"Douglas, a well supplied new neighborhood market and cafe, is open at 1598 Sanchez (at 29th Street). It’s pouring Heart Coffee, serving food and pastry, and generally helping the neighborhood stock up on the good stuff from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday to Saturday and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays (closed Mondays and Tuesdays). A literal “corner store” in a city where that term is used to describe any old neighborhood market (in lieu of the New Yorkism “bodega” or the preferred Massachusetts term “package store”), Douglas is an elegant version of the SF classic. The light-filled space was formerly Bom Dia market, and when he saw the vacancy, Michael Molesky knew it was just what he had in mind. He calls it Douglas after the fir tree, a classic SF building material that also happens to sound like an approachable guy. Molesky was born in SF, and before Douglas, worked at an ad tech company that sold to Facebook (he still runs a company called Marker). Molesky and partner Maggie Spicer, a contributor to EdibleSF, appointed the space with tables, bar seating, lots of produce, snacks, and staples. They’ve also got a very healthy selection of Old World and California wines (also available for consumption on premises). In choosing products to stock, Molesky wants to take care of essentials “without having six types of eggs and four types of butter” but with an eye toward personal relationships with purveyors. “The hope is every product we feature, we know the face behind it,” he says. Another familiar face to local customers at Douglas will be Jim Molesky, Michael’s dad. Expect to see him working at the counter: “He has a great palate, and a natural sense of hospitality,” his son says. “Having him here on site, it’s a lovely way to have a personal face to the market.”" - Caleb Pershan
