The Richmond District’s New Laundromat Is Actually a Top-Notch Bagel Shop and Pizzeria

Don’t let the name fool you: the Laundromat SF is now open at 3725 Balboa Street, just up the block from the historic Balboa Theater, but diners won’t need to pull up with a basket of dirty clothes. The name is a nod to the space’s previous life as an actual laundromat called Let’s Do Wash Coin Laundrette; now, it’s an all-day restaurant bringing hand-rolled bagels and locally roasted coffee to the neighborhood by day, plus pizzas and natural wine for Richmond District residents by night.

WhatNowSF wrote about the plans for the new business in May, speaking with one of Laundromat’s owners Jaimi Holker, who owns CinemaSF and runs the Balboa Theater with her partner Adam Bergeron. On top of their experience running a business in the neighborhood, they’re also experienced restaurateurs, having owned and operated the Crepe Place in Santa Cruz previously, though they sold that restaurant several years ago.

Lauren Saria

They’ve partnered with another couple on the Laundromat: Jenna O’Connell and Kevin Rodgers, known as the duo behind Holey Roller Bagels, a cult-favorite farmers market operation launched in 2020. According to the Holey Roller website, the bagels are “organic, boiled and baked, [and] hand-rolled” and can be ordered to-go at the Laundromat with a selection of schmears in flavors like salmon with lemon and dill or Calabrian chile and basil. The bagel list includes everything, poppyseed, plain, cinnamon raisin, and black and white sesame. Coffee comes from Grand Coffee, the Mission-based roaster owned by Kimberly Kim, Adrian Lopez, and Nabeel Silmi.

The Laundromat’s pizza menu, available for dine-in in the afternoons and evenings, includes four options, all of which are 8-by-10 pies intended to feed two or three people. Look for classic combos like cheese with red sauce, pepperoni, mushrooms with white sauce and parsley, and — perhaps the most out-of-the-box option of the lot — broccoli rabe with Calabrian chile sauce and shaved fennel. There are also two salads: a kale option with olive oil and lemon juice dressing or a classic Caesar with bagel chip croutons.

On the bar side, there’s a lot to choose from including beer, wine, vermouth cocktails, and non-alcoholic beverages. The wine list should please natural and funk wine fans who will likely recognize labels like Meinklang, Les Lunes, and Lieu Dit. The two vermouth drinks on the menu include a vermouth spritzer starring Antica dry vermouth lifted with Granny Smith apples, lemon, and lime and Carpano Antica Rosso Vermouth on the rocks.

The Laundromat sells bagels and coffee to-go from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday. Pizza, beer, and wine are available for dine-in from 5 to 9 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday; from 2 to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and from 2 to 8 p.m. Sunday.

Lauren Saria