San Francisco-Bay Space’s Largest Restaurant Closings of 2021
Welcome to Year in Eater 2021, Eater’s annual tradition of celebrating the last 12 months with the help of some of the Bay Area’s best food writers. From now until the end of the year, Eater SF will be asking questions daily about the Bay Area dining scene with answers from those who know it best.
The closure of the flagship Le Marais bakery in the marina because of their lousy landlord really pissed me off – they put so much into this space. At least Michelle Polzine closed the 20th Century Cafe on her terms, but her suicide note was a heartbreaking comment on what it means to be in the restaurant industry and how it eats you up. – Marcia Gagliardi, founder / editor of tablehopper.com
It was bittersweet getting the news when star pastry chef Michelle Polzine announced that she would be closing the 20th Century Cafe this spring. This Russian honey cake was truly one of the San Francisco cake icons, now often imitated but never made so well, and the rare vintage-style cafe is very much missed. – Becky Duffett, assistant editor, Eater SF
They’re all equally sad, aren’t they? But I miss having a drink and a view of Cliff House. I know technically it closed at the end of 2020, and something new is coming next year, but that was the real emptiness for me in 2021. – Omar Mamoon, Writer, Esquire
As a former resident of Ireland (a semester abroad in Cork, but still), de Veres Irish Pub was the best American imitation I had seen since returning to the States, with its dark wooden bar flown in from the Emerald Isle, Great Shepherd’s Pie and bartenders who knew how to properly pour a Guinness. The Davis location was the hub for trivia, pre-Thanksgiving meetings, and adults wanting an adult drink in a college town. Every football fan in town knew they should go to the pub in downtown Sacramento for 6 a.m. Premier League or La Liga games when the US men’s team scored a last-minute winning goal at the 2010 World Cup the collective roar could be heard a block away. But pubs weren’t built for pandemics, and brothers Henry and Simon de Vere White pulled the plug on both concepts in early October. – Benjy Egel, Food and Beverage Reporter, The Sacramento Bee
Oliveto in Rockridge. Although the Kleins were ready to retire and continue their thriving Community Grains business, it felt like the end of an era for this storied corner of College Avenue. – Jessica Yadegaran, food and dining writer, The Mercury News and East Bay Times
Best O./Yelp
Halu, a tiny, adorable yakitori restaurant covered in Beatles paraphernalia, never reopened after it first closed from COVID. I went on hoping to see it revived, but this fall it was closed for good. Looks like his replacement will serve yakitori too, so I’m hopeful! – Esther Mobley, senior wine critic, San Francisco Chronicle
The Jiangnan cuisine at Outer Richmond is the one I will really miss. – Luke Tsai, food editor, KQED
I always find it heartbreaking to hear when a restaurant closes. As a food reporter, it is never easy to hear the stories of all the hard work that goes into starting and running a business only to face the difficult decision of permanently closing it. You really feel for them. – Susana Guerrero, reporter, SFGATE
The buffet place in Oakland Chinatown called Buffet Fortuna was closed at some point during the pandemic. It was a regular meeting point for my family. Buffets are fun, and I remember going to birthday parties and loading crab legs. Buffet Fortuna had a bit of everything: sushi, dim sum, stew. I miss going there. – Momo Chang, freelance food writer and co-director of Oakland Voice
The closure of Homestead in Oakland hit me in the pit of my stomach; It’s a restaurant that I ate at many years ago with a family friend who is friends with the owners. The details are fuzzy, but I know the food was wonderful because it was when I imagined moving to California. Lots of life would stand in my way, but Homestead helped me fall in love with the Bay Area again through the food and so looked forward to partying in this cozy dining room again. – Lauren Saria, Editor, Eater SF
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