Animal Place’s Vegan Republic. Photo: Facebook
Animal Place’s Vegan Republic, which opened as Republic of V in February 2014 as the first grocery store in the Bay Area to offer completely vegan products, closed in July. The owners cited a substantial drop in sales due to COVID-19, but they’d been seeing declining business for more than a year which they attributed, ironically, to the “huge popularity” of veganism. In an Instagram post, Vegan Republic wrote, “Chain stores are pulling away customers with their newfound openness in carrying vegan products, and it’s a blessing and a curse.”
Au Coquelet
Mother-daughter team La Guerrera’s Kitchen is serving up Mexican eats, like tamales and chicken mole rojo, at a new brick-and-mortar restaurant that opened on Dec. 18 in Old Oakland. Photo: La Guerrera’s Kitchen
Usually at this time of year, coworkers, family and friends don their sparkliest outfits and gather to indulge in a holiday drink or festive meal at a local venue, often at a table or private event space booked weeks in advance.
Instead, December 2020’s widespread COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations have led to a near-statewide stay-at-home order, as well as a provisional end to outdoor dining that has restaurants fighting to survive. Denied indoor service for most of the year, eateries across California poured funds into parklets, tenting, heat lamps, table guards and staff training for the safety and comfort of al fresco patrons, only to see outdoor dining officially struck down this month at least through early January 2021. And of course, the lockdown doesn’t ju
Poulet in North Berkeley was able to stay in business, despite closing from March through August, thanks to the first round of Paycheck Protection Program loans. Photo: Sarah Han
Restaurants and food suppliers in the Bay Area are grappling with a new round of strict stay-at-home orders that ban on-site dining service during a bleak winter with skyrocketing coronavirus cases. The federal government is finally starting to take action. After months of political gridlock, on Monday night Congress passed a $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill. In addition to supplying eligible Americans with $600 stimulus checks and unemployed workers with $1,200 per month in aid, the bill directs $284 billion to restart the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) through March. Although passed by Congress, the fate of the stimulus package remains unclear; on Tuesday President Trump threatened to veto the bill. But even if the stimulus package is signed into law, some local restaurant owners are uncertain it will
The Alley on Grand Avenue has been closed since March due to the pandemic. Its owner says the historic piano bar is on the brink of closure. Photo: Sarah Han
A group of bar regulars is asking for help to forestall yet another pandemic-driven closing of an institution near and dear to so many: Oakland’s historic Alley piano bar. The timeless Alley, the third oldest bar in Oakland, has been at 3325 Grand Ave. since 1933, but with the pandemic keeping its doors closed, its owner since 2009, Jacqualine Simpkins, says it is on the brink of closure.
The dedicated, die-hard Alley community has been meeting via social media, including through live, virtual events, to sing and stay connected ever since the piano bar closed in March. Through the long months of the pandemic, Alley regular Rachel Howard says, the fellow fans and singers got to know each other better and, once the situation turned dire, the Alley Preservation Society was born. Alley pianist Bryan Seet, along with Howard and
San Francisco restauranteur Rica Sunga-Kwan, the owner of Portola District ice cream shop Churn Urban Creamery
I ordered a lot of Burma Love because at some points the only option for excitement in my day was food that was bold and spicy. And because I could add on a container of the spicy fermented tea leaf dressing and Burmese crunchy mix for “DIY” tea leaf salads. I also ordered too much pizza (Slice House, Square Pie Guys, Beretta) because if not now, when, and because pizza will always be the food that travels best? Oh, and Bacon Bacon continued to be my hangover savior. It’s way too close to my apartment. I probably need to move.