We’re totally bad at planning ahead ourselves, so we feel you if your New Year’s plans are still kind of up in the air. But all is not lost! We have a few semi-last-minute suggestions for you below, ranging from the quiet to the loud and drunken, and we’ve checked up to see that there are still some seats/tickets available for each. At one, you will find a unicorn made of ice. At another you will be surrounded by gay men in the Mission impersonating shirtless barbacks at Studio 54. Take your pick.
Food — You’ve got to eat, right?
New Year’s Eve prix fixes are more for the suburbanites and the couples getting engaged, if you ask us. But there are some nice deals around town still available for those with hot dates they need to impress.
Bar Agricole - This should be a party, and an adult one at that. Thad Vogler and chef Brandon Jew promise a “goose on the table,” with five courses plus live music for $60 a head. And then there’s the cocktail menu…
The Bar at Michael Mina or RN74 - If you’ve got a larger party, you may still be able to snag a table at the newly reviewed Michael Mina, but what sounds like more fun, actually, would be just to grab a seat at the bar on the earlier side and order off the regular menu a la carte. RN74 is throwing a big bash, with a lot of Cristal flowing, which is sold out, but you can still sneak in there early for a seat at the bar or in the lounge.
Gitane - There’s just a couple of spots left at both the 6 o’clock and 10:30 seatings at Gitane, and you can preview the menu here, which sounds pretty swell.
Nombe is throwing a big fete, with a Japanese band, a buffet of menu favorites, and a glass of sake included. The Daily Dish is offering a $10 discount, so you can get in for $45 a head.
Prospect has just a few tables left at their two seatings: the first between 6 and 7:15 which is three courses for $85 per person, and the second between 8:15 and 10 p.m. which is $105, and includes an extra course and a champagne toast at midnight. Good news for picky eaters: each menu includes a bunch of options.
Radius - This should prove to be a pretty mellow, neighborhood-y kind of time. There are still a few spots left at the late seating, around 9/9:30, with four courses plus a sparkling toast for $85 per person, but there are more seats left for the early seating, for those with a party to go to. Tables between 5:30 and 6:30, three courses, $60. See the menu here.
Saison / Dcantr - Saison can still squeeze a few more people in for their regular nine-course menu, but you can also drop in for a more casual, a la carte experience up front at Dcantr, where some fantastic chicken liver mousseline and some champagne would make a lovely start to the evening.
Starbelly - Reservations are still being taken anywhere between 5 and 8 p.m., with the last seating at 8. Chef Adam Timney is letting you order off the a la carte menu if you so choose, but there’s also a prix fixe menu on offer for $66 a head.
Drink/Dance — Skip on ahead to the booze
Get hammered in high style at The Burritt Room, which is doing a pretty fun-sounding party called S.O.S. (Standing on Stardust), featuring go-go dancers, the excellent DJ Bus Station John (who spins undergound-type disco like you’d never hear because they only pressed 12 LPs of it), great cocktails, and a unicorn made of ice. Tickets are still getable for $87 (including the service fee), and that includes four (count ‘em four) drink tickets plus a glass of champagne.
Mighty is going 80s with a 1984 party. And get this: It’s free! Also, there’s complimentary champagne at midnight!
Fab new venue The Public Works is hosting a meeting of two beloved local DJ collectives, the Sunset folks and Honey Soundsystem, with special guests Kim Ann Foxman of Hercules and Love Affair and Tim Sweeney of Beats in Space, which should be every electro- and dance-music-lover’s dream come true. $30, doors at 9 p.m., dancing ‘til 5 a.m.
There’s also this wee little affair called Sea of Dreams at the Concourse Exhibition Center featuring Thievery Corporation, Modeselektor, and Beats Antique. And for the hardcore hipsters there’s a party at Fort Mason called Streets of San Francisco featuring DJs Steve Aoki and the Cobrasnake.
Triple Crown is hosting their swan song event on Friday, before closing and becoming a new venue. It’s called Sold Gold NYE, and there are still some $30 advance tickets here.
And for the gays and their admirers, there are two fun parties planned at The Stud (SomeThing New, $10 advance, featuring the SomeThing crew as well as hostess Juanita More), and at Truck, where they’re doing “Truck 54,” modeled on Studio 54 and likely to feature a lot of boys in bootie shorts – and easily one of the cheapest tickets in town with a $3 cover.
