The Lazy Bear Team Is Opening JouJou in SF - Why This Opening Matters for the Market
David Barzelay and Colleen Booth, the team behind two-Michelin-starred Lazy Bear and True Laurel, are opening JouJou, a playful French-leaning restaurant in San Francisco. The concept features California-sourced ingredients, a mostly à la carte menu heavy on seafood, and multiple dining spaces including a main bar, raw counter, and chef's counter.
When operators of this caliber open a new concept, the real estate decision behind it is worth paying attention to. Barzelay and Booth have built two of SF's most respected hospitality businesses, they're not signing a lease casually. The neighborhood they chose, the space configuration, the mix of bar and dining room, these are deliberate decisions made by people who understand exactly how a space needs to work for their concept.
For operators at any stage: that's the standard of real estate evaluation worth aspiring to. Not just "can we afford this space" but "does this space support exactly how we want to operate and who we want to serve."