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A Sleek New Hotel Bar Just Opened From a Cocktail Pro
A defunct Union Square bar just got a new lease on life. The former Benjamin Cooper on Geary Street is now the Valley Club. The new business opened Thursday, June 12 as 'a sexy sexy lounge,' or at least according to local writer Alcademics who wrote about the opening. This is the first solo project from Mitch Lagneaux, who worked at Horsefeather and Brass Tacks amongst other high-end San Francisco bars.
The bar is inside the Hotel G and upstairs from Adriano Paganini's coastal Italian restaurant Corzetti. This new bar is decked with lots of mirrors and plush interior. Drinks are similarly done-up: there's a chocolate and raspberry Negroni, the Midas Touch oh bourbon, Galliano, vanilla, orange, lemon, and 'pure gold,' per the menu. There are 'side quests,' too, batched shots that run two for $20 or four for $35.
In much more dire news, Le Marais Bakery on 18th Street was robbed on Friday, June 13. The business owners posted on Facebook letting their loyal fanbase know the burglars put 'an explosive on the window.' This setback comes after owners Patrick and Joanna Ascaso's sister business were told by Ferry Building managers their sister business Grande Creperie will not receive a lease renewal after all.
On Castro Street proper, Jamieson Leadbetter and his family from Portland, Maine, are rolling out service in their first San Francisco location. Leadbetter's Bake Shop hosted a preview weekend in early June, selling apricot ginger English muffins and creme fraiche mushroom breakfast sandwiches. Tablehopper reports the initial opening hours continue next weekend on Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Craftsman Coffee at 1750 Francisco Boulevard will host local baker and neuroscience PhD Parwana Ashari on Sunday, June 22 from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Ashari starred on the Great American Baking Show season three. She sets up shop where Mark Lieuw first popped up with his outfit Stay Sweet SF in 2024.
