Larkspur Loses Long-Running Lucky Supermarket After 40 Years in Business

This is a curated list of the Bay Area’s most notable and permanent restaurant and bar closures, with new updates published once a week. See a closing we missed? Then drop us a line.

March 29

OAKLAND — East Bay Nosh caught the news this month that Oakland’s Crooked City Cider Tap House was recently sold by owner Dana Bushouse. But coupled with that news is the tidbit that Hesher’s Pizza, which provided food for the tap house, will take over the space and remain open daily.

RICHMOND — In other restaurant happenings, East Bay Nosh was also tipped off to the fact that Richmond favorite Mississippi Catfish closed up shop at its 12440 San Pablo Avenue space. Thankfully, the publication discovered that the restaurant is set to reopen soon in El Sobrante.

LARKSPUR — The residents of Larkspur will have to find another bargain grocery store to shop at soon: The Lucky supermarket located in downtown Larkspur is set to close its doors on Friday, April 14, the San Francisco Standard reports. The grocery store has served the town for 40 years and representatives for the company invited customers to shop at its Novato location, which is located more than 15 miles away.

March 23

MARINA — Less than a year after reopening with a new look and a pair of new chef-owners, Maybeck’s on Lombard and Scott in the Marina has closed. Longtime owner Aaron Toensing partnered with Lori Baker and Jeffrey Banker, the couple behind the now-closed Pac-Heights restaurant Baker and Banker, to give the restaurant a second lease on life, but announced on Tuesday that the restaurant was “no longer sustainable.”

OAKLAND — Occitania, chef Paul Canales’s restaurant located inside the Kissel Uptown Oakland hotel, shuttered as of Friday, March 10. It debuted in June so the closure comes about nine months after it opened. The French restaurant was highly anticipated and focused on French food influenced by the region of Occitania.

INNER RICHMOND — An Eater tipster pointed out that Five Happiness, a Taiwanese and Shanghainese restaurant on Geary Boulevard at 6th Avenue has closed. The restaurant’s menu included dishes such as green onion pancakes and sheng jian bao. According to Yelp posts from longtime customers, the restaurant had been open for about 50 years.

WALNUT CREEK — Cream, a 10-year-old ice cream shop known for its mix-and-match ice cream and cookie sandwiches in Walnut Creek, will close its doors in July, Beyond the Creek spotted first. The shop’s locations in Concord and Berkeley will remain open, as well as outposts in San Jose, Cupertino, Milpitas, and San Francisco, the Mercury News reports.

March 15

GLEN PARK — Viking’s Giant Submarines, a Vietnamese restaurant and sandwich shop that’s been open since 2006, will close on March 17. SFGATE reports owners Betty and Steven Chang are all set to retire.

POLK GULCH — Indian restaurant Shalimar went dark sometime in the last number of months, but no one knew for sure if it was really lights out for good until Tablehopper confirmed with the restaurant. The business owners cited a rent increase as to why they called it quits on the more than 20-year-old restaurant.

RICHMOND DISTRICT — Brewcraft, San Francisco’s go-to for home brewing supplies, closed after nearly 30 years in service. The San Francisco Chronicle reports no particular reason for the shuttering, though cited the craft beer industry’s success as a potential reason why homebrewing may be on the decline.

OAKLAND — On March 25, Kingston 11, one of the East Bay’s favorite restaurants for oxtail, salmon, and jerk chicken, will close its doors for good. That said, owner and chef Nigel Jones will keep the 2270 Telegraph Avenue location and shift to focus on catering and events. Jones cited a lack of front-of-house support as a main reason for closing. “We’re running on fumes,” Jones says.

BERKELEY — After 10 years on Center Street, boba and snack go-to Purple Kow has closed. East Bay Nosh confirmed the closure but made sure to remind readers the business’ newer location, near the Den student apartment complex at UC Berkeley, opened on March 13.

PALO ALTO — Cudos, a custard and doughnut shop at 855 El Camino Real in Palo Alto, closed on March 13. Palo Alto Online reports owners Lisa King-Lynn and Hansel Lynn decided to focus on family time and, if they work on Cudos again, it’ll be in summer 2023 or later.

SACRAMENTO — BarnBurner, a Rocklin brunch destination since 2016, will close in April. The Sacramento Bee reports ownership sold the business to competitor Hot off the Griddle, which will open its third location in the BarnBurner space. “It was a difficult decision for us because we love the restaurant, our customers and the amazing team of people who work for us making this place what it is,” the owners wrote on Facebook.

