate Valley Neighborhood Association president Bob Bardell wondered aloud if the green component is a marketing ploy to draw more people or if it is a legitimate attempt to reposition the fair and what it offers.

The festival (along with Muni, crime, parking meters, and booze licenses) is a hot button topic for all of us here in 94123, and the debate is lively.

So who likes the Union Street Festival? Well, the Union Street Association does, because their businesses get exposure to thousands of people over a two-day period. Several association projects receive funding from the festival producer, Steven Restivo Event Services, who tells Clyde (and all of us) to hit the beer gardens. Others who like it include merchants who actually make money from their booths, several members of SFPD making beaucoup overtime, most 20- and 30-something Cow Hollow and Marina residents, several bridge and tunnel 20- and 30-somethings, and bar and restaurant owners and servers whose businesses are always packed during the festival.

The festival brings mixed reviews from all of us here in 94123. One long-term resident calls it “two days of drunken orgy” and usually skips Saturday, but goes on Sunday when it’s “tamer.” Many servers and bartenders privately tell Clyde the revelers become very surly at the end of day from drinking, yet all the servers love the tip money. Some merchants tell Clyde they hate it, but it has been around so long, why fight it?

Who doesn’t like it? Most long-term Marina-Cow Hollow residents over the age of 40, most Union Street merchants who don’t pony up for a booth and have to close their businesses for two days (one merchant told Clyde he was damned if he didn’t pay for the booth and damned if he did), and several SFPD officers Clyde has spoken with. Many 94123ers tell Clyde the festival has slowly become a tamer Bay to Breakers or a frat party out of control.

Clyde goes back to the press release: “In its 33rd year, The Union Street Festival is one of San Francisco’s largest free annual events.” Get used to it kids, the festival isn’t going anywhere.

David Coyle, Union Street Association board member and Union Street Inn owner (2229 Union Street at Fillmore, 415-346-0424, www.unionstreetinn.com), sees it both ways. “I’m not crazy about it, but it’s a money maker for the [Union Street] association and helps us pay for guide books and other things.” Coyle’s guests are inconvenienced by the street closure and must load luggage from the other corner (Steiner). He went on to say, “It brings a lot of people into the area,” but the drunks will have a harder go this year because Coyle and the association have had discussions with police. Clyde has been told there will also be a crackdown on the loud house parties in the neighborhoods around Union, which will hopefully make it tamer and less Bay to Breakers Deux. Sorry, Skip and Biff, the frat party is winding down.

As the Union Street Festival turns … stay tuned.

Tastin’ in the Afternoon

Clyde and sports scribe Michael Murphy recently popped on up to the Taste of Mendocino (707-468-9886, www.truemendocinowine.com) wine tasting at the Presidio’s Golden Gate Club and it was really fun. But what connoisseur Clyde doesn’t understand is why wine people spit out wine. It’s against Clyde’s 11th commandment to spit out any booze whatsoever. Anyway, Clyde met a green business he could get behind, Lolonis Winery (925-938-8066, www.lolonis.com). Petros Lolonis was pouring Cabernets, Chardonnays, Merlots, and Fume Blancs that were all lovely (Clyde even snagged a Fume Blanc for his gal pal, and she loved it). Most of the Mendocino wineries are family owned, and when I asked the Lolonis patriarch about huge corporate wineries he said, “Thank God we’re not like that.” His wines are certified organic and the Lolonises have used ladybugs instead of pesticide since 1956. Check out their website and order a bottle, or visit their Walnut Creek tasting room.

Santa Clyde also gave a varietal from Milano Family Winery (707-744-1396, www.
milanowinery.com) to Mauna Loa (415-563-5137, 3009 Fillmore Street at Union) bartender Tammi Miller, who said it was “divine.”

Don’t miss the Taste of Mendocino next April up at the Presidio; it’s a great way to spend an afternoon.

A Bloodless Coup in Cow Hollow

Baker Street Bistro (2953 Baker Street at Lombard, 415-931-1475) has been a Cow Hollow fixture for nearly two decades, serving tasty French food at a reasonable price in a cozy location. Clyde’s dad’s law partner, Tony Griffin, was a fixture there, as many neighborhood folks have been forever. But a while ago, long-term owner Jacques Manuera tried to buy the Bistro property and had the right of first refusal if the landlord wanted to sell. Then the landlord died, and the ensuing family squabbles became “complicated.” Jacques wanted to own his own joint, and looked at properties closer to his home on Fell Street so he could walk to work. He found a perfect location in NOPA at Central and Grove and started to negotiate to buy the property. The problem: It was next to a house where some bad dudes were doing some bad things. Jacques says the property had been a “grocery store, a bicycle shop, an Internet cafe, but the [thugs] had always scared away the customers.” Luckily, SFPD shut the bad guys down, but unfortunately the house of not-so-neighborly love was set alight and Jacques’ property was fire damaged.

