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Posts tagged "castro"
08/02/2010
» A quick Ike's Place update, and it's (what else) bad news
Bay Citizen reports the latest on Ike’s Place:
The city of San Francisco has taken steps to put popular sandwich shop Ike’s Place out of business at its Castro location.
The Planning Department said it is issuing a $250 fine per day because the eatery has failed to obtain a permit the city now contends the restaurant needs.
Rather than shut down and fire everyone, Ike intends to suck it up and pay the $250 per day (that’s $7500 per month—OUCH). Which is ridiculous, because, as we reported earlier, his landlord ordered him to halt construction on a ventilation hood that would have cured any permit issues. It’s not for lack of trying; the ventilation hood is there and ready to go. Why not let him finish the job? Because without the permits, the case for eviction is quick and easy. Nice catch-22 there.
So despite having an otherwise spotless record, the Planning Department is now joining the push to paperwork Ike’s Place out of existence. All for the crime of being too successful. No wonder “urban homesteading” is taking off in this city. Nowhere left to eat out? Just till some wheat in the backyard, and (eventually) you can have a sandwich of your own. This new Great Depression keeps getting better by the day.
Link posted at 15:17 by stevesimitzis 
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06/28/2010
» Ike's Place goes to court: TOMORROW at 9:30 a.m.!
What are you doing tomorrow morning at 9:30? You’re joining me and everyone else who supports Ike’s Place at the Superior Court of California at 400 McAllister St., Room 301, that’s what. Let’s pack out this courtroom and whisper in hushed outrage while the judge bellows “overruled!” and “restrain the witness!”
On Tuesday, June 29, the court will hear a motion for summary judgment against Ike. If Ike loses, he’ll have no opportunity to go to trial and have his side heard, and he would have to close immediately. To “win” tomorrow, Ike will have to show that the facts are in dispute, and that the case deserves to continue on to trial.
If any of you legal eagles want to follow along, read the docket of every action and filing, or read the original complaint as filed with the court because we love you and the Smoking Gun doesn’t.
Also: You asked how you can help, so here’s something easy and quick you can do right now. From Ike’s mailing list, Ike is asking that you email him with answers to the following questions:
- Your Name
- Date
- Address
- Cell phone
- Other phone
- What are the top three ways that you feel Ike’s Place has improved the neighborhood?
- Would you be open to making a statement or writing a letter to help save Ike’s Place?
- Is it okay if we contact you?
It’s going to take you five seconds to write that out, so what are you waiting for? Free Ike! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN! YES WE CAN! Etc.
Link posted at 11:08 by stevesimitzis
06/17/2010
Here’s the latest on the Ike’s Place eviction drama: the landlord is going nuclear, according to the Bay Citizen, and planning to evict Daimaru Sushi, the neighboring restaurant since 1998, as a means of forcing out Ike. As it turns out, Ike is subleasing space from Daimaru, and the landlord is claiming that any permit violation by Ike is a violation of Daimaru’s lease.
As we reported already, Ike was ordered by his landlord to halt construction on a ventilation hood that would have cured any permit issues. So, the permit complaint has only ever been a pretense for eviction.
I attempted to interview Jerry Chau, the owner of Daimaru Sushi, but I discovered that he lives in Washington state, having left San Francisco years ago, and only visits the restaurant once every few months. No phone calls or emails were returned. Given that he’s disengaged from the community, my guess is that Jerry Chau would rather wash his hands of the whole mess and will probably walk away.
As a legal strategy, the landlord seems to have found a good one: pursue legal action against everyone who enables Ike in any possible way, and drive them far away from 16th and Sanchez Streets. Scorch the earth, and salt what remains. We’ll find out soon if the courts agree.
Photo posted at 08:45 by stevesimitzis
05/21/2010
Ike’s neighbors want $1 million from him to stay in business
You read that right. According to the New York Times’ Bay Area blog, Ike’s neighbors have laid out their demands, and they’re ridiculous, bordering on extortion. Doubting that any demands could be that ridiculous, I went down to Ike’s Place and talked to him in more detail. So here are the facts, according to Ike.
Ike’s neighbor dispute is between Ike and the two couples living in the two apartments above him. The two couples are renters, sharing a landlord with Ike. The neighbors on either side are either supportive or neutral, and many are his regular customers.
There are three separate legal actions taking place: the eviction, a small claims case with one couple, and the settlement demands discussed in the Times blog post. We’ll call the two couples A (small claims case couple) and B (million-dollar-demand couple).
