Meeting the Neighbors

From the beginning of this endeavor, a major part of our restaurant business plan was to help build and develop a struggling neighborhood in San Francisco. As I've mentioned before, the neighborhood we've chosen has had a long history of misguided development: Many of the buildings in a three-block radius are vacant and have fallen into disrepair. 6th and Market (just 2 blocks away) is considered the epicenter of the area targeted by the City for aggressive redevelopment, a home for the homeless, drug dealers and peep show. For many, this is an understandable deterrent to move into the neighborhood. However, for some visionaries it is an opportunity; An opportunity to engage the community in a personal way and to help a poorly served neighborhood recover from decades of downturn. Adam Mesnick at Deli Board is this type of visionary. He embraces the eclectic residents of Mid-Market and has carved out a niche for himself in the local lunch scene: BEST SANDWICHES, ever.

I met Adam yesterday. it was a sunny morning that I spent inside, cleaning up the remnants of drywall from our recently-demolished former tenant's office kitchen. I walked around the corner to Deli Board and was promptly greeted by a perky order-taker that highly recommended the classic Reuben ("I woke up and was pretty hungover and have been looking forward to a Reuben all day myself"). I had been emailing with Adam and asked if he was in. A few minutes later he appeared, smiling all the way, still wiping his hands of sandwich fix-ins. We chatted briefly about how great it would be to help clean up the neighborhood, what it takes to make a great sandwich (a lot of hard work) and the trials and tribulations of making food in San Francisco (so many permits!). During our five minute chat, 6-7 regular customers came by to pick up sandwiches. Adam knew each one by name and, in most cases, knew their favorite order. In a grassroots sort of way, this type of personal, honest business relationship between individuals is what helps neighborhoods come together and communities grow.

I am thrilled to have Adam and Deli Board as neighbors and hope to meet more people like him as we put down roots in Mid-Market.

Oh yeah, the reuben was fantastic! Get one, today.