Musings of a Solo Diner: Oakland Restaurant Week
Keith WHO????? We don't know him.
Oakland is at a turning point, y’all.
If you’ve been here for any extended period of time (I’ll define that as more than the last 5 years), you know it’s been real in the field, as the saying goes. And if you love Oakland, you’ve probably spent lots of time in vehement defense of it, or wondering when it would get back to feeling like what I hear all my friends who are Town natives describe as “the old Oakland.”
With recent acclaim for its thriving food culture, Oakland Restaurant Week found many people, both natives and transplants, ready to re-engage and delve into experiencing the city’s culinary goodness, and just as I have in previous years, I took ORW25 as a personal challenge to dine at three restaurants I hadn’t been to before (a feat, given the amount of time I spend eating out).
Not only did I find great meals, but I found activism, using food to resist the narrative.
The last 10 days took me to neighborhoods I know well, and areas I needed GPS to navigate. It also gave me the opportunity to hear from community organizations, restaurateurs, and chefs passionate about preserving Oakland’s appetite for entrepreneurship and equity, understanding so many people are socio-economically removed from the experiences of dining that are commonplace for many of us.
Here are the top 5 things I learned (or remembered) this year during Oakland Restaurant Week:
It doesn’t have to be fancy to be good: I dined at The Peach, The Cook and Her Farmer, and Marzano (for brunch, lunch, and dinner respectively), and for just over $200 total, I had three really good meals as a first timer at each place (I’ll be sharing my thoughts on my favorite of the trio in a separate post).
Content usually doesn’t tell a robust story: Can it put butts in seats? Sure. But many times, chefs feel like the story of their craft gets left on the cutting room floor in service to glossier narratives and bite-sized recaps. A restaurant usually represents years of work it took a chef to get to that point. They want to wow you with their talent. Take a little extra time and care with their story.
People are behind the scenes working hard for food access and equity in Oakland: Shout out to Community Kitchens and their week-long summit that ran concurrently with ORW25. I learned so much about all of these amazing organizations and programs (Saba Grocers, Dig Deep Farms, CalAIM MTMs) ensuring access across socio-economic and health needs!
Consider making restaurants third spaces more often: Book clubs, co-working sessions, bridal showers….restaurants want to do more than just feed you. They want to be community spaces that bring people together.
We’re all doing our part in small ways: It may seem like things happen in silos, but all across the city, Oaklanders are pushing the needle toward restoring the feeling. There’s a palpable energy of change on the horizon, and we’re all excited to see what’s to come.
I expect nothing less from the #1 food city in the country.
Kahja Elliott is a digital creator, food enthusiast/traveler, and podcaster in Oakland, CA.