All stories about "Salt House"

This is The Gatekeepers, where Eater roams the city to meet the fine men and women standing between you and some of your favorite impossible-to-get tables.

Jennifer Yin, 3/21/08

As the follow-up effort to the wildly-successful Town Hall, Salt House came into the game rife with lofty expectations last year, and somehow, the trio of Doug Washington, Steven Rosenthal and Mitchell Rosenthal have managed to surpass them. Probably the edgier of the pair (see Town Hall's Gatekeeper), Salt House has become just as popular as its big sis, and when the SoMa diners come flooding in, Dalia Rassier stands as the first line of defense.

Dalia Yalda Rassier AKA Blue Whale (coined by Chef Robert Leva), Hostess at Salt House: 88 true seats +. The plus because we seem to build tables downstairs and bring them up to accommodate as many as we can. They're all good seats. It's a beautiful restaurant. 8 PM on a Saturday night. What's the wait for a table? Wow. Pretty long, but absolutely doable (with patience of course). Usually I quote 45 minutes to an hour because I do not want to make false promises, but usually they get seated earlier.

Is there anything I can say to make my wait shorter? Yes, "Is Doug Washington here?" I hear that line at least three times a night. But we stay true to reservations and if I can I will do anything to make them feel at home. ...How about gifts or cash to speed things along? I have been propositioned on several occasions and $100 bills are usually what appear first…but no! Everyone is treated the same, $ or not.

· Early Orson Reports: All Food Good, Desserts Stand Out [CH]
· Cafe M Opens on Berkeley's Fourth Street [CH]
· The Merits of Town Hall Versus Salt House [Mouthfuls]
· You May Be Surprised That Yelp Has High Maintenance Diners [Yelp]
· "Fat Rapper Dude" Judge: the Beginning of Iron Chef America's End? [eG]

All the day's news goes in EaterWire. Per normal, the tipline awaits your sightings, rumors and tidings, eagerly.

JACKSON SQUARE—The Scoop reports that Town Hall/Salt House crew has successfully landed current Frisson chef Sarah Schafer for its upcoming Anchor & Hope, but don't feel bad for the Frisson guys: "Schafer's last day at Frisson (244 Jackson) is Thursday. After that, according to Frisson partner Andrew McCormack, longtime sous chef Michelle Mathews will handle things. For a while, that is. McCormack and his partners intend to close Frisson in late spring, remodel it and reopen it a few weeks later with a new look, new name and - ta-da! - former Myth chef Sean O'Brien at the stoves." More on the remodel—"more restaurant focused"—is available at the Chron. [Scoop, previously]

FIDI—Camper English has the latest in the bartender shuffles around town, including a juicy little tidbit about personnel and projections at Gitane, the upcoming Claude Lane project from the same people behind Cafe Claude: "Speaking of consulting, Dominic Venegas from bacar, B&B, Range, etc. will be consulting on the forthcoming project Gitane- but you've got a long wait until it opens in May(ish)." [Alcademics]

[Photo courtesy]

If we had to make a wager, we'd say that the next project from the Town Hall/Salt House gang of Mitch Rosenthal, Steven Rosenthal and Doug Washington will only further the trio's domination of that stretch of SoMa. Since Anchor and Hope claimed the 100-year-old Minna Alley building (above) some months ago, we've touched on most of the details already—fish shack, communal table, 88 seats, etc.—but we're now happy to share a shot of the interior. As you can see, the building is old, industrial and high-ceilinged, but a look at the interior might intrigue you:

· Please Refrain From Discussing Chipotle, Possible Corporate Sponsors [Yelp Convo]
· The Game Plan For Tackling Salt House [tribe.net]
· Hey, Where to Find the Sunday Happy Hours? [CH]
· Salt Crusted Wood Pigeons and More at Manresa [Mouthfuls]
· Why Address the Manager When You Can YELP? [Yelp Convo]
· Attention: We Have a $5 Martini Sighting! (It's Friday) [CH]
· ShamelessRestaurants Returns, Full of Libel Per Normal [SR]

Introducing the future home of Anchor and Hope.

The third restaurant from the trio behind the uber-successful tandem of Town Hall and Salt House (Mitch Rosenthal, Steven Rosenthal and Doug Washington) has been rumored for some time now, both here and elsewhere. Today, the Chronicle broke some juicy tidbits on 83 Minna, the empty space that will house Anchor and Hope come spring 2008:

1) Hope/Good News: It will be in a gutted 100-year-old warehouse behind Salt House. Proximity and historic buildings always a plus.

2) Anchor/Nervous News: It will be "a California/urban fish shack" with "dishes with Asian flavors, a style that's different from the trio's other two spots." What have we learned about fusion, people?