Scoop That Cone, Lift That Glass, and 6 Other Things to See & Do for Father’s Day

Bespoke Boots for Stylish Mountain Men

Street style rarely translates to the trails, especially when it comes to boots. After failing to find a pair that could hold up on sheep farms and mountain hikes, and then transition to meetings in the city, Vince Romano decided to make his own. Despite never having visited a boot factory or done leatherwork, he began tinkering. Two years later, people on the street were asking to buy the boots he was wearing straight off of his feet. As the requests continued, he was inspired to launch Truman Boot Company. His versatile kicks are handcrafted in Boulder, Colorado using  a stitch-down construction method common in Pacific Northwest logging boots. Customers can pop into the Pearl Street storefront to customize their own pair or choose from a selection online crafted from the finest leathers like South African antelope and Regency French calf-hide. Romano and his team make about 5,000 pairs a year and an order typically takes two to three weeks to complete. —Jen Murphy, executive editor

Go See Live Music

I live across the country from my own dad, but I’ll be honoring my husband and father of two by indulging one of his (and my own) favorite activities: seeing live music. And there’s no better summer music tradition in our hometown of San Francisco than the Stern Grove Festival, a weekly free outdoor concert that kicks off on Father’s Day and goes through mid-August. We’ve been Stern Grove attendees for many years, showing up in the early morning to stake our claim under the eucalyptus trees with a blanket, games, and picnic spread to last the whole day long; since the events are free, they’re popular (read: crowded), so getting a good spot means showing up hours before the music starts (a yoga class, kids’ concert, and food trucks are also on hand to keep people occupied during the hours leading up to the opening act). This year’s kickoff show is headlined by a throwback favorite, ’90s acid jazz-flavored hip-hop group Digable Planets; other performances this summer include Galactic, Toots and the Maytals, The Psychedelic Furs, the San Francisco Symphony, and the San Francisco Ballet. —Jessica Mordo, associate digital director

The Coolest Little Pocket Knife a Dad Could Own

I have a drawer full of pocket knives handed down to me by the fathers in my life: my father, grandfathers on both sides, and my father-in-law. These men are no longer with us, but their knives are: Swiss army knives, a wooden-handled French Opinel with a rusted blade, more than one dime-store Case, an army-issued lineman’s knife, a black anodized Kershaw, and a patent-pending Leatherman. The knives were used by these men and I still use them today. So it shouldn’t surprise you that at the top of my Father’s Day wish list is the Elko folding knife from the Portland-based outfitter James Brand. It’s a tiny, little, handsome thing with a sturdy one-inch blade, a pry bar for loosening bottle caps and screws, and a little loop so it can go on your keychain. And it’s only $60, making it just about the most affordable heirloom out there. It’s something I’d hold on to for a while, and use now and again, comforted by the knowledge that it’ll probably end up in a drawer full of knives somewhere down the road and my son and daughter can fight over who gets which one. —Hugh Garvey, food editor

Beer Necessities

It’s no coincidence that the annual Washington Brewers Festival falls on Father’s Day each year. Grab your dad, uncle, and/or grandpa and head over to the all-ages beer festival that offers over 500 different beers from 110 different Washington breweries. The fest features an array of food trucks, live music from Pacific Northwest bands, a brewer’s keg toss, a kids’ craft tent and playground, and more. The three-day event will begin on Friday the 14th at King County’s Marymoor Park in Redmond. —Kelsey Maloney, editorial assistant

Get Dad in the (National Park Lovers) Game

Buy, sell, and trade the most beautiful sites in the U.S. from the towering trees of Sequoia to the red-rock wonders of Arches. Monopoly National Parks Edition isn’t new, but if you’re an outdoor enthusiast, and Dad’s had his game face on since May, this needs to be in your game cabinet. Bonus points if you end the game with inspiration to plan a trip. —Zoe Gutterman, associate digital producer

Paperwhites for the Black of Thumb

My father grew up on an orchard, but he’s not our family green thumb. Still, there’s an easy garden project for everyone, so I ordered these paperwhite bulbs for him for Father’s Day from Terrain, the atmospheric #gardeninspo capsule shop I love to browse. The Terrain shops are connected to Anthropologie stores, and the one I frequent is in the Westfield Century City mall (with other West-Coast locations in Palo Alto and Walnut Creek). Paperwhites, a narcissus, are so incredibly easy to grow, and yet they make you feel so happy when their white blossoms pop up. Just get some pebbles, ground the bulbs in them, and fill with water up to the bottom of the bulbs every day. Here’s a cool trick to keep paperwhites from growing too tall: Once the green shoots spring up to about two inches, swap out the water for a solution of seven parts water to one part vodka, or 13 parts water to one part rubbing alcohol, and they’ll flourish in three to six weeks with lovely blooms that are half the normal height. If people are like plants, I guess I owe my height to your no-alcohol policy and not Mom’s 5’2″ genes, Dad. —Dakota Kim, staff writer

The Pendleton x Salt & Straw Collab to Make Dad’s Day

I usually give my dad one main gift and a lil’ something fun on the side for Father’s Day. This year I’m eyeing this Pendleton Grand Canyon throw from their National Parks collaboration. It’s a super soft, thick textile with a nostalgic 1970s-inspired design. For the fun gift, I’m picking up a pint of the Mushroom Muddy Buddies ice cream from Salt & Straw’s new Pendleton-themed, summer-only Camping Series. The flavor instantly takes you back to Ziploc bags full of peanut butter- and chocolate-coated Chex cereal, but with candied mushrooms for a touch of umami. Plus, part of the proceeds go toward the National Park Foundation. —Maya Wong, assistant editor

Hi-Fi Fabulousness

One value my father passed on to me is a belief in the superiority of not just vinyl, but long-playing vinyl. When I was a Top-40 obsessed teen, my dad’s aversion to 45-rpm singles baffled me. Eventually, though, I came around to his way of thinking: that an album is an experience; a journey with no shortcuts. A record, I came to understand, is like a beautifully turned sentence: It doesn’t make sense if you remove any of the words.

For that reason, I already know that my Father’s Day is going to involve a visit to my local hi-fi bar. Oakland’s Bar Shiru is part of a Japanese trend that’s starting to take hold in the United States. (Los Angeles has In Sheep’s Clothing, and several exist on the East Coast, as well.) Hi-fi bars are like any bar, but with more seating and extreme high-end sound systems. DJs play albums, always on vinyl, always in their entirety. Patrons are expected to listen quietly to the music. In Japan, talkers are shushed; that doesn’t happen at Bar Shiru but it’s still a remarkably hushed place. Hi-fi bars may not be for everyone, but I know my father, an audiophile who liked cocktails far more than chit-chat, would have loved it. (And this apple didn’t fall far from that introverted tree.) We can’t celebrate Father’s Day together, but I can at least raise a glass to my first and most important music teacher.

Very quietly. —Nicole Clausing, digital producer