Salty Old San Francisco Landmark the Old Clam House Is Up For Sale

Welcome to p.m. Intel, your bite-sized roundup of Bay Area food and restaurant news. Tips are always welcome, drop them here.

• After 160 years of clam chowder, crab Louie, and fishwiches, Bayview’s Old Clam House is on the market for $2.75 million, as first reported by Socketsite. The Bayshore Boulevard landmark, built in 1861 to serve waterfront workers, claims to be San Francisco’s oldest continuously operating restaurant (Tadich Grill has it beat in years but not continuity), but despite that, has never been landmarked or recognized as a Historical Resource. Included in the purchase is the Old Clam House’s iconic neon sign, liquor license, and the “fully equipped, full service restaurant,” but, as Socketsite points out, the lot is zoned for development up to 65 feet in height, likely beckoning Bay Area developers. The Old Clam House has been closed since March 2020’s stay-at-home order. [Socketsite]
• Bay Area beer bars Original Pattern and Beer Baron have responded to allegations of misconduct that emerged over the weekend as part of an outpouring of stories of sexism and racism in the craft brewing industry. Oakland’s Original Pattern Brewing has fired an assistant brewer who was accused of misconduct, and the owner of Beer Baron says it has severed ties with a contractor who admitted to inappropriate behavior. The founder and CEO of Modern Times Beer, Jacob McKean, announced he was stepping down from the company on Tuesday following allegations of misconduct at the company, but not before staff at the brewery’s Oakland location went on strike. [SF Chronicle]
• The James Beard Foundation’s Taste America dinner series is coming back — in person — this summer, and tickets are now on sale for a late August dinner at Sobre Mesa, Oakland’s stunning Afro-Latino cocktail lounge powered by Nelson German. Hot off his multi-episode appearance on the current season of Bravo’s Top Chef, German will be teaming up with Sobra Mesa’s pastry chef, Felicia Tom, for the three-course, $300 dinner on August 22.
• A new wine and sushi bar hybrid is opening in San Francisco’s Hayes Valley this spring, reports the SF Chronicle, powered by the chef behind Palo Alto’s Bird Dog. Le Fantastique, located at 22 Franklin Street, will be a more casual setting for Robbie Wilson, who cooked at the French Laundry and Nobu in Aspen, Colorado before opening Bird Dog. The multi-faceted restaurant features a wine-tasting room, a sushi bar, a sit-down dining room, and a semi-private lounge, and will serve a rotating menu of fish, caviar preparations, and soft milk bread. Wilson expects to open Le Fantastique in mid to late June. [SF Chronicle]
• The return of major Bay Area festivals will kick off with Stern Grove Festival next month, San Francisco Mayor London Breed announced Thursday, in what will be the free outdoor music festival’s 84th season. The concert series will run from June 20 through late August, culminating in the festival’s annual Big Picnic on August 29. Initial ticket options include pods of four or six people, and guidelines will be adjusted over time, organizers say, with limited seating expected for the first few concerts. Stay tuned for food truck updates.