Digital
Guideboard
Online Guide to San Francisco
GUIDEBOARD was ahead of its time. Before the Internet caught fire, the online world revolved around bulletin board systems (BBSs), solo enterprises operated on a wing and a prayer—and as many modems as its sponsoring “system operator” (aka SYSOP) could afford. GUIDEBOARD was my contribution to the digital revolution, billed as a “Cabbie's Guide to San Francisco.”
Phone lines streamed data to and from my living room. And, yes, I was a bona fide cabbie—hacking (long before the advent of Uber) to fund my online endeavor. It was an egalitarian undertaking. Like Craigslist, I gave away much of the store.
I got my tips driving a Luxor cab; the callers furnished the rest. It started with 30 messages; after seven years, GUIDEBOARD had logged more than 100,000 messages. You could put on a hundred pounds just digesting the restaurant recommendations.
Here’s a sampling of the postings that started it all:
Restaurant Postings
Msg#: 7 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: SEAFOOD
The only good seafood at Fisherman's Wharf is the Fish Filet sandwich at McDonald's. Avoid the tourist traps and head out to the Pacific Cafe (7000 Geary Blvd. at 34th Ave) in the Richmond district. There are no reservations—the line spills out the door by 5:30, but they give you a complimentary glass of wine.
If you're going to the symphony, opera, or ballet, try the Hayes Street Grill in Civic Center (324 Hayes St.). Order the specials on the chalkboard, though you might need your opera glasses to read them. A word of caution: For reservations on any given night, you must book one week in advance (no sooner, no later) for an early seating. The trick is to call when their answering machine is disconnected—from 10:30 a.m.to 11:30 a.m.
Msg#: 8 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: CHINESE
The ingredients for good Chinese food are fluorescent lights and Formica tables. So wear sunglasses and go to Ton Kiang at 5827 Geary Blvd. in the Richmond district or Ocean Garden (Jackson bet. Grant and Stockton). Ton Kiang is one of the few Chinese restaurants that cooks with wine (try the wine-flavored bean curd stuffed with meat) and specializes in dim sum and clay pot dishes. Ocean Garden is perhaps the smallest, draftiest restaurant in Chinatown, so order one of their seafood soups (i.e., Dried Scallop Egg Flower).
Msg#: 9 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: ITALIAN
Not to put down North Beach, but several of the best restaurants are to be found elsewhere. If you’re looking for an inexpensive meal in a cozy atmosphere, take a Powell/Hyde cable car to i Fratelli at 1896 Hyde St. (heavy on the garlic, light on the wallet). If it’s crowded, try Ristorante Milano at 1448 Pacific Ave.—a few blocks up and a few bucks more. Or hop a cab to La Pergola at 2060 Chestnut St. (decorated like a giant grape arbor). If La Pergola has a line (it often does), try Ristorante Parma around the corner at 5314 Steiner (too small to accommodate standees; have a drink across the street at Izzy’s Steakhouse, and Parma will come fetch you).
Msg#: 10 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: JAPANESE
There are more sushi bars in San Francisco than you can shake a chopstick at. For novelty, there’s Isobune at 177 Post St. in Japan Center where sushi sails on boats through “canals” that circle the eating counter. At the other extreme, there’s Kabuto Sushi at 5116 Geary Blvd. in the Richmond, presided over by San Francisco’s only master sushi chef, Sachio, whose rapid-fire rolling will mesmerize you.
For a marriage of fun and food, I’d suggest Osome (Fillmore near Pine) whose samurai sushi chef, Toshi, cracks jokes in Japanese while pounding rice in his fist. Elsewhere: Misaki Restaurant, at 3326 Geary Blvd., offers an all-you-can-eat sushi buffet for $12, plus full array of cooked dishes. For a meat and poultry feast, Fuki-Ya in Japan Center (22 Peace Plaza) cooks everything on hibachis (sit at a counter and choose the items you want grilled).
