At a thoughtfully organized dinner in Oakland, Palestinian culinary activists shared more than just food — they offered their stories, their resilience, and their patience
Welcome to the COYOTE Calendar. Here are this week's hand picked events, just for you. This weekend is Bayou Boogie Fest at Ashkenaz — three days of workshops, dancing, and dance lessons all centered around Cajun and Zydeco music. We had to make some hard choices about which of the Bathers LibraryFuture Finds events we put on here this week, so go check out that entire calendar. The Open Invitational art fair is on this weekend as well, featuring some of my favorite galleries and artists. This week we've got architecture, robots, cat videos, and, as always, mushrooms. We'll post new events each Wednesday. Go forth and enjoy!
SF Art Walk: Opening Brunch for Living Witness // Perhaps no SF neighborhood gets a worse rap than the Tenderloin, but it's full of beautiful artists and amazing people (see also: The Tenderloin Voice). Come see the opening of a new show featuring artists Hank Willis Thomas, Bradley McCallum, and Krzysztof Wodiczko, who each use "creative practice to confront the impact of gun violence and to honor the people and families affected by it." // 9:30am-1pm // TNT Art Lab, SF // FREE // more info
Flour + Water grand opening in Oakland // Folks in SF have raved about this pizza, and now it's crossing the Bay Bridge to sling slices in uptown Oakland. They'll have both Neapolitan slices and New York-style pies on offer. Choose wisely. // 11:30am-10pm // The Lark, Oakland // more info
Pozole! // My partner makes an incredible pozole, which I ate for lunch today and am already craving again. Learn how to make yourself one of the best soups in the world! In fact, in this class, you'll learn to make two different kinds: verde and rojo. Plus, you'll make fresh tostadas, the natural sidekick to this hearty, warming soup, to crack and dip into your bowl. Impress your friends, or just keep it all for yourself, I won't tell. // 6pm-9:30pm // 18 Reasons, SF // $205 // more info
Astrology and Tarot Salon with the Witch and Healer Collective // I am not an astrology guy, but I understand that many of you are (and I love that for you!). So this one is for my witchy baddies: Join fellow tarot and astrology lovers to discuss "the current transits and related tarot cards and themes to better understand the cosmic energy of the moment." // 6pm-8pm // Bathers Library, Oakland // $7+ // more info
Architecture x Virtue: How to Form the Good Life? // You all know I love an esoteric, kind of odd lecture and this one absolutely fits the bill — Father Elias Ford O.P. is giving a talk "drawing on the work of Christopher Alexander, Anselm Ramelow, and Aristotle, he explores how buildings influence the way we live." This guy apparently did his dissertation on "Architecture's role in virtuous development according to Aristotle and Christopher Alexander." If nothing else, you'll come away with ideas for the next National Treasure spinoff. // 7:30-9:30pm // First Apostolic Faith Church, SF // FREE, but RSVP required // more info
Koji Fermentation Class // 🎶 Mold, baby mold, koji inferno. 🎶 Learn how to grow the good kind of mold on rice, and how to use koji in your day to day cooking. Plus, taste an assortment of koji products like amazake, shio koji and bettara-zuke. If you don't know what any of that is, this is a great way to find out. // 12-2:30pm // Preserved, Oakland // $125 // more info
Night Hike // Join some South Bay hiking clubs for the first Night Hike of the year — enjoy the stars and maybe even spot some nocturnal buddies. This hike is 6+ miles with 1500 feet in elevation gain, so it's not a good one for beginners. // 5pm // Windy Hill Open Space Preserve, Portola // FREE, but RSVP // more info
Art Walk: 1-800 Happy Birthday at The Guardhouse // You can read more about Mohammad Gorjestani's art in this piece by COYOTE's own Alan Chazaro. "The rotating installation — which started as a website and short film in 2014 — honors victims of police killings by inviting family, friends, and strangers to leave birthday messages on repurposed NYC phone booths." After Friday, the installation is viewable 24 hours a day through February 14th, so swing by when you can. // 6pm // Fort Mason Center Festival Pavilion, SF // FREE // more info
Movies at Mechanics' Presents: All About Eve (1950) // I've never heard of this movie in my life because I'm an uncultured plebeian, but apparently it set an awards record: nominated for 14 Academy Awards, and winning six. Marilyn Monroe was in it before she got famous! Come watch, discuss, and eat snacks. // 6-8:30pm // Mechanics' Institute, SF // $10 // more info
