Comments on: Bay Area Meetup?

Bay Area Meetup?

gursky — Wed, 13 May 2009 14:19:18 -0800

San Francisco MeFites, I want to meet you!

I'll be in San Francisco from June 3-6, and while I have plans, my Friday night (June 5) is free so far. Is anyone interested in a meetup? I've never been to one before, but after reading the thread about going to meetups, I'm excited. I wanted to go to a Toronto meetup, but plans to be downtown fell through for me. So, what say you? (Anywhere accessible by public transit works for me!)

By: rtha

rtha — Wed, 13 May 2009 15:50:38 -0800

I would totally say yes, but that Friday night is already booked.

*cries a little*

By: roll truck roll

roll truck roll — Wed, 13 May 2009 15:50:42 -0800

So sad, I'll be in South Dakota that week.

By: potch

potch — Wed, 13 May 2009 16:42:17 -0800

I am perpetually enthusiastic about Bay Area meetups. Count me in!

By: jeffamaphone

jeffamaphone — Wed, 13 May 2009 23:09:10 -0800

Perhaps!

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Thu, 14 May 2009 12:02:36 -0800

I'm free that Friday too! I'm pretty mobile so anywhere's fine for me.

By: gursky

gursky — Thu, 14 May 2009 13:20:08 -0800

any suggestions for venue?

By: zippy

zippy — Thu, 14 May 2009 23:31:56 -0800

Hand up. East Bay represent.

By: gursky

gursky — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:43:40 -0800

okay Bay Area residents -- let's DO THIS.

By: zachlipton

zachlipton — Wed, 20 May 2009 01:54:43 -0800

Quite possibly interested! Who wants to throw out a venue?

By: gursky

gursky — Wed, 20 May 2009 20:55:44 -0800

i'll throw this out there so that it can be considered, and possibly even rejected: the Thirsty Bear (warning: sound on website).

i just picked that out of a Frommer's guide my roommate has, as it was the one that sounded best. but i'm happy to toss the idea if there's somewhere better to meet.

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Thu, 21 May 2009 01:08:21 -0800

Well, that's quite conveniently located for me anyway. I haven't been there on a friday night, but I'm intrepid, so let's say meet there at 7!

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Thu, 21 May 2009 14:00:42 -0800

Oh, we can do better than Thirsty Bear! San Francisco has much better places to eat and drink and be merry--what about another meetup at Frjtz?

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Thu, 21 May 2009 19:20:30 -0800

I do like Frjtz better than the Thirsty Bear.

By: gursky

gursky — Sat, 23 May 2009 00:01:07 -0800

yay! my throwing out a place accomplished something. i have no idea which places are good, so if Frjtz is better, let's go there.

Frjtz at 7? i'll be the bald girl, most likely with a backpack. i might say "eh?" a lot.

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 23 May 2009 07:53:46 -0800

Even though I can't come (wish I could!), we learned at the last meetup at Frjtz that they take reservations! For those of you who were there, remember the back table we were all at? Reservations. So you could try that. Have fun and eat a lot of frjtz and drink a lot of beer for me.

By: roll truck roll

roll truck roll — Sat, 23 May 2009 09:43:37 -0800

It occurs to me that there is more than one Frjtz, and although it's clear to me that you all are talking about the one in the Mission, that may not be clear to gursky.

I, unfortunately, will not be there.

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 23 May 2009 10:56:57 -0800

An excellent point, roll truck roll. You want the Frjtz at 590 Valencia, in the Mission. It's a 5-minute walk from the 16th St BART station.

By: gursky

gursky — Sat, 23 May 2009 12:39:22 -0800

ah, thanks very much for that! i would have had the worst meetup all alone at the wrong Frjtz..!

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Sat, 23 May 2009 15:16:48 -0800

Okay, I just made reservations for ~20 people, for the big table in the back.

