by Ken Katz
The big news on Grand this month, in direct response to the coronavirus, was the opening of curbside parklets in front of Sister Restaurant, Almond & Oak and The Libertine. Hopefully, the availability of outside seating (in combination with take-out and delivery orders) will allow these three establishments to hang in there until we have an effective vaccine and it feels safe for everyone to dine out and socialize.
In addition to supporting our neighborhood residents, do keep in mind and continue to support all the various retail and service shops that are an essential part of the fabric that makes the Grand Lake District a special place in which to live and shop.
One of those special places, Wild Rabbit Bakery, was blessed late last month with a rave review in the East Bay Express that, amongst other issues, spoke glowingly about their wide selection of English scones. They are currently open Saturdays and Sundays for takeaway and preorder pick-up.
Unfortunately, it’s becoming painfully obvious that far too many of those businesses lack the wherewithal to survive many more months of an active pandemic. The latest victims were Skin & Tonic (which always got rave reviews) and the Ken Pitts Martial Arts Studio which has been a fixture in the neighborhood (beginning on Lakeshore Avenue) for some twenty years.
A third business, Jau Jou Salon at 3351 Grand also closed but only after owner Daniel Jaujou agreed to sell to his old friends, Julie Nichols, who owns United Grooming in Jack London Square and Zulma Reyes who works there as a hairstylist. Julie and Zulma are partnering in this second United Grooming location. The latter will have the balcony space for hairstyling and Julie will cut hair on the ground floor space. Asked about their future plans, Zulma emailed this message:
We would love to host a rotating artwork, it’s something I use to do at my other salon. We’re also trying to brainstorm on bringing the business together for a holiday event. Something that will bring people to Grand Avenue for more business exposure while remaining safe. We’ve already spoken to some of the businesses and some are interested.
Book online at United Grooming.com or call (510) 817-4646
Comments
One response to “Grand Avenue Business Report – November 2020”
A suggestion for safer indoor/outdoor restaurant dining: along with dividers between tables, a thin plexiglass divider placed across the middle of each table would allow people to sit across from each other at the table and be able to see each other and hear each other talk without spraying virus on each other as they eat and talk. I’ve seen this done in offices and retail establishments, why not restaurants?