Pixel Vision Archives — Page 94 of 133 — San Francisco Bay Guardian Archive 1966

Weird Wine of the Week: Red wine in Austria?

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June 16, 2009

The Guardian’s Amy Monroe shares her favorite unusual, overlooked, and underappreciated wines every Tuesday. Check out her previous installment here.

In a country that’s famous for Mozart, coffee, and birthing Gov. Schwarzenegger, what does it mean that Zweigelt is Austria’s most widely planted red grape? To most people, nothing really. While Austrian white wines made from Grüner Veltliner, the most widely planted grape in the country irrespective of color, enjoy some love from sommeliers and adventurous drinkers, Zweigelt remains relatively anonymous. It shouldn’t.

Meet Ecker Zweigelt, a recession-busting, screwcapped liter bottle that tastes like a lithe Pinot Noir spiced up with a generous shake of black pepper. It’ll take to your Tuesday night turkey burger like a natural, but there’s no need to pair it with food if you’re trying to cut back on the solid stuff. This is a wine that defines smooth, thanks to the one thing it lacks: tannin, a naturally occurring preservative that causes many reds to feel astringent on the palate. It’s the kind of wine you can crack (Thank god for screwcaps!) and knock back any day of the week — and why wouldn’t you? The price is right (around $13); the package is large (30 percent more juice than a standard size bottle); and the wine is good (I could drink a gallon of this stuff).

Of course, there’s a time and a place for fancy Napa Cabernet and vintage Champagne, but it’s probably not out of a paper bag on a lazy Sunday afternoon in Dolores Park. That’s what Ecker Zweigelt is for.

Available at Mollie Stone’s
635 Portola Drive, SF
(415) 664-1600
www.molliestones.com

Appetite: Wicked Emeralds, snail sliders, pindi chole, pickled Fresno chiles, and more

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June 16, 2009

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Every week, Virginia Miller of personalized itinerary service and monthly food, drink, and travel newsletter, www.theperfectspotsf.com, shares foodie news, events, and deals. View the last installment here.

Happy hour at Grand Cafe — delight on a stick. Photo by Virginia Miller

DEALS

Grand Cafe Happy Hour
Grand Cafe is one of those long time SF classics it’s easy for locals to forget is here, inside Hotel Monaco. Ideally located in the "theater district" for a little tete-a-tete or pre/post A.C.T. performance, Grand Cafe recently reopened with a new happy hour that lasts four hours each weekday with a cocktail list 23-deep, playfully employing current nearby theater plays (like one of three drinks as an ode to "Wicked": Elephaba’s Wicked Emerald-tini, a refreshing mix of Hendrick’s Gin, Ciroc Vodka with a sweet touch from St. Germain Elderflower and herbal notes of basil, cucumber and lemongrass syrup). During happy hour, drinks and appetizers, like gougere d’escargot (delicious escargot sliders!), salt cod beignets, salmon or duck rillette, are a mere $3-7, plus there’s $1 oysters and a 400-plus wine list. PS: the bar menu online notes the "secret" employee discount they give off bar food (50%!) on Monday nights if you mention the password, "Moulin Rouge". A truly happy "happy hour".
3pm – 7pm, Monday-Friday
501 Geary, SF
415-292-0101
www.GrandCafe-SF.com

Street art pics: Osama-Obama milk cartons glimpsed

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June 16, 2009

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Sketchy: Osama street art modified. Photo by Kimberly Chun.

By Kimberly Chun

Recession schmecession – it’s good to see SF’s scrumbly crumbly anti-tradition of street art carrying on despite the big-wheel art-market smash-ups. Welcome to the first in a series of snaps. And thanks to Fecal Face honcho and former Guardian contributor/columnist John Trippe for the reminder of this unsung genius’ work. I saw the altered example above not long before last year’s November election (check the Animosity poster) and got way irked. Trippe spied the proper article, below, and posted it on www.fecalface.com/cellphotos/ the other day …

Got milk: the real dealie? Courtesy of Fecal Face.

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 16, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Marina, Ferry Building

Tell us about your look: “This is just what I threw on for work today.”

