Mission Mission

I’m in New York this week visiting Mission expats and had to make a trip to vegan treats mecca BabyCakes NYC. For the uninitiated, BabyCakes has won lots of awards, notably New York magazine’s 2006 award for the best cupcake in New York. Just to confirm: not best vegan cupcake, just straight-up best cupcake. They’ve received countless other blue ribbons, trophies, and fan letters since then.

While I was buying my heavenly blueberry muffin and chewy oatmeal raisin cookie, pictured below, I asked the girl at the counter how long it would be before we got a BabyCakes of our very own. She said it would be awhile, since they are currently opening one in Chicago, but eventually we will get one, and IT WILL BE IN THE MISSION.

There you have it! Straight from the horse’s mouth. I motion we all start taking photos of empty storefronts and sending them to Erin McKenna so she has a new bakery to dream about while she works on her other new project (i.e. the baby she is growing in her belly). Until then, you can check out all their locations here and plan vacations accordingly.

It’s no surprise that Bernal Heights has a completely different class of theft problems. Stroller theft, to be exact. It’s said that a nice stroller can fetch up to $100 on the black market.

Nice try at security here pops, but anyone carrying a hex wrench could detach that handle in minutes, leaving you with a long walk home carrying a sobbing baby. Here are some time-tested tips:

1. Cover the stroller with stickers. A thief is less likely to want to deal with removing a bunch of stickers to make the item sellable.
2. Get a beater stroller. Sorry, but having nice things comes at a cost. Spare yourself the heartbreak of losing something extremely valuable. I hear www.strollersdirect.com has some decent rides that wont break the bank.
3. Leave an ugly decoy baby in the stroller while it is unattended. Nobody wants an ugly baby.

[Snapped in Bernal Heights, Sunday]

The Corner AND Weird Fish got sold to some Boogaloo’s guy or something. The Corner will become a European-style cafe called the Perch. Weird Fish is staying the same, but it’ll close for a bit for renovations. Eater SF reports:

Expect Weird Fish to close this Saturday, allowing time for a few interior tweaks and the necessary permits to come through. It should reopen in early to mid-March. The Perch’s debut will happen about two months thereafter, complete with minor decor refinements and the aforementioned totally new Euro small plates shtick.

Read on.

[Photo by Google Maps]

They’ll be at FIFTY24SF at 4pm apparently (before heading to their sold out headlining gig at the Regency later tonight). High on Gold reports:

The group will be presenting a special, one-night only installation to coincide with their tour stop in San Francisco in support of their newest LP, TEN$ION. In addition to the installation, Die Antwoord will be presenting and releasing a special collector’s vinyl sculpture of Evil Boy, made in collaboration with Good Smile Company. Select vinyl pieces will be hand-detailed on by Die Antwoord’s Ninja. [link]

They played Soft Bulletin in its entirety, fueled in part by at least one trip to Zeitgeist.

Rolling Stone was on the scene:

Before launching into it, [Flaming Lips frontman Wayne] Coyne invited Noise Pop’s producers onstage and presented them with a certificate that came directly from San Francisco Mayer Ed Lee, declaring February 21st- 26th Noise Pop Week. As if local music fans hadn’t known that already, for the past 20 years.

Read on for the full review.

[Photos by C'mon Pony and Drew Beck]

And there’s a cozy bench in front of it so’s you can put your feet up!

Noise Pop 2012 continues at Bottom of the Hill (and lots of other venues) through the weekend. Fresh & Onlys play there tonight, Thao and John Vanderslice tomorrow and Bob Mould Friday.

This Saturday, Debaser celebrates its 4th anniversary with a special party at the Elbo Room, featuring 90s rock downstairs, 90s hip hop upstairs, and prizes for the best 90s rock and hip hop T-shirts. RSVP and invite your friends!

This will apparently also be the last Debaser in its current format. Henceforth and through the end of 2012, Debaser will take place on the 2nd Saturday of every month at the Knockout, and each Debaser will use music from one year only (but spanning both rock and hip hop), starting with 1989 and ending with 1999. You can RSVP to the first of this series here.

[Photo via treatzone on Flickr]

Girl Walk // All Day is a super cute and life-affirming dance music video, featuring a bunch of people improv-dancing their way across New York to the entirety of Girl Talk’s album All Day. It’ll be closing off SF IndieFest tomorrow night at the Roxie Theater with a screening and accompanying dance party.

Here’s a little more about the film, plus a trailer:

A young dancer finds herself bored with her ballet rehearsal. One day, she impulsively quits, then takes a ferry to the city. Feeling incredibly inspired by what she sees, Anne dances her way across New York, using the city as her stage. Throughout her journey, she meets characters of all types, including a series of like-minded dancers, who’ll inspire new movements, engage her in small battles, and teach her to fear, love, laugh and live anew. From the ferry to museums, subways, ball games, bridges, bodegas, graveyards, flower shops, and more, Anne’s journey will bring her far and wide as the city explodes with dance!

Will this optical illusion be the one that finally unseats “Old-lady-with-cartoonishly-large-nose-or-comely-lass-looking-away“? I think so. Snatch it up before it becomes the next classic.

By Octavio Ocampo, the guy who did the freaky Don Quijote one.

[22nd and Mission]

There were lines around the block last time American Tripps was at the Secret Alley, by like 9pm.

RSVP and invite your friends, and don’t be tardy!