Good News SF - July 21, 2023

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAL!!!!

With the Women’s World Cup underway, tonight’s game kicks off the beginning of this year’s World Cup Village SF activation in partnership with Street Soccer USA (SSUSA). Supported by funding from the Mayor’s Economic Recovery Fund and the Rec & Park Department, these activations provide free screenings of the Women’s World Cup in July and August.

Following a hugely successful Men’s World Cup Village that drew 12,000+ spectators in 2022, SSUSA will once again bring the live-streamed Women’s World Cup matches to large, pop-up screens across the City, transforming downtown spaces into an exciting, family-friendly World Cup SF village.

The Women’s World Cup Village kicks off at the Crossing at East Cut, TODAY at 6 pm when Team USA faces off against Vietnam, with an opening celebration, live music, food trucks, and family-friendly activities beginning at 4 p.m. The full event series will take place on:

July 21: The Crossing at East Cut (USA v Vietnam)
July 26: Embarcadero Plaza (USA v Netherlands)
August 5: Golden Gate Park (Round of 16)
August 10: The Crossing at East Cut (Quarterfinals)

Barbenheimer is here - are you ready? Our SF theaters are!

As thousands descend upon the theaters this weekend for the cinematic event of the year, theaters from the AMC, Regal Cinemas, to small indie movie houses like the Balboa Theater and Alamo Drafthouse are excitedly cheering alongside us all as they see the biggest traffic in ticket sales and concessions since before COVID.

Whether you have FOMO and feel the need to see both Oppenheimer and Barbie back to back or needed to see them yesterday or today (today was their official release) or you plan to see them in the next week or so, know this — this theaters are busy! But this is a great thing so have some patience when ordering your popcorn and tip your vendors a little extra. : )

For a full list of all the SF theaters broken down, check out this piece by the SF Standard.

What Doom Loop?

On the topic of the Covid slump — despite what the pandemic and the recent “doom loop” narrative bashing may have done to our city recently, we still seem to remain on top. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes (which is LITERALLY depicted on our city flag) we as a city rise up and above.

In this particular case, we are referring of course to venture capital, which yes, still loves San Francisco.

As the Examiner reported yesterday, despite the market overall being down the Bay Area remained dominant, recording 567 deals with a total value of around $16 billion in the quarter that ended in June.

As the article reports, investors still view the region as a major hub of tech innovation, underlined by the ongoing surge in interest in AI companies.

On the topic of AI, in Q1 of 2023, San Francisco-based AI firms raised $11.1B, nearly half of the $22.7B raised by AI and machine learning startups globally. Of the top 20 Generative AI companies (by dollars raised), 13 are in the Bay Area and 8 are in San Francisco. Those 8 SF companies have raised $15.2B and employ an estimated 3,000 people.

One of the most “legendary” restaurants in the world sits in the heart of San Francisco

Opened in 1849 originally as a coffee cart, Tadich Grill which sits in the middle of the Financial District and is known as an old school institution with its seafood, steak and cocktails was just placed on the world’s most “legendary” restaurants in the world by TasteAtlas.

As Kron4 News reported yesterday, Tadich Grill was only one of two California restaurants to make the list — the other one being a restaurant in Los Angeles. To learn more, check out the article here.

Did you know our Farmers Market reigns supreme?

When it comes to fresh fruits and vegetables I thank the produce gods everyday because being able to live in California and especially San Francisco is such a gift. Our state is the number one agricultural producer in the country, growing 450+ different types of produce locally right here, therefore it makes sense that we also have some of the best farmers markets in the country (let alone the world!).

USA Today recently pulled together a list of the best farmers markets in the country and the San Francisco Ferry Building Farmers Market came in at #7 — do you think its our deliciously sweet and juicy fresh produce or our yummy, locally made cheeses that put us on top?

It’s Michelin Star Time!

Michelin stars have just recently been announced and with that comes a whole new buzz of excitement. Eater, the SF Standard and the Chronicle covered the announcement this past week, the last going into detail of who the winners and losers this past year were and who currently holds stars throughout Northern California. Checkout each of these articles for more information.

Next week: Summer of Awe concludes with “Window” at Grace Cathedral

Over the past month we’ve celebrated Pride, the 4th of July and Sutro Tower’s Birthday, Coit Tower, and next week we are excited to celebrate another pivotal San Francisco landmark, Grace Cathedral, as we close out the “Summer of Awe” series with Illuminate the Arts.

This final installation, “Window” (which will take place July 27 – 29) will include laser cannons atop the roof of the famed Fairmont Hotel in Nob Hill, shooting directly into the “Rose Window” at Grace Cathedral. #WindowSF

All Summer of Awe activations are a partnership between Illuminate and laser experts Nu-Salt Laser International, and Karl the Fog.

Illuminate’s work is fueled by the generosity of individuals across the world, but partial funding for the Summer of Awe has been provided by San Francisco’s Office of Economic and Workforce Development (OEWD) in an effort to positively activate the city for economic recovery. We hope to see you out there enjoying this last one!