Interview: “Humpday” director Lynn Shelton

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June 16, 2009

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By Mara Math

In Humpday, two longtime straight male friends just reunited dare each other to have gay sex on camera for the amateur erotic film fest of the title, a dare that will test the boundaries of friendship, marriage, and self-definition. San Francisco Bay Guardian talked with director Lynn Shelton.

San Francisco Bay Guardian: What inspired the inventive plot?

Lynn Shelton: The starting point was actor Mark Duplass. I was looking for an idea for a film to center around him. And then when a straight filmmaker friend came back from Hump! (formerly Humpday), the real amateur porn festival in Seattle, and he was just fascinated by his first look at gay porn, and I thought it was really amusing and sweet. And I started thinking about the relationships between straight guys and gayness, and the tension inherent in super-passionate but platonic straight male friendships. There’s this low-grade homophobia — they don’t hate gay people but they still have residual anxiety about their own relationship to homosexuality. I find that very poignant, and I also loved the absurd deliciousness of taking two straight guys who are being so straight — it’s really about the extremities of straightness, in a way — that they can’t back down from this dare that neither of them wants to carry out … and that in fact is to be gay for a day.

Found: Haight Street Bingo

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June 15, 2009

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SFBG Assistant Art Director Ben Hopfer found this gem at this Sunday’s ever-ambivalence-provoking Haight Street Fair. While not quite possessing the satiric teeth of Hipster Bingo or the blush-ready stab of Blipster Bingo, it certainly has its own, slighty dated (wallet chains, really?) charm.

The Monk’s Kettle: A “destination” beer tour for the refined yet unpretentious

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June 15, 2009

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By Susan White

If you’re looking for a classy way to get drunk in the middle of the week – sans the extravagant snobbery of the Marina – you might want to try partaking in one of the Monk’s Kettle’s beer-pairing dinners, now held the first Wednesday of every month.

The Monk’s Kettle is a craft-beer bar located near 16th and Valencia, smack in the middle of our city’s bustling Mission District. Unlike typical gastropubs, this one prides itself on its slightly upscale atmosphere and unique variety of brews (over 150 on its constantly rotating menu, not including the 24 they keep on tap at all times). Yet this tavern doesn’t harbor an exclusive or imposing attitude. According to co-founder Christian Albertson, who opened the establishment in 2007, the Monk’s Kettle merely seeks to “educate” its consumers on the extensive world of beer, providing a friendly and relaxed environment in which to do so. Each of its staff members are trained to recommend brews based on individuals’ tastes, and each course on the menu is listed with suggested beer pairings to go with it. Combining food and beer seems to be a tradition the founders have upheld from inception – only now have they decided to make it an official event.

On June 3, the Monk’s Kettle offered a five-course beer dinner featuring Deschutes Brewery of Oregon, whose representatives were there to host the event. Guests were required to pay a steep cover charge of 80 dollars per person and make reservations in advance (well in advance – according to Albertson, their beer-pairing dinners are now “booked until next April”).

‘Won’t You Stay?’: A peek behind the curtain

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June 15, 2009

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By Rebecca Bowe

One of the first-ever showings of Adam Chanzit’s Won’t You Stay?, a work in progress, was held at the Ashby Stage on June 8 before a full audience.

The play poses questions about the consequences of extreme idealism by chronicling the lives of three college students as they transition to adulthood in New York City. Jacob, the protagonist, initially comes off as a workaholic entrepreneur who likens his ambition to a Jaguar speeding through the fast lane. He undergoes a transformation after having a profound experience in Siberia that is never fully articulated, but evoked bit by bit through monologues and original music. As time goes on, Jacob becomes increasingly obsessed with aiding people in need — but his frantic quest to end suffering is accompanied by his own descent into mental illness. His precarious path on the edge is contrasted with that of his girlfriend, Alice, and his best friend, Noel, whose own lives follow a more familiar progression from free-spirited college kids to conventional urban professionals.

