Thai restaurant Funky Elephant, which was once included in the Michelin Guide (it was a “selection,” but did not receive a star), closed its San Francisco restaurant at the corner of 24th and Valencia streets in the Mission District. The restaurant announced the June 21 closure on Instagram. Funky Elephant debuted in Berkeley in 2018 — that location remains open — and became known for dishes like drunken mussels tossed in chile jam. The San Francisco outpost followed in 2023.
Emeryville’s century-old restaurant the Townhouse, which has been up for sale for years, closed permanently on June 20. The E’ville Eye reported that owner Dan Seng announced he would have to shut down the restaurant if a buyer did not take over the property. The Townhouse dates back to 1926, when fireman Frank Mesnickow used the building as a speakeasy during Prohibition. By the 1990s, it became a fine dining restaurant, according to the E’ville Eye. Seng was a Townhouse regular who took over the business during the pandemic.
Trueburger at 4101 Broadway in Oakland has served its last double cheeseburgers. The hamburger restaurant announced on Instagram that its second outpost was closing after 11 years. Its original location at 146 Grand Ave. will remain open. “Like many independent Oakland businesses, we’ve had a lot of challenges, but the good news is, we’re still here and proud to call Oakland home,” the Instagram post reads.
A longtime Italian restaurant said goodbye to Moraga last month. La Finestra Ristorante closed on June 14, the Bay Area Telegraph reported. Owner Jeff Assadi originally operated La Finestra in Lafayette from 2003 until 2017, when it was destroyed in a wildfire, according to its website. It reopened in Moraga in 2018. La Finestra was known for its Sicilian dishes and as a local favorite for celebrations…