In this edition, an anticipated Arab-influenced eatery debuts, a family-run brewery opens its doors, a West Oakland community market breaks ground, plus other food and restaurant-related news from around The Town.
Jack London Square
Dyafa (44 Webster St.)
Dyafa, the new eatery from Reem's bakery owner Reem Assil, has quietly opened for business in the space once occupied by Haven, which closed earlier this year.
The restaurant specializes in cuisine reminiscent of Assil's Palestinian-Syrian upbringing and is operated in partnership with Daniel Patterson’s Alta Group, the East Bay Express reports.
"I want to cultivate more diversity in the fine dining space," she told the Express. “The food that I grew up with is incredible, and everyone should be able to share in that.”
Veteran tipster Al M. stopped by to see how things were moving along this week and said that the interior space "hasn't changed much, but with a few tweaks" here and there.
On the lunch menu, expect to see dishes like mujadarra with spiced rice, lentils and fried onion; spicy chicken kebob with grilled veggies and pickled turnips; and "Steph Curry"—turmeric-spiced cauliflower with eggplant, feta and roasted garlic.
As for libations, there's an assortment of signature cocktails such as a rum drink made with medjool dates, almond, coconut and egg whites; local beers, and an extensive wine list, along with non-alcoholic "refreshers." (You can check out the full menu here.)
For now, the new eatery is only serving lunch, but in the next few weeks, dinner service will begin at 5 p.m., said Al.
To officially introduce the new eatery, Dyafa is holding a grand opening celebration tomorrow from 6–9 p.m.
Original Pattern Brewing Co. (292 4th St.)
Also in Jack London Square, Al M. reports that Original Pattern Brewing Co. will also host its grand opening party tomorrow from 1–10 p.m.
The party will feature live music by Cold-Sol Band and a "surprise 15-piece brass band," according to the business' Instagram page, along with the release of three new brews, food trucks and more.
The brewery is recommending that guests purchase pre-sale tickets, "as we won’t know until day of if we will be able to sell [them] at the door."
As we reported in January, the new spot will feature a mix of traditional Belgian, German, English, Irish, and American style ales and lagers, along with some newer barrel-aged beers and sours.
There's an educational component to the brewery as well; imbibers will learn about the brewing process and how each beer is prepared during tasting sessions.
Original Pattern Brewing Co. is open Thursdays and Fridays 4–10pm, Saturdays noon–10pm and Sundays noon–8pm.
West Oakland
People's Community Market (3105 Myrtle St.)
Earlier this week, groundbreaking commenced for West Oakland's People's Community Market, a project that's been in the works for more than eight years.
As we reported in January, CEO Brahm Ahmadi acquired the 16,000-square-foot parcel for the planned 14,000-square-foot grocery store, food hall and event space, but after extensive delays and funding issues, the project took a few years longer to get off the ground.
Since then, a direct public offering "and community lenders have funded [the] market on the San Pablo corridor...where 25,000 residents have had to leave the community to buy fresh, healthy, affordable and culturally appropriate food for their families," a spokesperson told Hoodline.
Ahmadi hopes to have the market open by the end of this year.
Uptown
Dragon Pearl Asian Fusion (365 19th St.)
Finally, Dragon Pearl Asion Fusion softly opened this week, Al M. reports.
Earlier this month, we learned that the new fusion eatery was in the process of taking over the former Mama's Vietnamese Restaurant space, which recently closed.
While a full menu has not been publicly posted, it appears from a photo snapped by our tipster that the new restaurant will serve a variety of Japanese-inspired sushi and sashimi plates along with Chinese-style stir-fry and sides.
According to Yelper s u., the restaurant is actually owned and operated by the same folks as its previous iteration, and in addition to offering a menu of sushi mainstays, it brought back some of "the most popular items on the old Mama's menu."
Thanks to our omnipresent source Al M. for the tips!
Have you noticed an addition (or subtraction) from Oakland's food landscape? Text a tip and a photo to 510-757-9959, and we'll look into it.
