
- Concerned patrons of Berkeley’s much-lauded Boichik Bagels contacted owner Emily Winston with some alarming news: an Oakland financial firm had emailed its client list, telling them that if they bought bagels at the homegrown restaurant, “you deserve to be poor.” In the email, Lula Financial founder Benjamin Packard wrote “the sons of bit*hes charge $3 per bagel” and said that “effective immediately, I’m prohibiting all clients from visiting Boichick [sic] Bagels more than once a year.” Defending his use of a misogynistic slur to describe Winston’s mother, Packard says “the post was meant as a joke and I never meant to offend a fellow small business owner.” Looking at reactions to Boichik’s Instagram post regarding the email, it looks like he offended a lot more people than that. (SF Gate)
- The Concord location of national chain Gen Korean BBQ caused a stir when it posted a vaguely accusatory sign on its door. The restaurant, which promises “premium without a limit” on its website, told customers that it is understaffed because “many are still depending on EDD, so there are not a lot of applicants that want to work,” though many labor experts say that the current food business hiring crisis is less related to unemployment benefits than it is to the low pay and hard work typically associated with restaurant work. Since Gen is short staffed, the restaurant tells patrons “do not ‘pull a Karen’ and write us a bad Yelp review,” which per Dictionary.com appears to be a reference to “an obnoxious, angry, entitled, and often racist middle-aged white woman who uses her privilege to get her way or police other people’s behaviors.” The sign appears to have backfired, though, as since after it was posted, Gen’s Yelp page has been littered with one star reviews angry about the sign. (SF Chronicle)
- Some more information has surfaced on Pladaek Thai, the not-yet-open Thai spot slated for 4133 Piedmont Ave. Jeffrey Edalatpour reports that its owner is Wawa Maneewan, the owner of MacArthur Boulevard’s Wawa Thai Food, and will feature a menu of Northeastern Thai dishes. It’s expected to open some time this month. (East Bay Express)
- Long a laggard in the fight to make takeout more sustainable, Orinda is now mulling a ban on styrofoam carryout containers. When proposed at a recent city council meeting, no one opposed the potential ban, so it’s likely to be approved in July. If so, Orinda would join most other Contra Costa County cities, including Concord, El Cerrito, Hercules, Lafayette, Martinez, Pinole, Pittsburg, Richmond, San Pablo and Walnut Creek, in restricting use of the material. (Bay Area News Group)
- A visit to Viridian, Uptown Oakland’s recently reopened Asian American restaurant and bar, “is in many ways the ideal post-lockdown experience,” says food critic Soleil Ho. (SF Chronicle)
- Third Culture Bakery, the Berkeley bakery known for its mochi muffins and other treats, has raised over $40,000 to assemble and pass out safety kits for vulnerable AAPI folks. “We are using the bakery as a platform to further images of inclusivity,” co-owner Wenter Shyu said. (Bay Area Reporter)