Exploratorium, an interactive museum, moved from the Palace of Fine Arts to Pier 15 in Embarcadero. With more than 330,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor exhibit space, the facility has standing room for 4,000 guests and seats 1,600 for events. Smaller spaces are available, as well, including the observatory terrace, which seats 100 or holds 190 for receptions, and a 200-seat theater.
Inspired by European nightclubs, Audio Discotech opened in mid-August in the SoMa neighborhood as a haven for dance enthusiasts. The 3,500-square-foot venue, designed by Josh Rowland, will have a sunken, spring-loaded dance floor, gold and mirror accents, and a 45-foot-long tufted wall embedded with more than 1,000 LED lights. DJs will spin on a Funktion One sound system that is installed and tuned by Sound Investment; the space also features 1,200 square feet of acoustical paneling and 3-D projections. The venue is available for buyouts.
Novela, a literary-theme bar, opened May 31 at the intersection of Union Square and the SoMa district. The 3,500-square-foot space juxtaposes old and new with a vintage book collection lining the walls and artwork representing historic novel characters. The bar is divided into dedicated areas including the Hemingway Room, which accommodates 40 and features a large birdcage lighting fixture and a mosaic tile bar.
The Chanric Inn reopened in the spring following a renovation from new innkeepers Joel Haddad and Jim Dollard. For corporate retreats or other overnight events, the seven-room inn can be bought out. The inn has exterior patio space with a fireplace, a swimming pool, and a whirlpool.
Mason Pacific, an elegant 850-square-foot bistro at the intersection of Nob Hill, Russian Hill, and Chinatown, seats 48 and features leather banquettes and bistro chairs, along with a small marble-topped bar. Chef Sean McTiernan's menu focuses on simple, seasonal dishes.
Roka Akor's newest outpost opened in Jackson Square June 27. The staple in the restaurant is the central robata grill that offers open charcoal cuisine and is surrounded by a shou-sugi-ban counter which seats as many as 10 guests. The two-level, 8,681-square-foot steak, seafood, and sushi restaurant can hold 110 guests for a sit-down dinner, 16 in the private dining room, 400 for cocktail receptions in the dining room and Roka Bar, and 150 for a cocktail reception in the Roka Bar.
Opened at the Lafayette Park Hotel & Spa in August, the Park Bistro & Bar replaces the 27-year-old Duck Club. A renovation of the space imparted a European country farmhouse look, and the new menu emphasizes steaks and shared plates. The main dining room seats 120 while the private Wayside Room seats 15. The covered patio was also renovated and now has two fire pits and lounge seating.
Located adjacent to the buzzy new Hotel Zetta, Cavalier is a 135-seat restaurant with an equestrian theme. Designed by Ken Fulk, the interior is divided into four unique spaces with leather banquettes, white tablecloths, and framed prints and statues of horses and British dog-hunting scenes. The menu serves a modern take on British cuisine. The Cavalier comes from the same team behind Marlow and Park Tavern.
The popular burger chain Umami Burger continues its expansion with the opening of an Oakland outpost in July. The 100-seat restaurant has a full bar with cocktails, beer, and wine, and offers a specialty burger called the Queso Fundido Burger topped with house-made queso and chorizo fundido sauce.
Opened in August, La Urbana serves contemporary Mexican cuisine in a setting designed by Garduño Arquitectos to reflect urban Mexico City. Its L-shaped bar is a focal point of the space and the Mezcal-focused bar menu features more than 30 different varieties of the spirit. The restaurant seats 90, and the glass-walled private dining room, the Mezcaleria, seats 10. Later in the fall, an adjoining space dubbed the Mercado with folding tables and chairs will open.
The Chicago Cubs are opening an $84 million spring training facility in Mesa set to open by the end of the year. Built on the site of the the old Riverview Golf Course, the complex will include a 15,000-seat stadium with six suites, six restroom and concession areas around the concourse, and a 65,000-square-foot clubhouse and training center. Several areas are being built for groups including a left field rooftop party area, party decks along third base and first base, a right field party tent, and a kids area. Other features include a 120-person theater in the clubhouse, a picnic area, and a site for food trucks. Design touches include a cantilever roof, and light towers recall Chicago's Wrigley Field.