Jacques is not a quitter. He found a buyer for Baker Street Bistro, his chef Danel De Botelu. Jacques then got a fair deal on the NOPA property (NOPA’s real estate prices are way, way less than 94123) and began fixing the fire damage to create a modern French bistro decor. He also began the arduous process of dealing with San Francisco government red tape so he could open Bistro Central Parc (560 Central Avenue at Grove, 415-931-7272, parking available at nearby Village Plaza Lucky supermarket). Make no mistake, NOPA has gone from so-so to safe in a heartbeat, even skipping the up-and-coming label. Clyde and his dinner partner felt no bad vibes in the neighborhood whatsoever. Clyde knows several families moving into the area and NOPA is a magnet for hot restaurants like Bar Crudo, Nopalito, the list goes on … gentrification is working here in San Francisco, and luckily we get places like Jacques’ plus nice neighborhoods to raise our children.

Thanks to Jacques’ persistence, the Bistro is now open and Clyde loves the French cuisine with California influences. Clyde and his pal popped in on a Wednesday and the place was packed with families, NOPA locals, and regulars from Baker Street Bistro who wanted to try the new joint. The food rocks. Clyde started with a steak tartare that was way better than 21 in New York City, while Clyde’s dinner partner had warm Brie on a potato pancake with a misuna salad. Clyde was not offered a Brie bite, so it must have been good. Then, the main courses … ahhhhh. Clyde had the pork, which came stacked on cornbread, spinach and a caramelized apple, while jealous-Clyde had to watch his pal eat risotto with lobster sauce topped with scallops … once again, Clyde was not offered a bite, so that means it’s really, really good. For dessert, we shared Strawberries al la Modena and nougat glacé. When Clyde asked Jacques what was in the Modena, he was told, “It’s a secret.”

Jacques, who is no slouch in the kitchen himself, has hired Nicolas Jardin as chef de cuisine so he can work the room. When Clyde was there, Jacque was mingling with customers, pouring wine and smiling. The hassles of opening the bistro all seemed worth it to him.

Meanwhile, back in Cow Hollow, Clyde caught up with Baker Street Bistro chef-owner Danel De Botelu as he made beef Bourgogne. When asked what has changed at the Cow Hollow landmark, the chef replied, “Not so much, you don’t change a winning team.” Sure, De Botelu changed the decor and came up with a new logo, but he gets it, and just like Crash Davis said in Bull Durham, “You don’t mess with a streak.” The lovely server Chantal is still at Baker Street, and the “good clientele doesn’t like big change,” so the changeover was seamless. Clyde loves the happy ending of a bloodless coup, and you will too if you eat at both these great restaurants.

Clyde’s Calendar

Sundays 10 a.m.–3: 30 p.m., Cliff House Sunday Champagne Brunch: Gazing at Seal Rock and the Pacific, being serenaded by a harpist playing “Stairway to Heaven,” and eating fab food with a bottomless champagne glass is one great way to spend a Sunday. Clyde’s mom dug it and yes, she even liked the harpist’s Zeppelin cover. Clyde asked executive chef Kevin Weber what his favorite dish was in the vast array of food in the buffet, and he said, “I like it all,” while restocking the glazed white miso salmon platter. “I learned this dish from a master Japanese chef. We all meet once a year up at Greystone in Napa and you meet chefs from all over the world.” No wonder there was a huge bowl of paella, some great seafood pasta (better than what Clyde had in Italy), the beef had an Asian flavor … but, don’t worry, you traditional brunch lovers. “We listen to what the customer wants,” says Weber. So the eggs Benedict, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, bagels, cream cheese, and smoked salmon, along with the treats from around the globe, add to what is the best Sunday brunch in San Francisco. Oh, yeah, and did Clyde mention his champers glass was never empty and there’s a decadent selection of desserts? Pamper yourself, says Clyde. Run don’t walk to the Cliff House for Sunday Brunch – you deserve it.

The Cliff House: 1090 Point Lobos Avenue, 415-386-3330, www.cliffhouse.com, reservations recommended

Tuesdays 3–10 p.m., Two Dollar Toosdays at City Tavern: Back in April when the Giants were getting beaten up by the San Diego Padres, Clyde popped into the City Tavern to watch the Giants break their six-game losing streak against the Friars. It was all locals; men and women watching the game and screaming aloud like it was the World Series. Two-dollar beers and two-dollar burgers, wings, chicken tenders, pizza, Caesar salad, and fries made for a great, inexpensive and fun neighborhood night in a neighborhood saloon. Good times kids, good times.

City Tavern: 3200 Fillmore Street at Greenwich, 415-567-0918

Thursdays 6–10 p.m. all summer at the California Academy of Sciences: Cool, themed nights with cheap admission, pleasant tunes (none of that dreadful hip hop), wine, beer, food, and shorter lines for the Steinhart Aquarium, the Morrison Planetarium, the four-story rainforest, etc. Clyde thinks it’s well worth the trip to eat, drink and learn. Clyde was there on a bicycle-themed night and even dunce-cap Clyde learned a lot. The climate change exhibit is really, really informative and terrifying. Green is good.

California Academy of Sciences:
55 Music Concourse Drive,
415-379-8000, www.calacademy.org

Father’s Day, June 20, 5 p.m.–1 a.m. at The Brazen Head: Dads eat for FREE from the prix-fixe menu. Tell Dad you love him over some great food while having a great time.

The Brazen Head: 3166 Buchanan Street at Greenwich, 921-7600, www.brazenheadsf.com

E-mail: [email protected]