We finally have an opening date for Julius' Castle, Flour & Branch reopens on South Park, and the under-the-radar Lodge at Dawn Ranch in Guerneville garners the Chronicle's first three-star review of the new starred-review era, all in This Week In Food.
The big news today is that the historic Julius' Castle has an official reopening date in two weeks, on November 12. After many, many delays and a renovation process that reportedly took 14 years, the rumor we heard earlier this month looks to be true, with owner Paul Scott giving the scoop to the Chronicle today. There still don't appear to be reservations available, but there are some photos, and we now know that the chef Scott hired is Christopher Santopinto, who previously worked at Aphotic and State Bird provisions, and (less auspiciously) as the last executive chef at Park Tavern. We await menu details, and the opening of the reservation books.
Tablehopper brings us word that bakery-cafe Flour & Branch has reopened on South Park, in an intimate new space at 155A South Park Street. Owner and baker Lauren Arnsdorff had to relocate from her original space, and the new space debuts this weekend, starting today, with morning coffee, lovely pastries, and a full brunch menu with a breakfast burrito, chilaquiles, and stuffed French toast among the offerings.
John's Grill, which for many years has thrown an Election Day party with free lunch that draws politicos from around town, has canceled this year's event following the untimely June death of co-owner Sydna Konstin. Konstin, who was 41, died of reported heart failure while on vacation in Greece, and the family and staff says they are still mourning and don't want the pressure of throwing the Election Day event.
Earlier this week, the Chronicle reported that 38-year-old Chinese restaurant Eliza's, is reopening in Lower Pacific Heights after suffering damage during the firefight at the neighboring San Francisco Central Seventh Day Adventist Church in June. Water from firehoses did damage to Eliza's as well as the owners' apartment upstairs, but after some repairs, they are back open.
There's been a chef change at venerable Castro spot Frances, as Tablehopper reports, with longtime staffer Ricky Chu stepping down from the chef de cuisine role, and former Octavia chef Robert Hernandez — who left to open Bar Jabroni — stepping in as "chef in residence." Per Tablehopper, the panisse frites are back, and the latest twist on the bacon beignets includes Early Girl tomato ranch for dipping.
Over in Alameda, the centrally located beer bar The Boathouse announced it is calling it quits. As KRON4 notes, this is especially sad news for Alameda beer fans after the recent closure announcements Admiral Maltings malthouse and its attached pub The Rake, due to the overall crashing of the craft beer industry. Co-founder Dave McLean, meanwhile, is still working to open Excelsior, a new pub offshoot of his Hidden Splendor beer later, which is set to open soon in San Rafael.
Chef Sarah Kirnon, of the much acclaimed and well-missed Miss Ollie's in Oakland, has been on a farewell pop-up tour, with one still left to go. As KQED reports, after doing a monthlong residency at Gold Palm and doing some other events, Kirnon will be doing a final farewell dinner this Sunday, November 1, at Burdell, before she moves back home to Barbados. The dinner is part of the restaurant's ongoing "Grandma Series," with chefs sharing dishes based on family recipes.
And over at the Chronicle, critic MacKenzie Chung Fegan has filed her first three-star review of the South American-inflected fine dining menu at the Lodge at Dawn Ranch in Guerneville. It's an off-the-beaten-path choice for sure, and has been a word-of-mouth hit among local foodinistas since co-chefs Juliana Thorpe and Ignacio “Nacho” Zuzulich, who are from, respectively, Brazil and Argentina, and who spent a year staging at the famed Mugaritz in Rentería, Spain. Fegan addresses the oddness that a restaurant at what was once the shabby and bohemian gay destination Fife's now charges $175 for a "chef's experience" tasting menu, but she raves about the wildly creative food, calling it "patently delicious" above all — and, she says, it "has the potential to transform Guerneville into something quite unrecognizable."