Friday, June 5
7 p
Frjtz at 590 Valencia

By: potch

potch — Sat, 23 May 2009 15:46:35 -0800

I shall be there.

By: gursky

gursky — Sat, 23 May 2009 16:03:44 -0800

thanks, mattdidthat!

By: R343L

R343L — Sat, 23 May 2009 20:57:11 -0800

Why is it always at Frjtz? I like it, but it's not *that* good people, really! I'm actually not sure I understand the antipathy to Thirsty Bear .... the beer is cheaper (since it's not imported Belgian); the plates are very good for the price; but perhaps I've just only had very good experiences there ...

But ... Frjtz it is! No guarantees from me, but maybe.

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Sat, 23 May 2009 23:52:05 -0800

Well, I'm not, you know, married to Frjtz, so if someone wants to propose something different/better, please speak up!

I just think if gursky is coming all the way from Canada we can find something better than Thirsty Bear's mediocre food and beer. But that's me.

By: team lowkey

team lowkey — Sun, 24 May 2009 02:39:59 -0800

Thirsty Bear is decent, but not great for a meet-up. It's always packed, with crappy loud house music, and the beer can only be described as "okay". It's not always Frjtz, but Frjzt is better than Thirsty Bear.

By: R343L

R343L — Sun, 24 May 2009 08:31:38 -0800

I guess I must have only been there on good days ... it wasn't that crowded, I thought the beer was surprisingly good and everyone in my group loved the food. Maybe their food is really variable? Anyway ...

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Sun, 24 May 2009 10:11:54 -0800

Yeah, seriously, this is my 4th Metafilter meetup at Frjtz. Let's keep it there, for less confusion's sake, but next time mix it up. I never get sick of crepes and fries anyway, so who am I to complain.

By: team lowkey

team lowkey — Sun, 24 May 2009 12:22:23 -0800

Yeah, the only meet-ups I've been to in SF have been at Frjtz or 21A. They both work pretty well, and it's hard to argue with success, but there's got to be some other places worth trying. The only cool places I can think of are too expensive or inaccessible.

I don't mean to slag Thirsty Bear too much. I used to meet my carpool there every day after work, so I'm pretty burnt out on it. It was hard to find three empty seats in the evening. The food is good, and the beer is good. But of all the brewpubs in the bay area, I'd rate their beer near the bottom. It's still better than the beer in most bars; we're just spoiled.

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:14:18 -0800

Okay, what about Cha Cha Cha, in the Mission?

By: gursky

gursky — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:19:42 -0800

side note: i'm staying at a hostel near Ellis/Larkin. googling has yielded little about safety after hours. is it a sketchy area? i'd prefer to walk wherever possible since i'm a lowly student, so if i walk back to the hostel at 11, is that alright? or is it an area where i'd be better of taking a bus/cab?

By: roll truck roll

roll truck roll — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:27:26 -0800

I live in the neighborhood where you're staying. I actually like it a lot, and neither my wife nor I have every really felt unsafe there.

But the funny thing is that feeling unsafe and being unsafe are pretty closely linked to one another. So if you're not used to spending time in this kind of neighborhood, then you might want to cab it after dark. I've really only ever been in the touristey parts of Toronto, so I honestly don't know how it compares.

The good news is that the hostel where you're staying (assuming it's the HI one?) is actually the best one in the city. The Fisherman's Wharf hostel is in a prettier environment, but since it's on federal land, they have to allow everyone and they can't kick crazy people out without calling the park police first.

By: gursky

gursky — Sun, 24 May 2009 15:13:41 -0800

i'm definitely okay with spending time in a seemingly-seedy neighbourhood, as long as i'm safe. i don't mind sketchy people about so long as they don't bother me if i don't bother them.

yeah, i'm staying at the HI hostel. i've heard good things and it was cheap enough. good to hear it's better than the FW location because i was having second thoughts.

thanks for the info!

