Posted on 08/20/2020 10:54:38 PM PDT by Vendome
Opened in 1997, upscale Union Square restaurant Farallon was known as much for its wild decor as for its menu of tourist-pleasing seafood dishes. The restaurant shut its doors when San Francisco’s shelter in place began in March, saying then that it would reopen when it was “allowed to return to normal operating hours.” But with normalcy still a distant hope, the restaurant has closed for good, SF Gate reports, sending an email to workers saying that the spot will not reopen when the pandemic ends.
In recent years, the decor might have been more of a draw that the food itself. In 2010, then-Chronicle food critic Michael Bauer praised both the menu of sustainable seafood and the spot’s design (co-founder Pat Kuleto is a prolific restaurant designer, as well as the owner of numerous Bay Area restaurants), saying it “feels like an underwater fantasy” and described it as “the big fish of seafood restaurants.” By 2015, however, Bauer said, “I’ve always been enamored with the interior of Farallon,” but “given the price, it wouldn’t now be at the top of my list of recommendations.”
It feels obvious to say that if a spot’s primary draw is its dining room, it’s in a tough spot these days — with indoor dining on pause in San Francisco for an unknown length of time, venues are reliant on the loyalty of their patrons and the quality of their food to make it through this unprecedented period. Add to that the challenge of operating in Union Square, with tourism tanking and downtown workers at home, and it’s hard to see a way forward for spots like Farallon.
(Excerpt) Read more at sf.eater.com ...
Luv OJ’s
Looks like Squidward’s nightmare.
Thanks for posting those pictures. I wondered what “the decor is amazing” meant. And then you showed us.
One word: TOLERANCE
The death of a thousand wrongs accepted instead of common sense rights upheld. The incremental whittling away of a solid foundation until it cannot support the structure any longer. The collapse seems sudden but the inspection tells the truth.
Luv’d Farallon
Great place to take a date....
Although I love most seafood, the only thing off that menu that really appealed to me was the oyster platter. Everything else sounded a little overdressed. Can’t wait until September, when oysters start to be splendid again.
It’s what your neighbors voted for, for decades. I saw this (or more correctly, something like this) coming long ago and fled CA in 95 when it was pretty clear where the state was going. My family and friends laughed at me then... they’re not laughing any more.
I’m really sad to hear this. Eating in great restaurants and just enjoying being out with happy people in a wonderful setting is probably my favorite recreation, so to speak. If it’s any consolation, while the collapse is more extreme in California- simply because it had so many good restaurants to begin with - it’s happening everywhere that this shutdown has been imposed.
When I’m traveling, I go to Yelp and look for good local restaurants. I’m reading reviews that describe great times people have had in one restaurant or another, maybe mention a good staff member by name, etc, - and then I see it empty and dark with a handwritten sign saying it will not reopen. I feel like I’m living in a dystopian novel. It wasn’t the virus that caused this but the drastic, politically motivated government “response,” which seems to have a particular objection to people having fun and to good things.
Bistro Aix, popular wine bar in the Marina district, also closed permanently
In Aurora, CO, a ‘burb of Denver, Fresh Fish Company, which was a staple, closed for good.
“Covid-19 is killing everything.“
Wrong. Leftist politicians are doing all the killing.
L
Covid is killing very little, dictator wannabes are killing everything.
“What causes an advanced society to purposely self-distruct?”
Not paying attention, mostly.
L
I miss the ceremony of dining out.
It used to be an event. You would get dressed up. We guys would get dressed up in a suit and tie. Women would wear a nice dress, heels, and put on some makeup.
You could open the car door for your dinner date and walk in arm in arm.
There was atmosphere and ceremony. It was special.
Over the past 40 years, it has changed to where there is no ceremony. It is a utiliarian function now. You can go to the fanciest restaurants in shorts and flip flops and nobody blinks an eye.
I miss the ceremony of dining out.
I don’t see the problem. It’s not America, it’s San Francisco
About the only semi expensive places I go are Harris, Hillstone and Original Joe’s. I never eat in Hayes Valley. Once in a while, I go to a burger place called Hi Way in Noe Valley. Marina...
Tommy’s Joynt was as upscale as I ever got in my San Francisco days. Then there was that Asian run greasy spoon on 6th & Market that had breakfast covered for $3. Ah, the good old days...
It’s what your neighbors voted for, for decades. I saw this (or more correctly, something like this) coming long ago and fled CA in 95 when it was pretty clear where the state was going. My family and friends laughed at me then... they’re not laughing any more.
I grew up in Norcal. Spent my young adult years in San Francisco. Every time I return to the Bay Area seems more and more like Los Angeles with traffic spilling out all the way into the San Joaquin Valley. Leaving was one of the best decisions I ever made.
“What causes an advanced society to purposely self-distruct?”
Purposely voting democrat.
That menu sure looks good but there’s no way I could afford to eat there......
Do they have payment plans?.....LOL!
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