Hayes Street's Bread & Butter Shuts Down, Likely Due To Rent Hike

Hayes Street's Bread & Butter Shuts Down, Likely Due To Rent HikePhoto: Camden Avery/Hoodline
Camden Avery
Published on October 07, 2016

In a story that's become all too common in San Francisco, Bread & Butter, the cafe at 1901 Hayes St. in NoPa, has closed its doors due to an apparent rent hike. 

A letter to patrons posted in the window reads: "We would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our regulars, whom we missed yesterday. Thank you very much. All of us at Bread & Butter appreciate your patronage throughout the last five years. We especially appreciate all of you that were always so kind to our staff. We enjoyed serving you."

Though the letter doesn't mention the reason for the closure, a tipster who spoke with one of the owners said it was the result of a rent increase. The owners of Bread & Butter haven't responded to email and telephone queries, but we'll keep you posted if and when we hear more.

As of this morning, the cafe is locked up, with a note to neighbors on the window and nobody inside.

Bread & Butter opened five years ago at the corner of Ashbury and Hayes, in a location formerly occupied by a cafe called Cup-A-Joe and, in the more distant past, by the Lowell Pharmacy. Its closure comes as the nearby Haight Street corridor is facing an unusually strong surge in storefront closures and vacancies estate market.

Bread & Butter's website indicates that it may still be operational as a consulting agency based on Sutter Street, with services available to new and existing restaurants seeking improvement.

Thanks to tipsters Madalyn F., Kieran, Karen and Lizzie L.