CLICK HERE if you are having trouble viewing these photos on a mobile device
Sadly, 2018 has been a banner year for closings of iconic Bay Area restaurants.
We may be in the midst of a restaurant revolution, with dozens of new ones opening monthly, but food lovers still had to say goodbye to a number of longtime favorites this year. Berkeley got hit particularly hard, losing three classics that combined for 236 years of culinary memories.
The ones we pay tribute to here were no flash-in-the-pan operations — many had been in business for generations. Some chefs and owners decided to retire; some faced rent hikes or grappled with the Bay Area’s high cost of living; and some fell victim to changing consumer tastes. Corporate ownership took its toll on others.
Here, in order of longevity, were some sentimental favorites that shut their doors. Did we miss a restaurant that had been your go-to for decades? If so, please tell us about it in the article commenting section at the bottom.
SPENGER’S, 128 YEARS: Spenger’s Fish Grotto wasn’t just the East Bay’s oldest restaurant; it was an institution and a destination for thousands for Northern Californians who made pilgrimages here whenever visiting the Bay Area. They braved long waits for those fried seafood platters, bowls of chowder and endless plates of sourdough bread. But fans say this restaurant was never the same after the Spenger family sold to corporate owners in the late 1990s. Business declined in recent years, and the doors shut abruptly on Oct. 24.
MEXICALI ROSE, 91 YEARS: How many restaurants can say they faithfully served cops, as well as the scofflaws they sprang from jail late at night? Mexicali Rose, in the shadow of Oakland’s police department and jail, was the great equalizer, with a clientele from all strata of society. But the owners’ retirement on June 29 put an end to the platters of enchiladas and chiles rellenos, heaping with rice and beans — and what many customers say were the best margaritas in the East Bay.
THE OASIS, 60 YEARS: Generations of Peninsula customers carved their initials into the wooden tables at The Oasis, a beer garden and Stanford hangout in Menlo Park. Those memories faded into history when the Tougas family announced they were unable to reach a new lease agreement with the building’s owners. By March 7, the eatery famous for welcoming both high-tech tycoons and college kids had served its last pizza and fabled Oasis Deluxe, the burger topped with Canadian bacon.
BRENNAN’S, 59 YEARS: A rent increase also spelled the end for Brennan’s, a Berkeley hof brau and sports bar that had been operating for nearly six decades — under one family’s ownership. For the past 20 years, Margaret Wade and her brother, Barney Wade, ran the University Avenue restaurant that their grandfather Jack Brennan opened in 1959. A multicultural mix of blue-collar workers, Cal fans and longtime local residents showed up during the restaurant’s final days in September for a carvery sandwich and one of Brennan’s legendary Irish coffees.
HS LORDSHIPS, 49 YEARS: Fans of waterfront dining — and weekend brunches — lost a Berkeley view when Hs Lordships pulled up anchor at the marina on July 1. A popular gathering spot for civic groups, the family-owned restaurant was founded in 1969 by David Tallichet, a World War II veteran and bomber pilot. His company, Specialty Restaurants Corp., now owns more than 20 restaurants across the United States. This wasn’t the only view restaurant they closed in the Bay Area this year. Read on.
EL BURRO, 47 YEARS: More than 2,000 El Burro customers — from millennials to tech employees to multi-generational families — descended on this restaurant at Campbell’s Pruneyard on its final day of service May 16. They came for the chile verde, chile Colorado, tamales or fajitas, plus a chance to revel in the “Cheers” atmosphere they say they had enjoyed for decades. And to say goodbye and thanks to the Uribe family, which had owned and operated the restaurant since 1971.
GOLDEN MUSHROOM, 44 YEARS: The Shroom, as it was called, wasn’t just a family restaurant. It was a pizzeria that felt like a family living room, thanks to its homey vibe and furnishings. This neighborhood fave, tucked in a Santa Clara strip mall, was founded in 1974 by the Moran-Virgilio family. The last generation of operators, Daniel and Caroline Moran, headed to the more affordable state of Arizona to buy a house — and open a new Golden Mushroom.
GILLEY’S, 36 YEARS: This downtown Los Gatos diner with a green “Gilley’s” awning had a tenure that lasted 36 years — long after the original owner, Gilley Jacoby, moved abroad. But on visits here, he’d stop in for a big breakfast along with all the regulars who sat at the old-timey counter for a convivial meal with Petrina, David and Andres Berman, the owners for the last 26 years. The closing hit locals hard. One breakfast patron put his thoughts in blunt terms: “Los Gatos is losing its charm one store at a time.”
GUAYMAS, 32 YEARS: In its heyday, Guaymas was a destination Tiburon restaurant that served Mexican food and margaritas — along with spectacular views of San Francisco Bay. Named after the Sonoran port in Mexico, Guaymas first opened in 1986. The most recent owners, the Specialty Restaurants Corp., shut it down after Labor Day — just two months after closing the company’s other Bay Area waterfront restaurant, Hs Lordships.
ALBONA, 30 YEARS: In 1988, Bruno Viscovi opened a restaurant in San Francisco’s North Beach devoted to the unusual cuisine of Istria, on Italy’s Adriatic coast. For the last decade, executive chef and now owner Samuel Hernandez has been carrying on the tradition. The restaurant’s closing at year end, giving diners just enough time for another entree of pork loin stuffed with sauerkraut, prosciutto and apples, or the potato gnocchi in a cumin-scented sirloin sauce.
LA PASTAIA, 28 YEARS PLUS: The signature restaurant inside San Jose’s art deco-era Hotel De Anza quietly shut down in November — with no word yet on whether it will reopen or what will replace it. La Pastaia’s closing ends a long line of fine Italian dining. John Ardizzone founded its predecessor, Il Pastaio (Italian for “the pasta maker”), in Los Gatos in 1984. Four years later, he and partner Margaret Abrahams opened La Pastaia in Palo Alto. That was followed by the De Anza restaurant in 1990.
GORDON BIERSCH, 28 YEARS: When Dan Gordon and Dean Biersch, founders of the San Jose-based Gordon Biersch Brewery, opened a brewpub with a courtyard patio on San Fernando Street in 1990, the restaurant was heralded as a game-changer for downtown San Jose. They made it through some predicted lean times, then sold eight years later. But corporate ownership was not kind to their venture, Gordon now says. The Colorado-based CraftWorks chain closed the restaurant June 3.
SALUTE E VITA, ABOUT 25 YEARS: Immigrant-turned-philanthropist Menbere “Menbe” Aklilu operated Salute e Vita on the Richmond waterfront for its last 11 years, until a dispute with the building’s landlord forced her to close the restaurant in July. She was saluted by Richmond’s civic leaders and other residents for giving free meals to thousands of homeless people, veterans and low-income single mothers over the years.
JOHN BENTLEY’S, 23 YEARS: On March 31, a chef who had been serving up four-star cuisine for decades called it a career and closed his namesake restaurant in Redwood City. John Bentley had opened his first eponymous restaurant in Woodside in 1995 after years in San Francisco and Peninsula kitchens, then took over the old Fabbro’s on El Camino Real. His customers lamented the loss of another fine-dining landmark (along with his signature pork chops, sweetbreads and apple tart) but were happy that Bentley had gone out on his own terms.