Punx for Palestine // It's winter in Palestine right now, and the need for aid continues. Come see rad bands for a good cause. All proceeds go to American Near East Refugee Aid to provide food, water, and medical supplies to people in Gaza and the West Bank. // 7:30pm // Eli's Mile High Club, Oakland // $15-50 // more info
The Strange Ones, Yorn's Apostles, Hellcatraz, Rival Plague and The Helpern Experience // It's cold, get sweaty with other punks and feel the reverb in your cold shriveled heart. // 7:30 pm // 924 Gilman, Berkeley // $12 in advance, $15 at the door // more info
Electric Circus // I forgot to put this on the calendar last week but never fear you can still attend this weekend! One of the most charismatic people in the entire universe, Rotimi Agbabiaka, hosts this variety show full of music, comedy, drag performers, and more. // 7:30 // Club Fugazi, SF // $38.50, 2 drink minimum // more info
Captured by Robots // Instagram kept showing me an ad for this event and I'll be honest that I'm not 100% sure what will happen at this show, but I am 100% sure it will be weird and interesting and that's enough to entice me. There's a robot that plays drums! Here's a quote from the event promo: "EVERYTHING IS GETTING WORSE BY THE DAY AND ITS NEVER GOING TO GET BETTER, FOR YOU AT LEAST. HUMANITY ONLY DESERVES THE WORST. CRY MORE SHIT MAKER. YES, THE FUCK SHIT UP TIME IS HERE FOR THE BAY AREA." Can't really argue with that, tbh. // 8pm // Thee Stork Club, Oakland // $16.49 // more info
SPANK! San Francisco's Hottest Spanking Party // Curious about impact play? Or maybe you're an expert, ready to share your hard earned wisdom? Either way, bottoms up at "the Bay Area’s hottest spanking party." Dress in your finest (and/or naughtiest) school outfit — pupil, teacher, and everything in between. // 8pm-1am // Paradox, SF // $43+ // more info
Esmeria Bakehouse Pop-up // Small batch, Filipino-inspired croissants, tarts, cakes, and buns made locally by chef Eric Esmeria, formerly of Fournee Bakery. This week's offerings include a bergamot kouign amann, a ginataang kalabasa wagyu tallow brioche bun, and an Asian pear calamansi polenta cake. Drool. // 10am-1pm // Morningtide, Albany // more info
Knitting & Study Circle // Knit beanies for mutual aid distribution and listen to “Perfect Victims: and the Politics of Appeal” by Mohammed el-Kurd with fellow creatives who care. (And if you're not a knitter, but want to bring another craft while you listen, that's cool too!) // 10:30am-12:30pm // San Jose Peace & Justice Center // FREE // more info
Wikipedia 25th Birthday Party // Join fellow Wiki-nerds for a full day of crafts, games, and celebration of the collaborative encyclopedia. Learn how the resource is written and maintained, and meet the people who make the site work. // SFPL Main Branch // FREE // more info
Culinary Mushroom Camp West Marin // It's basically now a rule that every one of these calendar entries has to have a mushroom event on it, so here you go. Learn how to find and identify porcini, chanterelles, oyster, hedgehog turkey tail, and other shroomy friends for eating. And, most importantly, learn which ones to not eat. // 10am-1pm // Tomales // $125 // more info
Queer Birders Bay Area Meetup // Forget decorative gourd season, it's weird duck season, motherfuckers! Come hang out with cool queer birders and look for some weird ass ducks. // 10am // Golden Gate Park, SF (meet at the parking lot behind the boat house) // FREE // more info
3 Dykes Walk into a Bar // Textile artist dani lopez has been working on this solo show for four years, and you can be one of the lucky people to see it first at this opening. Cheeky weaving, clever stitching, and queer creativity. // 1-3pm // Richmond Art Center // $5-10 // more info
Main Library 75th Celebration! // The Main Oakland Library is turning 75 years old! Don your most iconic 1950's period costume, and celebrate with a ceremonial cake cutting, remarks, and photo booth. And if you're a trivia buff, there will be a 1951 trivia game where you can show off. // 2-3:30pm // Oakland Main Library // FREE // more info
Remembering Love Exhibition Opening // Wear black, white, and grey and roll through this new art exhibit featuring 12 Bay Area artists and their work circling around ideas of "endings, beginnings, and the death and birth of elements in our lives." // 5pm-9pm // Soul Blends Coffee Roasters, Oakland // 😷 COVID SAFE (masks required and provided) // FREE // more info