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Sun, 24 May 2009 15:46:43 -0800

Okay, Cha Cha Cha has a reservation available for June 5 at 7:15, for ~20 people, but it's a 2-hour maximum, unless someone wants to grab the reservation right after it as well. (That's a bit unethical for me, unless we can guarantee lots of food and beverage consumption.)

By: gingerbeer

gingerbeer — Sun, 24 May 2009 18:20:53 -0800

I am still sad that I can't make this meet up. Not to derail any plans, but the Edinburgh Castle has been the site of at least one meet up, and is very very close to where Gursky is staying.

By: R343L

R343L — Sun, 24 May 2009 20:38:07 -0800

Oooh! Edinburgh castle! I haven't been there in years, but I'd love to go back. I don't know that they have much in the way of food though. Fish and chips? Anything else? I suppose they wouldn't care if you ordered in pizza or whatever ....

By: lapolla

lapolla — Mon, 25 May 2009 00:54:44 -0800

i'll try to make it to this meetup. i've only been to one before, but it was a lot of fun, and was at frijtz. the service there was really impressive - they handled an unexpected, large group with efficiency race and good cheer. the one bad thing about frijtz is that the seated environment did make it somehwat hard to mingle. there were several people i never got to speak with that night. even so, it would be better than thirsty bear - which is fine for small groups but on a friday night after work, it'll be really crowded and loud. i love the idea of the edinburgh castle - lots of room to move around; plenty of food options nearby that can be brought to the bar; close to the hostel where gursky will stay... and they have a great whisky selection.

By: lapolla

lapolla — Mon, 25 May 2009 00:56:06 -0800

grace. dammit, not race.

By: special-k

special-k — Mon, 25 May 2009 13:05:48 -0800

I'll try to make this one. I do like Cha Cha Cha although I haven't been there in years. There will be another sf meetup soon. Rhapsodie is coming to sf and we could go to Edinburgh Castle then.
It will be between 17-22.
rtha/gingerbeer: Will you guys be around then?

By: jasper411

jasper411 — Tue, 26 May 2009 14:18:54 -0800

Though the food is terrific, Cha Cha Cha on Haight is the NOISIEST PLACE IN THE UNIVERSE. I can't even walk by there when the door's open without feeling a bomb blast of noise. Just sayin' - if there's a meetup there, forget about talking to anyone except the person right next to you.

Not sure about the Cha Cha Cha in the Mission (between 19th and 20th) - I went there early (right around 5) once, and it wasn't too bad, but I have no idea what it's like later.

Having a meetup Edinburgh would be awesome, if a band's not playing. Of course, it's a bar, so everyone would have to be over 21 (not a problem for me, but still).

By: gingerbeer

gingerbeer — Tue, 26 May 2009 18:52:44 -0800

> It will be between 17-22.
rtha/gingerbeer: Will you guys be around then?

yes, we're around then - Saturday or Sunday would be good.

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Tue, 26 May 2009 23:28:08 -0800

If folks would prefer Edinburgh Castle, please speak up so I can cancel the reservation at Frjtz!

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Wed, 27 May 2009 21:48:18 -0800

For simplicity sake, let's keep the Frjtz reservation...maybe we can turn this event into a 'Metafilter is about to temporarily throw down the banhammer at Frjtz, so let's all come watch' type event; a last hurrah for Frjtz; an homage to all the MeFites who we've missed 'round these parts (even though they kinda needed to go).

Then in a few weeks we go to Edinburgh Castle.

By: gryftir

gryftir — Thu, 28 May 2009 00:21:15 -0800

Sadly, I have Friday night plans, but I can hang around an hour or so. I basically always have Friday plans... maybe next meetup can be a Sat or Sun?

By: special-k

special-k — Thu, 28 May 2009 12:01:37 -0800

Yes gryftir, the next one will be on a Satuday (June 20^th).

By: gingerbeer

gingerbeer — Sat, 30 May 2009 11:22:18 -0800

So it sounds like we're also planning a meet up on Saturday June 20th at the Edinburgh Castle, at, say, 6 pm? Should we start another thread for it, or just sidebar this?

