SF Underground Market Grounded

It was a simple tweet from ForageSF founder Iso Rabins as the monthly Underground Market was taking place in the Mission District this past Saturday.

“Just got served a cease and desist letter by the health department. If you want to come to the Underground Market, tonight may be the last one.”

Now in an interview with SF Weekly, Rabins said he plans to meet with health inspectors later this week to discuss his options.

“I can’t do it again until I meet with them and figure out how to do it legally,” he told the paper.

According to SF Weekly, “state and local regulations dictate that food sold at farmers’ markets be produced in commercial kitchens.” But Rabins had gotten around the rules-till now.

The market allows smaller vendors, who don’t have the necessary funds to make their products in a commercial kitchen, to use the event as a showcase. It has become wildly popular, but its future is now murky. More to come later.

Click here for more from SF Weekly.

It's simple. Keith Mizuguchi loves to write and write and write some more. After taking a hiatus from the journalism business, he has rekindled his passion for writing over the last two years, holding a job as both a web and on-air writer for San Francisco news radio station KCBS. While he enjoys the news business, his true passions are twofold: sports and food. Bay Area born and raised, he lives in San Jose, commutes to SF and loves every minute of it. You can follow his food adventures on Twitter @foodie_keith.