Live & Kicking: George Chen’s China Live Readies For The Return It has now been fully fifteen months since the Covid-19 pandemic brought much of San Francisco life to a shuddering halt. When the Coronavirus descended on the Bay Area in March of last year, it brought the kind of wholesale … Read the rest
China Live Swings For The Bleachers In Uncertain Environment It has now been five full months since the original shelter-in-place order was announced by Mayor London Breed in March, and San Franciscans are scrambling to keep pace with the changes. And the city’s restaurant industry, already beleaguered with problems, … Read the rest
Full Court Press: China Live Prepares For The Return Serial restaurateur and founder/chef of San Francisco’s China Live, George Chen knows a few things about challenges. Back in 2017, when Chen and wife/cofounder Cindy were preparing to open their sprawling, ambitious Chinese marketplace and dining hall, opinions ranged … Read the rest
North Beach Restaurants Adapt As They Weather Covid Crisis San Francisco loves its restaurants, and that’s no secret. Our eateries, from the grandest to the most humble, are a fundamental part of our lives, and have for decades been a cornerstone of our city’s identity. And seven weeks into … Read the rest
Lockdown In SF: Protect Yourself, Protect Small Business “May you live in interesting times.” -Chinese Proverb The transformation that we’ve undergone in San Francisco in the last 13 days has been jarring, to say the least. With the exception of those few blithe souls who believe they breathe … Read the rest
Changing Tides: 5 Reasons North Beach Is Primed For A Comeback As you may have noticed, there has been a rash of San Francisco naysayers in the press recently. Not a few have have taken to bemoaning the “crisis” right here in North Beach: the neighborhood just isn’t what it used … Read the rest
10 Things To Eat In North Beach Right Now, Part 5 These days, it’s almost undeniable: San Francisco has become America’s preeminent food city. But as much as San Francisco is renowned for its food, many of our culinary charms can feel inaccessible at times. Whether it’s the rising expense, the … Read the rest
George Chen’s Chinatown: A Walk With The Owner Of SF’s China Live It all started with a phone call last Tuesday morning. It wasn’t a number I recognized, but I picked up anyway. “Joe? George Chen.” A pleasant surprise: I had reviewed Chen’s genre-redefining restaurant China Live in September, and spoken to … Read the rest
North Beach Fix: Indian Summer Comes To A Close It’s time again for North Beach Fix, our semi-regular compendium of significant happenings, sundry occurrences and notable non-events here in The Beach. We’ve been quiet at the Fix for a while, so let’s get started. As we slide into … Read the rest
A New Dynasty in Chinatown: George Chen’s China Live The eastern stretch of San Francisco’s Broadway is one of the city’s most historic corridors. Ever since city planners dynamited the base of Telegraph Hill to make way for it, Broadway has been a vital artery, connecting the Embarcadero … Read the rest