One of the most well-attended events in the history of the San Francisco Design Center Galleria took place on June 9, 2025, when KQED held its annual Taste & Sip event. This year, it marked the 20th season of the popular program Check, Please! Bay Area.
The program’s charismatic host, Leslie Sbrocco, is also a San Francisco Bay Times columnist. Look for Sbrocco Sips in select issues of the Bay Times.
The 2025 Taste & Sip featured the following restaurants: 620 Jones, Bar Crudo, Basque Cultural Center, Bhan Mae Vane, Bull Valley Roadhouse, Cafe Colucci, Cali Caracas, Chef Reina, Creek House Dim Sum, Daughter Thai, Dragon Beaux , Eggy’s Neighborhood Kitchen, Ettan, Farmhouse Kitchen , Gerard’s Paella, Gold Ridge Organic Farms, Hummus Heaven, Kehaulani’s Café, Kusan Uyghur Cuisine, Marnee Thai, Mazra, NUSA, Oeste Bar and Kitchen, Old Skool Café, One Market, Palette Tea House , Pausa Bar & Cookery, Piglet & Co., RÊVE Bistro, Roasted and Raw, Routier, Smelly’s Creole, Smoke Soul Kitchen, Sue’s Kitchen, Tay Ho Oakland Restaurant & Bar , Tostadas, Wild Fish, Wildseed, Yak and Yeti Restaurant and Bar , Yo Soy Ceviche, Yuji Ishikata, Xies Sushi Rolls
And these drink providers: Alma de Cattleya, AVIVO Wines, Bolle Drinks Corp, Cellarmaker Brewing Co., Furthermore Wines, Graham’s Port, Grgich Hills Estate, Griffo Distillery, J. Lohr, Lucy Wines, Mossed Juicery, Mt Beautiful Wines, Peterson Winery, Priest Ranch, Smith-Madrone Vineyards & Winery, Summit Lake Vineyards & Winery
Plus desserts and snacks: Big Top Sweet Shop, Chef Sarah Germany, Deux Cranes Chocolates and Confections, Fogg’s Confections, Go To Chocolate, Luv’s Brownies, Mangosay, Marin French Cheese, Nana Joes Granola, NECTAR, Raydiant Vybes, Thatcher’s Gourmet Popcorn, Z. Cioccolato
A memorable moment occurred when Coordinating Producer Cecilia Phillips introduced Sbrocco on stage. The challenges that Sbrocco alludes to refer to her March 2021 cancer diagnosis. Since then, she has helped raise millions of dollars to help fight cancer. For this work and more, she was honored by The V Foundation in 2024.
We are proud to feature Sbrocco in the Bay Times and to support KQED and other public television stations as well as KQED radio and NPR. Watch for new episodes of Check, Please! Bay Area in July 2025.
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