In the small claims case, Ike had engaged in settlement discussions, but A stopped responding. The court date is July 1, and damages in small claims are limited to $7,500. If Ike were to lose the case, A could still open another case outside of small claims for additional damages.
The “$1 million” demand is one of four possible settlement options presented to Ike by couple B:
- Ike must “drastically” adjust hours and business practices, as defined by couple B. Ike must sign over to B the backyard and garage that he leases from the landlord. In addition, Ike must pay $250,000 to couple B.
- Ike stays, changes nothing, and pays $800,000 to couple B.
- Ike stays and pays nothing, and couple B sues Ike in court.
- Ike leaves and pays $200,000 to couple B.
Remember, these aren’t the landlord’s demands. If the landlord successfully evicts Ike, Ike would still have to either pay $200,000 or face a lawsuit, in addition to his legal fees from the eviction—a tall order for a business that only broke even in December.
Ike plans to fight the eviction in court (no court date has been set at this time) realizing that the alternative would mean immediately laying off his staff. The grounds for the eviction? “Nuisance.” But according to Ike, he’s been inspected and visited by various city departments over 40 times, including the health department, the building department, and the San Francisco Police Department. He has never received a single citation—not even on the air quality inspections.
The permit complaint is about air quality. As a remedy, Ike installed a ventilation hood over his kitchen area in January, which was fully permitted by the city. However, the neighbor complained to the landlord before the final inspection, and the landlord ordered Ike to halt all construction on the hood. As we spoke, the hood was installed and turned off.
In other words, the legal grounds for the eviction are nothing more than a pretense for evicting Ike. If they really cared about the air quality and permit issue, they wouldn’t have stopped Ike from finishing construction on the hood.
An interesting twist to the story? Who-Wants-to-Be-a-Millionaire couple B moved into their apartment 19 years ago, at which time Ike’s was a noisy bar, where loud music would rattle through the house, sometimes as late as 3 a.m. The noisy bar is why their rent is so cheap, and probably explains why they’re so reluctant to give up 19 years of rent control. But I don’t know what explains the $800,000 demand. Leverage? Greed? Who knows. All I know is that $800k would get you a pretty nice place in quiet Walnut Creek. City living isn’t for everyone, after all.
Posted at 16:01 by stevesimitzis
05/14/2010
» What the shit: Ike's Place is facing eviction??
This news hit me deep in the gut. I’d been hearing some rumblings that Ike was having trouble with one of the neighbors, but I didn’t know it was this bad. How bad is it? Real effing bad.
On Monday, [Ike] Shehadeh went to court to see if he could the eviction from landlord Denman Drobisch thrown out. The plea was denied. Shehadeh has a few more days to answer the complaint, which, unless Shehadeh decides to shut down Ike’s, will almost surely mean going to trial. The problem with that scenario, Shehadeh says, is that he doesn’t have the cash to pay the legal fees. “There’s not much more than a handful of dollars,” he says.
Here’s the problem. As any business owner will tell you, “why not move?”, well, it’s not that easy. Moving to a new location means getting the money together to start up what would essentially be a brand new business. And without his popular Castro location, there’s not enough money coming in to make it happen.
Ike’s Place in the Castro employs 40 people. Is the middle of the worst recession since ancient Rome really the time to be harassing Ike’s Place out of business? Do we really need to lose the only sandwich shop in SF that caters to vegans and vegetarians, barely a month after this city passed a Meatless Mondays resolution? If Gavin Newsom can personally intervene to keep Medjool open, maybe one of those “visionaries” on our board of supervisors can pay attention to this shit. Because this would be such an unbelievable blow to meatless dining in San Francisco that I don’t even know where to begin. If our city is serious about promoting vegan and vegetarian food options, then working out a compromise between Ike and his NIMBY neighbors would be a great place to start (Any vegan lawyers willing to get paid in sandwiches?).
P.S. to Ike’s NIMBY neighbors: If you don’t like living above a popular business, then don’t live in a commercial district. Go move to the ‘burbs (home prices are low!) and enjoy your cone of silence, just keep your g-d hands off my sandwich.
Link posted at 12:27 by stevesimitzis
12/28/2009
Grading the government, loving lemons, saving deer, giving presents to pigs and more in a special holiday link-o-rama!
The Humane Society gives the Obama Administration a B- for animal protection, based on the Change Agenda for Animals the HSUS set at the beginning of 2009. The full report is in this pdf.
Every country is crazy and racist in its own way: in Japan, you can buy a box of tissues shaped like a bucket of KFC “chicken” with Obama styled as Col. Sanders and emblazoned with the English word CHANGE. I don’t know.