PHILO — The Bewildered Pig’s chef-owner Janelle Weaver and co-owner Daniel Townsend let fans know through a Facebook post and newsletter that the 1810 Highway 128 restaurant will close for good in May 2023, Tablehopper reports. The restaurant will also be closed in March and April, but briefly reopen in May for a few farewell meals. The farewell post was long and honest, citing everything from lease issues to terrible weather to the pandemic’s impacts as to reasons for the shuttering.

March 8

TENDERLOIN — Six-year-old Tenderloin Korean restaurant Barnzu closed sometime in the past few months, according to reporting from SFGATE. The restaurant was a partnership between owner Nathan Choi and restaurateur Min Choe, whose MinsGroup operates Sushi Sato, Sushi Hon, and the new Suragan among other businesses. Already a new restaurant called Kokio Republic, formerly a Korean fried chicken food truck, is open in the space at 711 Geary Street.

INNER RICHMOND — An Inner Richmond Korean restaurant has closed, an Eater SF tipster noted. SF Honey Pig was located on Geary Boulevard near 6th Avenue. It’s unclear when the restaurant closed, but the business website announces simply “sorry, we are permanently closed.”

BERKELEY — James Beard Award-winning baker Angela Pinkerton will shut down her wildly popular East Bay shop Pie Society after April 22. The shop, which is located at 2533 Seventh Street, will keep its standard hours until April 1 before switching to walk-in purchases and order pick-ups on Saturdays only, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

OAKLAND — SFGATE reports that Lucky Duck Bicycle Cafe, a “coffee bar-meets-bicycle repair shop-meets-vegan deli,” will close permanently after March 31. “We are proud to have served Oakland and nurtured our community for as long as we could,” the owner shared in a post on the shop’s Facebook.

SAN JOSE — The cheddar chive biscuits will be baked no more as the Red Lobster location at Almaden Expressway near Blossom Hill Road will close its doors after 39 years of serving South San Jose. The Mercury News reports the company hopes to “redeploy and add resources to other locations where we can continue our growth” but provided managers and team members the opportunity to relocate to one of the restaurant’s eight other restaurants in the Bay Area.

March 1

CASTRO — After just three months in service, the Castro’s Niji Sushi is out of business. Hoodline reports the Japanese restaurant took over after ownership pivoted from their original Nash Hot Chicken & Ramen business, which was located in the same space. That business only lasted five months.

RICHMOND DISTRICT — PPQ Dungeness Island, an absolute titan in the Bay Area’s Dungeness crab world, closed its 2332 Clement Street restaurant on February 20. Thankfully, the restaurant will open in a new location just a few blocks away at 5821 Geary Boulevard in the coming weeks.

BERKELEY — Elmwood Chinese restaurant Tai San, a mainstay on Telegraph Avenue for about 30 years, closed on February 28. The business owner tells East Bay Nosh the closure comes due to “not enough business, rent, everything, you know! Everything.”

BERKELEY — An East Bay favorite for vegan and vegetarian food, the last remaining Saturn Cafe, which was located inside the Adeline Food Hall, closed without a word. East Bay Nosh reports a staffer at the food hall says the kiosk likely closed in or around October 2022.

WALNUT CREEK — On February 28, Caspers Hot Dogs in Walnut Creek announced it will dog its last buns on April 16. Co-owner Paul Rustigian, the grandson of founders Rose and Paul Agajan, says thanks to the staff and customers in a statement. The business, which opened in 1983, will continue to operate its six other Bay Area locations.

SAN RAFAEL — The Northgate Mall location of the restaurant and beerhall BJ’s will close on April 12. Thanks to its enormous space, the business employed 90 staff; according to the San Francisco Business Times, that means 90 layoffs. A notice from the company says all the workers will be transferred to nearby locations.

February 22

FINANCIAL DISTRICT — Vegan Mexican restaurant Vida Cantina S.F. on Belden Place has suddenly closed. The restaurant announced its end on Tuesday, February 21 via Instagram with a brief statement from owner Evette Mercado. “Thank you for your continued love and support of my Vida,” it reads.

MISSION — Ancora, we barely knew ye. Just seven months after the seafood restaurant opened in the Mission, it’s now closing down, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. It was a partnership between fishing company Water2Table and fine dining chef Nick Anichini, who worked previously as chef de cuisine at Atelier Crenn. The restaurant was meant to show off the freshest seafood offerings of the day. Ancora co-owner Joe Conte told the Chronicle the restaurant never recovered after a drop in sales during the early January storms. Conte says they’ll either reopen in the spring as a casual seafood spot or sell the restaurant.

