David Williams of Hooker's Sweet Treats (SF Chronicle)
Back during the whole Little Bird drama, we were contacted by CW Nevius of the Chronicle for any background information. We didn’t really have much to give, but stayed in contact until at one point, he saw that we were quite passionate about the neighborhood and thus suggested giving him a tour of our favorite spots around the Tenderloin. We did this just recently and the result ended up being this article: “Tenderloin gets trendy, apparently on the way up“.
Obviously, for those of you who live or spend time here, the neighborhood is quite different from block to block and yes, some of them are not the greatest to hang around (like the ones around Taylor and Turk or Jones and Golden Gate) — but there’s no need to just “stay above Ellis”. If you read the print edition, you’ll see that the title is instead, “The Trendy Tendernob”. We’re assuming that was some higher up editorial decision as Brenda’s and most all other the businesses mentioned: Jebena, Jones, and Hooker’s are most definitely not in the Tendernob (or Tenderloin Heights depending on how you roll), but I guess they thought the words Tenderloin and trendy together were too hard to handle.
Naturally, due to the length of the article, a great many fantastic places were left out (like Little Saigon, the North African businesses owners busting their asses, and all of the art galleries, which we had showed him). Also overlooked is the greater issue of the homeless industry which has tirelessly worked to keep the neighborhood eternally depressed and certain blocks soaked in bodily fluids. Still, as we quickly saw in walking around, Nevius –like many other people in this town– had never set foot in this area (he lives on the water side of SOMA) and so, being able to show a different view, other than the one that Shaw & Co. want everyone to see is pretty much the reason we started this site in the first place.
Let us know what you think of the article. Anyone think we should start doing more of these tours?
5 Comments until now
TL walkthrough articles would be great. After living on the edge of the TL for 3 years, I’m ready to move out because it’s pretty loud and late-night can get a bit dangerous (more like mugging dangerous than stabbed dangerous). For all of its drug-related problems, the TL has some of the best ethic food in the city, and I’m definitely going to be coming back.
I thought the article was pretty flimsy and didn’t give an accurate impression of the vitality of the area. Love it or hate it, it really is a community here. Me, I love it here, warts and all, and hope trendification doesn’t destroy its character.
I sent these to the column the last few days:
That‘s fine. I’m glad the TL is improving despite the seeming lack of interest by the cops and city. You mentioned the cool young hipsters but way before them the Korans bought all the corner bars and green grocers, the people from North Africa and the middle east bought the small mom & pop stores and opened small restaurants, the Indians and Pakistanis open all the restaurants on Jones and O’Farrell, and other south east Asians from all around opened restaurants. So as they have been doing this the last twenty years we should give them some credit too. But then again these people are mostly traditional conservative families and not cool at all so we might as well forget them and their contributions.
I have lived on Post between Hyde & Leavenworth for more than twenty years. I have almost been killed a few time her but I stay. I love the place and have many friends here including a lot of the prostitutes, dealers, drunks and junkies of the neighborhood. They are not so bad once you get to know them. They are a community just like any other. They have helped me out a number of times even once when I was covered with blood and had a broken nose, If the young and cool were not so timid and half a tough as they pretend to be, with their snap brim hats they would know this. But we all know their act is just show with no go. I am neither young nor cool but can hack it… Let them come and talk to me if they want to know some truth about the TL.
PS We have our own dedicated police station but I rarely seen any walking beat cops around, only squad cars. You can’t see the crime from a comfortable seat in a car you have to walk around damn it.
So a lot of wimpy yuppies hate the Loin. Big surprise! I suggest they all move to a fine “gated” community in the East Bay and stay home.
For the rest of us who have the guts it can be a cool, if dangerous place to hang. Lots of color and as about as multiethnic as it gets here in SF.
It’s almost as good as living in Hong Kong or Istanbul. But then these complaining hipster-yuppies could not handle living in these fine cities either. Both of which I have lived in for some time years before, by the way.
The best thing is that there a lot of people who hate the “young hipsters” wearing snap brim hats. Most of these punks could not wear a hat right if their lives depended on it. The Hat always wears them.
Again, I probably know 20 good restaurants in the loin that have been around for years which do not belong to cool young white hipsters. He did not even mention them. I know a lot of the owners and it would “p***” them off if they read this.
By the way Dashiell Hammett lived on the corner of Post and Hyde. So did the main character in the Maltese Falcon, Sam Spade. The greatest of the SF fictional detectives. They both could the Loin in the forties so I think we might do so now.
There is nothing cool about hipsters. When they move in your neighbourhood is on the way down, not up. Fuck the hipsters. To control that scourge I suggest mentioning to your local neighbourhood thug that the hipster who just moved in is dealing on his turf. Problem solved.
@maggie agreed
@trashikunga “So a lot of wimpy yuppies hate the Loin. Big surprise! I suggest they all move to a fine gated communityin the East Bay and stay home” – Spot on!