Milk Bar Community Dinner with Beth Stephens & Annie Sprinkle // Lactose intolerants, skip ahead to the next entry. Those of you with the milk-drinking genes might enjoy this Polish inspired "mleczny" aka milk bar. This is not a euphemism, it is a bar that serves milk. And other things too — including a free community dinner is prepared by chef Leif Hedendal. // 6-9pm // The Lab, SF // FREE // more info
Crab Feed 2026 // Eat crabs, or feed crabs, or both, I'm honestly not sure because all the event description for this one says is "Join us for this beloved community event.Grab your friends and get tickets to this much loved community event!" I love a good crab-based surprise though! // 6-10pm // Tam Valley Community Center, Mill Valley // $81+ // more info
B Tourmaline Presents: BayBRIDGERTON // Join your fellow t4t (ton4ton) Bridgerton lovers at a regency ball to celebrate and support Black Queer Trans joy. They'll even have a quadrille and period music, plus small bits and beverages of all kinds. Perhaps someone nosey will take notes about it. // 8pm-1:30am // Golden Ratio, Oakland // $23+ // more info
Meklit // You know when you see someone perform and you think "oh, THAT is what talent looks like?" Be ready for that feeling on this one. Meklit Hadero is a singer/songwriter/podcaster/polymath with a really incredible live show (read more about her by our very own Emma Silvers here). Backed by a full band, Meklit blends jazz, Ethiopian folk sounds and more into something really special. // 8pm // The Freight, Berkeley // $34 // more info
bon marché 2nd hand pop-up // Find special pieces (sweaters, coats, home goods and more) that still have life in them, while you sip on a cozy beverage and snack on a tasty snack. // 10am-2pm // Best Friends Wine Bar, Albany // more info
Winter Fruit Tree Pruning // If you've got apple or plum trees in your life, this class is for you. Learn how, when and why to prune, and get some hands on practice pruning trees to encourage healthy and productive growth. // 10am-12pm // Alemany Farm, SF // $7.18 // more info
Cute Cats & Kids Karaoke - Fundraiser for Liberated Kids // Do you share your life with someone who loves to sing? Someone who perhaps needs an outlet for that singing? Someone who is, perhaps, a kid? If so, this is for you. There will be karaoke, cute cat videos, snacks, and comfy couches. Plus, it's all for a good cause: proceeds go to Liberated Kids. // 12pm-2:30pm // The New Parkway, Oakland // $10-$30 donation // more info
Cinema Craft Series: The Hudsucker Proxy // Sandwiched between Fargo and The Big Lebowski in the Coen Brothers' filmography is The Hudsucker Proxy, a 1994 screwball comedy film starring Tim Robbins, Jennifer Jason Leigh, and Paul Newman. The film bombed at the time, but has developed a cult following, and now you can join that cult (or meet fellow cult members) at this screening and discussion. // 1pm // Orinda Theatre // $13 // more info
Roots & Fruits: A Tu Bishvat Seder & Printmaking Workshop // In the Jewish tradition, Tu Bishvat is essentially New Years but for trees, which is a beautiful thing to celebrate. This workshop features printmaking using local tree stumps and ink, along with a fruit seder. Ages 14 and older. // 1-3pm // Jewish Community Center of San Francisco // $19+ // more info
Golden Sardine 2nd Year Anniversary Party // Celebrate two years of Golden Sardine with poetry, food and wine. Plus music by Jumpin’ Toads, which is a great band name. // 2-9pm // Golden Sardine, SF // more info
Jeremiah Chiu & Marta Honer // Forget that old lo-fi beats channel on YouTube, this is the good shit. Expect ambient and experimental synthesis from two musicians who push the boundaries of acoustic and electronic textures. And if you come early, there's a pre-show oyster service. // 6pm and 7pm // SFJAZZ Center // $39 // more info
Amphibian Amble // [airhorn noise] It's newt time!!! The winter rain means that the rough-skinned newts have made their way back to their ponds to lay eggs. Go visit them in their natural habitat, and learn words like unken and aposematic. The hike is four miles total, with a few hundred feet of elevation change, so be ready for that. // 8:45am-12pm // Briones Regional Park, Martinez // FREE, RSVP required // more info
Growing Roses // Is this the year that you get really into growing roses? Maybe! If you're rose-curious, this event is for you. Learn how to select, grow, and prune roses for a local garden, featuring a master gardener. // 11am-12pm // Fairfax Library // Free // more info
Mi Tierra Foods Anniversary Party // It's Mi Tierra Foods' 30th anniversary! I used to walk here at least once a week to get snacks and supplies. Come celebrate their anniversary with live music, special deals, raffles, and more. // 12-2pm // Mi Tierra Foods, Berkeley // FREE // more info
