This Week In Food: Dungeness Season Approaches

A new cocktail spot arrives in the Mission, Cotogna prepares for a major renovation in the new year, and some illegal Dungeness crab fishing was happening this week in San Mateo County, all in This Week In Food. The biggest food news this week was the opening of T&T Supermarket in the long vacant former Best Buy space at City Center, next to the Geary Boulevard Target. The Asian Canadian chain is a major grocery destination along the lines of H Mart, and it's known for its whole-bird butterflied fried chicken, called Papa Chicken, its extensive bakery offerings, its house brands of dumplings and buns, and its impressive fish counter. The ever-popular and delicious Cotogna will be temporarily closing for a renovation in the new year. Much like its next-door sister restaurant Quince had several years ago, this will be a months-long, extensive renovation, as the SF Standard reports, with the kitchen and prep space needing to expand to 100 or so seats in the restaurant's parklet (the place was designed in the last decade just to serve the 36 seats it has indoors). The closure begins on January 15 and will last about three months, with the pizza oven also getting replaced. A new cocktail spot called Yabani , which will mix Japanese and Arabian flavors on its menu, is opening tonight (November 6) in the former Nihon Whiskey Lounge space (1779 Folsom Street). As Eater tells us , the bar will only be open Fridays and Saturdays for the next couple of month, with a grand opening and fuller hours coming after the new year. Owner Khaled Dajani, who also owns the amaro-focused Bar 821 on Divisadero, has collaborated with beverage director Mohammed Zagha for a new concept to replace Nihon, but retaining some of Nihon's Japanese influence. The focus will be Japanese-style highballs, which will be customizable by spirit and flavor profile. A Korean brunch spot called Neul is heading to the Pistachio Kitchen space in Lowe Pac Heights, as the SF Business Times reports , with a plan to open by mid-December, but three-year-old Pistachio Kitchen has not yet closed. Neul is described as "a modern neighborhood kitchen bringing a fresh take on brunch, coffee and everyday dining... inspired by Korean roots and a love for good food." Some major pizza news: Famed pizzaiolo Anthony Mangieri of Una Pizza Napoletana fame is coming back to San Francisco for two pop-up events on November 16 and 17. On Monday the 16th, Mangieri will be slinging his pies at A16 , as he announced on Instagram, as he celebrates "30 years of Una," and the ticketed event sold out in seconds (maybe thanks to bots). Then on the morning of the 17th, as SFGate reports , Mangieri will be at Linea in the Mission, though the details about that don't seem to have been made public. The Dungeness crab poaching has already begun, ahead of proper Dungeness season. As KRON4 reports , 11 people were cited after they waded into the water with buckets at Thornton State Beach in San Mateo County after dark earlier this week. They were reported by a concerned citizen and cited by California Department of Fish and Wildlife officers for crab fishing out of season, as well as taking undersize crabs, and taking an over-limit number of crabs. Recreational Dungeness crab season opens on Saturday, while the commercial season has once again been delayed due to migrating whales. There's some exciting news down in Menlo Park, where Original Joe's is eyeing its next expansion opportunity. The mayor of Menlo Park apparently made a slightly premature announcement, as Original Joe's hasn't yet signed a lease, but as the Chronicle reports , the local mini-chain is looking to take over the former Left Bank Brasserie space at 635 Santa Cruz Avenue. Japan's biggest curry chain, CoCo Ichibanya , is opening its first Northern California restaurant in mid-December in Cupertino, at 19900 Vallco Parkway. As the Chronicle reports , the 50-seat restaurant follows several others in Southern California and Texas, and the chain has more than 1,000 locations in Japan, and it offers Japanese chicken cutlet curry with customizable toppings, as well as dumplings, spicy teriyaki fried chicken, and curry udon bowls. And it seems like the Chronicle critics felt the pressure or heard the criticism that they ought to be doing more frequent reviews, because they're now coming at a once-a-week clip (still slower than Michael Bauer's one-man operation, but we'll take it). Cesar Hernandez this week has a one-star review of a Japanese spot in San Jose, the donburi-focused chain Hannosuke , which just opened in September. Hernandez says the San Jose location may not be as spectacular as the chain's Tokyo flagship, but it still serves "crackling tempura" and the chain's signature Edomae-style tendon sauce, and there is regularly a line out the door for the restaurant's 22-seat dining room.