Next Saturday, Jan. 9 at Mix (4086 18th St. at Castro Street) from 3 to 7 p.m., Rocket Dog Rescue and Muttville Senior Dog Rescue are cohosting Iris’ Memorial Fundraiser! There’ll be music, art, a raffle, snacks, and drink specials, with all proceeds to benefit Rocket Dog and Muttville.
Our friends at VegNews point us to the super-disturbing news that a “medium-sized” dog eats about 360 pounds of meat per year, which “combined with the land required to generate its food” means that a medium-sized dog has twice the carbon footprint of an SUV driving 6,200 miles per year, “including the energy to build the car.” In short: VEGAN DOGS 4 LYFE. The authors are also heartless advocates of keeping rabbits for company and supper, which obviously we do not support, but COME ON, vegans, are you really feeding your companion animals other animals?
Update: Just like Michael “shut up” Pollan’s “a Hummer-driving vegan has a lighter carbon footprint than a Prius-driving omnivore” (or whatever) comment, the above “facts” regarding the environmental impact of your meat-eating pets have been proven false by actual science. Vegansaurus maintains that giving your companion animals food like V-Dog instead of vile shit even offal connoisseurs wouldn’t touch is better for everyone.
Gracias Madre finally opened and we have a first report. (Should you go? YES you should. duh.)
Arizmendi Bakery, creators of amazing mint-chocolate-chip cookies the size of your face, among other phenomenal vegan baked goods about which Megan Allison has been known to wax rhapsodic, is expanding to the Mission! We are quite pleased.
Oh hey, the recipients of the Ed Block Courage Award were announced just last week Tuesday—NFL players are nominated by and voted on by their teammates—and guess who won for the Philadelphia Eagles? YES! Everyone’s favorite dog-abusing sociopath, Michael Vick! The Ed Block Foundation “celebrate[s] players in the NFL” while “improving the lives of neglected children and ending the cycle of abuse.” I can’t imagine what kind of courage it took to STOP TORTURING AND MURDERING DOGS and START PLAYING FOOTBALL AGAIN, Michael VIck; apparently, enough to reward you for it. A-plus, then. I guess neglected, abused kids have a lot to learn from such an upstanding citizen. Have fun at dinner.
The deer at Valley Forge got a “holiday reprieve,” as the National Park’s plan to have “sharpshooters” kill 1,500 deer over four winters (a November-to-March period), beginning with 500 in 2009, was indefinitely postponed by two lawsuits. The slaughter of these 1,500 deer would destroy 85 percent of the herd presently living in Valley Forge National Park.
LA Weekly says, Meyer lemons and red cabbage are where it’s at. I say, have you ever had German braised red cabbage, all sweet and sour and delicious? It tastes like staying warm on a snowy night, highly recommended.
There’s a new chef at Weird Fish who is reportedly changing the brunch menu and eliminating lunch altogether. Um. Do we have reason to worry, here? The brunch at Weird Fish is great, we fucking love Weird Fish, please do not mess around with our vegan brunch PLEASE PLEASE.
The Guardian has food writers name the most important (for varying reasons) food books of the decade. Fast Food Nation and The Omnivore’s Dilemma get mentions, how broad-minded. Or, you know, shut up, England.
And speaking of publications that irritate me right out of my holiday booze-haze, Bon Appetit lists “the 10 best dishes under $10.” Repping for San Francisco—and the meatless—Harvey Slocombe’s tin roof sundae. Shut up, Bon Appetit.
Northern California Dungeness crab fishing: the season is short, the majority of the dead crabs are canned and shipped out of state, and it has nothing to do with honoring the values of Slow Food goddamn Nation. Color me shocked.
But HEY! here is a video of some pigs getting presents! Aren’t they adorable?
11/09/2009
Meals for Change is this really awesome company that has a too good to be true thing going on. They might be run by the mob but more likely I am just an alarmist crazy person with trust issues (all true) and they are just some of the greatest fools on earth. From their website:
Conceived as a source of support for Bay Area Community Services’ programs serving the elderly and disabled, Meals for Change combines our expertise in kitchen production, practical job training programs, and a partnership with nearby family farmers to produce creative fare with seasonal flair.
All of the money raised goes to lots of great causes, most geared toward helping senior citizens. They’re now serving up healthy all veg-meals (many vegan! Including a vegan shepherd pie and vegan paella!) in various San Francisco supermarkets (including Rainbow, the Delanos IGA on 18th Street in the Castro, and both Real Foods).
So yeah, buy their food. Feel like less of a scumbucket. You are full and self-righteous, your day can begin!