By: special-k

special-k — Sat, 30 May 2009 15:27:56 -0800

I was planning to start another thread but wanted to wait till this meet up was done (so people wouldn't get confused). But I am also happy to just sidebar this thread.

By: rhapsodie

rhapsodie — Sat, 30 May 2009 17:34:33 -0800

Am really looking forward to my first meetup on the 20th!

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 30 May 2009 21:41:17 -0800

Woo Castle! Beer n fish n chips n scotch n mefites!

By: gursky

gursky — Sun, 31 May 2009 20:49:39 -0800

sorry about the friday thing, gryftir! that's my fault - it's the only night i have free when i'm in SF.

also, just to make sure i've not messed this up in my head: Frjtz (in the Mission) on Friday at 7 pm, yes?

By: potch

potch — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 22:42:49 -0800

also, just to make sure i've not messed this up in my head: Frjtz (in the Mission) on Friday at 7 pm, yes?

Well, that's where I'll be.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 21:28:28 -0800

Oooh, I'll be in the Greater Bay Area tomorrow night with Mrs. filthy light thief and a posse, but I'm not sure if I can talk them into it. Our place is only 1.5 miles away (somewhat near Haight-Ashbury), so maybe I can talk them into popping in for a bit. My big plan is to get to 10 6th Street by later that night (GoldSweat, free bmore/ haus/ hiphop/ grubstep/ glitch/ dancehall/ gold-classics/ re-mix/ re-edit dance night), but again I need to convince some people.

Is the food good for a meal, or better for appetizers?

By: gingerbeer

gingerbeer — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 22:07:08 -0800

You could have either a meal or appetizers there. In addition to the fries they have crepes and salads and so on. It's a full kitchen.

By: filthy light thief

filthy light thief — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 10:49:48 -0800

gingerbeer - thanks! I should have opened the menu (PDF), but figured someone who has been there could judge the serving portions or things of that sort.

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 13:38:02 -0800

You think y'all will still be there at 9ish? We might be running late.

By: zsazsa

zsazsa — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 14:38:07 -0800

I'll be there tonight.

By: gryftir

gryftir — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:33:23 -0800

Damn... Can't make it this time folks.

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:47:41 -0800

iamkimiam: We'll make an extra effort to keep the party going!

By: mattdidthat

mattdidthat — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:54:30 -0800

Hey, I'm running late too, so if you get there at 7:00, the reservation's for ~20, at the big table in the back, and the reservation is for MetaFilter/Matt.

By: potch

potch — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:14:43 -0800

on my way now!

By: aubilenon

aubilenon — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 20:22:48 -0800

oops, a little late, but now some of us are here now!

By: rtha

rtha — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 22:47:31 -0800

Just home from our previous engagement; was it fun? Got pix?

By: potch

potch — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 16:27:24 -0800

Not a huge turnout, but I had a total blast last night guys! Favorites for everyone. :)

By: potch

potch — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 16:29:18 -0800

Also:

gursky, if you left last night because you thought nobody was coming, that's a total bummer, and I'm sorry we missed you!

By: iamkimiam

iamkimiam — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 18:30:03 -0800

I had a super fun time last night! Thanks, and looking forward to the next meetup. Soon. And not at Frjtz.

By: rtha

rtha — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 19:40:26 -0800

Me too! June 20th, Edinburgh Castle, right?

By: gursky

gursky — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 19:59:27 -0800

aww, i'm sorry! i last checked this on thursday, and was out all day friday.

i got to frjtz at 7, had a drink and waited around...but by 7.40, figured either i had missed the "can't make it!" posts at the last minute or that no one was coming. i thought i should try to fit in something else while i was in SF so i left.

i should have been more patient. :( i'm sorry!!!

frjtz is cool, though! i liked the atmosphere!