SAN FRANCISCO SMALL BUSINESS COMMISSION ADDS TEN NEW LEGACY BUSINESSES DURING FALL 2022

Throughout this fall, 10 businesses were unanimously approved by the San Francisco Small Business Commission for the Legacy Business Registry. They include: Artisans of San Francisco, Black and Blue Tattoo, Canton Bazaar, Chinatown Kite Shop, Condor, Life, Mary Elizabeth Inn, New Lun Ting Café, Peking Restaurant, and Royal Bakery.

The Registry recognizes longstanding, community-serving businesses as valuable cultural assets to the city. Currently, a total of 342 businesses have been added to the Legacy Business Registry.

“It is a privilege of the Small Business Commission to approve new Legacy Businesses. Our city is stronger because of the lifelong and often multi-generational commitment to running a business here. To these business owners, we thank you for all of your hard work and dedication,” said Sharky Laguana, President of the Small Business Commission.

New Legacy Business Spotlight

The Mission District’s Black and Blue Tattoo is one of the additions to the Legacy Business Registry. At 27 years old, the business is relative youngster compared to many of its fellow Legacy Businesses. They were eligible for early inclusion in the Registry due to their contribution to the history and identity of the Mission and San Francisco, and their significant risk of displacement. As a Legacy Business, Black and Blue Tattoo has access to the program’s Rent Stabilization Grant which they hope will help in negotiating a 10-year lease.

Black and Blue Tattoo was the very first women-owned tattoo parlor in San Francisco, opened in May 1995 by Idexa Stern and Natalie Chandler. They were met with much skepticism and even threats since the tattoo industry was a heavily male dominated industry at the time. But they kept their doors open, providing a safe haven for both queer and female tattoo artists. Today’s diverse tattooing community has Black and Blue Tattoo to thank for being a true leader in the field.

Stern continues to be the owner of Black and Blue Tattoo, where customers can get a piece of her distinctive artwork of bold lines and colorful geometric shapes. There are about 10 tattoo artists who work out of Black and Blue Tattoo, and they have a long history of mentoring women and queer artists in both the artform and how to run their own tattoo business.

The full details of the ten new additions to the Legacy Business Registry are below.

Artisans of San Francisco

2549 Irving St.

Nominated by Supervisor Gordon Mar

Business Description: The Artisans offers custom picture framing, art, prints, and posters about and by artists of San Francisco. They specialize in top-quality workmanship, creative designs, and excellent service. Each step of the process is bespoke. Whether it is an original painting, a poster, a quilt, a child’s art, a wedding bouquet, or something entirely new, their experienced staff uses a creative eye to help customers select the best design to enhance their artwork.

Black and Blue Tattoo

381 Guerrero St.

Nominated by Supervisor Hillary Ronen

Business Description: Black and Blue Tattoo is a female and queer run, gender-inclusive tattoo studio with a solid reputation. Up to 10 artists with a range of styles and specialties are available to work with clients on creating their next (or very first!) piece of skin art. 

Canton Bazaar

616 Grant Ave.

Nominated by Supervisor Aaron Peskin

Business Description: Canton Bazaar is a gift store specializing in Asian-inspired merchandise. Their two floors in the heart of Chinatown are virtually a one-stop shopping experience for souvenirs and art. The shop has been open since the early 1900s.

Chinatown Kite Shop

717 Grant Ave.

Nominated by Supervisor Aaron Peskin

Business Description: Chinatown Kite Shop is a one-of-a-kind, fun, and unique specialty store in Chinatown. The family-owned store is a classic kite shop that offers a plethora of kites, from child-sized kites of colorful fish to more serious, elaborate handmade Chinese dragon kites. Chinatown Kite Shop also offers a great selection of souvenirs and gifts.