This fall the Royal Palms Resort and Spa renovated its restaurant, T. Cook's, and added a new bar concept, the Mix Up Bar. The interiors from Bar Napkin Productions took inspiration from the colors of the desert and added boldly colored chairs, iron chandeliers, and rustic wooden tables. A private dining room at T. Cook's seats 12. The bar also has a space for small events, the Study, which seats 10. To accompany the redesign, new executive chef Paul McCabe developed a fresh menu.
The JW Marriott Desert Ridge debuted a dining concept in September, Stonegrill, which replaced the former Blue Sage restaurant. Among the menu items are baked cage-free poached eggs with short rib; achiote grilled tofu and corn lettuce wraps; and applewood-smoked chicken. Stonegrill seats 225 in the restaurant and another 125 on its patio overlooking the resort’s Sage Court lawn.
Also new to the JW Marriott Desert Ridge is Twenty6 Lounge, which also opened in September. The airy lounge features charcuterie, flatbreads and a gelato bar. The space has a modern Southwestern design with weathered woods, exposed brick, and sandstone. It seats 162 and overlooks a 100-seat patio that is studded with fire pits. A trellis has a built-in cooling system in warmer weather.
Vig Fillmore opened its third location in September. Featuring the historic William Edward Cavness House's brick interior and 100-year-old wood flooring, the 2,000-square-foot tavern is a combination of old and new. Guests can enjoy their meal by the outdoor fireplace, or play a friendly game in the Vig's boccie ball court. Buyouts are available.
The Gladly, opened this September, is a contemporary American restaurant in Anchor Centre in the Biltmore neighborhood. The space offers several spaces for events, including a patio that seats 55 or holds 65 for receptions, a semiprivate dinning room for 25, and a large private dinning room that seats 56 or holds 75 for receptions; full buyouts are available.
Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale recently changed 30 of its 210 rooms into "green rooms," offering earth-friendly features such as bulk amenity dispensers in the bathroom (with the same L’Occitane products as standard rooms), LED lighting, canvas linen and laundry bags, and other items. The Sonoran Desert property has 35,920 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space.
Wine Warehouse opened in North Scottsdale in September, combining the functions of a retail store, social club, wine bar, and warehouse. Guests can browse the wall-to-wall selection of wine and beer and enjoy their drinks at the tasting bar, at indoor table seating, or in the large patio. Buyouts of the 3,300-square-foot venue are available.
Kimpton’s Hotel Palomar Phoenix recently opened Repose Salon & Spa. The second-floor space has 15 stylist stations, four treatment rooms for massages, two spa pedicure chairs, and two manicure tables. Guests can relax in a private lounge before and after treatments. The sleek space has floor-to-ceiling glass walls that overlook downtown Phoenix.
Popular food truck Pizza People opened a permanent location on Central Avenue in September. The 2,900-square-foot pub accommodates 100 guests inside and 40 outside. There is a lounge area with community tables for large groups, a bar for sports fans, and a private room. The pub serves the truck's signature pizzas as well as pub fare and an extensive drinks menu.
AmericanAirlines Arena, home to the N.B.A.'s Miami Heat, recently renovated its Flagship Lounges, which are available for private events. The 2,400-square-foot lounges have their own bar, sound system, and direct access to a private garage. They accommodate 80 seated guest or 150 for receptions.
Crush, a restaurant from the Morton Group, opened in December at MGM Grand. The 7,000-square-foot restaurant is divided into two rooms, a garden-like atrium that seats 130 and the 100-person main dining room, which has a separate private dining space for 40 guests. Each dining room has its own bar. The shared-plates menu includes dishes such as shrimp risotto, roasted cauliflower, and wood-fired pizzas.
A London-based brand known for gourmet chocolate stores, Hotel Chocolat is jumping into the café game with the Cocoa Bar-Café on Newbury Street. An intimate space for 16 guests, the café will double in size from March through November, when the weather will permit alfresco dining. For a full buyout, 40 guests can nibble on a variety of chocolate-based treats as well as sandwiches. The café also offers the option of hosting private tastings. It opened in December.
The event space Lot 21 Studio offers 5,000 square feet of flexible space for executive meetings, events, and photo shoots. The venue, which opened in January in the Dogpatch district, has modular wall units and audiovisual equipment, as well as a mezzanine level with a lounge and a full kitchen. It holds 200 for receptions, 150 for banquets, or 60 theater-style.
