Village Inn Cafe Closing in Orinda Jan 28th

January 23, 2018 1:30 pm

Village Square Shopping Center, Orinda

Thanks to a reader for pointing out that the Village Inn Cafe is closing this Sunday, January 28th in the Village Square shopping center in Orinda according to this News 24/80 article. The current owners have been in business for over 30 years since 1986. Check out their interesting story here.

From their website:

The Village Inn Cafe, located then in a narrow space in the Village Square Shopping Center was purchased by Kurt & Kathy Bellows in December of 1985. They cleaned it thoroughly, installed some new equipment, changed the menu and opened on January 6th 1986.

The restaurant was immediately successful, and business grew steadily. After eight years, Kurt & Kathy had an opportunity to relocate St. Helena. They sold the restaurant in August of 1994. St. Helena was not a good fit for them, and fortunately the Village Inn Café was not a good fit for the new owner. Kurt and Kathy were able to buy back the restaurant and returned in February of 1995. This hiatus turned out to be a very costly six month vacation.

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Locanda Positano Planning to Open Later this Week in Lafayette

January 22, 2018 1:15 pm

1005 Brown Ave, Lafayette

Locando Positano, an Italian restaurant originally based in San Carlos (with an additional location in Danville), is planning on opening later this week in Lafayette. As you can see in the photo the expansive patio in back has a foosball table! Check out their menu here and find out more about the owner here.

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Ikoi Signage Up in Walnut Creek

January 19, 2018 4:00 pm

1632 N. Main St, Walnut Creek

Ikoi Sushi opened back in September in downtown Walnut Creek and their signage is up. There used to be a little “IKOI SUSHI” sign on the Rinehart Clock in front but that has been removed, leaving the GELATO text left over from a previous cafe, Honey Berry.

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Pokeatery Opens in Walnut Creek

January 18, 2018 11:30 am

Photo from Pokeatery

1345 Newell Ave, Walnut Creek

The poke craze continues… Last December we learned that the frozen yogurt shop Blush was closing in Walnut Creek (near Whole Foods), to be replaced by Pokeatery, and they have now opened. There are two other Bay Area locations (San Mateo and Castro Valley) with Walnut Creek being their first franchise location. Check out their Walnut Creek menu here and find out more on their website here. I look forward to trying out a Dole whip float (see photo below)!

From a press release:

Inspired by the love of the Hawaiian Islands, Pokeatery founders, Joann and Derek Chung, wanted to bring some of their favorite flavors to the mainland and offer a place where anyone could come and enjoy great poké bowls as a meal whenever they crave it. Pokeatery has taken the Hawaiian flavors of poké and updated them with a modern California twist, offering several delicious varieties made with sashimi-grade Ahi, Albacore, Salmon and more. Their sustainably-sourced, quality seafood menu is complemented with quality produce and ingredients. Pokeatery offers a wide variety of bases, sauces and toppings, allowing customers to create customizable poké bowls in a fast casual atmosphere.

Photo from Pokeatery

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Papa’s Coffee & Spirits Coming to Lafayette Forge Shopping Plaza

January 17, 2018 11:30 am

Lafayette Forge

A new coffee and “spirits” spot called Papa’s Coffee & Spirits is coming to the Lafayette Forge shopping plaza where the Lafayette Art Gallery used to be. According to the California ABC pending permit the owner is the same as Bonehead’s Texas BBQ located next door. Stay tuned…

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Puesto Opening “this Summer” at the Veranda in Concord

January 16, 2018 11:30 am

The Veranda, Concord

San Diego-based Puesto, the “Mexican artisan kitchen & bar” is coming to the Veranda shopping center this summer, right next to the IMAX movie theater. Check out their menu at one of their other locations here.

From their website:

Before Puesto, we had all left San Diego to chase ambitions in other ventures. Though we found individual success in other places, it was tacos that brought us back together and back to California —Chef Luisteen’s tacos, to be exact. His passion for completely re –defining the taco brought us back to our hometown of San Diego to start a family business, the taco stand we’d never even dreamed of. Now we’re tacoteurs and have never looked back.

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Wow Wow Lemonade Signage Up in Danville, Opening Soon

January 12, 2018 1:15 pm

Danville Livery

Hawaiian Wow Wow Lemonade, which we learned would be coming to Danville Livery in October, is getting closer to oepning with their signage now up. According to a New Year’s post on their Instagram page they “promise to be open soon!”. Learn more about their handcrafted lemonade here.

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Kibo Sushi “Grand Opening Soon” in Danville

January 9, 2018 1:15 pm

125 Hartz Ave, Danville

In November we learned about a new Japanese restaurant called Kibo Sushi that would take over where Kane Sushi used to be in Danville and the signage is now up with an additional “Grand Opening Soon” temporary sign up as well. Stay tuned…

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GEN Korean BBQ House Signage Up in Concord

January 8, 2018 11:30 am

1353 Willow Pass Rd, Concord

In October we learned that GEN Korean BBQ House would be coming to Concord where the old Sizzler used to be on Willow Pass Rd. and the signage is now up as they get ready to open, hopefully soon. Check out their menu here and Concord Facebook page here.

From their website:

The character for GEN simply means, “The beginning”, and we welcome you to join us in the art of Korean barbeque. We are looking to transcend the norm of Korean BBQ by fusing different flavors that we have found using ingredients from different parts of the world.

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Mod Pizza Opens in The Veranda in Concord

January 5, 2018 11:30 am

The Veranda, Concord

Plenty of pizza choices coming to Concord with Mod Pizza opening recently in the new Veranda shopping center in Concord. Check out their menu here. Yesterday we learned that the Neapolitan pizzeria MidiCi will be opening next door at the Willows shopping center.

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