Chanzit, whose plays have been produced in New York, Los Angeles, New Haven and Denver in addition to the Bay Area, says he felt it was important to solicit feedback not just from people involved with theater, but college and graduate students, people working in the mental-health sector and others. While many staged readings are closed to all but a few select colleagues, invitations to this event were targeted to reflect a much wider community.

After the 90-minute performance, Chanzit, director Mina Morita and producer Shane Boris opened up a dialogue with audience members, and an in-depth conversation ensued that touched on everything from interventions for people suffering from mental illness, to nostalgia for the idealism that was exhibited in the 1960s, to reflections on transformational experiences while traveling. “Having a larger and more diverse audience gives you more input into how the performance is working,” Chanzit says. And for the audience, events such as this offer a rare peek behind the curtain: “There’s something exciting about watching a play in development.”

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 15, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Sam, Dolores Park

Tell us about your look: “I like to borrow girl’s clothes.”

San Mateo the new Chinatown? Everyday Beijing slings a mean stir-fried pancake strip

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June 14, 2009

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Biscuits and gravy: Stir-fried wheat and corn meal biscuit, left, and stir-fried strips of pancakes are a few “hometown specials from old Beijing,” as EBR puts it. Photo by Kimberly Chun.

By Kimberly Chun

Note to self: forget Grant, Clement, and even Irving Street – I’m beginning to believe that San Mateo is the real Chinatown. Every time I venture south to the Peninsula ‘burb, right around B Street and 25th Street, I’m stumbling over some great little dumpling joint or unpretentious enclave of regional Chinese cooking, tucked away in an otherwise shrug-worthy strip mall.

My latest find: Everyday Beijing Restaurant on the sleepy, sunny end of South B Street, across the way from a newish, cavernous branch of Espetus Churrascaria. A spartan interior in the tradition of no-nonsense Chinese dive restaurants, though the space is bright and airy. But what a menu: the long-form dinner version is 150 items deep (give or take a beer or four). Not only do you get only-viable-if-you’re-Chinese items like marinated pig ear strips, but mystery items like “Tofu Cluster with Beijing Sauce.” I haven’t had a cluster in eons!

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 12, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Sune, 24th Street and Dolores

Tell us about your look: “The Hamptons meets Noe Valley.”

Dance: Adventurous im’ij-re shines, illuminates

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June 11, 2009

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By Rita Felciano

In 2007 choreographer Amy Seiwert set Morton Feldman’s hauntingly beautiful score "Rothko Chapel" on Robert Moses’ Kin dancers. Watching Memory was fresh, mysterious, and mesmerizing. Not the least of its appeal came from Marc Morozumi’s stunning lanterns, which enveloped the dancers in subtly changing luminosity. Earlier the same year, Seiwert’s first full evening of her own work packed Project Artaud Theater to the rafters, confirming that this petite woman, also the resident choreographer of Smuin Ballet, has one of the Bay Area’s most adventurous and intriguing voices. You always want to see her next work because you can sense the questioning spirit that leads her into unexpected terrain. Her own nine-year old company, im’ij-re — with its excellent dancers — is the place where she can experiment in the way the tight schedules of more traditional ballet companies (her latest commission was for Colorado Ballet this spring) don’t always have the means to support. From that first encounter with Morozumi, a relationship was born. For 2010 the two are planning a full-evening work that includes contributions by British sound designer Kaffe Matthews and German media artist Frieder Weiss. For the time being, they are premiering the sextet LIGHT essays as the centerpiece of a program of new works that showcases a trio choreographed by Morozumi (with sculptor Alex Uncapher), a solo by Andrea Basile (danced by Alex Ketley), and a structured improvisation for four dancers.

IM’IJ-RE Sat/13–Sun/14, 8 p.m., $20. ODC Dance Commons, 351 Shotwell, SF.

(415) 863-9834, www.odcdance.org

Art: Overt to oblique critique in “Leave the Capital”

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June 11, 2009

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By Johnny Ray Huston

Chris Treggiari, Float Performance, 2008

What is it with Bay Area group art shows named after album and song titles by the Fall? Last month brought "I Am Kurious Orange," an exhibition and performance at David Cunningham Projects that slightly twisted the name of 1988 album by mush-mouth Mark E. Smith’s band. Now comes "Leave the Capital," a different multiartist endeavor that also slightly twists a Fall title, this time from a 1981 song, "Leave the Capitol." As the trade from o to a suggests, the 13 artists involved — including Zoe Crosher, Fang Lu, and Kamau Patton — address the economy and matters of rough trade in manners ranging from overt to oblique. Exit this Roman hell and enter the gallery.