Photo posted at 10:03 by mrpenguino 
06/25/2009
World Wide Vegan Bakesale San Francisco is THIS WEEKEND!
This is just a reminder that we will be out in full force on Saturday, June 27th (in front of Ike’s Place at 3506 16th St., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.!) and Sunday, June 28th (24th St. at Capp St., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.!) with HUNDREDS of delicious vegan baked goods! Pies, cakes, cupcakes, pastries, donuts, breakfast bars, blondies, brownies and much, much more! Our bakesale is stocked by generous donations from VegNews magazine, Sugar Beat Sweets, Bike Basket Pies, Pepple’s Donuts, Angel Cupcakes, Pure Life Chef, Pie Truck, and many other talented bakers from all over SF and beyond! We’ve even got pastry chefs from some of the finest restaurants in SF and Oakland making vegan goods! Ow!
Daisy Wares is donating a tube of her delicious lip balm to anyone who buys a dozen or more cupcakes/cookies/etc! FREE STUFF!! YES, PLEASE!
EVERY penny raised is going to be split between Animal Place and East Bay Animal Advocates, two nonprofits doing amazing work for animals. This sale will only be a success if y’all show up and turn it out in the gluttonous consumption department. So put on your eatin’ pants and come eat us I mean see us on Saturday. And Sunday. Yes. More details can be found at the World Wide Vegan Bakesale SF blog.
You should stop reading now if you’re not down for a bit of a tangent.
Okay, you’ve been warned. I’ve gotten a couple emails from people wondering if we can make a few things with butter and/or eggs. You know, for the non-vegans. The answer is NO. Further, IT’S ONE CUPCAKE. You can’t abstain from butter for ONE BAKED GOOD? Come on; it wouldn’t kill you to eat a tasty vegan treat every once in awhile. Do your heart and cholesterol a favor and take a pass on the mucus and pus spread for a day.
Ugh, now I’m just annoyed. The best is when fools get all dramatic about your response, like you’re some judgy dogmatic vegan who is just being ridiculous and even discriminatory. It’s the same mentality of people who want a straight pride parade in response to the gay pride one. EVERY PARADE IS A STRAIGHT PRIDE PARADE. Every romantic comedy and freaking blue jeans ad is a straight pride parade. Almost everything in our society is made for consumption by straight people. Let gay people have their ONE FUCKING PARADE. They deserve a lot more. Like say, equality.
But I digress. It’s infuriating when omnivores (or even vegetarians! Traitors!) get all harsh when vegans have one fucking vegan bakesale and won’t cater to their butter NEEDS—GOD THE NERVE. And don’t get me started on vegan options in restaurants. Guess what, if a restaurant doesn’t cater to vegans, I’m gonna at least let them know that I’m here and want a piece of that. If they don’t change, hell yeah I’m gonna complain. You know what? This is San Francisco in the year 2009. You want to live in a progressive city? You gotta take the good with the bad. And guess what, your nasty, dead-animal-eating ass is the bad.
So no, there will not be any butter and/or eggs at our vegan bakesale.
Posted at 12:55 by mrpenguino
06/22/2009
Philz Coffee vs. Rodger’s Coffee and Tea!
Why am I comparing the two? Because one, I love to pit friends against each other in a bloody battle for my affections and two, they both specialize in “One Cup at a Time” coffee. If you live under a rock (or not in the Mission), what that means is, you choose exactly what type of beans you want, and they grind and brew them, mix in your desired quantities of sugar and soy milk, and deliver your dream coffee beverage. IN THEORY. In reality too, actually. After visiting both multiple times and sampling their wares, I can safely say: all this shit tastes the same, might as well be Folgers. If you’re looking for a detailed breakdown of the nuances and complexities and all that made-up bullshit people like to talk, look elsewhere! Hey Condescending Jerkface, this site isn’t called Pretentiosaurus! Although, maybe it should be. Let’s put that in the hat for our next meeting.
So, I’m gonna talk about the pros and cons in terms of vegan baked goods, and the general feeling I get from the place; that’s just how it works around here.
Vegan baked goods
Philz: Carries vegan donuts from People’s Donuts: you’ve come a long way, baby! 
Rodger’s Coffee and Tea: VEGAN BEIGNETS CAN I HEAR SOME NOISE FROM THE BACK!? Yes, they sell vegan beignets. Yes, the fluffy fried dough balls covered in powdered sugar. 
And yes, I want to marry them. They are soooo delicious and rich and you feel like you’re eating a funnel cake and ugh, they are so amazing. One of the best vegan baked (fried?) goods I’ve had ever and a reason to visit Rodger’s alone. WARNING: they are only available on weekends! But maybe if we are always buying them all, they will get wise and know to carry them every day, even Christmas. ESPECIALLY CHRISTMAS.
