Plans to sell the restaurant Fable in San Francisco's Castro district to new owners have been cancelled after one of the partners offered to buy out his gay co-owner, the Bay Area Reporter has learned.
A month ago, the eatery's co-owners hired a commercial broker to try to sell the nearly 4-year-old business at 558 Castro Street. But when a reporter called this week to inquire about the listing, partner Erik Rhoades said they were taking the property off the market.
"Nothing will change," said Rhoades, who is straight and is buying out partner Jon Hearnsberger, formerly executive chef of Woodhouse Fish Company. "We may change the menu less frequently, but other than that, we aren't planning any changes."
Hearnsberger, who is gay, could not be reached for a comment by press time. He and Rhoades opened the restaurant in 2013, spending over $100,000 to renovate the space.
Although the restaurant has received excellent reviews for its food, service and atmosphere, it has become "increasingly difficult" to operate a restaurant in San Francisco, said Rhoades in an interview.
In addition to the usual problems facing retail businesses, he said Fable's ability to maximize the use of its outdoor patio is limited because its beer and wine license requires the restaurant to stop serving alcoholic beverages outside after 9 p.m.
"It's tough to be paying rent for a space you can't use all the time," said Rhoades.
The owners had tried to extend the time to 10 p.m. on weekends, but neighbors threatened to take them to court, said Rhoades.
"We thought it was a reasonable request and apparently they did not," he said.
The restaurant had been for sale for several weeks. According to the advertisement, also posted on the website Craigslist, the purchase price for Fable was listed as $390,000, which included its beer and wine license.
The ad also said the monthly rent for the 1,530 square foot restaurant and its 1,500 square foot patio was $8,800 with one year remaining on the lease and two five-year lease renewal options.
"It is a great opportunity for a restaurateur who is looking to open their establishment in the desirable and bustling retail corridor of the Castro district," noted the ad.
As for the sale of upper Market Street restaurant Café Flore, which the B.A.R. first reported about in July, owner Steven "Stu" Gerry said this week there is "no news" about the listing, although there have been a number of showings.
Elsewhere in the neighborhood, a modern Japanese restaurant, Nomica at 2223 Market Street, is set to open "any day," according to partner and acting general manager Paul Quinn. The restaurant, in the space previously occupied by seafood restaurant Pesce, is awaiting receipt of several permits.
Nearby, at 2251 Market Street, Castro resident Rick Hamer and chef Ryan Scott, who appeared on the TV show Top Chef, are prepping to open their restaurant Finn Town sometime this fall.
Expected to open within a few weeks is a new French patisserie and cafe, Le Marias Bakery, at 498 Sanchez Street on the corner of 18th Street. Le Marias, which has other locations in the Marina and in Ghiardelli Square, is going into where Samovar Tea Lounge once was housed.
An employee of the Marina location said they hope to be open in the Castro by early September.
And just doors away from Fable, at 556 Castro Street, the Castro Fountain should open sometime this fall. It will be the second ice cream shop for Juliet Pries, who owns the Ice Cream Bar in Cole Valley.
As the B.A.R. reported in March, Pries ran into issues turning the former retail space into use as a restaurant. She faced delays in getting PG&E to complete upgrading the utilities in order to bring more gas and electric into the building.
Plans to open by Pride came and went, then this summer signs went up saying the Castro Fountain would be opening soon. Pries has yet to disclose an opening date.