York Street Cafe Pop-Up at Embarcadero BART: Pandan Lattes

Vacant to Vibrant is SF’s program to fill empty downtown spaces with pop-ups. York Street Cafe was one of them, set up at Embarcadero BART.

BART was empty that morning. The cafe was busy.

York Street Cafe pop-up interior at Embarcadero BART station

The cafe had Southeast Asian-inspired drinks. Pandan lattes, coconut cream.

York Street Cafe counter and barista setup

York Street Cafe pop-up counter with two baristas and a customer ordering, La Spaziale espresso machine and letterboard sign reading YORK STREET CAFE

I tried the “Decafin Paradise”—salted coconut cream, lime, chicory, and pandan. Good combination.

York Street Cafe weekly menu board showing Decafin Paradise ($7), Karl the Fog, That Black Sesame Thing, and other specialty drinks with prices for week of Oct 2 2023

The lime and pandan worked well together. Different from regular coffee drinks.

Finished drink at York Street Cafe

Pop-ups like this give empty spaces some life, though York Street closed about a year later. Rosalind Bakery next door was closed on Saturday.

Rosalind Bakery pop-up space at Embarcadero with wood-framed glass storefront, closed on Saturday