As a culinary mecca populated with world renowned chefs and
recreational foodies alike, it makes sense that San Francisco is a
hotspot for underground supper clubs. These social dining experiences
can take place anywhere from a Victorian house in the Mission to a
houseboat on the bay. They're often themed and typically feature local
ingredients, but the off-the-grid aspect of the dinners is arguably
their most alluring quality. Get a few friends together for a high
quality meal without the pretense of a fancy restaurant, or go stag and
meet interesting people over the multiple courses.
1. I Forgot It's Wednesday
Founded in NYC and recently started in SF, I Forgot It's Wednesday
seeks to create a dining atmosphere that—true to its name—captivates
guests with interesting conversation and ingenious pairings, causing
everyone to forget it’s Wednesday. The five-course dinner is prepared by
chef Jenny Dorsey and served with wine pairings and cocktails crafted
by her husband Matt Dorsey. Jenny posts some of the recipes on her
blog. The
only rules of admission are: Be a nice person. Act respectfully. Bring
an open mind. And be kind to the dogs. The location is super secret, but
they do post upcoming events on the website. Join to the
mailing list to stay updated about future suppers, and send an email
here to reserve a seat.
2. Lazy Bear
After hosting garnished dinner parties for his classmates in law
school, chef David Barzelay carried his culinary passion with him to
Lazy Bear, where he started hosting supper clubs at various locations
before opening up a brick-and-mortar version in the Mission. In honor of
the traditional family-style shared eating experience, now
Michelin-starred Lazy
Bear remains as inviting and energetic as it did in its pre-restaurant
days, where snacking and mingling kick off the feast, which is served to
guests at long American elm slab tables. Barzelay cooks up modern
American food complemented by seven to eight ABV pairings. Two seatings
are offered each night, one at 6pm and one at 8:30pm. Purchase tickets
in advance
here, and subscribe to their Twitter
feed to be kept up to date on upcoming events.
3. Naked Kitchen
After Ko Son left his tech career in Silicon Valley, he turned his
attention to the culinary world, inviting guests to dine at his
beautiful Victorian house in the heart of the Mission. Son started
hosting his underground supper clubs as a way to create an intimate
atmosphere of food, wine, and art. Naked Kitchen offers talented
emerging and experienced chefs the creative freedom to try out new and
innovative dishes. Fill out the mailing list
here and reserve your spot at the table
online.
4. Wild Kitchen
When Iso Rabins of forageSF isn’t hosting foraging excursions that
include wild mushroom adventures, wild food walks, and sea foraging, he
can be found heading Wild Kitchen’s roving supper clubs. Dinners take
place at a large communal table located everywhere from a roof-deck or
warehouse in the Mission to a houseboat in Sausalito. Each course of the
eight-part meal features a sustainably foraged local ingredient, such
as halibut, rabbit, wild boar, mushrooms, or miner’s lettuce, that has
not been touched by human hands until the day of hunt and harvest. To
attend the next Wild Kitchen and get a taste of Bay Area-grown
delicacies, sign up for their email list
here.
5. Stag Dining Group
In 2010, five good friends joined together to meld sustainable
ingredients and inspired cuisine into what would become Stag Dining
Group’s successful Clandestine Dinner Series. Currently, they still host
regular dinners that support a large network of local organic farmers,
produce zero waste, and are landfill free. Each supper features some of
the Bay Area’s leading artisans and artists. Stag has held dinners at
historic mansions, shooting ranges, art galleries, and wineries. Their
largest event to date, a one -of-a-kind foodie-concert called Mission
Battleship, occurred on top of the Liberty Ship SS Jeremiah O’Brien.
Dinners are promoted via their mailing list, so the best way to score a
seat is to sign up
here.
6. Mission Gastro Club
Brewer Eric Denman unites his libation skills with savory culinary
pairings in a Mission apartment where he composes weekly themed meals.
Dishes are made from fresh, local ingredients and paired with home
brewed ales. To become a dinner guest, you must first be a member, and
then the luck of the draw will determine if you get a seat—the list is
composed randomly from the club’s database. This method encourages
unique, engaging conversations and fosters new friendships and
networking. To get added to the invite list, send an email
here and tell them how you heard about the club.
7. SPICE Supper Club
Although chef Ben Long doesn't have any traditional cooking
education, his secret and exclusive supper club (currently members-only)
is built around he and his wife’s shared love for good food and wine.
The eight-course dinner parties are held every month. The vibe is fun
and casual, with emphasis on a good time and lively conversation. As
Long puts it, “there’s nothing fancy about it except the food.” Although
SPICE is currently not accepting new members, you can still try to get
put on a waitlist by getting in touch
here.
8. Du Jour Dining
This underground dining experience is run by Vance and Kelly Rose,
who curate a unique, seasonally-driven menu for their monthly
nine-course spreads, featuring local ingredients such as produce,
grains, fish, and meat, and paired with eight different wines. The
setting is both personal and professional, with an emphasis on flavor
combinations and complexity that is also present in the wine selections
(the chef is also a winemaker). Members receive an email a week prior to
the dinner that gives a preview of the menu and pricing; two days
before the event, the location will be revealed. Sign up for the mailing
list
here.
9. Hearsay Supper Club
Hearsay Supper Club’s founders Dan and Jeanne are self-proclaimed
globetrotting food geeks who have a devotion to food and drink that is
evident in their dinner parties. Periodically, they open up their
kitchen to about a dozen guests, and serve a six-course tasting menu,
paired with beer, wine or cocktails, that blends traditional and modern
techniques. Occasionally, they host tasting events that highlight a
single ingredient or producer. The best way to hear about their upcoming
events, which are planned a month in advance, is to subscribe to their
email list
here or follow them on
Twitter.
10. S+M Vegan Chefs
Shane Stanbridge and Marie Chia met while going to school at the
Natural Gourmet Institute for Health and Culinary Arts, where they
learned how to cater to special dietary restrictions and studied the
techniques and benefits of cooking plant-based meals. After working at
vegan, raw and gluten-free restaurants such as Millennium in Oakland,
Pure Food and Wine in New York, and Michelin-starred establishments in
San Francisco and Paris, the duo decided to form S+M as a way to create
beautiful and sustainable dishes. Their current supper club series, The
Blind Tiger, fuses quality local produce that is prepared using organic
beer from Bison Brewing, and takes place in the Bay Area on every last
Sunday. The locations, which can be held anywhere in San Francisco and
its neighboring towns are sent to ticket holders as the dinner
approaches, and the chefs sometimes host meals at their Oakland loft.
Events are often BYOB, but Stanbridge and Chia do offer suggested
pairings. Contact them here to join the
mailing list or for other inquiries.
Honorable mentions:
Subculture Dining
Cook with James
Cook Here and Now
Article and images sourced from http://www.7x7.com/culture/10-fabulous-underground-supper-clubs-sf