Bay Area diners are marking their calendars for Oakland Restaurant Week, presented by Visit Oakland in partnership with See.Eat.Love. From Thursday, January 9 through Monday, January 20, 2020, over 100 Oakland Restaurants will celebrate one of the largest and most diverse restaurant weeks in the region.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the popular program runs over 12 days and two weekends for foodies to take full advantage of dining deals. Participating restaurants will offer prix fixe lunch and/or dinner menus with price points in increments of 10 starting at $10.00 and ending at $80.00. The promotional prices reflect up to 25% off regular a la carte items.
Oakland Restaurant Week 2020 is celebrating the history of Oakland cuisine with various programs so that diners can learn about the stories behind their food and participate in behind-the-scenes events:
- Friday, January 10, 5:00 p.m. – Discover Temescal: Come on out and celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Oakland Restaurant Week. We will be kicking off the week in the Temescal District with a neighborhood-wide celebration. There will be guided street art walks, historical tours, special happy hours at select restaurants and bars, and more. Don’t forget to book your reservation via OpenTable of participating restaurants in the neighborhood. Reserve your tickets here.
- Saturday, January 11 & January 18, 10:00 a.m. – Jack London Square Meets San Francisco Tour: Take a journey from San Francisco via the Ferry, where you’ll explore the food, history, art, and culture of the great – and surprising – city of Oakland. On this 3+ hour tour, walk and eat along the East Bay’s waterfront and say “cheers!” to the heritage of Jack London Square, the historic warehouse district, and the newly founded Jack London Brewing District. For guests starting in San Francisco, your tour includes round-trip tickets onboard the San Francisco Bay Ferry. Already on this side of the bay? Sweet. You get a slight discount as you don’t need ferry fare. $79.00 per person. Reserve your tickets here.
- Sunday, January 12, 10:00 a.m. – Hide and Go Eat: An Oakland Restaurant Week Scavenger Hunt: Celebrating the 10th annual Oakland Restaurant Week the only way we know how to– a city-wide scavenger hunt! Ten plus challenges. 3 hours. One epic adventure. This is your opportunity to discover the best local eateries in town and witness firsthand how the culinary scene in Oakland has evolved. On this scavenger hunt, your team will solve a series of clues and riddles, all the while capturing your best #ORW20 bites and moments. $10.00 per team of 1-5. Reserve your tickets here.
- Tuesday, January 14 and Thursday, January 16, 7:00 p.m. – Just Call Me Chef Dinner Series: 2020 marks the 100th Anniversary of Women’s Suffrage in the United States. To commemorate this significant occasion, we are hosting two dinners where we will be celebrating two different chefs who have pursued their dreams to run their own kitchen despite obstacles and challenges and have earned the right to be called chef – not a female chef – just chef. Join us on January 14, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. for an intimate dinner with Chef Mona Leena Michael from Dyafa. We will get to know this amazing chef personally as she recounts her journey from oyster shucker at Jardinière to the head chef of Dyafa all while enjoying a multi-course meal of her delicious Cali-Palestinian food. $60.00 per person. Reserve your tickets here.
- Visit our second series of “Just Call me Chef”, on January 16, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. for an incredibly delightful dinner with Chef Kanitha Matoury from Spice Monkey Restaurant & Bar. We will get to know this fantastic chef personally as she recounts her journey to becoming owner and chef of Spice Monkey, all while enjoying a multi-course meal of her delicious Globally Inspired Cuisine. $50.00 per person. Reserve your tickets here.
- Friday, January 17, 5:00 p.m. – Discover Uptown/Downtown: Come out to Uptown/Downtown and enjoy an evening of drink specials at select bars, happy hour offerings at participating restaurants and hop on a mural walking tour and a food tour for the Vegan-curious (vegan not required). $59.00 per person. Reserve your tickets here.
- Sunday, January 19, 10:00 a.m. – Rockridge Neighborhood Heritage Food Tour: Skip the typical Bay Area tourist traps and dive deep into the food culture, history, architecture, and current happenings of Oakland’s hidden gem foodie neighborhood. During this three-hour prolonged guided walking, you take a walk through the community, discovering the area’s rich history and exploring its fast-growing dining culture—all while enjoying some seriously delicious flavors along the way! $69.00 per person. Reserve your tickets here.
The Alameda County Community Food Bank returns as the Oakland Restaurant Week’s non-profit partner. All proceeds from event ticket sales will be donated to the organization to help distribute fresh food in the region and battle child hunger within schools and our community.
“We are excited to bring back Oakland Restaurant Week for its 10th year,” says Mark Everton, CEO of Visit Oakland. “With brand new events and experiences, we’re highlighting what the people want to know about Oakland’s chefs, their cuisine, and the deep-rooted history of the culinary scene in Oakland.”
Complete lists of participating restaurants, menus, special events, and reservations are available at Oakland Restaurant Week. Participating restaurants can be searched by neighborhood, cuisine, meal-type, and price point. Through a partnership with OpenTable, reservations (strongly recommended) can be made directly from the Oakland Restaurant Week page.
Oakland Restaurant Week is a part of California Restaurant Month, created by Visit California. The statewide event is a promotional initiative encouraging post-holiday travel to California during the month of January. Join Oakland Restaurant Week on social media by following #ORW20.
Image: Visit Oakland/Oakland Restaurant Week
