Taste of Potrero Pulls in Top Talent for Annual Fundraiser

For six years, the Taste of Potrero has been attracting some of the city’s best restaurants to benefit Daniel Webster Elementary School, and this year is no different. This Thursday, May 12, Pier 70 will be overtaken by big names in the SF dining scene. Namely, Liholiho Yacht Club, Lolinda, The Progress, Comstock Saloon, Dosa, Souvla, and many more will all be donating their time and food to the cause. "It’s all on the backs of the restaurants, which donate their time and their food and their heart and soul, and what do they get in return? They get some exposure to the people that come to the event, but more than anything, they're just giving to the community and supporting this school, which is amazing," event founder Adam Zolot (who also owns Feastly) told Eater.

Robyn Navarro

When it started in 2011, Taste of Potrero raised $35,000, thanks largely to Zolot pulling in big names like Flour + Water, Bar Agricole, and Wise Sons from the beginning. "We didn’t have the luxury of a lot of schools of being able to do a parent auction; 12 percent of the students were homeless, and a significant population was on school lunch," Zolot said. "So we created an event in a food-obsessed city that was better than any food event in town." Zolot called on a lot of his connections to show up, and since then, those big names have only gotten bigger — and so has the money, which is anticipated to balloon to $150,000 from this year’s event. Pier 70 has also donated the space and volunteers donate their time, so 100 percent of the proceeds go directly to the school’s PTA to cover the costs of programs, literacy specialists, supplies for the school, and more.

For those going, the pertinent details right now are about what there will be to eat and drink. And that’s a lot, with 50 restaurants and bars participating — see the full list and what they’re all serving below. "We really try to make this the greatest experience," Zolot said. "We consider the flow of the people and space. We position the vendors so you get a great diversity of experiences. We overload the six bars — it's a very well lubricated event."

Taste of Potrero is this Thursday, May 12 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. Get $125 tickets here.

25 Lusk: Truffled mushroom cheesecakes
Alamo Drafthouse: Lamb meatballs with yogurt, feta, crostini
Almanac: Beer
Beretta: Smooth Leaf (Don Julio Blanco Tequila, Lime, Pineapple Gum, Chartreuse, Cayenne)
Black Bark BBQ: Chicken andouille sausage
Boxing Room: Red beans & andouille sausage
Brass Tacks: Strangers On A Train (Four Roses Bourbon, Lo-Fi Gentian Amaro, creme de mure, lemon, honey)
Canela: Chorizo en volovan (puff pastry with Spanish sausage and manchego with almond romesco sauce)
Cocolectic: Bean-to-bar chocolate tasting
Comstock Saloon: Strawberry Pisco Punch (Barsol pisco, strawberry, kaffir lime)
Craftsman + Wolves: Coconut, coffee, yuzu stone ice cream
Dosa: Seasonal lassi
Dynamo Donut: Bacon maple donut
E&O Restaurant and Bar: Lapsang Souchong tea-infused deviled eggs with char siu lacquered bacon
Feastly/Chef Alex of the Lumpia Company: Napa Valley lumpia (salumi, asiago, arugula & fig spread)
Feastly/Chef Marion of Et Voilà!: Smoked salmon gougeres
Fox and Lion Bread: Mini cinnamon rolls
Gilberth's: Suckling pig pibil slider
Green Chile Kitchen/Chile Pies & Ice Cream: Chile pork stew garnished with crema & organic blue corn tortilla chips
Haagen-Dazs: Vanilla
Harmonic Brewing: Yonder Wall Wit
Hillside Supper Club: Chilled spring pea soup
Homestead: Corpse Reviver No. 2 featuring Distillery 209
Humphrey Slocombe: Adzuki Dr. Pepper
Intelligentsia Coffee: Karyenda Burundi Limited Release
Layer Cake Wines
LihoLiho Yacht Club: Beets, shiso ranch, sesame-seaweed crunch
Lolinda: Ceviche de pulpo with octopus, sweet potato, crispy corn, Rocoto leche de tigre
Lolo: Mezcal barbecue beef short ribs
Luke's Local: Smoked salmon and pumpernickel griddle cakes, creme fraiche, crunchy everything spice, dill
Mission Rock Resort: Oyster bar with Marin miyagis from Tomales Bay
Mochica: Anticuchos (grilled meats in Peruvian aji panca marinade finished with Peruvian pepper & black mint chimichurri)
Mozzeria: Housemade burrata on rainbow beet chip
Mr. Espresso: Espresso beverages
Nopa: Smoked Trout Rillettes, pickled beet, house rye
Piccino: Ground lamb, lentils, kefir, pickled red cabbage, cilantro, sumac, cucumber
Poco Dolce: Strawberry balsamic bonbons
Precita Park Cafe: Hamersly Oysters with Zoes smoked nitrate-free bacon, Fresno chili agro dolce, and Meyer lemon
Recchiuti Confections: Handmade fudge brownies
Sea Star: Golden Ticket (Hirsch bourbon, vermouth, lemon, honey, Allspice dram)
Serpentine: Kampachi crudo
Sous Beurre Kitchen: House-cured ham, avocado toast, celeriac, bee pollen & rose vinegar
Souvla: Whole roasted lamb
Starbelly
State Bird Provisions/TheProgress: Sourdough, sauerkraut, pecorino & ricotta pancake
The Tradesman: Goat tartare
Third Rail: Molly Ringwald (Junipero gin, Aperol, rhubarb, pink peppercorn, lemon)
Trick Dog: Strawberry Fields (Bulleit Rye, Ancho Reyes, strawberry, lemon, Angostura bitters)
Triple VooDoo Brewery: King Leo Belgian Stout
Waits Mast