They also sell an excellent mushroom-and-spinach vegan empanada. Bring it home, heat it up (or have them do it) and enjoy your VEGAN HOT POCKET, BITCHES! And this one won’t try to kill you! They also have a large selection of vegan cookies from Alternative Baking Company (bo-ring but thanks for having them!) and some other vegan trail mix bars and shit. I don’t know, granola bars? Yawn.
General feeling I get from the place
Philz: Good. I like it. Kinda like your grandma’s living room if your grandma was kinda crazy and into the internet.
Rodger’s Coffee and Tea: Good. I like it. Kinda doesn’t seem to know if it wants to serve hipsters or yuppies so hey, let’s hit up both! Whatever, did I mention VEGAN BEIGNETS? Not tons of seating but you’re close to Dolores Park so go there anyway. Bench out front is good for judging LAME AND HIDEOUS* passersby.
BONUS QUESTION: Have I met this “Rodger” and/or this “Philz”?
Philz: His name is Phil and yes, he’s very nice! Also, a friend of mine was Phil once for Halloween and it was amazing.
Rodger: No, but his friend came to a Rocket Dog Rescue fundraiser and gave out coupons for a free cup of coffee! He seems like a good guy to me. These coupons are actually a genius take on the frequent buyer card: your first cup of coffee is free, as well as your last. (Does Philz even have a frequent buyer card? If they do, they don’t market them very well!)
Conclusion
Why not go to both!? Start at Philz, grab several donuts, eat on way to Rodger’s, buy beignets and empanadas, eat on way to Philz. Repeat. YOU’RE WELCOME.
*see!
Posted at 10:55 by mrpenguino
03/19/2009
Kasa!
I don’t understand why it is so fucking hard for a restaurant to stay open late in San Francisco. If you’re out past 10 p.m. and you want something other than a slice of pizza or a burrito, you’re screwed. I think our own Maria puts it best when she says:
In particular, the Castro can be a nightmare for late-night dining. There are a lot of bars and a lot of clubs and they desperately need a sit-down where the clubbing ‘mos (and the rest of us) can get our late-night sustenance on. Yes, that is correct. I just typed, “late-night sustenance on”, and please steel yourself for more bad writing and gross generalizations in this review, FOLKS. I’m tired, I’m hungry and I just paid the IRS a couple thousand in taxes because they caught me being a leeetle loosey-goosey with my reported income. Hey! I didn’t know! I got confused! I apparently tried to deduct the same pair of donated pants 12 times? Well what do you want me to do? The max they would let me take was $10 and they were from Anthropologie and cost $140! Eff you, feds! You can take my hard earned cash to fund this horrible war and our dying nation but you cannot stop me from trying to get over. THAT is the American Dream, capital-A, capital-D, capital-FUCKED. Back to the review.
Sunday through Monday the Castro workout routine is Gold’s Gym but on the weekend, it’s the DANCE! To fuel all of this exercise, you need something nearby, adequately tasty and most importantly, LOW-CALORIE. And so begins the age of Kasa.
Kasa is a new-ish Indian-ish restaurant in the Castro that is open until 10 p.m. 
And when you’re done, you can head back to bar-and-club-landia, filled up with pretty healthy food that you’ll burn off in the time it takes to spin a Lady Gaga remix (aprox 35 minutes). I love, love, love Lady Gaga. I also love, love, love the cheesy dance clubs in the Castro. They are bursting with the cutest boys ever who, like you, just want to move to the power of the latest Britney track. There is no ass-grabbing (unless it’s to forcibly move you from between them and some hella hot dude, don’t hate) and if there is any inappropriate grinding, it’s usually your fault. WHAT I’M A LIBERATED WOMAN IT GOES BOTH WAYS NOW.
And with that I present…
Reasons not to trust straight men:
1) John Grisham.
2) They will get you pregnant.
3) Hitler.
4) They lie.
5) They all have the ability to become horrible, hateful, power-hungry rapists in times of war/extreme duress/you didn’t cook their hamburger right I said medium rare, bitch!!!
6) Jim Carrey.
Reasons to trust (and love) gay men:
1) Oscar Wilde.
2) They will help raise your bastard child.
3) Hitler wasn’t gay.
4) They lie, but it’s funny and colorful and usually to make a story more interesting.
5) Rape is most likely consensual and a form of fantasy play!
6) Puppies = the gayest!!!
Posted at 17:24 by mrpenguino
