LeBron James-Backed Pizza Restaurant Opens Another East Bay Outlet

A pizza restaurant backed by Lebron James is opening in Pleasanton today

Blaze Pizza, a chain that promises “fast fire’d” pizza, comes from the folks who founded Wetzel’s Pretzels, but its biggest investor slash spokesperson is an even bolder-faced name: LeBron James. The fast-growing business — with existing outlets in Concord, Fremont, and SF’s Stonestown Galleria — is opening a new spot in Pleasanton’s Rose Pavilion Shopping Center today, and will serve, per The East Bay Express, pizzas that will be assembled to order then baked “in an ultra-hot oven for just three minutes.”

Several prominent local politicians are protesting the eviction of Caffe Sapore

Supervisor Aaron Peskin and Senator Scott Wiener are expected to appear at a protest at 790 Lombard Street this morning, a demonstration opposing the eviction of Caffe Sapore, a 23-year-old North Beach business that has been asked to vacate the premises “with no explanation.” Members of the Chinatown and Russian Hill communities are also expected to attend.

An new tax on vacant storefronts could help new restaurants open across San Francisco

Next Tuesday, SF’s Board of Supervisors is expected to vote on a tax on landlords that intentionally leaves ground-floor retail spaces vacant. As proposed, the SF Examiner reports, the tax would require landlords to pay as much as $1,000 per linear foot of street frontage (in other words, the length of the property as it faces the street) for any address that’s vacant for more than 182 days in a calendar year, with the hope that it will spur building owners to rent to small businesses like shops and restaurants. As the average storefront covers about 25 linear feet, that could add up fast.

Sunset wine bar Inner Fog has closed

InnerFog has served wine and snacks for over a decade at its 545 Irving Street location, but that’s come to an end. Hoodline notes a sign posted to the venue’s door that says the “climate of San Francisco, which has drastically changed over the last 3-5 years” and the “cost of doing business” have prompted the closure.

San Franciscans are gathering in bars to watch the impeachment proceedings

Early-opening bars like Clooney’s Pub reportedly attracted patrons yesterday morning, but not for a far-off sporting event: Instead, folks were there to enjoy the communal experience of President Trump’s public impeachment hearings, which kicked off Tuesday. And they’re not afraid to yell back, as the Bay Area News Group reports that viewers hollered things like “A little more brevity!” The same was apparently true in SoCal, just replace the booze with granola.