Who says this town isn’t safe anymore? I encountered more security than I ever wanted to see last month at AT&T Park for the promised run of the Olympic torch here in San Francisco, the only North American city to have that privilege. And the only American city that qualified for all the “flaming” jokes to go with it.
   

The scene round he ballpark was high-pressure chaos. A CNN reporter kindly broke through a wall of cops to fetch my credentials for me. The S.F. cops were a little annoyed by the whole thing – but the State Department security detail were downright obnoxious, and one of these fellows with their grey suits and nice lapel pins, actually gave me a shove, credentials or no. Maybe that was a hug sent from Condi Rice. I wandered into the restricted area (the pier from where the torch was eventually launched secretly on a Coast Guard boat for a tour of the bay). There were many, many disappointed people who could not get a glimpse of the storied Olympic torch. Some had traveled thousands of miles for the event. Mayor Gavin was doomed one way or the other. After the melee in Paris a week before, he opted to err on the side of caution.
   

San Francisco cops are usually cool under the pressure of these sorts of things, even friendly to me. The heat from the feds got to be too much, so I repaired to Peter Osborne’s cool, swell, new saloon, Pete’s Tavern, across King Street from the stadium. There I could credibly watch CNN and observe the nearly incredible events that were happening a few yards from me.

Across King Street from the ballpark and the torch-commando Torquemadas is MoMo’s, Osborne’s main restaurant, and I’m glad to see that some of the friendly folk who worked at the now-closed Washington Square Bar & Grill are now working there. Boom Boom … Leslie Asche … Fredy Lopez … and Sarah Jane, who’s been at MoMo’s for all of these 10 years since MoMo’s opened. … By the way, it’s rumored that an East Coast company may soon revitalize the Washbag, and it may soon reopen. … Many of the fans of the Washbag’s famed barman Michael McCourt have followed him over to Amante on Green Street. Dick Underhill was in there the other day, reminiscing about the funeral of Robin Williams’s brother Todd, affectionately known as “Toad,” all those years ago. It’s sad to note that the classy, kind Dave O’Byrne, a fixure at The Square for a long time, is now gone. …
   

Down Columbus Street, the legendary Jazz at Pearl’s was set to close at the end of April. It seems a well-known local businesswoman is set to assume new ownership. ... Jazz at Pearl’s co-owner Kim Nalley has been singing in New York, and still going through a divorce with former biz partner Steve Sheraton. … But reports of the club’s demise are premature and exaggerated. The last show at Jazz at Pearl’s was supposed to be the exquisite Barry Lloyd on April 27. What a way to close the show there. Barry has accompanied just about everybody on piano, and has a grand solo show based on the inimitable Bobby Short. It would be fun, lotsa fun, to see Barry play at the Hotel Carlyle, where Bobby held court for over 37 years. … Meanwhile San Francisco’s Jazz at Pearl’s is still rolling along. …
   

Across the bay, Sara Jobin conducts performances of “The Little Prince” at Berkeley’s Zellerbach Hall on Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30 the first two weekends in May. There are also Sunday matinees, but they’ve been sold out for a while. Tickets are priced from $20-$60 at www.sfopera.com or 415-864-3330. Adler fellows and Adler graduates from the S.F. Opera are on the bill. …
   

The rumors are flying fast and furious … quiet meetings have been arranged at North Beach haunts such as Da Flora to discuss how an attorney from the Central Valley has managed to, as locals describe it, extort money out of North Beach restaurants by arranging for allegedly disabled clients to challenge the restaurants’ ability to accommodate the handicapped. Lots of money has exchanged hands. Now business owners are calling on Supervisor Aaron Peskin, who’s keeping away from the fray. …
   

Mark Quessey, the blustery barista at It’s A Grind on Polk and Washington, is relentless in his aspirations to run for mayor. He’s got his pin on daily (lapel pins are all the rage, you know), and he’s now consorting with political vet Jack Molinari every morning as Jack comes in for his coffee. Molinari is more likely ambushed, but Mark says he’s very helpful. There’s no question that Mark has a caffeine-quaffing constituency. They include the spillover crowd from the Lumiere who’ve seen Zombie Strippers. ... The coffee shop’s manager, Julie Blodgett, is becoming the face of the neighborhood. Perhaps she’ll bring her bassoon to work with her one day. Why not? Hoa Ly likes to play his clarinet in his barbershop, Sharp Cuts, down on Van Ness and Lombard. …
   

Thousands turned out for the dedication of the memorial at Justin Herman Plaza to honor the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, the Americans who went to Spain to fight in the Spanish Civil War (1936) against Franco and the fascists. I was surprised to see George and Charlotte Shultz alongside the mayor. The rest of the crowd were lefties of all stripes, even a few survivors of the war itself, which marked the victory of Franco. “What was so bad about Franco?” someone asked quietly. He and his thugs murdered poet Garcia Lorca, for one. Eleven of the survivors were present, including David Smith. Walter Hood, the monument’s artist, was there. There was a lot of passion still in the air. Herb Gold was there, and he remains a great witness to passionate matters. “We may often disagree in San Francisco,” opined Gavin Newsom, “but we should never be disagreeable.” Go see the monument – it’s really quite extraordinary. …
   

A rare occasion at Yoshi’s on Wednesday, May 7: poet Michael McClure (truly one of the last of the Beats) … Ray Manzarek (of The Doors) … George Brooks … Rob Wasserman … and Jay Lane will perform two shows at 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. Call 415-655-5600 or visit Yoshi’s Web site at http://sf.yoshis.com, or Michael and Ray’s at www.mcclure-manzarek.com.
   

ould it be time for the 9th Annual Oyster Festival at the Great Meadow in Fort Mason again? It is. This year, it’s on Saturday and Sunday, May 17-18, from noon to 7 p.m., again by Myles O’Reilly, who owns O’Reilly’s Irish Pub and Restaurant on Green Street, and The Holy Grail on Polk Street. On Saturday, it’s the Dropkick Murphys … Juliette Lewis and the Licks … Yard Dogs Road Show … and Eoin Harrington. On Sunday, it will be She and Him (Zoey Daschenel and M. Ward) … Mother Hips … Chuck Prophet & the Mission Express …  and Whispertown 2000. Last year the event drew 15,000 people, so be sure to pick up your own oyster shells. Yes, we’re just kidding. But you could leave a trail to find your way back next year. One-day tickets are $20 general admission, $45 special reserve (premium seating area); two-day tickets are $35 general, and $80 special. This is the largest oyster festival on the West Coast. Thank the goddess there at least a few oysters left for us. …

Bruce Bellingham is the author of
Bellingham by the Bay, and a columnist for the Marina Times. E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it