True Sake 2.0 – Say Hello To Our New Digs
A little more than 20 years ago, I was driving my minivan around San Francisco
trying to get a “feel” for a part of town that would make a good home for the first dedicated sake store outside of Japan. It was a weird feeling because I was
trying to imagine what my customer base would look like, and where would they want to shop.
That search didn’t work, because I didn’t know what I was looking for!
So I asked myself, "Beau where would you like to shop for sake?"
And that is how we ended up in Hayes Valley in the middle of San Francisco near City Hall, Civic Center, and the SF Symphony. It was an edgy little offshoot of old SF, and it was not what it is today. Hayes Valley was low rent, sort of artsy, and the home to some really cool small independent retail stores. In a word, it didn't have an identity, just a feeling. And that feeling was cool. I liked shopping in Hayes Valley and thought my idea was cool, so I started the process of finding a space to start a little bit of sake history.
And here we are today, still the best sake destination outside of Japan, and known the world over for being the pioneer and the original sake store not in Tokyo or Osaka.
At the end of the month, “old” True Sake (560 Hayes Street) will move directly next door to “new” True Sake (556 Hayes Street). We didn’t have to move, but we will! Old True Sake is so special and so unique, but it’s so small. Sake has become a larger business and as such, True Sake needs larger surroundings. We need more room for our customers, who have been patiently stepping around and over cases of sake and shipping boxes for far too long. We need more room to store more amazing sake. And we need more room to have our first legally designated sake tasting counter used for educational and enlightening purposes. Come pay us a visit. Brick-and-mortar is still the number one reason why we are the best sake retailer outside of Japan. And it’s what separates us from the many new online faceless electronic stores that don’t get to have that awesome experience of a sake relationship with real human customers.
Our focus is and always has been on you and your sake shopping and learning experience. We will still say, “Let us know if you have any questions” when you walk in our new door, and we will continue to provide you with the best, most informed, and most passionate sake service in the world.
Come join us for 20 more years of sake history!