Ragazza's back patio is at stake in a crucial hearing today -- and the restaurant needs your help to save it.
Like, immediately.
(But first, some backstory -- bear with us.) Before Ragazza came along, 311 Divisadero was occupied by an oft-renamed restaurant known as Metro Kathmandu/Le Metro Cafe/District 5/etc., which would regularly open up its back patio to diners for weekend brunch service. The patio was a huge attraction. Dozens of reviewers on Yelp raved about it with such terms as "enchanting," "amazing and scenic and romantic and rare," "nice and quiet," and an "unexpected oasis." One diner even wrote, "[I]'d like to get married on that patio." Apparently, though, the patio was illegal. Or rather, the restaurant(s) never got the proper permits for it. Enter Ragazza. In April 2010, Ragazza signed the lease on 311 Divisadero, and soon thereafter applied for a beer and wine license transfer. It was only then that they learned that the existing beer and wine license didn't extend to the garden. Though disappointed, they didn't want to hold up Ragazza's opening by filing for a new beer and wine license. So they opted to delay pursuing the garden for a few months while the restaurant got off the ground. After Ragazza opened in September, they decided to revisit the garden issue, intending to extend the beer and wine license to the garden. And that's when they got even more bad news -- not only did the garden not have a permit for alcohol service, it didn't have one for food service, either. Rather than try to operate the patio illegally, Ragazza chose to go through the proper (and lengthy) permitting process. In early February, they sent a letter to neighbors explaining the restaurant's goals for the space, and inviting them to an informal lunch to discuss the plans in greater detail. They also outlined steps they intended to take to mitigate neighbors' concerns, including:
(But first, some backstory -- bear with us.) Before Ragazza came along, 311 Divisadero was occupied by an oft-renamed restaurant known as Metro Kathmandu/Le Metro Cafe/District 5/etc., which would regularly open up its back patio to diners for weekend brunch service. The patio was a huge attraction. Dozens of reviewers on Yelp raved about it with such terms as "enchanting," "amazing and scenic and romantic and rare," "nice and quiet," and an "unexpected oasis." One diner even wrote, "[I]'d like to get married on that patio." Apparently, though, the patio was illegal. Or rather, the restaurant(s) never got the proper permits for it. Enter Ragazza. In April 2010, Ragazza signed the lease on 311 Divisadero, and soon thereafter applied for a beer and wine license transfer. It was only then that they learned that the existing beer and wine license didn't extend to the garden. Though disappointed, they didn't want to hold up Ragazza's opening by filing for a new beer and wine license. So they opted to delay pursuing the garden for a few months while the restaurant got off the ground. After Ragazza opened in September, they decided to revisit the garden issue, intending to extend the beer and wine license to the garden. And that's when they got even more bad news -- not only did the garden not have a permit for alcohol service, it didn't have one for food service, either. Rather than try to operate the patio illegally, Ragazza chose to go through the proper (and lengthy) permitting process. In early February, they sent a letter to neighbors explaining the restaurant's goals for the space, and inviting them to an informal lunch to discuss the plans in greater detail. They also outlined steps they intended to take to mitigate neighbors' concerns, including:
- Limiting the hours of outdoor service
- Prohibiting live, recorded, or amplified music
- Training staff to assist with noise abatement
- Posting signs to remind patrons to respect neighbors
- Removing any patron who didn't respect the rules
