Mission Mission

And a ping pong table

(Thanks, LiJia!)

Farmgirl rules. Here’s the deal:

• No Waste: We offer one daily arrangement of beautiful, local and seasonal flowers and greens. For Valentine’s Day, you may get Cymbidium Orchids, non-red Roses, Tulips, Lisianthus, Anemones, Ranunculus, Kale & Scabiosa, depending upon is available with our growers that week.
• Field-to-vase: We work directly with local farmers to source only the freshest flowers.
• Recycled packaging and low-emission: We use recycled vase and reused burlap coffee bags from San Francisco-based Ritual Roasters and our bouquets are delivered via bike courier.

Lovely! Browse today’s options here. (Bouquet in a burlap sack, bouquet in a reused vase, or a LIVING PLANT.)

The Bold Italic asked them why:

We were so sad to hear you’re closing up shop. Why is The Curiosity Shoppe closing?

Don’t be sad! The simple answer is that it’s time. We’ve had an amazing run and met so many unbelievably creative and talented people through the Shoppe, we just feel that now is the right time to open up some space in our lives for other creative opportunities.

We keep hearing about the rising rents on Valencia St. You guys have been there for years – were rent prices factors in your decision at all?

No. This wasn’t a financial decision, it was a creative one. That being said, of course the neighborhood is changing, and it is a lot of work to run a business in the Mission. But we never wanted to be anywhere else, and in the time since we opened we’ve seen Valencia go from a local destination to a national (and even international) one as well. We’re extremely proud of all of the other small businesses in the neighborhood that continue to make it such a unique and inspiring place.

Read on for talk of their future plans, their collab with Target and more.

Oh and note that the online shop is closing too, so get it while the getting’s good.

[Photo by Street View]

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.

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)

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]

First of all, the Red Poppy on 23rd and Folsom is one of my favorite places to see shows in the city. There are not a lot of venues where you can recline on a bed of fluffy pillows while taking in the sounds of a local musician’s electro-jazz interpretations of Radiohead or a modern Turkish and Balkan folk ensemble. Noisy, crowded 500-seat rock shows with $6 beers served out of plastic cups are swell, but these shows are small, intimate, and raw. The Poppy’s calendar is diverse and always interesting. The audience is always enthusiastic and engaged. The shows wrap up at 10pm so they don’t tie up your night.

On top of all this, they pay musicians really well… like 70% of the door well. As a musician, I have consistently made more from a performance at the Red Poppy than at any other music venue in the city and had a better time performing for the smaller and more enthusiastic crowds there. At those rates, musicians could, I don’t know, maybe make a living doing their good work. It makes you wonder: why aren’t there more places like this?

Last year, the city of San Francisco passed legislation for Limited Live Performance Permit which allows small venues to host live performances for a one time fee of $385, without paying the exorbitant cabaret license that is meant for larger concert halls, which costs in the thousands. The Red Poppy is applying for this permit and there will be a hearing about it tomorrow at City Hall. This hearing will be a large factor in determining whether or not they will be able to continue their programming.

The staff expects some opposition from the neighbors, but request that supporters can be respectful and non-combative about their concerns. So if you’re a fan of the Poppy, like I am, consider showing your support at City Hall tomorrow at 5:30pm. There will be a debrief at the Red Poppy 3-4pm. More details on facebook.

Tim League, of Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, posted this update today:

Last night the City Planning Commission voted to approve the project, so we are off to the races. That said, we still have a long road in front of us. Seismic upgrades and the historic nature of the renovation we make this a challenging project. Nonetheless, I am ecstatic about finally being able to march forward on the New Mission. Expect many more updates here as we make progress.

The $10 million renovation will convert the dilapidated furniture storage room / roach crash pad into a 5-screen, 348-seat theater that will serve you beers. In addition, approval was granted for a 114-unit condo development which will replace the beloved neighboring GIANT VALUE building.

Opposition was light but, as expected, you can’t get through a community meeting in the Mission without some folks speaking up against gentrification and high rents. More over at SFGate.