Msg#: 11 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: FRENCH
With few exceptions, San Francisco’s full-tilt French restaurants are overpriced, if not overrated. Two exceptions are Le Cyrano at 4134 Geary Blvd., an elegant place where two can dine for $50-$60, including appetizer, desert and wine, and L’Escargot at 1809 Union St., which has pink napery on candlelit tables—about $75 for two. (On the same block with L’Escargot is Pasand, at 1875 Union St., an Indian restaurant. Skip the Indian food; go after dinner hour when Pasand transforms into a jazz spot—with no cover charge.)
Msg#: 12 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: LATE-NIGHT
Finding a late-night dinner spot after a show or opera can be a dilemma (most restaurants close their kitchens around 10 p.m.). One of the best-kept secrets is the Brazen Head, an off-beat restaurant-bar at the corner of Buchanan and Greenwich Sts. Unlike the nearby Union Street bars, the Brazen Head plays it low-key—no sign or street number to herald its existence. Popular with other restaurant workers as a combination feedbag and after-hours hangout, it offers a full Continental-style menu until 12:45 a.m., burgers, soups and salads until 12:45.
If you’re coming from a Wagner opera, the best place I can suggest is the Fairmont’s Brasserie, which goes 24/7.
Msg#: 16 *RESTAURANTS*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: BURGERS
Though many people believe otherwise, there is a difference from one McDonalds to the next—the prices. The McDonalds on Haight and Stanyan is generally five cents cheaper on hamburger items and French fries than the McDonalds on Golden Gate and Van Ness, which is a nickel cheaper than the Chinatown McDonalds at California and Grant, which is five cents cheaper than the Fisherman’s Wharf McDonalds at Taylor and Jefferson
For beefier burgers, try Cable Car Joe’s (Mission at Silver), which grinds the meat before your eyes, or Hamburger Mary’s, where you’ll eat up the atmosphere. For a middle-of-the-night fix, the best of a sorry lot is the Grubstake II (there is no No. 1) at Pine near Polk.
(The only good hot dogs in the Bay Area are at Kaspers, 4521 Telegraph Ave. in Oakland.)
Auto Repair Postings
Msg#: 27 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: PHI BETA GAS CAPS
Yes, there are honest mechanics in San Francisco. And it shouldn’t take a lifetime to find them—not even the lifetime of your car. The forerunner of GUIDEBOARD was a publication on auto repair, VW-XYZ, in which car owners tracked down reputable mechanics in San Francisco—to whom we awarded Phi Beta Gas Caps. The following messages profile five of the best...and GUIDEBOARD callers are encouraged to nominate others. (Back issues of VW-XYZ are available in the GUIDEBOARD Flea Market.)
Msg#: 28 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: CONTINENTAL AUTO MECHANICS
Herbert Waelde and Lothar Eichler of Continental Auto Mechanics (2942 San Jose Ave. near Alemany) don’t want to be put on a pedestal. But when you’re arguably the best mechanics in The City and among the least expensive, it’s hard to do otherwise. More Volkswagen owners praised this shop than any other SF garage—despite its location near the Daly City border. But you don’t have to own a VW; they also work on Porsches. Egalitarianism.
What makes them good? They know the automobiles (they’ve been working on German cars since the mid-50s), they do the job right (no shortcuts), and they get it done on time (no promises they can’t live up to). As for their integrity, they don’t pull any stunts—they refuse to do things that are unnecessary.
Msg#: 29 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: DEMETRE’S AUTO REPAIR
Demetre’s Auto Repair at 531 Jessie (bet. Market and Mission off Sixth St.) has no sign—he exists on word-of-mouth recommendations. Just as well, as his shop (a former tofu factory) is crammed with VWs, Hondas and other foreign cars.
A native San Franciscan, Demetre Lagios built his business literally from the ground up. He started in a Balboa St. basement and now has a four-man operation downtown. He’s a soft-spoken man with a receding mop of longish hair, and he retains his Love Generation’s eagerness to share what he knows. He charges only what a job is worth and not the time it takes him to do it.
Msg#: 30 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: SF AUTOBODY RECYCLE
One of our esteemed Phi Beta Gas Caps went to a woman who demonstrated an unusual artistry for body and fender work. Her name is Carlota, and she’s an artist in the truest sense of the word—a photographer and film maker who schooled at San Francisco State in art and anthropology. She brings an eye for form and color to the car craft, which she took up six years ago and is an expression of her kaleidoscopic talents.
