New Room in San Francisco's Mission district called 'The Hall'

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L.S. Dennis said:
A similar place opened in SF during the early to mid 90's following the Color of Money boom called The Great Entertainer. It too had great food (a complete sit down restaurant a beautiful bar featuring all kinds of beers and spirits). This room was big with private rooms with pools tables and glass doors, a main floor with around 45 Gold Crowns, two snooker table and a billiard table. It had a full schedule of USPPA and NPL tournaments and leagues during the week (in fact I played in one of Bob and Gene's NPL tournaments). It also had a parking lot, but it too could not defy the laws of economic gravity and had to close in just short time. We'll see what happens with this new place,,
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One of the things I forgot to mention about TGE was their offering a one hour of free pool coupon if you ate at their restaurant lunch or dinner. Now that's some good promotion some of these other upscale rooms should consider!
 
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It won’t be nearly so much fun as Palace Billiards.

You’ll have to be somewhat older to remember that joint. It was catty corner from the cable car turnaround on Market Street. Bob Byrne was a regular. I hadn’t been in SF for some years and I asked Bob if it was still safe to go to the Palace. He said he had had an experience on Market Street recently while deciding to drop in. It was late at night and he was coming from a dinner, walking along the block where Palace was. He noticed a group of men standing in front of the door to the stairs that led up to the pool room.

(Sidebar: You could get some very good deals on only slightly used electronics on those stairs.)

Bob decided to continue his stride right past this group and pretend that he had never had any intention of going in the doorway. He continued on and had gotten about thirty feet when he heard footsteps behind him. He picked up his pace. The footsteps came faster.

(Trigger Warning and Spoiler Alert: Bob is about to get mugged.)

Bob decided to turn and confront the person who was by now at his heels. He turned and found, as he expected, a large gentleman facing him. The gentleman says, “Aren’t you the guy who wrote that book about pool?” Bob says he is. The large gentleman continues, “Well, when you write a book, doesn’t the guy who publishes the book let you buy copies of it for a discount?” Bob confirmed that it was indeed the practice of some publishers to give the author a certain number of copies for free, and, if the author wanted more, he could buy them for a reduced price. So the large gentleman pursues the topic. “So how about you sell me a copy of that book for the price you get it for?”

Bob took the guy to his car and opened the trunk. He got a copy out and autographed it. Told the guy to keep his money.

Bob to me: “I am the only writer who has ever been mugged for an author’s discount.”
 
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Tobermory said:
It won’t be nearly so much fun as Palace Billiards.

You’ll have to be somewhat older to remember that joint. It was catty corner from the cable car turnaround on Market Street. Bob Byrne was a regular. I hadn’t been in SF for some years and I asked Bob if it was still safe to go to the Palace. He said he had had an experience on Market Street recently while deciding to drop in. It was late at night and he was coming from a dinner, walking along the block where Palace was. He noticed a group of men standing in front of the door to the stairs that led up to the pool room.

(Sidebar: You could get some very good deals on only slightly used electronics on those stairs.)

Bob decided to continue his stride right past this group and pretend that he had never had any intention of going in the doorway. He continued on and had gotten about thirty feet when he heard footsteps behind him. He picked up his pace. The footsteps came faster.

(Trigger Warning and Spoiler Alert: Bob is about to get mugged.)

Bob decided to turn and confront the person who was by now at his heels. He turned and found, as he expected, a large gentleman facing him. The gentleman says, “Aren’t you the guy who wrote that book about pool?” Bob says he is. The large gentleman continues, “Well, when you write a book, doesn’t the guy who publishes the book let you buy copies of it for a discount?” Bob confirmed that it was indeed the practice of some publishers to give the author a certain number of copies for free, and, if the author wanted more, he could buy them for a reduced price. So the large gentleman pursues the topic. “So how about you sell me a copy of that book for the price you get it for?”

Bob took the guy to his car and opened the trunk. He got a copy out and autographed it. Told the guy to keep his money.

Bob to me: “I am the only writer who has ever been mugged for an author’s discount.”
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Great story.
 
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Tobermory said:
It won’t be nearly so much fun as Palace Billiards.

