Tony’s Seafood Restaurant Is Back Open Under Hog Island Ownership

Tony’s bbq oysters are back

Nearby Hog Island Oyster Co. acquired the historic Tony’s Seafood Restaurant this spring, which had quietly closed, and it’s now reopen with Hog Island at the helm. The restaurant is serving a revamped menu of Tony’s classics, bbq oysters included, but will close again in the winter for a more thorough remodel.

Woodlands Market, fresh from Marin, arrives in SF

Woodlands Market is opening its third location overall and its first in San Francisco this Saturday. The market in Rincon Hill, announced last spring, will give residents of the new Lumina condo complex a place to shop for upscale groceries without leaving the building. Woodlands’ flagship market is in Kentfield, and its other location is in Tiburon. Here, it will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.

Bay Grape co-owners make Wine Enthusiast’s 40 under 40

Of course the couple behind Bay Grape in Oakland, Stevie Stacionis and Josiah Baldivino, made Wine Enthusiast’s 40 under 40 list for “redefining the notion of a retail wine shop.” Before opening Bay Grape, the two had already made a name for themselves in the wine world — he as lead Sommelier at Michael Mina, she as director of communications at Corkbuzz — and it’s good to see more love for their shop’s fun- loving atmosphere and low, hangout-encouraging corkage fee.

Biig rolls out vintage bar cart

Tenderloin bar Biig/98 Turk, the reincarnation of another well-loved mixology hub called Big, is officially going by Biig and ditching the 98 Turk moniker. More pertinent to visitors than the title, they’re expanding their hours from Sunday to Thursday, 6p.m. to 1 a.m., with Saturday hours coming soon. There’s no menu at the bar — bartenders whip up individual drinks to customer tastes — but there are now traditional martinis and manhattans available from a restored, roaming bar cart. Also available from the cart are some less traditional drinks, like a pink manhattan made with High West silver whiskey, gentian amaro from Lo-Fi Aperitifs, and whatever “house made tortilla tincture” is.

King Salmon, once common, now deluxe

A tough year for King Salmon fishing means that the price of the fish has risen precipitously. Kenny Belov, owner of seafood wholesaler Two X Sea, calls the current price “ridiculous.” The drought is a main cause: When the current crop of adult king salmon were born, warm water temperatures and low levels in the Sacramento River, where spawning occurs, meant a smaller number than usual made it to the Pacific. A restricted season, as a result of population estimates, was ordered by the California Fish and Game Commission.

Dumpling Kitchen seeks move to smaller space nearby

Dumpling kitchen, known for soup dumplings and other delights, reportedly hopes to move from its 1935 Taraval location to a smaller space, a former nail salon at 1123 Taraval. The reasoning is unclear, but the conditional use application has been filed.