Meet the Media

Meet Marcia Gagliardi, founder and publisher of tablehopper.com and DeepDishing.com and author of The Tablehopper’s Guide to Dining and Drinking in San Francisco: Find the Right Spot for Every Occasion.
Subscribe to tablehopper: http://www.tablehopper.com
Visit Deep Dishing: http://www.deepdishing.com
Follow me on Twitter [http://twitter.com/#!/tablehopper] (please note it’s rated R for racy)
On Facebook http://www.facebook.com/tablehopper
What’s your top story for today?
I need to boogie over to Sightglass http://sightglasscoffee.com/ Coffee in SoMa to see their new coffee bar (the space is huge!) and take some pictures. And drink some of their delicious espresso and buy some Owl’s Howl beans to take home with me, of course.
Tell us about your dream assignment.
My dream assignment would be to go to Calabria with my father (where he’s from) and write a piece about his memories and the food traditions of the region.
Describe the wackiest story you’ve written.
A piece on different hangover cures was definitely a funny one to write—especially since I did some actual field research. Let’s just say menudo the morning after a dear friend’s wedding did not take me to my happy place.
What is your PR pet peeve?
It really irks me when I receive a pitch or press release, and just a day or two later I get a follow-up phone call (no you didn’t!) and/or another email. If I’m interested, I’ll let you know, trust me. Let me get through my hundreds of other emails before you start stalking me, thanks. Oh, and my other favorite: getting pitched again after I already wrote about whatever it is in my column.
Can I add one more? Wow, I am really venting here. Anyway, I hate it when publicists pitch me on Twitter. And as a DM? Even worse. Keep it on email, thanks.
Okay, rant off.
Top trend in the industry you’re currently covering or are interested in.
The phenomenon of pop-up restaurants and dinners in San Francisco is really interesting to me—I like seeing chefs maximizing a space’s potential (like taking over places that are closed on Sundays). It’s also an interesting way for chefs to try out ideas and menus—kind of like a creative lab. I think the tablehopper needs to do a hop-up night. Ha ha.
Tell us a little about yourself.
A freelance food writer since 2002, and a resident of San Francisco since 1994, I am best known in the SF food community as “the tablehopper.” My five-year-old weekly e-column, archived on tablehopper.com, is chock-full of insider news and gossip about the San Francisco restaurant and bar scene, covering what’s hot, opening or closing, along with restaurant reviews, culinary events, and even star sightings in bars and restaurants.
Last year I released a groundbreaking restaurant guidebook, The Tablehopper’s Guide to Dining and Drinking in San Francisco: Find the Right Spot for Every Occasion [http://www.tablehopper.com/book/] with Ten Speed Press. And earlier this year, I launched DeepDishing.com, a brand-new website and forum for diners to share reviews and pictures of their favorite dishes at local restaurants, along with insider tips, recommendations, and more.
I speak Italian, j’adore Japanese food, and I could drink Champagne for the rest of my life and die a happy woman. But I do love my bourbon. Cheers!