It's time for this week's highlights in the realm of food and booze news. First up, a big, new bar/restaurant is headed for the heart of SoMa's club land.
Bergerac, a new bar from the team of investors that was hoping to take over The Eagle last year before the gay community and the Board of Supervisors stepped in to thwart that effort, is heading to the former Mist nightclub space on 11th Street. The Chronicle reports the news, and the team behind it is Anderson Pugash, Bruce McDonald (also of Foreign Cinema), and David Brinkley. They've brought in chef Randy Lewis, known most recently for Criolla Kitchen in the Castro, to do the menu, and there will be a cocktail program by Russell Davis, who cut his teeth at Bourbon & Branch and Rickhouse. They're basing the design on the bohemian villa in the South of France where the Rolling Stones recorded their seminal record "Exile on Main Street." Look for an opening in July. [Chron]
Meanwhile, at the other end of SoMa near Union Square, MaSo has quietly replaced Ducca at the Westin Hotel. It appears to be a less ambitious, hotel-y sort of restaurant than Ducca, featuring the now-familiar "twists" on comfort food classics. [Scoop]
Nearby on the other side of Market, in the former Crash Club space at 34 Mason Street, comes Mikkeller Bar, a new internationally focused craft beer bar from the guy behind The Trappist in Oakland. It's aiming for a July 11 opening, and in addition to a huge beer selection, it will feature a sausage- and charcuterie-heavy menu by chef Michael O’Brian, who comes from Washington DC beer haven, Church Key. [Scoop]
And lastly, the big opening of the week is Roka Akor, an off-shoot of London-based Roka, which is a Japanese sushi and robata grill spot with a heavy cocktail focus. It's in the renovated former Zinnia/Scott Howard space at Montgomery and Jackson. They swiped a bar star from The Alembic, Daniel Hyatt, to take charge of the basement bar, and chef Roman Petry has an impressive resume of Michelin-starred spots all over Europe. See some pretty photos over at Eater.
