In a city where a single permit can take six months and a lemonade stand probably needs an environmental impact report, it's nice to see a small business just... doing its thing.
Mister Softee has been spotted making the rounds in the Richmond District, slinging soft serve to anyone brave enough to eat ice cream in San Francisco's version of summer — which, as we all know, is indistinguishable from winter.
As one local noted, the truck is out in the Richmond "every Sunday. Even in gross weather." That's the kind of entrepreneurial grit this city used to celebrate before it decided that everything needs a task force and a community advisory board.
Look, we're not going to pretend an ice cream truck is hard news. But there's something quietly great about a no-frills business rolling through a neighborhood, providing a simple product people actually want, without a $4 million city grant or a nonprofit intermediary skimming off the top. No app. No surge pricing. No venture capital. Just a truck, some soft serve, and a guy who shows up rain or shine.
The Richmond District — often overlooked in favor of the Mission's taqueria discourse or the Marina's brunch wars — deserves this kind of love. It's a neighborhood of families, longtime residents, and people who actually live normal lives in San Francisco, which increasingly feels like a radical act.
So next Sunday, if you hear that familiar jingle drifting through the fog on Geary or Clement, do yourself a favor: grab a cone. Support the guy. It's a small reminder that not every good thing in this city needs to be regulated, subsidized, or debated at a Board of Supervisors meeting.
Sometimes it's just ice cream.