“Richmond Buzz” is a recurring column on changes, tidbits and other news from the Richmond. Got news? Send us tips at tips@missionlocal.com.
The February sunshine has burned off the fog, for now.
Calls for a national strike in solidarity with Minneapolis late January brought tough decisions upon small business owners. Now, trepidation over federal law enforcement presence in the Bay Area looms ahead of the Super Bowl, despite the Mayor’s assurances.
But this month also has in store a handful of lighter-hearted festivities. Here’s what’s going on in the Richmond District.
The Lunar New Year is nearly upon us, and festivities are taking shape from the Excelsior to the Richmond. Along the outer Balboa corridor, The Richmond Neighborhood Center has organized “Super Horse, Super Hope,” its third annual parade and night market set for Saturday, Feb. 7, from 3 to 8:30 p.m. The free-to-attend festivities began thanks to Sarah Li, the organization’s neighborhood resource coordinator, who hails from mainland China.
“When Sarah came on board with The Richmond Neighborhood Center, there had been no Westside, large-scale Lunar New Year celebration, to our knowledge, ever,” said Yves Xavier, their community programs director. “And so Sarah saw this cultural gap.”
That gap became evident, Xavier said, when lines wrapped around the block at the Richmond Neighborhood Center’s campus for their first Lunar New Year event in 2024.
This year, the celebration will span five blocks (from 35th Ave. to 40th Ave.), each with its own theme. Booths will include more than 100 vendors and community organizations, and Xavier is expecting the turnout to exceed last year’s headcount of some 5,000.
“There’ll be senior activities, family activities,” Xavier said, and plenty of entertainment for “anybody else that loves being out a little later.”
As for the parades — one beginning at 3 p.m., and another at 5 p.m. — expect lion dancers and more than 30 other groups to usher in the year of the horse. They’ll be marshaled by popular Chinese internet personality Zhou Baobao, also called the “Hanfu Lady,” who’s known for dressing in traditional Chinese styles.
As for Li, she’s excited to bring in the new year with family and friends, and said that dumplings, which signify good luck, are in order.
The Balboa Theater will project SB LX live, for free. Photo by Nicholas David.
The day following “Super Horse, Super Hope” is, not coincidentally, the Super Bowl. Those looking for an alternative to the sports-bar watch party may venture to the Balboa Theater at 3630 Balboa St. for free admission to see SB LX live on the silver screen. (Stay long enough after and you may catch a glimpse of infamous director Tommy Wiseau in person.)
Flatscreen-lined watering holes like Steins and The Richmond Republic are also sure to have the game on. Otherwise, check out where else we recommend going around and totally outside of Super Bowl week.
The Plough and Stars this month will host the Hillbilly Robot music series, now in its 11th year.
Irish pub The Plough and Stars at 116 Clement St. will host live music every weekend this month with the “Hillbilly Robot” series, advertised as “an urban Americana music event.” This year marks the 11th annual installment of the event by promoter Shelby Ash.
Pasta Supply Co. will host “Goth Prom” on Feb. 13 and 14. Photo by Nicholas David.
In lieu of typical Valentine’s Day gushiness, Pasta Supply Co. at 236 Clement St. will host its third-annual Goth Prom night. Diners with a preference for gloom (and New Wave music) can head to the restaurant on Feb 13 and 14. A sign outside the restaurant advertised black pasta dishes, opportunities to “shred your ex” (by which they mean a photo), free gothic makeovers and more.
Those closer to Pasta Supply’s Mission District location at 3233 22nd St. can also find the same Goth Prom festivities there.
The Blarney Stone will host “Gothic Valentines” on Feb 15. Photo by Nicholas David.
If two nights of goth Valentine’s weren’t enough, the Blarney Stone at 5625 Geary Blvd. will (by some miracle) also be hosting a “Gothic Valentines” party on Sunday, Feb. 15. That’s right: you could, in theory, spend all three nights of Valentine’s Day weekend at goth parties. Posters outside of the Blarney Stone directed the curious to this Instagram page.
Paul Robertson says he’s prepared for Valentine’s Day. Photo by Nicholas David.
For the more traditionally minded, we spoke with Paul Robertson of the eponymous floral design studio at 14 Clement St. He said he’s more than ready for Valentine’s Day chaos, and will have plenty of arrangements of local flowers to pick from.
In other, less festive business news: it appears that two Vietnamese Pho restaurants in the outer Richmond have closed.
Pho Huong Viet closed, but is set to reopen in March. Photo by Nicholas David.
Pho Huong Viet at 5733 Geary Blvd is taking a month-long hiatus and will reopen March 5, according to a sign out front.
Pho Kim Son appears closed indefinitely. Photo by Nicholas David.
Pho Kim Son at 3614 Balboa St appears to have closed without any apparent timeline to reopen. A sign out front reads “Closed for maintenance — Sorry.” Local patrons have affixed drawings and pleas to reopen to the restaurant’s front door.
Breadbelly is now officially open 7 days a week. Photo by Nicholas David.
Breadbelly on Clement Street was open Tuesday, marking its first week open seven days a week. (It was previously, like many businesses in the neighborhood, open every day except Tuesday.) One employee there predicted it should be a smooth adjustment.
Posters on the door at Everbank on Geary Blvd detail closures at the location. Photo by Nicholas David.
Last month, we reported that Everbank made its presence known on the Geary Boulevard corridor, having taken over Sterling Bank and Trust and rebranding its locations across town.
Now, following those renovations, the outer Richmond branch of Everbank is closing up at 5498 Geary Blvd. on Feb. 27. It’s moving to a bigger space just a few blocks west, at 6001 Geary Blvd. — formerly a branch of the (now shuttered) First Republic Bank — opening March 2, according to a sign out front.
Hamburger Haven on Feb 3 2026. Photo by Nicholas David.
Earlier this week, harrowing videos following a fire at Mel’s Drive-In on Lombard Street circulated online. While that location is closed until further notice, 3355 Geary Blvd. remains in operation (okay, technically just a few blocks east of the Richmond!).
And perhaps now is as good a time as any to remind ourselves that Clement Street’s Hamburger Haven began as an offshoot of the early Mel’s enterprise.
So there’s the Buzz.