Korean Theater Chain With Short Rib Wraps Taking Over AMC Van Ness Space

Expensive popcorn with a side of wontons

CJ-CGV Cinemas, a South Korean theater chain known for futuristic “4D” auditoriums with motion seats and synthesized rain and fog, is expanding to San Francisco, moving into the 14-theater space at 1000 Van Ness that was suddenly vacated by AMC Theaters in February. The Korean chain’s US locations include Los Angeles and Buena Park, where they screen mainstream US and international films and feature traditional theater food with a twist: There’s popcorn and pepperoni pizza — but, in LA at least, every order comes with wontons from Bibigo (the huge Korean brand known for its freezer aisle items), and some Korean style food items are available like short rib wraps with kimchi and short rib quesadillas. CJ-CGV hopes to open in SF in early 2020.

Chis Cosentino is heading to Houston

With a new restaurant, to be called Rosalie Italian Soul, chef Chris Cosentino (Cockscomb, Acacia House) is branching out from the Bay Area (and Portland, where he runs Jackrabbit) to Houston. The TV-friendly chef’s new business is headed to Downtown Houston’s C. Baldwin Hotel in fall 2019, Eater Houston repots.

Restaurants rally around ZeroFoodPrint for Earth Day

For Earth Day (tomorrow, April 20), local restaurants (and some around the country) are pledging to donate $1 per diner to ZeroFoodPrint to offset their carbon emissions. Anthony Myint (The Perennial, Mission Street Food) once called his ZeroFoodPrint system “something between Fair Trade coffee certification, Leed certification, and a voluntary soda tax.” Read more about last year’s efforts here, and take a look at this year’s list of participating restaurants.

Where the Spurs eat in SF

ESPN profiled the dining habits of renowned Spurs coach (and wine aficionado) Gregg Popovich and his team, noting their SF favorites like Kokkari, Seven Hills, Michael Mina, and Saison. “I honestly thought he was just this really hard-nosed, bust-your-ass coach, and that’s how he got them to do it,” restaurateur Michael Mina told ESPN — but watching him coach his players on wine, Mina noted “how gentle [Popovich] was, and how it was about educating in a much different way.”