Ryan Tate's best recent newspaper articles

I am a staff reporter at the San Francisco Business Times, a weekly newspaper where I cover hospitality and East Bay real estate.

This section of my site provides samples of my writing for the Business Times, including:

Best published writing of the past year

These are stories I have chosen as my best work in the San Francisco Business Times over the past year. This list was last updated (none).

The Business Times only covers exclusive stories in its print edition, so the stories below can be considered "scoops" unless labeled otherwise.

  • Kitchens catch fire
    Red-hot Ferry Building rings up $50M food tab

    Charles PhanConceived as a magnet for finicky foodies, the Ferry Building has turned into a gold mine for Bay Area restaurateurs.

    Anchor tenant Slanted Door reports revenue of $12 million per year, thanks to tables that often host three rounds of diners at lunch and nearly as many again at dinner. Restaurant MarketBar is taking in $5 million per year; burger joint Taylor's Refresher close to $3.6 million per year. Even the building's bakery, taqueria and tiny caviar shop report they are on track to each make more than $1 million per year. Full story

    San Francisco Business Times, February 24, 2006

  • Oakland crime spreads
    Businesses grapple with 'lawlessness out on the sidewalk'

    Echoing concerns of downtown companies, businesses throughout Oakland are increasingly alarmed over a rise in robberies and other crimes and a reduction in police foot patrols.

    City merchants called a meeting with the police chief, have hired private security officers and are even trying to revive a program under which they could patrol the streets themselves. Some neighborhood groups believe there has been a reduction in business as a result of the crime spike, while still more are worried sales could suffer if the problem is not addressed. Full story

    San Francisco Business Times, February 10, 2006

  • Kuleto sets new table
    Bold venture shocks S.F. restaurant vets

    Pat Kuleto and Todd ChapmanRestaurateur Pat Kuleto and his partners have just finalized an unprecedented gamble, putting down $18 million on a new restaurant project in San Francisco.

    Kuleto and his investors, including landlord JMA Ventures LLC, about two weeks ago began excavation for two large restaurants at Rincon Park, on the northeastern waterfront across from Gap Inc.'s downtown headquarters. A formal groundbreaking is scheduled next week.

    It's the biggest-ticket new restaurant launch anyone can remember, and industry players regard the project with awe. Amid fast-rising labor costs, higher food prices and shrinking profit margins, Kuleto is doubling down on a game more and more top chef-owners are walking away from entirely: the fancy San Francisco restaurant. Full story

    San Francisco Business times, September 1, 2006

  • Developers, candidates see different worlds

    Jerry Brown's Oakland legacy has never looked so fragile, nor his succession so uncertain.

    Developers are getting cold feet on thousands of unbuilt condominiums counted toward his 10K downtown housing program, declared a settled triumph four months ago.

    A persistent crime wave is driving longtime residents from the city and worrying large employers and merchants.

    And Brown's hand-picked successor, City Council President Ignacio De La Fuente, is trailing in his race with longtime Congressman and lobbyist Ron Dellums, who as mayor would pointedly dismantle the market-rate development pipeline Brown has constructed. A third candidate, Nancy Nadel, shares many of Dellums' views on development.

    The rapid change in the Oakland climate has rattled key developers, some of whom are sounding frightened alarms over Dellums' lead in the mayoral race. With each passing day, those alarms seem to have become more high pitched, making the city's mayoral race look more and more like the opening skirmish in a war for the future of Oakland. Full story

    San Francisco Business Times, Oakland Structures special issue, May 12, 2006

  • Four Seasons, 2 other S.F. inns find buyers
    But prices per room show labor dispute has put chill on market

    The Four Seasons and two other hotels have been acquired in separate deals worth more than $300 million. Full story

    San Francisco Business Times, February 3, 2006

More articles

I have selected additional articles for each of my reporting beats:

More about my journalism

You can read more about my professional reporting in the Journalism section. It includes my resume, bio, contact information and a guide on how to pitch stories to me.