Mogannam - Bi-Rite Markets Eat Good Food

Some of the recipes in this book include raw eggs, meat, or fish. When these foods are consumed raw, there is always the risk that bacteria, which is killed by proper cooking, may be present. For this reason, when serving these foods raw, always buy certified salmonella-free eggs and the freshest meat and fish available from a reliable grocer, storing them in the refrigerator until they are served. Because of the health risks associated with the consumption of bacteria that can be present in raw eggs, meat, and fish, these foods should not be consumed by infants, small children, pregnant women, the elderly, or any persons who may be immunocompromised.

Copyright 2011 by Bi-Rite Market, Inc.
Photographs copyright 2011 by France Ruffenach

All rights reserved.

Published in the United States by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.
www.crownpublishing.com
www.tenspeed.com

Ten Speed Press and the Ten Speed Press colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

All photographs by France Ruffenach with the exception of the following:
Photograph bottom of courtesy of Julie Brothers
Photograph courtesy Anne Walker
Photographs courtesy Blair Sneddon

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the publisher

eISBN: 978-1-60774-071-1

Food and prop styling by George Dolese

v3.1

I NEVER WANTED TO BE A GROCERY GUY, but here I am. My dad and uncle had owned San Franciscos Bi-Rite Market since the 1960s, which for me meant a childhood spent stocking shelves, helping out, and generally serving as free labor. Starting at the young age of six, I would go home after school every day, pick up the dinner that my mom had prepared for me and my dad, and head over to the market, where I would work until the store closed at 9 p.m. The grocery business was hardly my idea of fun, and as soon as I left home I didnt look back.

I found my calling in the restaurant world. I went to culinary school, cooked in Switzerland for a year, and continued to cook once I returned to San Francisco. I loved cooking, and I didnt miss the grocery business at all. So in 1997, when my dad gave me the opportunity to take over the family grocery business, I initially said, No way. At the very least, I was hell-bent on doing somethinganythingother than running a market.

Still, Dads offer piqued my interest. Just like him, I had entrepreneurial blood running through my veins, and at the age of twenty-nine was coming off of six years of owning and operating my own restaurant. With his offer, I immediately started visualizing the stores potential as a restaurant space. I fantasized about gutting the store to put in a large kitchen and a spacious dining room. Dad nipped that in the bud, though. He knew how hard I had been working at my restaurantthe long hours, the less-than-healthy lifestyleand he denied me flat out. Youll never have a family if you stay in that business, he warned. (Like many fathers of childbearing-age adults, he was pushing hard for grandchildren. Which he eventually got.)

So no restaurant. I still refused to do a grocery store, so we began to think about other ways to use the space. We entertained all kinds of ideas; someone even suggested to Dad that we open a pet food store, so we kicked that around for about a week. After much debate and no ideas that really excited me, I caved. I agreed to take over the market and continue to run it as such, but under one condition: I had to do it my way.

THE ODDS WERE AGAINST US. At that time, the neighborhood was hardly the trendy, vivacious, bursting-with-energy place it is today. The Mission has always been lively, but for a long time it was the wrong kind of liveliness. Dolores Park, just half a block from the Market, was home to junkies. Stabbings and shootings happened regularly. By the time I was twelve, I had been mugged twice on my way to and from the store.

Still, when we started our renovations in November 1997, one of the first things we did was take down the metal bars that covered the windows. What a drama that was! All these old-timerspeople we hadnt seen in yearscame around and asked, What are you doing? Are you crazy? To me, those bars made the store feel like a fortress. I wanted the store to look inviting and welcoming, so I told myself (and those questioning bystanders), Im taking the bars off, and Im just going to deal with it.

The renovated store reopened on June 8, 1998. And it was crazy. My brother Raphael and I were partners in the business (he is no longer a partner but still works at the store), supported by six staff from my old restaurant and all the family members we could corral. I wore many hats in those days: I would go to the produce market in the morning, come back and cook for the deli, stock the shelves, and ring on the register.

IN THE BEGINNING, WE HAD NO IDEA WHAT WE WERE DOING. We made it up as we went along, running it like a restaurant, which turned out to be a huge advantage. And, it turns out, we reinvented the grocery store in the process.

I DID KNOW ONE THING FROM THE VERY BEGINNING. Coming from the restaurant world, I understood the importance of making things entertaining and treating the market as a theater of sorts. The flattering lighting, the upbeat music, the open kitchen and exuberant signage are all designed to create an energetic, fun vibe. I also knew that having friendly, informed staff would be key. So we hired former waiters for our front of house staff, and we expected them to know our food inside and out, just as they would at a restaurant. Even if theyre stocking shelves, their main role is always to inspire customers, put them at ease, and get them excited about good food. All with the overarching goal of making grocery shopping an interactive, fun, and enjoyable experience.

THE PRODUCT SELECTION GOT A MAKEOVER, TOO. We revamped the offerings and got rid of products that my dad and uncle had carried for yearsthings like cigarettes and forties of malt liquor. It came as a big shock to some folks in the neighborhood. After we reopened, people would come in, take a look around, and eventually ask, Aint you got smokes?

We didnt. We filled the shelves with things that I as a chef would want: pantry items like good wine vinegar and panko bread crumbs, farm-direct produce, and sustainably raised meat. Basically, it was a lot of the same ingredients I had used at my restaurant. I PREFERRED THESE INGREDIENTS BECAUSE THEY TASTED BETTER, not just because they were organic or local. That evolution came over time and happened largely because of the people around me. These were peoplemostly our own staff at first, but more and more guests as wellwho wanted to make a difference in the world, and they began to push me in ways that nobody had before. Our produce buyer, Simon Richard, had a huge impact on me. A farmer himself, he helped me see farming in a new way, and I gradually understood why organic and sustainably raised produce was so important. I owe him a lot for that.