The Ralph Lauren of the food world, known until now as restaurateur-to-be Tyler Florence, dishes on his two new Bay Area projects: "The kitchen store is going to be called Tyler Florence Mill Valley. It's going to be not so much like what Williams Sonoma does for kitchen stores, but more like what Ralph Lauren does for fashion. So you're going to walk in to a very stylish place. We plan to open this May ... The restaurant is going to be called Bar Florence at the Hotel Vertigo. It's going to be as California as it comes. We want a destination place. I don't want to create a homogeneous, big city restaurant that could be in Philadelphia or Chicago and you'd not know where you are. I want people who come to San Francisco to taste San Francisco." Taste it. Know it. Live it. [Food Network Addict]
The next generation of restaurant and bars is chronicled in the Plywood Report. See something new in your neighborhood? Do let us know. Bonus points and a Gavin Newsom bobblehead doll if you include photos. Doll subject to availability.
You didn't think we could take a trip across the bridge to the Land of Tyler Florence without stopping by the newest member of the PlumpJack family, did you? On tap for a fall '08 arrival is the second location of Balboa Cafe; it will take the ground floor space in the quaint 38 Miller Avenue complex (Mill Valley is just so quaint). Not unlike the original Balboa, the corner space is long and narrow; taking a look inside (see shots above), the entire gutted space still appears a ways off. Nonetheless, we frankly can't think of a better, more logical place for the PlumpJack expansion than Mill Valley. After all, the confines of Fillmore Street's Balboa Cafe have pretty much already evolved into a "Marin South" of sorts.
Mayor Gavin got engaged over the weekend, but even more prospects are in the PlumpJack sights for the new year. At long last, the Mill Valley offshoot of Balboa Cafe—"the 'in' place to eat, drink and make merry," according to its site—has set a tentative debut date of Fall 2008. Further reading on Balboa Marin here. [EaterWire]
MARIN—Mill Valley longtime music spot The Sweetwater closed up shop a couple weeks ago, but they have found some new digs nearby. Any guesses as to who will be their new neighbor? Wait for it ... Balboa Cafe! [TamNews, EaterWire]
MINT PLAZA—We'll have much more on the Mint Plaza affairs later in the week, but anyone who passed by on Saturday saw orange balloons commemorating the removal of (most of) the chain links fences in the promenade area. Either that, or something to do with the apartments there. But the good news is that the celebration had nothing to do with the restaurants. [EaterWire]
Welcome to First Word, your one-stop source for the lowdown on steamy community meetings, liquor licenses and the like. The word around here? It's the first, to be sure. Balboa Cafe: crossing the Golden Gate. [Photo: Flickr/jeroen020]
Already holding outposts in Tahoe and Napa, not to mention their quartet of San Fran restaurants, it was only a matter of time before Newsom and Co. set their sights on Marin County. From a very sharp tipster comes word that the PlumpJack Consortium has filed for a liquor license application in Mill Valley. It seems that 38 Miller Street will be home to a second branch of the Balboa Cafe, the empire's casual, saloon-like branch. The complete liquor license application form can be viewed here. Eater's Pre-Plywood team has already been dispatched to Balboa North.
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MARIN—Mill Valley longtime music spot The Sweetwater closed up shop a couple weeks ago, but they have found some new digs nearby. Any guesses as to who will be their new neighbor? Wait for it ... 
