President Obama Ate at Spruce This Weekend

President Obama was once again in town to raise funds from local Democrats, and on Friday night, he dropped in at Spruce for a big dinner with a dozen tech heavy hitters, including Marc Benioff (Salesforce) and Elon Musk (Tesla). According to Inside Scoop, the party dined in the Michelin-starred restaurant's private Laurel Room, where the minimum for dinner is $3,000. Spruce was asked by Obama's staff not to share the menu, so what the group ate will remain a mystery.

Apparently Obama was a total surprise for Spruce; Benioff made the reservation, and the restaurant wasn't expecting the President until he walked in the door. (Given the Secret Service's usual draconian security measures, that's more than a bit surprising.) Earlier that evening, the President had attended a fundraiser at the home of a tech financier in Russian Hill, where 60 guests paid $10,000-32,000 to hear him discuss cybersecurity and other pressing issues. He overnighted at the Fairmont (bypassing his usual choice, the InterContinental, because of complaints about traffic and street closures), departing on Saturday for a weekend away in Palm Springs. He's headed back to D.C. this morning. Meanwhile, Spruce praised their staff on Facebook: "Congratulations to our amazing team for their unparalleled professionalism and impeccable execution during last night's service when President Obama surprised us with a visit! You rock, thank you!"

The President is definitely something of a foodie: His previous trips to town have included dinners at Chez Panisse and Quince and dim sum at Great Eastern Restaurant in Chinatown. Considering he dined at NYC's mega-hip Estela, we'd love to see him send the State Bird line into a tizzy the next time he swings through.