Middle Eastern Collab Dinner // Reap the benefit of a collaboration between an Egyptian and a Persian chef, who have come together to create a seven-course menu full of rice, meat, and herbs. Get your reservation early. // 5:30pm and 8pm // Bar Bibi, SF // $110 // more info
Kofta and Honey Cake Party // The Chef De Cuisine at Ramen Shop is putting together an homage to the late Dave Golovin, featuring kofta and honey cake and probably other surprises that you will enjoy. // 6-9pm // Ramen Shop, Oakland // more info
Bad Art Club presents...Tearing Shit Up & Sticking It Down // Calling all chaos artists! It's time to get weird, get dirty, and fuck around and find out what you're capable of. "The point is not what you make, it's how you feel making it." The only rule is that you show up unprepared. All supplies will be provided. // 6-9pm // Frontier Tower, SF // $15+ // more info
Community Care Fair // If you need support, or want to learn more about how to get plugged into groups offering care and mutual aid, come through to this community resource fair featuring HIV testing, hot food, housing assistance, employment advice, and more. // 12-4pm // Alameda Social Services, Oakland // FREE // more info
Danny Stoller takes over Mägo // I don't know anything about food so I'm just going to quote from the press release here because it all sounds fucking great: "36-hour au jus French Dip, Gruyere fondue service, steak frites with nuoc cham, all ordered at the counter but plated with fine-dining technique." There are a few different days and styles on offer here, click the link for more on your choices. // 5pm // Mägo, Oakland // $55 // more info
Bar Chisme at Tacos Oscar // So many burger pop-ups leave us vegetarians behind, but not this one! Join for burger options of all varieties, plus a DJ so you can dance on a full stomach. "Come chill with your homies, throw back a couple and soak in what the Oakland restaurant industry is known for, being dope." // 5-9pm // Tacos Oscar, Oakland // more info
On the Record: Metal in the Dead of Winter // Everything fucking sucks right now, and sometimes the soul craves music that is as dark as the times. Come listen to the darkest, doomiest music that the Art & Music department at Berkeley Public Library could find. Bring your own contribution too, if you want to add to the noise. // 6pm-7:30pm // Berkeley Public Library - Central Branch// FREE // more info
The Bay Agenda: New Deal Lessons for the Bay // During the Great Depression, the New Deal offered jobs and projects to people across the United States, including in the Bay Area. This KALW series takes a look at the impact the New Deal had here. // 7pm-8:30pm // KALW Events Space, SF // $12.51 suggested donation // more info
Roam: Reconnecting Wildlife and Our World // Hillary Rosner's new book ROAM: Wild Animals and the Race to Repair Our Fractured World went on my To Read list as soon as I heard about it. Come see Rosner talk about the book, and what she learned about how to repair our relationships with the creatures around us. // 7-9pm // Clio's, Oakland // $7.18 // more info
Shaping California Wine: Asian Cultural Influences // In general, you don't always think of wine as being something to pair with Asian food. But this conversation turns that idea on its head. Watch restaurateur James Yu taste locally made wine and then curate food pairings — explaining the process as he works. // 6:30-8pm // Donkey & Goat Winery, Berkeley // $20 // more info
Cookbook Lovers Club // Last month, we sent you to a cookbook trade. This week, we're back with another cookbook related event where you can meet fellow cookbook sickos. This one features Steeped: Recipes Infused with Tea by Bay Area cookbook author Annelies Zijderveld, who will be on hand to talk through cooking with tea. // 6-8pm // Book Society, Berkeley // $45 // more info
Indian Classical Sessions // Celebrate "the meditative beauty, ecstatic energy, and sheer majesty of South Asian music." Four short live sets that represent different influences and traditions in the world of South Asian music — perfect whether you're already a fan, or just curious about what the music from this part of the world sounds like. // 7-9pm // Medicine for Nightmares, SF// $10 suggested donation // more info
You can see all of COYOTE's past calendar picks here. If you have an event you'd like to see on a future COYOTE Calendar, email us at calendar@coyotemedia.org. If you attended and enjoyed any of these events, we'd love to hear about it in the comments!
Reo Eveleth is an award-winning reporter and writer who has covered everything from fake tumbleweed farms to million-dollar baccarat heists. Their work has been nominated for a Peabody, an Emmy, and an Eisner Award.
