Host John Waters and headliner Devo bring hella kitsch to this weekend's Burger Boogaloo fest in Oakland. (Courtesy of @burger_boogaloo_i_love_you)
This week is all about variety. Start off slow with cake and comedy at Blondie's, and on Tuesday gather together with some of SF's most beloved businesses (Tartine, Shelter Co. Thirdlove, and more) for a benefit for immigrant children who've been separated from their parents. As the week progresses, we're sure you'll rally for drag racing, sundown cinema, Burger Boogaloo, and Fillmore Jazz. Have a good one!
Monday, June 25: Free Comedy and Cake
When: 8pm
Where: Blondie's Bar & No Grill, 540 Valencia St. (Mission), blondiesbarsf.com
Why: Start the week with giggles and sweets at a free comedy show. Blondie's rounds up some of the funniest comedians in the area every fourth Monday.
Tuesday, June 26: Support Immigrant Children
When: 6pm to 8pm
Where: Assembly, 449 14th St. (Mission)
Why: Join In Good Company and the Assembly for a night of sips (from Lorenza Rosé and Skyy Vodka) and bites (from the Cheese School and other tasty local eateries) to benefit immigrant children who've been separated from their parents. There will be a raffle and silent auction—win goods from Tartine, Outside Lands, Shelter Co., Lisa Says Gah, Bryr, Vintner's Daughter, Thirdlove, and more. // Currently there's a waitlist for the event. Tickets ($35) will be made available in the next few days; 100 percent of sales and funds raised will go to Raices, a nonprofit providing free and low-cost legal services to immigrant children, families and refugees in central and south Texas. Sign up at theassembly.com.
Wednesday, June 27: Drag Race
When: 4pm to 7pm
Where: Sonoma Raceway, 29355 Arnold Dr. (Sonoma), sonomaraceway.com
Why: Channel your favorite character from the Fast and the Furious and spend Hump Day drag racing everything from Corvettes to mini vans. You can even watch high school kids drag race against Bay Area law enforcement (in full uniform and official vehicles) in "Top the Cops." Just bring your car in to get inspected, and then you'll hit the staging lanes to practice before the official race. After each run, you'll receive a time slip with your elapsed time and speed on the quarter mile. // Tickets ($25 to race, $15 for students with high school ID, $10 for spectators) are available at sonomaraceway.com.
Wednesday, June 27: Dinner
When: 5pm to 11pm
Where: Violet's, 2301 Clement St. (Outer Richmond), violets-sf.com
Why: Violet's, a new modern tavern from the folks behind Fiorella, opened on Clement Street last week. Get in to try their elevated bar fare, including a grand seafood platter with oysters, shrimp cocktail, lobster, and crudo; devils on horseback; fried chicken; a shrimp louie roll, and more. Wash it all down with Negronis on tap.
Thursday, June 28: Sundown Cinema
When: 6pm
Where: Conservatory of Flowers, 100 John F Kennedy Dr. (Golden Gate Park), conservatoryofflowers.org
Why: Catch a flick under the starsin Golden Gate Park and nosh on your fav eats from local food trucks. Grab a brew, and secure your spot to watch Little Shop of Horrors. This is the first in a series of outdoor movies spread across four iconic SF parks by SF Parks Alliance, Do the Bay, and Alamo Drafthouse.// dothebay.com
Thursday, June 28: Full Moon Chanting Ceremony
When: 6:15 to 6:45
Where: Nyingma Institute, 1815 Highland Place (Berkeley), nyingmainstitute.com
Why: For an evening of zen, join Nyingma students and friends to chant the Vajra Guru Mantra, with periods of meditation in between, to celebrate tonight's full moon.
Thursday, June 28 : Meet Your (Ice Cream) Maker
When: Midnight to 2am
Where: Salt & Straw, 587 Hayes St. (Hayes Valley), saltandstraw.com
Why: Head to Salt and Straw to meet co-founder and head ice cream maker Tyler Malek as he debuts new flavors. Indulge in a free single scoop of new classics like Sightglass Coffee Casher Praline, Mt Tam Cheese with Toasted Acme Bread, Dandelion Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies and Cream, Freckled Mint TCHO-colate Chip, and more.
Friday, June 29: Food, Drink, DJs, and Art
When: 5pm to 10pm
Where: Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak St. (Oakland), museumca.org
Why: Friday nights at OMCA are back! Nosh on bomb eats from Off the Grid food trucks, get tipsy in the beer garden, and listen to live music from Jazz Mafia's Heaviest Feather. Galleries are also open late and half off for late night general admission. Peep hip hop exhibit, Respect, and catch a DJ sesh in the dojo. // Tickets ($8) are available online.
Friday, June 29: Meet Curio, the Chapel's New Bar and Restaurant
When: 5pm to 11pm
Where: Curio, 775 Valencia St. (Mission), curiobarsf.com
Why: The Chapel has a new food program with Chef Mario Tolentino at the helm. He'll be bringing deliciousness in the form of towers of raw oysters, burgers, fried chicken, deviled eggs, and more. There's a new cocktail menu as well which includes drinks named after fun mythical animals like unicorns (vodka, pisco, strawberry, Szechuan peppercorn) and mermaids (vodka, grapefruit, raspberry, seltzer).
Friday, June 30-July 1: Burger Boogaloo
When: 11am to 10pm
Where: Mosswood Park, 3612 Webster St. (Oakland)
Why: Hosted this year by John Waters himself, the annual Burger Boogaloo is pretty much your only chance to catch Devo live. Also see rare appearances from Le Shok, Hunx & His Punx, and Gris Gris. // Tickets ($99-$269) are available at eventbrite.com; burgerboogaloo.com.
Saturday, June 30-July 1: Fillmore Jazz Fest
When: 10:30am to 6pm
Where: Fillmore Street (Fillmore)
Why: The largest free jazz happening on the West Coast, Fillmore Jazz fest draws more than 100,000 music lovers each year for an Independence Day celebration with live music on multiple stages and more than 12 blocks worth of arts and crafts from painting to pottery and tasty eats. // sresproductions.com.
Sunday, July 1: Japan Day Festival
When: 11:30am to 4pm
Where: Peace Plaza, Post St. at Buchanan St. (Japantown)
Why: Take in Japanese cultural arts, music, and dance including taiko drumming and a shodo (calligraphy) workshop. //japancentersf.com
Sunday, July 1: Family Feast at Foxsister
When: 6pm to 10pm
Where: Foxsister, 3161 24th St (Mission), foxsistersf.com
Why: Head to Korean hotspot Foxsister for a family style feast with their delicious fried chicken, kimchi fried rice, big green salads, and house-made kimchi for only $25 per person. Wash it all down with a safe or a Hite beer.
Sunday, July 1: Tiffin Dinner
When: 5:30pm to 10pm
Where: Le Colonial, 20 Cosmo Pl. (Nob Hill), lecolonialsf.com
Why: Tiffins are stackable steel food containers popular throughout Southeast Asia. Le Colonial is filling them with their French-Vietnamese fare on Sunday nights with delicacies like fresh spring rolls and crab imperial rolls, shrimp curry, grilled lemongrass chicken and more. There's a three and four tier option depending on how hungry you are.
