In case you don’t follow me on Instagram or Twitter or Facebook, which is where you will find all the latest updates, I wanted to be sure you knew that HORN BARBECUE has officially opened! Pitmaster and chef-owner Matt Horn has survived the endless, hair-pulling bureaucracy and now the brisket can be yours—if you’re willing to get there early and stand in line for a few hours. (It’s actually so worth it! Just bring a chair and wear a hat so the sun doesn’t fatigue you.)
You can read my original piece here. The outdoor picnic tables are open, or you can bring the goods home. And I hear the beef ribs will be on this Saturday’s menu! (To be clear, the preorder situation is no longer happening—it’s all in person now.) Congrats to Matt and the team! Whew. They’re open Fri-Sun 11am for now, until selling out. 2534 Mandela Parkway at 26th St., Oakland.
Last week, I had the pleasure of meeting chef-owner Leilani Baugh of the new MAGNOLIA STREET WINE LOUNGE & KITCHEN, who is known for Roux and Vine Catering, which was chosen by ESPN (2017-2019) to be the official caterer for ESPN, NBA Entertainment, NBA TV, and the Turner Network for the NBA Western Conference Finals and the NBA Finals for the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers. Boom! This past June, she appeared on the Food Network’s “Super Market Stakeout” and is one of Square’s small business featured stories. Yeah, she’s a real go-getter.
An Oakland native, she was raised by her two grandmothers (one is a Chinese immigrant—who only spoke Cantonese—and the other African American), and grew up around the corner on Magnolia Street, hence the name. The location is her first brick and mortar in West Oakland, just below the historic California Hotel, offering takeout, outdoor dining, and limited indoor dining is coming this Friday October 30th (during the pandemic, she has been offering weekly pop-ups with food to go). In honor of the musicians and artists and bohemian scene that used to be in the hotel, she is going to be hosting live music a few nights per week, DJs, and rotating art shows. For now, she’s starting with Friday Night Live, with DJs and heat lamps so you can linger outside.
Her menu celebrates her diverse background and family recipes and flavors, spanning Southern, Asian, Creole, and Cajun cuisines (she’s calling it “Casian!”), with dishes like dirty rice arancini, salmon croquettes, shrimp and grits with braised oxtails, and peach cobbler lumpia, plus let’s hope she continues with wing and wine Wednesdays and fish fry Fridays (the menu looks so good)—brunch is featuring oxtail hash and her honey butter biscuits. Leilani pours a variety of BIPOC-owned and -made wines, including Wachira, McBride Sisters, P. Harrell Wines, and Housley.
She has been busy working with World Central Kitchen to help feed the community, although that will be winding down soon and she’s eager to have you come by—help support her in her goal to revitalize the San Pablo corridor, and preserve its original culture. Be sure to follow for updates at @magnoliastwinelounge, and you can hire her for catering. Open Fri 12pm-9pm, Sat-Sun 11am-9pm for now—look for expanded hours soon. You can text your orders in as well: 510-205-8540. 3443 San Pablo Ave. at 35th St., Oakland.
In an interesting twist, DoorDash has partnered up for their first time and invested in a new project from Burma Superstar: BURMA BITES, a quick-service restaurant built for delivery only (plus takeout). It’s opening on Wednesday October 28th on Telegraph Avenue in Oakland, offering some Burma Superstar favorites (like their tea leaf salad, of course) and new menu items too, like Superstar Spicy Mango Wings and Balachaung Fries. Lunch 11:30am-2:30pm and dinner 5pm-9pm daily. 4911 Telegraph Ave. at 49th St.
Another SF restaurant expanding into the East Bay delivery scene is MONTESACRO OAKLAND, this time via CloudKitchens. No website at this moment, but you will see Montesacro on all the major delivery platforms, offering all kinds of their pinsa (I love them all), cacio e pepe, a meatball sandwich, and more.
There’s a new chef and owner at TOWNHOUSE BAR & GRILL in Emeryville. Chef Jake Kwan Rosenbush, (Hardwood, Stock and Trade, 15 Romolo) has given the menu an update, with new sourcing and housemade items, with a smoker firing up soon, too. The Townhouse Burger is a tavern-style, seven-ounce patty, served with caramelized onions, bacon bits, aged Grafton cheddar from Vermont, and housemade bread and butter pickles, served on an Acme bun; the Townhouse crispy fried chicken wings are Chinese-style, dry-fried chicken wings, served with fried garlic, jalapeño, and spices; and for brunch: there are chilaquiles, and a bacon and egg panzanella salad with two poached eggs on top of grilled Acme pain de mie, served with frisée, bacon vinaigrette, and topped with crispy capers (yum). They’re also making a trendy Basque-style burnt cheesecake. Open for takeout and dining in the parking lot patio, Wed-Fri 12pm-8pm and Sat-Sun 11am-8pm. 5862 Doyle St. at 59th St., Emeryville. Vegans, you’ll want to read this piece in Nosh about THE KING’S FEET from The Butcher’s Son team, serving a plant-based, Italian-influenced menu (primarily a bunch of tasty-sounding pizza and a few pasta dishes until they can return to their original fresh pasta plan). 1401 University Ave. at Acton, Berkeley.
Sad news: after five years of awesome programming, STARLINE SOCIAL CLUB is up for sale. Damn, Miss Rona! You are 86’ed from this club! You can read more in this KQED post here. 2236 Martin Luther King Way at W. Grand, Oakland.
The exterior of Horn Barbecue (the paint color is “Black Panther”). Photo: © tablehopper.com.