OUTER RICHMOND — It may not technically count as a closure, but the recent revelation that the National Park Service will not be looking for an operator to reopen Louis’ over by Lands End feels like it’s closing all over again. The San Francisco Standard captured the disbelief of the Hontalas family — who ran the restaurant across three generations — over the news that while a new restaurant is set to open up at neighboring Cliff House, there are no similar plans for Louis’.

SACRAMENTO — Sacramento’s spot for Hawaiian dishes, Delilah’s Hawaiian Poke Market, has closed down following a move from Davis to the Handle District last year, the Sacramento Bee reports. No reason for the closure was given to the newspaper and a note thanking customers was taped to the window of the restaurant indicating the market is done as of February 10.

CARMICHAEL — Shige Sushi, the restaurant by Sacramento sushi chef Shige Tokita, closed quietly back in November 2022, the Sacramento Bee discovered. Tokita was known as the “godfather” of the local sushi scene, training in Japan before landing in Sacramento and going on to teach other sushi chefs who have opened their own sushi restaurants.

GRANITE BAY — After less than a year in business, digital-ax-throwing bar Get Axed has closed. Perhaps a safer version than trendy ax-throwing bars that used actual axes in its activities, Get Axed featured 12 digital ax-throwing games at its opening in September, the Sacramento Bee reported, along with a selection of beers and wine to order.

February 15

GHIRARDELLI SQUARE – San Francisco Cheese School will leave the waterfront after four years. SFGATE reports owner Jeanine Egan blames high rent and low foot traffic, brought on by the pandemic. The shop moved in to the neighborhood in 2018, and now will take up residence with Daily Driver in the Dogpatch. Los Angeles-born Broad Street Oyster Co. will take over the Ghirardelli Square location.

COLE VALLEY — Reverie Cafe, situated in the heart of Cole Valley for more than 20 years, will close on February 19. A note on the door and tip sent to Eater SF confirmed the news. According to owner Roger Soudah the closure comes after months of back-and-forth with the landlord over lease negotiations.

MISSION — The Phoenix Inn, Valencia Street’s go-to haunt for cheap steak fries and draughts of beer, closed on February 12 after more than 20 years in service. The entire building will be demolished to make way for an apartment building five years in the works. “It’s shocking,” says owner Eugene Power. “It’s the end of an era.”

PALO ALTO — Tin Pot Creamery is pivoting to grocery store sales and closing its three scoop shops in San Mateo, Campbell, and Palo Alto. The Mercury News reports owner and founder Becky Sunseri, who began the business in 2013, cited high operating costs and family life as the reasons behind the switch. San Francisco’s Humphry Slocombe will continue its recent expansion and take over Tin Pot Creamery’s Campbell store.

February 8

SOMA — Chef Peter Hemsley’s fine dining restaurant Palette will close on February 15 at 816 Folsom Street in SoMa. The restaurant, originally slated to debut in spring 2018, went through a few tumultuous delays in opening. Hemsley says he plans to reveal his next project in the coming weeks.

MISSION — The Trick Dog team’s Valencia Street haven for spritz cocktails Chezchez closed without a word earlier this year. The company didn’t provide any reason for the bar’s closure. Chezchez opened in August 2021 and went dark around the beginning of January.

CASTRO — Project Juice’s 506 Castro Street location is the latest food and drink outlet in the neighborhood to fold. Hoodline reports the shop opened in 2016 and that, upon inspecting the location, a “notice of belief of abandonment” was posted in the window dated February 1. The business partnered with Earthbar in 2020 and changed all of its store’s names in 2022.

OAKLAND — Hive, the Place to Bee, at 2139 MacArthur Boulevard closed on January 28. East Bay Nosh reports the decade-old cafe and go-to for breakfast sandwiches posted a note to its website, saying “unfortunately we can no longer overcome the challenges posed by the pandemic and current economic climate.”

OAKLAND — Umami Burger, the Los Angeles-born Shake Shack competitor, has closed its final Bay Area location. East Bay Nosh writes parent company SBE is closing Umami locations nationwide, and the Bay is no exception. Granted, the remaining San Francisco location is only temporarily closed, but with the Marina and Palo Alto locations gone — and now the Uptown location at 2100 Franklin Street — it’s anyone’s guess how long the remaining restaurant will hang on.

