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After leading a barbecue revival effort in the Fillmore with the opening of Black Bark BBQ two years ago, married couple Monetta White and chef David Lawrence have shuttered their business at 1325 Fillmore Street. A concerned tipster reached out to let Eater know that the restaurant looked closed, but as a post on Instagram explains the closure isn’t permanent.
Fortunately for fans of Lawrence’s brisket, whose dark, smoky exterior lent Black Bark its name, the restaurant will relocate. A new destination hasn’t been determined, but Lawrence tells The New Fillmore that he and White will set up shop “on the other end of Fillmore,” gesturing north across Geary. Eater SF has reached out for further details.
Last October, Lawrence and White put one foot out the door of the block on Fillmore, closing 1300 Fillmore, their decade-old flagship restaurant across the street. Its offshoot at SFO remains open. The problem was the restaurant’s next door neighbor, the massive vacant space at the Fillmore Heritage Center where the jazz club Yoshi’s closed in 2014. With little foot traffic to the area, business at 1300 Fillmore suffered. The city is still seeking proposals to fill the Heritage Center space.
The situation — little foot traffic — wasn’t much different across the street at Black Bark. Whenever and wherever it returns, the restaurant’s menu, branding, and furnishings are predicted to remain the same: Beef brisket, pulled pork, spare ribs, and hot links by the half pound or the plate, accompanied by sides like potato salad, collard greens, and sweet potato pecan casserole. ”I want to have my own style, with a dry rub,” Lawrence told Eater SF in a 2016 interview. “It’s a Texas-style brisket with a San Francisco sensibility.”