Catering to the tech-savvy start-up crowd, the 86-room Epiphany Hotel opened in Palo Alto in May. The boutique property includes flexible meeting space designed by IDEO including the 250-square-foot Tinderbox boardroom and the 400-square-foot Accelerator room, which can be combined with the boardroom for receptions of as many as 100 guests. The hotel includes four rooftop hospitality suites that each hold 18 guests boardroom-style or 35 guests theater-style. They can be combined for receptions of 150 guests and are each attached to a terrace with views of Stanford University and the Santa Cruz Mountains.
A new venue at Fort Mason Center, the Interval is a library, bar, museum, and café as well as home to the Long Now Foundation. The quirky space from design-build firm Because We Can includes references to the space's former life as a forge and machine shop such as a concrete floor and a table base made of Geneva wheels. It also has an "ambient painting" from Brian Eno, a foundation board member, that constantly changes patterns and colors in millions of combinations. The space holds about 100 people for receptions but also offers a semiprivate area for 25 people that includes a private booth room with views of the Golden Gate Bridge. The venue has a Meyer Galileo 616 audiovisual system. It opened in June.
Urban Putt, a high-concept indoor miniature golf course in the Mission, opened in June. The whimsically designed 14-hole course is available for groups and holds about 200 people throughout the entire venue, which also includes a restaurant, called UP, a bar, and two private dining rooms.
Pabu Izakaya, a downtown izakaya and sushi bar from Ken Tominaga and Michael Mina, opened in July. The interior design from Bishop Pass incorporates the concepts of air and earth with details such as a suspended installation of Japanese lanterns and earthy materials such as Douglas fir trellises and booths, stone and concrete walls, and oak floors. The main dining room seats 76, while a bar and lounge area seats 80. There is also a 22-person sushi bar. A private dining room seats 22, while a terrace seats 20. Buyouts are available.
The independent event space Terra Gallery & Event Venue in the SoMa district made several upgrades to the 24,000-square-foot property this spring. They include new audiovisual equipment for its in-house DJ services including a Bose surround-sound system with Mic and QSCK12 speakers; a new green-screen photo booth with commercial-quality lighting, projection, and several backdrops; increased bandwidth and more access points to accommodate more wireless devices; and new LED lighting on both floors. Its upper level, the Terra Gallery, seats 400 or holds 725 for receptions. The lower-level space, called Mer, seats 200 or holds 725 for receptions and connects to a landscaped outdoor space that can be tented.
Wente Vineyards debuted the Winemakers Studio, a wine education studio with a tastings bar and a private tasting space, in May. Located in Livermore Valley, the space is available for teambuilding activities or as a breakout option for meetings. The Winemakers Table is a 10-person private area for education sessions on topics such as wine and cheese pairings.
Palm House, a restaurant that serves tropical comfort food with California influences, opened in April in the Cow Hollow district. The design mixes rich mahogany with soft tropical tones and quirky touches such as a display of LED-lit vintage birdcages hung from the 35-foot ceilings. A collection of Caribbean plants also evokes the tropics. The restaurant has 130 seats including at the bar and on the patio. Its private dining space, called Captain's Quarters, seats 12.
Westbrae Biergarten, an outdoor venue in Berkeley, opened in May. The venue seats 104 at Bavarian-style bench seating and fire pits with Adirondack chairs. It serves draft beers and wines, cider, and a menu from Pedro's Brazil Cafe. Buyouts are available.
Opened this spring in Union Square, Bartlett Hall serves a seasonally driven menu along with barrel-aged cocktails and house-brewed beers. Located in a historic building, the venue has preserved original design elements such as stylized moldings and steel columns and also has a fireplace and exposed brewing equipment. The space contains a lounge and bar area, a dining room, and a private dining space that seats 40. Overall, it seats 140 and holds 200 for receptions.
New York’s World Famous Bedroom Arcade allows guests to play a collection of classic video games such a Frogger, Ms. Pac-Man, and Donkey Kong from the comfort of a prewar Murray Hill apartment. Suggested for intimate groups of about 20, the home’s living room and kitchen are also available to gamer guests.
