San Francisco is giving mom-and-pop shops millions of dollars to keep certain areas of the city alive, but one grantee is already closing down after receiving a six-figure check less than three months ago.
Chicken Fried Palace in the Mission District is now closed. Owner Seth Stowaway said sidewalk problems and a health scare were the reasons for the closure.
“Due to a recent medical situation with one of our founders, we will be pausing daily operations,” a post on Instagram from the restaurant said.
“We love this community and we’re so grateful for everyone who’s frequented our establishment. We’ll keep you posted on future events and all the fun things. Thank you for your patience and love.”
Stowaway had received $100,000 through the city’s Storefront Opportunity Grant program in the spring.
Part of Mayor Daniel Lurie’s “efforts to drive San Francisco’s comeback,” the grant program is meant to reduce vacant storefronts in different neighborhoods, according to a press release.
Already, the city has provided more than $3 million in grants to 39 different businesses. Some of those include Bayview Oyster Bar and Tender Heart Thrift in the Tenderloin. Chicken Fried Palace appears on a list of grantees for the program but wasn’t a part of a press release published on June 23.
The city is now asking the city attorney if any actions should be taken against Chicken Fried Palace, according to Kate Reardon, a spokesperson for the city, who spoke to SFGATE via email.
Reardon added in the email that San Francisco’s Office of Economic & Workforce Development has supported hundreds of businesses across the city, and that “the overwhelming majority continue to operate successfully.”
It’s not clear yet however if the chicken restaurant’s sporadic closure breaks with the program’s requirements.
The grant requires that businesses have a new lease that started on Oct. 1, 2025 or later and that the lease be for three consecutive years. Chicken Fried Palace opened last November.
The California Post reached out to Stowaway for comment but did not immediately hear back. He did however previously tell the Standard that the restaurant’s brick and mortar is now open for events and pop-ups. Stowaway also said that he’s working with the landlord to find another tenant.
Stowaway is no stranger to the food scene in San Francisco. Previously, he worked at Mister Jiu’s and Bar Agricole before opening Osito in 2021, which went on to earn a Michelin star before closing last year.
After that, he opened Chicken Fried Palace within months, despite having to finance things through a GoFundMe campaign asking for $60,000 to help transfer a liquor license to the restaurant.
Stowaway also has a consulting company and co-op called “the Same Sun” that asks restaurant clients to pay 6% of revenue in exchange for business services, the Standard reported. And he recently opened Folklore, a “10-seat tasting salon in San Francisco’s Financial District,” according to its website.
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