Great Bakery Stokes Great Debate About Reopening Great Highway to Cars

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• Anyone who has lived in San Francisco for more than a day is aware of the city’s die-hard dedication to controversial transit takes. Cars, bikes, scooters, pedestrians: Each group has a very strong group of supporters and detractors. Now, a bakery is in the middle of it all, after posting a sign in favor of reopening the Great Highway, which has been closed to cars since March 2020. Since the Sunset District’s Devil’s Teeth Baking posted a sign in its front window that reads “Open the Great Highway,” it has been on the receiving end of a Twitter deluge, some supportive and many claiming that they will never visit the bakery again. SFMTA is collecting data on traffic-calming measures and the number of cyclists and pedestrians using the Great Highway and plan to share findings later in the summer. [SFGate]
• There’s more relief on the way for restaurants, in the form of a new grant from the Restaurants Care® Resilience Fund. Over 1,000 restaurants applied for grants of up to $3,500 for small restaurants, with year-long support services like discounts, restaurant marketing educational opportunities, and more. Those grants are coming from a collective donation of $1.25 million from SoCalGas, Pacific Gas and Electric Company, and San Diego Gas and Electric, with a portion of that money going to a fund for food and beverage workers enduring emergency hardships.
• Off the Grid’s food trucks have been a destination for years, bringing together a large variety of cuisines to different locations around the city. The operation has also been hard at work offering food and support to those affected by disasters, including wildfires and the ongoing pandemic through their Off the Grid Food Responders program. The program was designed to help small, local businesses as well as communities and individuals affected by disaster; it’s clear that there has not been enough of a safety net for vulnerable hourly workers and small businesses with small margins. The program calls upon local restaurants, food trucks, catering businesses, and food purveyors to feed first responders and locals. This year they’re looking for 200 Food Responders throughout the state, increasing their fleet to 400. Two local Food Responders have already signed on: chef Kim Alter’s Nightbird and Al Pastor Papi. Head here for more information on how to join or participate.
• French restaurant Bistro Central Parc will return to NoPa with a new owner, reports the SF Biz Journal. Bayram Evsen inked an agreement to take over naming and branding from the restaurant’s former owner, and signed a 10-year lease. This will be his first solo restaurant, after working at his father’s Italian restaurant in San Carlos. Read more about what to expect here. [SF Biz Journal]