LEAVE THE CAPITAL Sat/13, 7-10 p.m., continues through June 27; $2-$10. Root Division, 3175 17th St, SF. (415) 863-7668. www.rootdivision.org

Film: ‘Munyurangabo’ — hauntingly peaceful, desolate

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June 11, 2009

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By Laura Swanbeck

Munyurangabo trailer

Don’t be deceived by the serene, pastoral setting of Lee Isaac Chung’s Munyurangabo (2007), a neorealist drama that follows unlikely friends Sangwa (a Hutu) and Ngabo (a Tutsi) as they journey home nearly a decade after the Rwandan genocide. The film’s hauntingly peaceful veneer and desolate beauty speaks to the hundreds of thousands killed on Rwandan soil and belies Sangwa and Ngabo’s simmering resentment and shame. Refusing to fixate on the war’s carnage, Munyurangabo focuses on its psychological repercussions instead. As the pair arrives home to tend to the decimated farmland and to each other, Sangwa struggles with the prejudices that his estranged family still harbors while Ngabo wrestles with his duty to avenge his father’s murder. Delving into Rwanda’s tragic past, this provocative film that befittingly ends on National Liberation Day wonders if Rwandans can forge new identities unburdened by guilt or vengeance to ultimately find freedom.

MUNYURANGABO opens Fri/12 at the Sundance Kabuki.

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 11, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Nagisa, Dolores Park

Tell us about your look: “I like the color and the fabric of my jacket.”

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 10, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Marla, 24th Street and Lucky

Tell us about your look: “My friend gave me this scarf because she said it couldn’t be worn, but I guess I’ve proven her wrong!”

Weird Wine of the Week: Everything’s coming up rosés

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June 9, 2009

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The Guardian‘s Amy Monroe shares her favorite unusual, overlooked, and underappreciated wines every Tuesday.

Too many people are afraid of pink wine. I blame white Zinfandel. Despite the fact that the majority of rosés made around the world are dry, American drinkers cling hard to the misguided notion that pink equals sweet, thanks in no small part to the fact that Sutter Home cranks out more than 4 million cases of cloying white Zin annually. But, there’s a lot more to rosé than the potential of a sugar spiked hangover. In fact, rosé pretty much rocks my world and it should yours, too.

Need some convincing? Try Ameztoi Rubentis Txakolina, a crazy delicious, bone dry wine from the Basque region of Spain made from two obscure grapes named Hondarribi Zuri and Hondarribi Beltza. As pink and feather light as a ballerina’s tutu, it’s made even more charming by the fact that there’s a lively bit of spritz in the bottle. Drinking this wine is like dating someone who’s really hot, actually gets along with your friends, and is great in bed. It’s nice to look at, fun at a party, and surprisingly flexible.

Appetite: Hot pastrami, Little Feat, Omnivore books, Mizuna salad, and more

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June 9, 2009

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Every week, Virginia Miller of personalized itinerary service and monthly food, drink, and travel newsletter, www.theperfectspotsf.com, shares foodie news, events, and deals. View the last installment here.

Nice pastrami! Katz comes to the Great American Food Fest

EVENTS

6/13 – Great American Food & Music Fest at Shoreline (Bobby Flay, Guy Fieri, Little Feat and food from around the country)
I’m already saving room in my stomach for a rare chance to roam the country in one day of eating! Sure, it’s down at Shoreline Amphitheatre, but this is a fun one, y’all: The Great American Food and Music Fest is a gorge and feed feast featuring sentimental, all-American food favorites, with performances from the likes of Little Feat, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy and Marshall Crenshaw.

