Medjool's Illegal Rooftop Bar May or May Not Be Illegal

The Mission: Given the amount of political fundraisers held there, Politicians proclaim Medjool as a "top 10 venue for political and social causes in the city"—crucial sidenote: you, the readers, proclaimed it the city's douchiest bar—but following last week's planning commission meeting, some wondered whether Medjool's idyllic roof was actually illegal. Well, the more closely the issue is examined, the more it looks like San Francisco's only rooftop bar might be illegal:

At the time, Zoning Administrator Larry Badiner said, "The Medjool rooftop bar does have both planning code and building code issues." Later, city Planner Craig Nikitas confirmed that the bar violates the area's zoning rules.

"In this area, restaurants and bars above the second floor are not permitted," Nikitas said. "Unless there is a plan to correct the problem, they will have to remove the rooftop restaurant."

But Medjool's owner Gus Murad—who has all kinds of political connections—may have gotten approval from the city when he built the rooftop venue back in 2004.

Murad's lawyer, Andrew Junius, said he believes the rooftop bar is legal.

"When the (Medjool) project was built, the building and planning permits were authorized and signed by the city," Junius said. He declined to address the bar's permits in more detail.

Clearly, there was some sneaky wink-wink-nudge-nudge at work here between Murad and his fundraising pals at various city departments, but here at Eater HQ, we'd like to address a more pressing issue: why is there only one rooftop bar in all of San Francisco?
· Bar owner may benefit from city's typo [Chron]
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Medjool Sky Terrace

2522 Mission Street, San Francisco, California 94110 (415) 550-9055