The shop’s name is S.F. Autobody Recyle (phone 626-3131), and she works out of her home near the Panhandle, which doubles as a work place and art studio. Carlota is low-key about her business—she doesn’t want to bump fenders with the high-priced collision shops which live off insurance jobs. Her rates are a lot cheaper, and the work is better.
Msg#: 31 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: THE BUG DOCTOR
Street mechanics provide a middle ground between doing it yourself and conventional, costlier avenues of repair. They appeal to penny pinchers, to lazybones, to do-it-yourselfers who have bungled tune-ups and can’t face their regular mechanics, and to people who would just like to stick it to the $50/hour garages.
One of the best of this itinerant breed is The Bug Doctor, a 55-year-old mechanic who thrives on anonymity. His calling card reads, “House Calls Only,” and he functions strictly as a dial-a-mechanic (phone 731-1084). Although he specializes in Bugs, his practice includes other makes of cars, and his sick ward is the avenues and alleys of San Francisco. Weather permitting, he’s on call weekdays and weekends, dispensing aid and advice with the help of an answering machine and a pager.
Msg#: 32 *AUTO REPAIR*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: ALL-WOMEN’S GARAGE
Labyris, which sounds like it should be a temple in ancient Crete, actually is the name of the first all-women’s auto repair shop in San Francisco. The steel-gray garage at 240 Sixth St. (bet. Howard and Folsom) is a haven for women turned off by encounters with gruff male mechanics. The owners, Nancy Rupprecht and Lynn McLeod, started Labyris (pronounced La-bi-ris) in 1978 when they sublet space in a corner of Demetre’s Auto Repair. Today, the business occupies an entire floor all its own.
Transportation Posting
Msg#: 35 *TAXI/TRANSPORT*
From: SYSOP
To: ALL CALLERS
Subj: PRIVATE LINES
What happens when you need a cab and it’s Friday...rush hour...raining...and 10,000 conventioneers are in town? (You called Yellow Cab, but the line was busy. You called Veterans—same thing. You tried DeSoto, and you got a recording. Luxor’s phone rang, but nobody answered it.)
What you need is a list of cab companies’ private lines—unpublished numbers for the benefit of steady customers. The calls get answered alternately with the public numbers, but there are fewer people ahead of you on the unpublicized lines.
Here are the phone numbers:
- Luxor Cab: Public 552-4040. Private 552-4567
- DeSoto Cab: Public 673-1414. Private 673-1017
- City Cab: Public 285-4500. Private 285-4503
- Veterans Cab: Public 552-1300. Private 552-3181
- Yellow Cab: Public 5626-234. Private 626-2350
How It Worked
Before the internet turned the world on its head in the mid-90s, bulletin board systems dotted the landscape. It was the dawn of personal computing, and BBSs defined what it meant to go online—to post messages, exchange rants, download programs, chat, get technical help, or play games.
The price of admission was a modem, communications software, and a telephone line. The communication program dialed up your favorite BBS, your modem exchanged handshakes with the host’s modems (a series of squeaky, high-pitched tones), and you went on board. GUIDEBOARD's main incoming line was free, but often busy. Access to priority phone lines 24/7 was given to those who helped support the system (VISA and MasterCard gladly accepted).
Most BBSs were local enterprises run by computer hobbyists using special BBS software to deliver access to their computers. GUIDEBOARD used The Bread Board System (TBBS), the Cadillac of communications software—chosen for its ability to field multiple calls (Microsoft used it for tech support) and to customize a system's look and feel. In the text-only age of black-and-white monitors, GUIDEBOARD greeted callers with a skyline of San Francisco and a blinking TransAmerica building (I utilized the extended ANSI character set for graphics and animation).
Also noteworthy: GUIDEBOARD participated in Fidonet Echomail, a worldwide network of bulletin boards, that pioneered the nightly exchange of email. At 1 a.m. (8 a.m. Greenwich Mean Time), GUIDEBOARD and all the “nodes” in the U.S. and across the globe shut down to circulate mail packets. It was ground-breaking—before the ascendancy of AOL ("You've got mail!") and the World Wide Web. AOL and the internet can take the slings and arrows for spam.