Yes, on the food front, we have some of our best in the mix:
– Incanto’s (one of my top restaurants anywhere) chef and offal master, Chris Consentino, prepares homemade hot dogs
– Chuck Siegel, founder of Charles Chocolates, creates chocolate truffles
– June Taylor, of June Taylor Jams, makes her signature strawberry jam
– Boulevard’s Nancy Oakes gives us crab cakes
– Bruce Aidells, of Aidells’ Sausages, brings on the pork
– A16’s Nate Appleman cooks up a surprise
– Burger Meister and Bouchon Bakery serve their treats
– A “Best of Bay Area” showcase features local cheeses, meats, breads, chocolates, cherries, peaches, tomatoes
– West Coast wine tastings are curated by Best Cellars’ Josh Wesson and Gary Vaynerchuck, host of Wine Library TV

Take a deep breath. That’s just the Bay Area contingency.

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 9, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Butch, Dolores Park

Tell us about your look: “I wear what’s comfy and anything that looks pretty cool.”

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 8, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Andrea, 24th Street and Guerrero

Tell us about your look: “These are Moo Shoes.”

Covet adorns the Richmond

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June 5, 2009

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By Mayka Mei

Freshly lettered windows welcome Covet to the Richmond.

It was just another day in late April when Adrienne Lee Wiley was wandering through the Richmond. En route to picking up her husband from the airport, she saw a “For Lease” sign in a storefront on Arguello. It stuck in her mind. By her husband’s urgings, she contacted the owner. All it took was one more phone call to colleague Liza Anongchanya, and the two became co-founders of the new jewelry store, Covet.

If ever there were a reality show challenging its competitors to flip a store in two months, Wiley and Anongchanya would surely come out on top. It was never even a dream of Anongchanya’s, she says, to run a boutique, but now her Ofina line of jewelry is displayed prominently alongside Wiley’s Frolick label inside the pair’s very own shop.

It was all “very, very fast,” says Wiley.

“I hadn’t even showered yet!” Anongchanya, says of the moment when Wiley first phoned her. It seems Wiley convinced her partner just enough with the promise that the new store would also include studio space.

The two jewelry designers met about two years ago at the San Francisco event formerly known as Capsule (which re-emerged as Union Design Festival last weekend). Months later, they unexpectedly ran into each other at America’s Mart in Atlanta. Eventually, the two made their individual ways to San Francisco – Wiley via Atlanta, Anongchanya via Los Angeles – where they were both drawn to the area’s appreciation for the arts.

“The people and the vibe is so much better here,” Anongchanya says, comparing San Francisco to the Los Angeles jewelry-making scene. “They don’t try to haggle you down.”

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 5, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Allison, 24th Street BART station

Tell us about your look: “My friend gave me this t-shirt and the bike cap is my boyfriends.”

Review: “A Snow Mobile for George” at the Burning Fuse Film Festival

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June 5, 2009

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By Laura Swanbeck

Confounded after Bush (the “George” in question here) allows manufacturers to reintroduce a discontinued snowmobile engine that pollutes 100 times more than a car, director Todd Darling set out across America looking for answers. With Sindy, his snowmobile in tow, he documents the devastating impact of deregulation on the environment, including wildlife endangerment in California, water depletion in Wyoming, and asbestos contamination in post-9/11 New York City. Refreshingly unpretentious and even-keeled, Darling interviews everyday ranchers, fishermen, and firemen, listening to opponents and proponents of Bush’s policies alike. He truly hits his stride by exposing Federal conflicts of interest and illuminating the political power play behind-the scenes. In the end, the film finally answers its original query, but asks other lingering questions like, “Does less regulation really mean more freedom… and at what price?” Sure, Snow Mobile’s humor can be a bit hokey, but the sentiment is spot-on.

A Snow Mobile for George screens Sun/7-Mon/8, 6 p.m. as part of the Burning Fuse Film Festival, which runs today and Sun/7-Mon/8 at the Roxie .

Street Threads: Look of the Day

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June 4, 2009

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SFBG photog Ariel Soto scoops SF street fashion. See the previous Look of the Day here.

Today’s Look: Claudia and John, Dolores Park

Tell us about your look: “Mariachi and sangria.”