Inside Plumeria Flours in Walnut Creek

April 10, 2013 11:30 am

Last May I noted the opening of the “cookies and confection” store Plumeria Flours on Newell Avenue (located in the back of the strip mall where Pacific Bay Coffee and George’s Giant Hamburgers are located). Recently I finally had a chance to drop by while they were open and thought the store design was really interesting. Check out the photos below to see what it looks like on the inside.

As for the food, I tried the popcorn which is baked, unlike most other popcorn stores, a square cupcake as well as purchasing some chocolate covered oreo cookies for a gift. Everything tasted great but the chocolate covered oreo not only tasted amazing, it’s quite a unique gift. Just by looking at it looks like a nicely decorated chocolate dessert which is nice by itself, but once people realized it’s actually a chocolate covered oreo they couldn’t believe it. Not one person had ever heard of that before. And everyone loved them.

Check out their website here. The owners told me they are looking to get a stand at the Walnut Creek farmers market once space becomes available. I hope they get one so I can try some chocolate pop rocks.

Check out more photos of the inside after the jump…

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Sherman Clay Going Out of Business in Walnut Creek

April 9, 2013 8:30 am

The Downtown Walnut Creek Association has a rare mention of a store going out of business. Sherman Clay will be having a private liquidation on April 18th and 19th, with the public liquidation following on April 20th and 21st, Sherman Clay is located at 1605 Bonanza Street in downtown Walnut Creek.

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Nor-Ski and Sports Moves to Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette

April 8, 2013 8:30 am

Last month I noted that See’s Candies was opening a new location where Nor-Ski and Sports used to be in the Lafayette Shopping Center and this is Nor-Ski’s new location at 3399 Mt. Diablo Blvd. next to Wine Thieves in Lafayette.

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Stock Up on British Food Items at Fresh & Easy in Walnut Creek Before it’s Too Late

April 5, 2013 11:30 am

I’m always on the lookout for interesting food items so being that the supermarket Fresh & Easy is British owned (Tesco), I decided to check them out and see if there were any food items from the United Kingdom that might not be readily available elsewhere. I did find a small section available. As you can see from the photo below they sell Shepherd;s Pie in a jar and various HP sauces among other things.

Since Tesco may decide to close or sell-off Fresh & Easy this summer, you may want to stock up on these British items while you can. Any recommendations on what to get?

By the way, is it OK to call these goods ‘British’? I remember asking someone whether they were British and they replied that they were English, and furthermore, nobody was ‘British’. You could be Scottish, English etc but not British.

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Recently Opened – The Bloom Space in Lafayette

April 4, 2013 8:30 am

The Bloom Space, a vintage collective and DIY workshop has been open since June 8th in Lafayette on Mt. Diablo Blvd. In addition to handcrafted goods from various vendors they also offer DIY workshops including classes featuring Chalk Paint (from England). Check out the classes here. The Bloom Space is located at 3391 Mt. Diablo Blvd. in Lafayette.

From their website:

The Bloom Space is a vintage collective and DIY workshop. Our collective hosts 12 vendors of beautiful vintage and antique design: home and garden decor, furniture, art work, vintage clothing and accessories, collectables, toys & funky, one-of-a-kind curiosities! If you love mixing vintage with an artistic flair, this is the place to find unique treasures.

Our DIY workshop offers a variety of classes on crafts, decorating, repurposing, refinishing, light culinary and more. At our DIY classes you can “Make It & Take It”, learn new techniques and have fun being creative!

Check out the work of one of the vendors:

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DayOne Baby Store Closing April 12th in Walnut Creek

April 3, 2013 8:30 am

Photo from DayOne

Thanks to a reader for sending word that the baby store DayOne is closing on April 12th in downtown Walnut Creek. This means within the past four months every single children’s store has closed in downtown Walnut Creek and Lafayette. The Right Start closed in December, Giggle closed in February, and Tulip also closed in February in Lafayette. Is Buy Buy Baby to blame which opened in Pleasant Hill or are there other factors causing baby stores to close? Are people having less babies recently? What’s going on?!

From their site:

We want to thank the Walnut Creek/East Bay community for supporting DayOne for the past five years. It has been an honor and pleasure to work with you and your babies and we hope you will come visit us at our San Francisco & Palo Alto Centers.

Important Things To Note:

-DayOne Walnut Creek Members Will Be Offered Store Credit for Their Memberships On a Pro-rated Basis With an Additional 15% Off All Walnut Creek DayOne Merchandise if Purchased Using That Credit.**

-Class Registrations for Classes After April 14th Will be Refunded With Store Credit With an Additional 15% Off All Merchandise Purchased Using Store Credit.**

-Childbirth Preparation Class will be held on Sunday, April 14th, as scheduled.

-Store Credits Must Be Claimed by April 12th But Do Not Expire Until October 31, 2013.

**Can not be combined with other discounts or offers.

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Brookstone Opening in Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek

April 1, 2013 8:30 am

In February I noted that Max Studio closed in Broadway Plaza and now Brookstone will be opening in its place. This Brookstone will be located at 1224 Broadway Plaza, a few stores down from Nordstrom, right next to Janie and Jack. Does anyone remember when Sharper Image used to be in Broadway Plaza? I hope Brookstone can last longer.

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Collectible Bookseller Opening in Downtown Walnut Creek

March 29, 2013 11:30 am

Back in February I noted that the women’s clothing store Threads Consignment had moved from their Locust St. location behind the Kitchen Table to a spot next to Norf London and now the previous location will be replaced by a collectible bookseller according to a source I’ve spoken with. Stay tuned…

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Tom Matousek Gallery Moves to New Location in Lafayette

March 28, 2013 11:30 am

Back last December I noted the opening of a popup art gallery by Tom Matousek and now they have just opened in a new location in Lafayette at 996 Moraga Rd. next to Squirrels Coffee Shop. Take a peek inside and you’ll see his distinctive artwork hanging which looks amazing. According to their Facebook page it’s by appointment only.

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Flower Shop Floret Opening Today in Downtown Lafayette

March 27, 2013 8:30 am

Earlier this month I noted that a florist might be opening in downtown Lafayette behind Patxi’s Pizza and it turns out to have been true. Floret opens today in the Lafayette Clocktower.

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