
Openings, closings…
HERBIVORE HAS CLOSED We received a tip this week that downtown Berkeley’s Herbivore restaurant has closed after nine years of operation on Shattuck Avenue. The restaurant’s original location in San Francisco’s Mission district appears closed as well. Our tipster said that he spoke with a “now-former” employee, who reported that all locations are closed indefinitely. A sign on the door of the restaurant reading “Herbivore is closed today” has been up for at least five days. Nosh attempted to reach both restaurant locations, but the phone calls went to a standard voicemail message with no indication of permanent closure. Other potential guests expressed disappointment on Herbivore’s Facebook page earlier this week: “I heard you closed your doors for good today,” wrote John Hawkridge. “Tell me it’s not true!!!” Gary Ware added: “I’m sorry to see you go, but it would be nice if it was acknowledged somewhere on your website or facebook page (aside from a visitor comment).” Herbivore is the second exclusively vegan restaurant to close in Berkeley in the last year; Café Gratitude shuttered last December and will be replaced with a Sicilian restaurant, Agrodolce. We will keep you posted as we learn more about the future of the Herbivore space.
UPDATE ON BONITA FISH MARKET Last week, we broke the news that Bonita Fish Market at 1941 University Ave. had closed, but we were not sure if the closure was permanent. This week, we’ve learned that the space in which the market was housed had been on the real-estate market for a few months. It has now been sold to a “place that does poke bowls,” according to Peter Fikaris, the chef/owner of The Butcher’s Son, which operates next door. We do not yet know of a name or an opening timeline for the poke restaurant, but we will keep you posted.
LUCKYDUCK OPENS NEXT WEEK Update: We’ve learned that Luckyduck extended its initial operating hours to include dinner and evening service; it is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday-Thursday, 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday. You can find the full menu here. Original post: Oakland’s first bicycle café is set to officially open August 23. Luckyduck, which we reported on in July, will have a menu focused on well-made sandwiches, fermented vegetables, salads, and local beer and wine. It will start out with breakfast and lunch hours, eventually adding dinner service. (Coffee from Red Bay and bagels from Authentic Bagel will be on hand in the early hours.) On the bike side of things, the shop plans to sell a mix of custom and refurbished used frames in a welcoming, friendly atmosphere. Luckyduck Bicycle Café will be at 302 12th St. (at Harrison Street), Oakland. Connect with the company on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Dinners and events
NEW BELGIUM BEER AND FILM TOUR The Colorado-based brewery is headed to Oakland tonight for its annual Clips Beer and Film Tour. The free event, which begins at 7:30 p.m. at Mosswood Park, features short films and a selection of small-batch beers. All of the proceeds from beer sales will go to Bike East Bay. The ten short films featured at the event will all incorporate the year 1991 into the film, as it was the year in which New Belgium was founded. On tap will be some of the brewery’s “most esoteric” beer options, such as its Tart Lychee sour ale, Transatlantique Kriek sour ale and De Koninck flowering citrus ale. Food will be provided by La Crêpe à Moi. New Belgium encourages all attendees to ride bikes to the event. Mosswood Park is at 3612 Webster St. in Oakland. Connect with New Belgium on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
What else is going on…
FAMILY MEAL, BEER DINNERS AT PLUM BAR Uptown Oakland’s Plum Bar has upped its food offerings with a three- to four-course shared “family meal” dinner for $18 or $26. Drink pairings are available as well. The menu is “the way we like to eat,” according to the restaurant, and it includes the staff’s favorite bites from the menu: marinated olives, smoked deviled eggs, avocado and burrata toast, chicken wings, turkey meatballs and steak lettuce cups all make an appearance, among other dishes. The family meal is designed to be shared between at least two people, and even when adding the extra course, is one of the most affordable prix fixe options in town. In other Plum Bar news, the restaurant is also now hosting four-course beer pairing dinners every third Thursday of the month; in August, it paired Henhouse Brewing Company beers with four special dishes, and in September, the restaurant will welcome Berkeley’s Fieldwork Brewing into the mix. Food is $25 and the beer pairing is $15 — another solid deal. Plum Bar is at 2216 Broadway (at Grand Avenue), Oakland. Connect with the restaurant on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Want to keep abreast of East Bay food news? Subscribe to NOSH Weekly, the FREE weekly email packed with delicious news. Simply sign up here.