You’ll have to be somewhat older to remember that joint. It was catty corner from the cable car turnaround on Market Street. Bob Byrne was a regular. I hadn’t been in SF for some years and I asked Bob if it was still safe to go to the Palace. He said he had had an experience on Market Street recently while deciding to drop in. It was late at night and he was coming from a dinner, walking along the block where Palace was. He noticed a group of men standing in front of the door to the stairs that led up to the pool room.

(Sidebar: You could get some very good deals on only slightly used electronics on those stairs.)

Bob decided to continue his stride right past this group and pretend that he had never had any intention of going in the doorway. He continued on and had gotten about thirty feet when he heard footsteps behind him. He picked up his pace. The footsteps came faster.

(Trigger Warning and Spoiler Alert: Bob is about to get mugged.)

Bob decided to turn and confront the person who was by now at his heels. He turned and found, as he expected, a large gentleman facing him. The gentleman says, “Aren’t you the guy who wrote that book about pool?” Bob says he is. The large gentleman continues, “Well, when you write a book, doesn’t the guy who publishes the book let you buy copies of it for a discount?” Bob confirmed that it was indeed the practice of some publishers to give the author a certain number of copies for free, and, if the author wanted more, he could buy them for a reduced price. So the large gentleman pursues the topic. “So how about you sell me a copy of that book for the price you get it for?”

Bob took the guy to his car and opened the trunk. He got a copy out and autographed it. Told the guy to keep his money.

Bob to me: “I am the only writer who has ever been mugged for an author’s discount.”
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Love this story!
 
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Tobermory said:
It won’t be nearly so much fun as Palace Billiards.

You’ll have to be somewhat older to remember that joint. It was catty corner from the cable car turnaround on Market Street. Bob Byrne was a regular. I hadn’t been in SF for some years and I asked Bob if it was still safe to go to the Palace. He said he had had an experience on Market Street recently while deciding to drop in. It was late at night and he was coming from a dinner, walking along the block where Palace was. He noticed a group of men standing in front of the door to the stairs that led up to the pool room.

(Sidebar: You could get some very good deals on only slightly used electronics on those stairs.)

Bob decided to continue his stride right past this group and pretend that he had never had any intention of going in the doorway. He continued on and had gotten about thirty feet when he heard footsteps behind him. He picked up his pace. The footsteps came faster.

(Trigger Warning and Spoiler Alert: Bob is about to get mugged.)

Bob decided to turn and confront the person who was by now at his heels. He turned and found, as he expected, a large gentleman facing him. The gentleman says, “Aren’t you the guy who wrote that book about pool?” Bob says he is. The large gentleman continues, “Well, when you write a book, doesn’t the guy who publishes the book let you buy copies of it for a discount?” Bob confirmed that it was indeed the practice of some publishers to give the author a certain number of copies for free, and, if the author wanted more, he could buy them for a reduced price. So the large gentleman pursues the topic. “So how about you sell me a copy of that book for the price you get it for?”

Bob took the guy to his car and opened the trunk. He got a copy out and autographed it. Told the guy to keep his money.

Bob to me: “I am the only writer who has ever been mugged for an author’s discount.”
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Bob was a real beauty! I loved his sense of humor. He saw humor in just about everything. Thank God we had a Bob Byrne!
 
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jay helfert said:
Bob was a real beauty! I loved his sense of humor. He saw humor in just about everything. Thank God we had a Bob Byrne!
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I think anyone who hasn't read McGoorty and at least one of Bob's instructional books is not a real pool fan. His day job was as the editor of a civil engineering magazine, which explains the quality of his diagrams. They were 10 times better than previous pool shot illustrations.
 
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Bob Jewett said:
I think anyone who hasn't read McGoorty and at least one of Bob's instructional books is not a real pool fan. His day job was as the editor of a civil engineering magazine, which explains the quality of his diagrams. They were 10 times better than previous pool shot illustrations.
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He played a sporty game of Three Cushions as well!
 
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Just my opinion. -----> Don't see this place having many pool players. Don't like the table layout with two long ways and two the other way. Pool revenue won't even move the needle to paying the monthly nut. For a place like this, I think a one or two free play 8 foot GC's where the hipsters / yuppies / metrosexuals can mingle around, hit a few balls here and there and have stimulating conversations while they drink there $20 cocktails.
 
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