How about an airplane in flight as a venue for an event? When Entourage returned from a yearlong hiatus, HBO needed a dramatic way to launch the fifth season of its flagship comedy. A typical screening and after-party didn’t seem to fit with the show’s expensive campaign and jet-set vibe, so the marketing team came up with the idea of an on-brand airplane. HBO approached Virgin America, which fit with the show's aesthetic. The airline was about to debut a new flight service between New York and Las Vegas, so the pair agreed to a joint promotion. The result included a private Virgin-hosted party inside a JFK airport hangar, photo ops with the show’s cast and Virgin Group chairman Richard Branson, an in-flight premiere of the season opener, and an after-party at the Playboy Club in Las Vegas.
In Oakland’s Jack London Square, new activity venue Plank offers 50,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space and includes bowling, billiards, boccie, and a beer garden. Its 15,000 square feet of outdoor space seats 325 and includes three 60-foot boccie courts, fire pits, picnic-style seating, and bay views. Inside the 34,000-square-foot venue are 12 bowling lanes and six private, boutique lanes. The venue can host private events for as many as 1,000 guests in its Boardroom space, which can be divided into smaller private and semiprivate areas and includes access to a deck. The venue’s meeting rooms are equipped with audiovisual technology, and planners have a variety of dining and beverage options. It opened in October.
The electric pink bar and lounge Romper Room opened this August, offering space for receptions of as many as 100 people. The 1,300-square-foot venue includes one room with all-leopard-print decor called the Leopard Lounge.
New multiuse venue the Village at 969 Market opened this summer in the Mid-Market neighborhood, offering 17,000 square feet of event space on three different levels. It holds 1,100 for receptions, and banquet setups can be arranged on each floor. Each floor has its own entrance and a distinct vibe. The subterranean lounge and club called the Underground has a brew pub, while the ground floor offers an interactive technology showroom. On the third floor, the XD Center has dramatic skylights. The venue is outfitted with state-of-the-art projection, lighting, Meyer sound equipment, and high-speed Internet. The venue also includes in-house beverage service and a commercial kitchen.
The city’s Lake Merced Boathouse reopened in July after a $3.2 million upgrade to the facility’s interior and exterior. After the two-year renovation, the boathouse now includes a meeting room with a caterer's kitchen. The facility also has large windows overlooking the lake. Its meeting room holds 125 guests, with room for another 30 on the patio.
New food market the Hall opened in September in San Francisco’s Mid-Market neighborhood as a temporary 18-month activation prior to the redevelopment of the building. The Hall can be rented for private events through 2015. Full buyouts of the 4,100-square-foot space accommodate 200 guests for receptions or 100 seated and include use of the expansive indoor bar and communal seating as well as the patio.
Napa’s La Residence hotel is now Senza hotel, and with the rebrand, it now has 41 rooms on a two-acre property with dramatic vineyard views. The makeover included complete renovations to 15 existing guest rooms and the construction of 18 new suites with private patios, as well as updates to the 19th-century Parker mansion, which has eight rooms. The hotel’s conference room holds 70 for receptions or seats 50. The property can accommodate outdoor banquets for 125 people using its lawn and poolside areas. New amenities include a contemporary lobby, an updated dining room, and a heated outdoor pool with cabanas, a remodeled hot tub, and a new outdoor fireplace. The property also has a fitness room and a full spa at its Riposa Center.
New beer destination Richmond Republic Draught House opened in September with gourmet burgers and drafts from Bay Area breweries. For events, the venue offers a 625-square-foot semiprivate room that holds 40 guests for receptions. The elevated space includes a television, a private bathroom, and a view overlooking the bar.
New performance venue Doc’s Lab in North Beach hosts comedy shows, musical performances, and literary events; it can also be booked for private events. The venue, which opened in September, boasts 850 square feet and seats 65 or holds 90 for receptions. The basement space once housed well-known San Francisco comedy club the Purple Onion.
Klyde Cafe & Wine Bar opened in Union Square in October. It has charming, bistro-style decor with details like patterned ceilings, wooden banquets, and tiled floors. The menu includes burgers, pasta, and American classic entrées. While the 800-square-foot restaurant has no private dining areas, it is available for full buyouts. Klyde Cafe seats 49, including eight seats at the bar.
In July, French antique shop the Butler & the Chef began hosting private events in its charming 5,000-square-foot showroom. The shop has more than 200 chairs and a variety of tables available, and to make room for events, the furniture goes into storage. The showroom holds 60 guests for receptions or seats 40.
