Draymond Green teams up with East Bay restaurateurs to open new SF restaurant

They call themselves the "dream team" in the restaurant business.

Golden State Warriors' star Draymond Green is teaming up with Chef Nelson German and restaurateur Guma Fassil to bring a new, unique dining and food experience to San Francisco's Lower Nob Hill neighborhood.

German already owns two restaurants in Oakland: alaMar Dominican Kitchen and Sobre Mesa, an Afro-Latino kitchen. Fassil took over his family's restaurant, Meskie's, in Berkeley. It serves traditional Ethiopian food.

Put the two together, you get Meski in San Francisco.

"This is kind of a product of a brainchild of Afro-Latin, Ethiopian-Dominican fusing," Fassil said. "Meski was my mom's name, and she passed six years ago...This is essentially paying homage to her."

"We come from the one diaspora, that's the African diaspora," German said. "Whether I'm Dominican, whether he's Ethiopian, we're all one people. It's a match made in heaven. We're really excited to do something so new that no one's ever really brought together."

German and Fassil met less than six months ago when Fassil was out with Green and his wife. Fassil is close friends with Green and was out on a Saturday night when they wanted to get some food afterwards.

"It's crazy how it happened, sort of by serendipity," Fassil said. "Afterwards they wanted to get some bites and some drinks and catch a vibe somewhere. I instantly thought of Sobre Mesa. We had never met prior to that, but I was a big fan. Sobre Mesa's kitchen was closed. Chef Nelson was kind enough to reopen the grill for us."

The rest, as they say, is history. Today, the two are making the final touches on their grand opening set for Saturday, April 5. The two-story, just over 4,000-square-foot restaurant is all about honoring history, Black culture and family.

Also, this time around, German is a new dad opening up his third restaurant.

"My baby boy is my biggest motivation," he said. "Not just our partnership but just everything around family. And this is what this place is ... to build more, definitely the generational wealth, to build something for my son."

Another important thing Fassil said is to change the narrative on African cuisine.

"We can do elevated cuisine as well," he said. "This is the market where you can really make an impact on a national scale. From our cuisine, our presentation, our hospitality, everything is intentional."

Fassil and German hope Meski becomes a new hotspot for Dub Nation and Warriors players. But Fassil said don't expect to see Green working when you visit.

"People come in here thinking he's gonna wait your table or bus you or something like that," he said. "I'm sorry to disappoint, he's not. But there is a good chance you might see him here, especially after a game or on a weekend."

German said it's more than basketball.

"It's everything else he's investing in – in the youth, the community, and building a restaurant that's bringing Black culture back to San Francisco," he said.

There will be a concierge doorman outside Meski with security and valet parking across the street.