Bel to close after two years on Mission Street
Updated 12:11 pm, Friday, July 28, 2017
Bel (3215 Mission St.), the Belgian gastropub on Mission Street in Bernal Heights, will close at the end of August while another project waits in the wings. According to Mission Local, Bel is going to be replaced by an “old school pinball salon” called Outer Orbit Pinball and Restaurant.
While the finer details of the Outer Orbit operation are still scarce (Inside Scoop reached out to the owners and will update this post accordingly) it’s worth noting the video game/bar concept is having its moment. Coin-Op, with its Tron-themed speakeasy, was the most notable recent addition to the category.
(Click here for Esther Mobley’s thoughts on the speakeasy trend.)
News about the Bel closure started spreading earlier this week when owners Richard Rosen and Jennifer Garris (the same folks behind by Pi Bar, the Mission’s popular craft beer and pizza spot) posted a notice at the location announcing the departure. In the note, they attributed the decision to “economic, demographic and personal” factors.
For backstory as to how Bel reached this point, it’s important to know the gastropub always operated with a small staff. And when Rosen was recently injured in a motorcycle accident and was forced to take time off, Bel’s skeleton crew struggled to stay afloat.
ALSO READ: The Top 100 Restaurants 2017
Latest food videos
It was also during this time when Christian Gainsley and Elisabeth Kohnke, owners of Outer Orbit, approached the Bel crew about taking over the space, Mission Local reports.
The Outer Orbit website says the food will be “Hawaiian-inspired dishes evoking the playful feel of the islands” alongside “a curated list of beer and wine for adult gamers.”
The new project is slated to open spring 2018.
Bel: 3215 Mission St. (at Valencia Street), S.F. (415) 206-1000; closes end of August
Justin Phillips is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jphillips@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JustMrPhillips