Condor

560 Broadway

Nominated by Supervisor Peskin

Business Description: The Condor is San Francisco’s hottest gentlemen’s club, with adult entertainment by talented performers. The Condor is a landmark in the Bay Area as a groundbreaking gentleman’s club that played a major role in freedom of expression under the United States Constitution. Their dancers included the legendary and pioneering Carol Doda, one of the most storied adult entertainers of all time. Today, the club carries on this tradition of top-class shows. 

Life

604A Haight St.

Nominated by Supervisor Dean Preston

Business Description: Life is a gift shop in the Lower Haight neighborhood specializing in fragrance and essential oils, custom fragrance blending and aromatherapy, clean beauty, home fragrances, locally made goods, and vintage clothing, as well as curating art shows with local artists and offering astrology and tarot readings.

Mary Elizabeth Inn

1040 Bush St.

Nominated by Supervisor Aaron Peskin

Business Description: The Mary Elizabeth Inn was established in 1914 to serve women in need by providing affordable housing and supportive services in a historic building in San Francisco. In effort to end the cycle of poverty for homeless and abused women, philanthropist Lizzie Glide used her personal resources to build a residential facility for women to live free of violence. The Mary Elizabeth Inn continues the legacy of their founder by empowering women across all life’s stages to achieve self-sufficiency and security.

New Lun Ting Café

670 Jackson St.

Nominated by Supervisor Aaron Peskin

Business Description: New Lun Ting Café, also known as Pork Chop House, has been serving delicious economical meals for more than 100 years in Chinatown. Known for Chinese-American comfort food, they serve stir-fry items such as chow mein and chow fun, chicken sandwiches, pot stickers, grilled fish, hamburger steaks, macaroni noodles, and more.

Peking Restaurant

1375 Noriega St.

Nominated by Supervisor Gordon Mar

Business Description: Peking Restaurant serves authentic Chinese and Taiwanese cuisine at affordable prices including Hunan, Cantonese, Jiangzhe, Dim Sum, and Sichuanese options, as well as traditional Taiwanese street food. Their generous lunch specials offer filling portions, free soup and egg roll appetizers, and fortune cookies and an orange slice with each meal. The interior décor of Peking Restaurant features traditional Chinese landscape scenes and Buddhist art and sculptures, creating an atmosphere that is both welcoming and celebratory of Chinese art and history.

Royal Bakery

4773 Mission Street

Nominated by Supervisor Ahsha Safai

Business Description: Royal Bakery, located in the Excelsior neighborhood, specializes in baking bread in their namesake Royal Baking Company Building. They use two large double-brick Dutch ovens that were installed in 1935 and are still operating and fully functioning after all these years. In addition to their famous French bread, Royal Bakery also makes other wonderful baked goods like cookies, biscotti, focaccia, panettone at Christmas, and columba at Easter.

About the Legacy Business Registry

A Legacy Business is a for-profit or nonprofit business that has operated in San Francisco for 30 or more years. The business must contribute to the neighborhood’s history and/or the identity of a particular neighborhood or community, and it must commit to maintaining the physical features or traditions that define the business, including craft, culinary or art forms.

The registration process for the Legacy Business Program includes nomination by Mayor London N. Breed or a member of the Board of Supervisors, a written application, an advisory recommendation from the Historic Preservation Commission, and approval of the Small Business Commission.

Expanding the representation of businesses on the Registry is a goal for the program. Beginning in July 2022, the Office of Small Business is prioritizing the review of applications from businesses located in several neighborhoods that are currently underrepresented on the Registry. These include Bayview, Excelsior, Inner and Outer Sunset, Portola, and Visitacion Valley. A simplified application process was introduced in September 2022 and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved the removal of a $50 application fee in October 2022.

Inclusion on the Registry provides Legacy Businesses with recognition and support as an incentive for them to stay in the community. The program also provides educational and promotional assistance to encourage their continued viability and success in San Francisco.

The Legacy Business Program is managed through the Office of Small Business. For more information about the Legacy Business Program, including a list and map of businesses on the Legacy Business Registry, visitwww.legacybusiness.org.