February 1

MID-MARKET — Ananda Fuara, a vegan Indian restaurant at the chaotic intersection of Larkin, Hayes, and Market streets, will close permanently after more than 40 years on February 5, the San Francisco Standard reports. An announcement on the restaurant website explains there may be a comeback down the line. “In the future it is possible there may be an opportunity to return in a different form and place but for now we are closing,” it reads in part.

MISSION — After 13 years of pizza and beer, Pi Bar will close its doors for good around the end of February. The restaurant made the announcement on Instagram, but SFGATE spoke to owner Rich Rosen who said the decision comes after three years of running the business without any help aside from him and his co-owner and wife Jen Garris. “Let’s be frank: The past three years have sucked,” Rosen says.

MISSION — Chef James Syhabout closed the last remaining location of his casual restaurant Hawker Fare in late January. The chef, who also operates Michelin-starred Commis in Oakland, called “growing food, labor, and operating” costs “insurmountable.” The restaurant was open for nine years and explored Thai and Laotian food, a personal project for the chef.

OAKLAND — Burma Bear, an Oakland restaurant that specialized in both barbecue and Burmese dishes, closed for good on January 19. The restaurant made the announcement on its website citing “changes in restaurant economics.”

MOUNTAIN VIEW — Kappo Nami Nami, a popular restaurant on Castro Street in Mountain View, closed its doors on January 29 after more than a decade and a half in business. The Japanese restaurant’s space will become home to a second location of San Jose restaurant Sushi Arashi, the San Francisco Business Times reports.

SANTA CLARA — Konjoe Burger shut down its Santa Clara location on January 21, the Chronicle spotted. On Instagram, the restaurant explained the economics at this location “no longer work out.” New locations in San Jose and Los Altos inside State Street Market are in the works.

SAN JOSE — The Chronicle spotted the closure of Ludwig’s German Table in San Jose, a longstanding destination for schnitzel and bratwurst. In a post on Instagram the business says lingering impacts of the pandemic are to blame. “Unfortunately the world is a different place now and the vision we had for the San Jose location is becoming harder and harder to maintain,” the post reads. The restaurant’s location in Mountain View remains open.

January 25

CASTRO — Neighborhood bar Harvey’s closed suddenly on Sunday, January 22 after being in business since 1974. The bar was first known as Elephant Walk, then changed its name in 1996 to honor Supervisor Harvey Milk. Manager David Facer told the San Francisco Chronicle the closure is “a sign of the times,” especially after COVID.

CASTRO — The Castro location of El Capitan Taqueria also bid farewell to the neighborhood, Hoodline reports. It’s not entirely clear when the restaurant closed for good, but a Hoodline reporter notes the space is already cleared out of tables and chairs. Two other locations of El Capitan Taqueria are still open in SoMa and Polk Gulch.

POLK GULCH — Vegan favorite Vegan Picnic has closed for good after seven years in business on Polk Street. Owner Jill Ritchie’s catering side of the business will also shut down, and Ritchie is instead shifting toward a new “longevity lifestyle” business, the Jill Zone.

SAN JOSE — The San Jose location of sandwich chain Earl of Sandwich is closing after five years, with franchise owner Trang Nguyen telling the Mercury News that business just “never recovered.” Nguyen says after COVID-19 hit, with employees working from home and San Jose State students not attending school as often, sales decreased by as much as 85 percent.

January 18

FISHERMAN’S WHARF — According to SFGATE, McDonald’s has closed one of its high-profile locations in San Francisco. The fast food giant’s outpost at Fisherman’s Wharf closed in late December, the company confirmed to the outlet, saying in part that the company “reviews its restaurant portfolio on a regular basis to make the best decisions for our business moving forward.”

POTRERO HILL — El Sur, known for serving Argentinan-style empanadas, has closed its cafe at 300 De Haro Street in Potrero Hill, an Eater tipster first spotted. According to a post on the business's Instagram, the cafe closed in the fall as El Sur plans to relocate to Redwood City. Anyone looking to get their empanada fix can still find El Sur on local delivery service Locale; catering and online orders are also available on the El Sur website.

EMERYVILLE — The last barbecue chicken pizzas have been served on Bay Street as California Pizza Kitchen has closed its restaurant in Emeryville. The E’ville Eye first shared the news in a post on Instagram.

