2025 Northern and Central California Food News and Journalism [SF Bay Area, Northern California, Central California, Northern Nevada]

Prosciutto Spicy Vodka Chicken Parmigiana at Original Joe’s in Westlake. Also Porterhouse Steak.

Banana Island in Westlake (Malaysian), the food-related part starts at about the 4:00 mark -

from Oaklandside Nosh -

Fig Leaf Community Gardens in the laurel District of Oakland:

Did You Eat Yet? on YouTube -

West Oakland

Featured West Oakland Spots:
• Chef Green
• Swahili Spot
• West Oakland Farmer’s Market, Prescott Night Market, and the Prescott Food Hall
• Fast Times Burgers
• Woo Can Cook
• June’s Pizza
• Soba Ichi

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We are looking forward to trying Jaji. Loved the remark by the grandmother to the effect that sometimes she had a hard time recognizing how her recipe had been updated, but with essentially the same flavors.

Jaji
422 24th St, Oakland (in the Hotel Kissel, ground floor)

Jaji replaces the now-closed Occitania by Paul Duende.

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Mike Lim on YouTube -

Rainbow Pizza Greek and Italian food in San Mateo in the Crystal Springs Shopping Center:

East Bay openings -

Luke in KQED.org -

And anyway, wasn’t MSG bad?

Well, no. Years later — long after Green had learned that those old “Chinese Restaurant Syndrome” campaigns were based on bad science and, often, blatant racism — the playwright recreated this moment of racialized teen angst in her play Exotic Deadly: Or the MSG Play, which opens at San Francisco Playhouse on Jan. 30, directed by Jesca Prudencio.

I missed the Jan 25 Cheese Fest at Rockridge Market Hall in Oakland. Did anyone go?

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Truffle Fest

Featuring tastings of trufflely goods, housemade truffled treats, demonstrations with food purveyors and a chance to win prizes.

When: Feb. 8, 2025, 12pm–3pm

Where: Rockridge Market Hall Oakland

Baklava Story, 1830 Harrison St., Mission

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Turtle Tower Nortern-style Vietnamese to return in mid-Feb on California St in old Barbacco spot near Tadich in Financial District

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This is so sad, it’s the one place I always stop at when in Sonoma. Great unique cheese, reasonably priced and such a great place to take visitors.

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Great news about Turtle Tower!

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Great news!

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Maybe they got a good deal on lease? It’s hard for restaurants etc to make a profit, high overhead. I like that location a lot, easy to get to by BART/MUNI.

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NIce read…better news.

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From Eventbrite -

Lantern Festival 2025 in Oakland Chinatown

Date: Sunday, February 9, 3-8PM

Location: Pacific Renaissance Plaza

The year of the wood snake is a magical time of wisdom and collective transformation :sparkles::snake:— come to Chinatown to celebrate the new year in an evening of delicious foods, dancing, music, poetry, healing spaces , alongside an incredible maker and night market to bring in the new year grounded in intention and community.

From Mission Local -

Mazra middle-eastern cuisine opens in gas station at. Mission and 30th St.

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SF Chronicle video on Jaji, new Afghan in Uptown Oakland, 422 24th Street @ Broadway in the Kissel Hotel.

from CBS KPIX 5 -

Reversing the stigma of MSG -

Bay Area hofbraus - Europa Hofbrau on Moraga Way in Orinda, Chick-n-Coop on Mission in Daly City ,Tommy’s Joynt in SF

from Oaklandside NOSH -
Lao Garden opens at 2514 San Pablo near Dwight Way in Berkeley -

Lao Garden

01.28.25: Berkeley welcomed a new Laotian restaurant to its ranks last week: Lao Garden will celebrate its grand opening on Feb. 1, with a 20% discount on dine-in orders. You’ll find a variety of noodle dishes, curries, wraps, salads and seafood specialties on the menu, which waxes poetic about Laotian culinary mastery.

Lao Garden, 2514 San Pablo Ave, Berkeley

from KQED -

Fikscue BBQ in Alameda,

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The two neighborhood Hof Braus in places I’ve lived have both closed :frowning:

In Novato (Marin County), there was Roast Haus Hof Brau, which died around 2010 or so.

Here in Sacramento, there was Sam’s Hof Brau, which closed permanently after being unable to recover after a fire in 2023.

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The Oaks Card Club hofbrau closed in 2020. It was at San Pablo Av and 41st ST in Emeryville.

The hofbrau at Brennan’s at University Av near 2nd St Berkeley closed in 2018.

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I loved Brennan’s turkey. The Chicken Coop used to be on Taraval, was great. A few months ago I discovered it was now on outer Mission in Daly City. Depressing place, staff very distracted. I won’t return.

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Oaks Card Club! I’d forgotten. Used to work right in the neighborhood . Wally’s Mediterranean is still there.the garlic chicken will still kill vampires at 50 yards.

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I went to Brennans a few times a month, for a turkey or roast beef sandwich. One time, I looked around and thought, there’s a lot of gray-haired and bearded, probably retired, men here. Um…

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