By Kevin Epps
When I sat down via phone call with Broke-Ass Stuart—San Francisco’s irrepressible chronicler of dive bars, offbeat adventures, and the city’s endlessly evolving culture—I wanted to understand what drives someone to spend two decades documenting the life of a city that never stops changing. His new book, The Worst of Broke-Ass Stuart: 20 Years of Love, Death & Dive Bars, isn’t just a collection of essays and columns; it’s a love letter to San Francisco, warts and all.
“I see this book as a way to capture both the evolution of me as a writer and the evolution of San Francisco,” Stuart told me. The anthology spans 350 pages, gathering work from his early columns in the SF Examiner, travel writing for 7×7, and even pieces previously unpublished. He shares, “You see me as a young cat, super jazzed about this town… then the 2010s hit, and the tech boom and gentrification started changing everything. But despite it all, this is still my home.”
Stuart’s Book Approach
Stuart’s approach to the city is both affectionate and critical. He documents the joys of scraping by, the nightlife and the dive bars, and even his own political misadventures—like running for mayor—as a lens to understand how San Francisco operates. “Running for office was a very interesting education in civics,” he said. “You learn who the city is built for, who calls the shots, and what it means to be part of it.”
The timing of this book is significant. “San Francisco keeps going through booms and busts,” Stuart reflected. “I wanted to pin down my perspective on the city over the past 20 years—a cultural artifact, if you will.” While the book doesn’t tackle the most recent AI-driven boom, it captures the ongoing shifts and the city’s enduring character.
Book Release
To celebrate the release, Stuart is throwing a launch party on October 17 at Kilowatt in the Mission District—a night of drag, burlesque, circus performers, live music, DJs, and a Q&A. In a surreal honor befitting the city’s unofficial ambassador of scrappiness, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors will also declare that day “Broke-Ass Stuart Day.”
The book is available at local bookstores, online through Bookshop.org, and on Stuart’s website, brokeassstuart.com.
For those who have ever loved a city that sometimes doesn’t love you back, or have ever scraped by while holding onto your passions, The Worst of Broke-Ass Stuart is a reminder that creativity, stubbornness, and a bit of irreverence can capture the true soul of a place.
Kevin Epps is a Dad, award-winning filmmaker, community activist, author, executive editor of the SF Bay View “National Black Newspaper” and a board member for the SF Bay View Foundation. Reach him at kevin@sfbayview.com or on Instagram: kevinepps1.