EMERYVILLE — But the vaguely Italian restaurant isn’t the only notable closure in the area. The E’ville Eye also spotted the closure of Chinese dining chain P.F. Chang’s on January 13. The restaurant, known for its lettuce wraps and other wok-fried dishes, was founded by the son of Bay Area Chinese food icon Cecilia Chiang though it’s now owned by a private equity firm. The company has recently focused on opening to-go-only locations — but recently debuted its first full-service restaurant in Manhattan.

MENLO PARK — Pastrami and Belgian beer destination the Refuge in Menlo Park will close its doors after January 20, Palo Alto Online reports. According to the outlet, owners Matt Levin and Melanie Roth say the business never fully recovered from the impacts of the pandemic. “I feel like I’m Rip van Winkle,” Levin said. “I went to sleep and suddenly our concept is no longer a good concept for the times.” The restaurant's locations in San Carlos and San Mateo will remain open.

January 11

BERKELEY — The Berkeley location of Paris Baguette quietly closed on January 1, SFGATE reports. The South Korea-based pastry chain had been a part of Shattuck Avenue for 10 years.

OAKLAND — East Bay Nosh reports Oakland’s Bay Fung Tong Seafood Tea House closed at the end of 2022. The Cantonese spot on Franklin Street has been in operation since (possibly) the early 2000s serving seafood dishes for locals.

ALAMEDA — East Bay Nosh also has the scoop on another long-running place that’s closing: Angela’s Kitchen in Alameda closed at the end of 2022 after 22 years. Run by Saboor and Maria Zafari, the restaurant was known for its Mediterranean food with Afghan inflections.

NAPA — Mary’s Pizza Shack has been a Northern California institution for more than 60 years with multiple locations across the Bay Area. Now the local chain has three fewer restaurants among its ranks. The San Francisco Chronicle reports the Dixon, Novato, and Napa locations have closed, leaving just seven locations of the Italian food spot.

PALO ALTO — After 24 years in Palo Alto, Chinese restaurant Mandarin Roots has closed as of December 31, according to Peninsula Foodist. The restaurant started with owner Simon Yuan who ran the establishment for 15 years before passing it on to his son, Jarvis.

ROSEVILLE — The last of the Claim Jumper chain restaurants in the Sacramento area has closed its doors permanently, the Sacramento Bee reports. It’s unclear when the restaurant closed, exactly, but the Houston-based chain’s only other location in the area — in downtown Sacramento — shuttered in 2021.

SACRAMENTO — The Sacramento Bee also has news of Hoppy Brewing Co. closing its restaurant, Hoppy’s Railyard Kitchen & Garden, as of January 2. No reason was given for the restaurant’s closure.

January 4

CASTRO — The 4039 18th Street location of mini-chain Rooster and Rice closed on December 23 after about four years. Hoodline reports the space will flip into new business Mr. Hen Chicken Rice & Noodle. The business’ five other stores in San Francisco remain open.

HAYES VALLEY — Fluff Nugget, the gourmet popcorn business from Doug Tomlinson and chef Laurine Wickett, closed at the end of December. The news came via an Instagram post from the business with no details as to why the shop shuttered.

DIVISADERO — The San Francisco Business Times reported the closure of the final Zaytoon location at 607 Divisadero Street on December 31. Fans of San Francisco’s French food scene have cause to celebrate, though: FiDi’s La Sarrasine will take over the address.

OAKLAND — The Golden Peacock Lounge at 825 Webster Street closed after more than 50 years of serving the Town’s Chinatown diners. East Bay Nosh reported the closure on January 3.

BERKELEY — Windchaser Wine Co., an East Bay favorite for Mendocino and El Dorado-area wines, closed its original location at 1375 Fourth Street to move to a TBD-announced new location in Richmond. East Bay Nosh let readers know that an issue regarding the lease prompted the outlet for Gifford Family Wines and Dave Gifford to find a new venue.

MILLBRAE — The Michelin Guide-approved Hong Kong Flower Lounge at 51 Millbrae Avenue closed on December 31. The 550-seat restaurant and banquet hall was a staple for those in search of Cantonese cuisine and, according to KTS26, held that honor for more than three decades.

SANTA ROSA — Miracle Plum, from the Santa Rosa-born-and-raised duo Sallie Miller and Gwen Gunheim, closed in December. The news came via the business’ newsletter, though the wine club and online shop remain intact, with a hope to continue organizing events. The market sold specialty items and was a resident of a nearly 118-year-old building.