Latest news with #FogCityDiner
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Popular California Diner Announces Sad Closure After 40 Years
A San Francisco dining staple closed last weekend after four decades in business. The Fog City Diner, which rebranded to simply Fog City in 2013, shut down on Friday after 40 years of service. Opened in 1985, the eclectic eatery was a beloved part of the San Francisco dining scene right up to its final day. 'With a heavy heart, I share some difficult news. Fog City has closed permanently with the last day of service being May 30, 2025,' the restaurant said on social media. "Thank You for the 40 years of patronage!" Longtime customers gathered in the comments section to mourn the abrupt shuttering of the Embarcadero institution. "THIS is how you announce it?? Fog City deserved better," one woman wrote. "Wow!! 8yrs spent out there tending bar!! Will miss everyone I worked with or served. Cheers!!" said a former employee. "This breaks my heart. Loved this spot and for so many years!! ❤️" added a third person. "What an amazing run, job well done friends! You have so much to be proud of," chimed in a fourth commenter. Co-founded by Bill Higgins and Bill Upson, Fog City was an immediate hit after opening four decades ago. In 1993, the establishment became somewhat famous when it was featured in the movie So I Married an Axe Murderer, starring Mike Myers, Nancy Travis and Phil Hartman. "The location of our FOG CITY restaurant is steeped in history — one that goes back way beyond the 1985 opening of the original Fog City Diner," says the diner's official website. "From feeding hungry sailors before they shipped out to serve in WWII to housing a railroad building servicing trains in San Francisco's first railways, and acting as a docking point for ships during the Gold Rush, this site has always been an integral part of the rich tapestry of San Francisco history." Popular California Diner Announces Sad Closure After 40 Years first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 3, 2025
Miami Herald
3 days ago
- Business
- Miami Herald
Legendary diner featured in Visa commercial closes after 40 years
The restaurant industry is extremely competitive, and the survival rates over five and 10 years could make some ambitious dining entrepreneurs think twice about entering the business. The chance of a restaurant surviving its first year in business is pretty good, with about 83.1% of new restaurants making it through their first year unscathed, according to statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, reported. Don't miss the move: Subscribe to TheStreet's free daily newsletter However, the business gets tougher as the years pass, and only 51.4% of restaurants survive five years in the business, according to bureau statistics. Related: Major restaurant chain quietly closes several locations Operating a restaurant for 10 years gets even harder, as the survival rate shrinks to 34.6% of eateries staying in business for a decade. Major restaurant chains tend to have the financial backing to remain in business for years until financial distress gets so great that some companies need to file for bankruptcy and close locations. Several chains facing economic challenges filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and closed several restaurant locations last year. Red Lobster in May 2024 filed for bankruptcy and closed 187 locations. It emerged from Chapter 11 in September 2024 and now operates about 478 locations in 44 states. Italian restaurant chain Buca di Beppo filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Aug. 4, 2024, to reorganize its business with the support of its lenders, after closing 13 underperforming locations. TGI Fridays had 161 U.S. locations when it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Nov. 2, 2024, to reorganize and close restaurants. The chain closed 76 locations over the next five months and was operating 85 U.S. locations by April 2025. Independent restaurants frequently close as well, including one well-known business that operated for 40 years. Legendary San Francisco restaurant Fog City, one of the city's most popular establishments in the 1980s and 90s when it was known as Fog City Diner, permanently closed its business on May 30 after serving customers for 40 years. Related: Pizza chain credited for popular pizza style closes locations "With a heavy heart, I share some difficult news. Fog City has closed permanently with the last day of service being May 30, 2025. Thank you for the 40 years of patronage," Fog City's Brett Maurice said in a statement on the company's website. The restaurant opened in 1985 as Fog City Diner with a shiny chrome exterior and a large blue neon sign, and it remained popular through the end of the 20th century. More closings: Popular retail chain to close unprofitable store locationsBankrupt retail chain unloads store leases, key assetPopular discount retailer files bankruptcy, closes all stores Fog City Diner's popularity was fueled by national exposure from a 1990 Visa credit card commercial that described the restaurant as "elegant as a formal dining car" and encouraged customers to try their red curry mussel stew or grilled chicken with roasted peppers. The commercial also advised diners to "leave your troubles behind, but bring your Visa card, because at Fog City, they take things easy but they don't take American Express." The restaurant was also featured in the 1993 film, "So I Married an Axe Murderer," starring Mike Myers. But as the new millennium progressed, the restaurant was re-imagined by its founders Bill Higgins and Bill Upson, according to Fog City's website. "Maintaining the energy and approachable spirit of the beloved original, Fog City offers innovative menus in a sophisticated, warm and open space created by Bay Area architect Michael Guthrie. The shiny chrome exterior was replaced with a wood exterior in different shades of brown and a new name on the building, Fog City, in 2013. The building's location is steeped in history, according to the Fog City website. Before Fog City Diner opened, it had been occupied by other establishments, including a restaurant that served sailors before being shipped out in World War II, a railroad building servicing trains in San Francisco's first railway, and as a docking point for ships during the California Gold Rush. Related: Iconic Baskin-Robbins local ice cream rival closes after 40 years The Arena Media Brands, LLC THESTREET is a registered trademark of TheStreet, Inc.
San Francisco Chronicle
4 days ago
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
S.F. landmark Fog City diner closes permanently after 40 years on the Embarcadero
Fog City, the landmark restaurant that helped launch San Francisco's small plates movement and once defined the modern American diner, closed its doors Friday after four decades in operation. 'With a heavy heart I share some difficult news,' read a message posted by the restaurant on social media. 'Fog City has closed permanently with the last day of service being May 30, 2025. Thank you for the 40 years of patronage!' The closure was unannounced, and no reason was provided. Opened in 1985 as Fog City Diner by restaurateurs Bill Higgins and Bill Upson, the eatery became an immediate part of the city's dining landscape with its whimsical Pat Kuleto design and the inventive cuisine of chef Cindy Pawlcyn. Over the years, its neon signs and bold, globally inspired menu helped cement its place in San Francisco's culinary lore. Though Pawlcyn departed more than a decade ago, a 2013 overhaul saw the diner reimagined as simply Fog City, with a sleeker look by architect Michael Guthrie and a revamped kitchen led by chef Bruce Hill. Hill introduced dishes such as wood-oven roasted chicken with kimchi butter, utilizing his patented chef's press, a stainless steel tool that weighs down food to even out cooking times. Located at 1300 Battery St., the site itself has a layered history — once a roundhouse for trains, then a World War II-era cafeteria, and later a gathering spot for longshoremen. When it was still known as Fog City Diner, the restaurant appeared in Visa commercials, Farley comic strips, and the 1993 Mike Myers film 'So I Married an Axe Murderer.'
