Mission Mission

There, that should keep the 4-year olds from messin’ with your ride, and as a bonus you don’t have to carry it into the corner store and look like a total dweeb. Win win.

[via da lah]

The Tens is having his first photo show tonight in a very unlikely location: Supervisor Jane Kim’s office at City Hall room 282, from 4:30-6:30pm. If you have followed his tumblr or seen his work posted here, it’s probably safe to say you’re a fan. He’s been delighting the internet with his tasteful renderings of Fox Plaza for years. Brian also happens to be a civic-minded law-guy, so 30% of the proceeds will be going to the AIDS Legal Referral Panel.

Here’s a snippet from Chris Perez‘ statement on this show and The Tens’ work:

[The Tens'] photographs capture the loneliness and despondency that the city can so easily disguise with its majestic views, romantic architecture, and urban redevelopment. Brian not only sees the stark harshness of the city, but also the uneasy isolation that seems to swallow everyone here at some point in their lives. Over the years I’ve certainly been visited by this loneliness. It follows you from corner to corner, street to street, and it is a chill that is hard to shake. It makes you want to retreat from not only the city but also from yourself. In San Francisco, a person can easily vanish into the fog or slip between the cracks in the broken sidewalks of any neighborhood.

So basically it’s a light-hearted show bound to be full of laughs and whimsy and you should go. Besides, ever wonder how many people can fit in a city Supervisor’s office? There’s only one way to find out.

More details on facebook.

[photos via the Tens]

We are testing online ordering tonight at MCF San Francisco. Give it a try if you were thinking about ordering. missionchinesefood.com/sf

— Mission Street Food (@Missionstfood) January 30, 2013

My pro tip with Mission Chinese has always been to go for lunch or order takeout to avoid that 2-hour horribly disorganized wait-list BS. Well starting tonight you’ll be able to place your order online here. Hell, they will even deliver orders over $20.

Go ahead, slam them with more traffic and convince them it was a bad idea.

Update: I think they meant Thursday night. Mission Chinese is closed Wednesdays, as several commenters pointed out.

I think we have a serious contender to the legendary Slime Time van.

Next time you’re in the Cesar Chavez and Precita area, please take ten minutes to take in all the incredible things happening on this automobile which, at the bare minimum, can be referred to as the “9/11 Tupac Freedomn van”, but may also be called the “Mushroom pedobear Jesus heart of gold van”:

[click for larger version]

Update 2/1: For more about the sordid nature of this van, head over to Jezebel.

In case you haven’t heard, the Mission’s iconic Giant Value building is closing and being converted into “market-value” condos. Here’s what they will look like, next to the forthcoming renovation of the New Mission Theater:

[via Kwan Henmi Architecture]

Otto Venta recently snapped some shots from the current interior:

Over the past couple of weeks they have been liquidating their stock at 50% off, including the following near-luxury fragrances:

[photo via Chirp]

Even though I’ve only set foot in the building a handful of times, I’ve always admired the huge block letters on their facade and intimidating selection of 1970s deadstock goods at reasonable prices. What’s it going to be like in a post-Giant Value world? Will our children’s values not be as giant? Will the boxy condos stay true to the spirit of their ancestors and offer affordable housing? (Not-fucking-likely)

Check below for some of Mission Mission’s Giant Value posts over the years. And what the hell, if Giant Value meant anything to you, please share your fondest or worst memories in the comments. Maybe you picked up a bottle of BOOS cologne and it sealed the deal on a first date you were nervous about. Perhaps you remember how devastated the community was when they switched the words from “VALUE GIANT” to “GIANT VALUE”. Or how about that time Apple maps took you there when you were really trying to find the SF Giants ballpark?

Selected comments will be printed on a commemorative plaque to be installed in the sidewalk in front of the building. (Not-fucking-likely)

Seen her? Help restore this complicated relationship.

[via sfhaps]

Update:

Apparently, this guy wasn’t as charmed by her cuteness:

[via Mission Loc@l]

One of our rare high-school readers Asher (say, what do people who are too young to drink in SF do, anyway?) spotted this in a window on 19th and Valencia this weekend. Boba Guys is getting their own storefront. Renovations are under way and they are looking into an Asian-themed food vendor pairing.

Chamalyn, another boba place, previously occupied this space and apparently didn’t survive the competition. Judging from all the Asian ‘tweens I saw filing into Boba Guys’ current 18th st. location this past Sunday, they’ve definitely got the market pegged.

By the way, try their almond jelly in lieu of tapioca. It’s homemade, and it’s bangin’. You can’t make as good spitballs with it, though.

Adobe Books has long struggled with rising rents on their block of 16th St. near Valencia. But what started as a goodbye party for  this past Wednesday quickly turned into a welcome party for the next incarnation: Adobe Cooperative. No, it’s not going to be a place to get free Photoshop tutoring. Actually, I’m not quite sure what it will be.

A group lead by Rainbow Grocery‘s Jeff Ray will take the helm from long-time owner Andrew McKinley and they will be implementing a new business model. Here’s what one of the new guys had to say:

“Andrew has run it as a community space more than a business. We’re not going to let it close, but we have to think of new models,” says another organizer, Kyle Knobel, who talks about the need for diversification – like selling vinyl and magazines; hosting popup shops; putting on events. “We’ll still have some books, but it’ll evolve.”

I guess you can’t run a book shop that just sells books anymore. Still, it should be interesting to see what pops up.

[via SFGate]

Looks like Her Majesty’s Secret Beekeeper has folded their storefront on 20th, so you’ll have to go online to order all your urban beekeeping supplies. The real travesty is losing the pop-up chicken petting zoo that they kept in the front. I’ll miss this handsome fella:

What’s next? My money’s on an artisinal crumpet cafe called “The Fawn & Badger”.

[via keslrrrrrrrr]

You might know Teen Challenge on Valencia as a Christian alcohol/drug abuse recovery support center.

What you might not know is that it’s also a place you can score a set of sweet rims at a decent price.