In 2022, while we expect ghost kitchens and convenient gourmet condiments and snacks to continue to rise, we are also expecting the return of restaurants, especially those focused on previously under-represented food traditions and ingredients.
Does Omicron have you craving an escape from the January doldrums? Free yourself from the tyranny of classic takeout options and try reaching for a more adventurous menu instead. The Bay Area is full of under-the-radar eateries that feature the dishes of less familiar culinary traditions from Centra.
April 2021 East Bay restaurant openings and closures berkeleyside.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from berkeleyside.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Alloko Garden brings a taste of Ivory Coast from a ghost kitchen in Oakland
This new restaurant is one of more than 40 takeout and delivery-only operations at a new ghost kitchen called Jingletown Eats in East Oakland.
The first thing to know about Alloko Garden is there is no Alloko Garden.
2353 E. 12th St. (at Miller Avenue), Oakland
Well… at least not a brick-and-mortar eatery of that name. The month-old restaurant specializing in food from Ivory Coast is one of more than 40 takeout and delivery-only operations at a new ghost kitchen called Jingletown Eats in East Oakland.
But I didn’t know that the first time I ordered a meal on Alloko Garden’s website.
pickup at Jingletown Eats, 2353 E 12th St., Oakland
When Dan Zhao was a kid growing up in Los Angeles County, his father Keguang Zhao, a professional chef, never wanted him to follow the same career path. Now, the two are in Oakland running a restaurant together Cozy Wok, a Chinese vegetarian takeout spot in Jingletown.
By the time Dan, now 31, approached his father earlier this year with the idea to open up a restaurant, Keguang, 59, was ready. He’d been working as a professional chef since 1979. But when the pandemic hit, he was laid off from his restaurant job in Los Angeles, prompting his son to suggest going into business together. “He was excited about this idea from the beginning,” Dan said. “Since he started working on this project, it’s given him a lot more purpose in life.”