Wondering what’s moving into your neighborhood shopping center? Our weekly Sprouts & Shutters column highlights the latest Tri-Valley restaurant, retail and other business news.
Dim Sum diners have a new place in Dublin: Golden Sand Harbor opened in Great Wall Buffet’s old space on Amador Valley Blvd in the Shamrock Village shopping center. Originally to be called Amador Seafood (see earlier Sprouts coverage), the new Golden San Harbor serves dim sum from 10:30 a.m. – 3 p.m. and then focuses on seafood entrees for dinner.
For wine tasting, beer drinking and food sampling all in one place, head over to the Tri-Valley Wine & Food Festival on Saturday, Nov. 17, at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. From 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., you can choose from among 200 wines, select beers and foods from more than 70 wineries, breweries, local restaurants and gourmet food companies. Tickets cost $30 for 12 tasting tickets and a logo glass.
Main Street Designs opened its annual pop-up store Saturday in Pleasanton's Stoneridge Shopping Center. The seasonal store, which sells Christmas ornaments and other holiday items, opened on the lower level just outside Nordstrom.
Oops — missed this new opening: Mike’s Café opened a few months ago in L&M’s old space on First Street. The new café serves traditional breakfast and lunch comfort food (such as omelets and hash browns and burgers and fries) in a diner-style atmosphere with plenty of booths. See what recent visitors have thought here on Yelp.
Mario’s French Dips, previewed in a previous sprouts, opened Oct. 30 on First Street. The new eatery, owned by Livermore residents Mario and Nina Schiopu specializes in French dip sandwiches made with seasoned, slow-roasted meat and house-made Au Jus. It also added open-face roasted turkey and tri-tip sandwiches served with fresh mash potatoes and gravy.
Get an early start on your holiday shopping — in more ways than one. You can roll out of bed and head to downtown Livermore to take advantage of special deals and tasty treats during the downtown Livemore and downtown Pleasanton annual “Earlier Than the Bird” on Nov. 17 from 7 a.m. – 12 p.m. Shoppers wearing their pajamas receive a free gift. Learn more on Pleasantondowntown.net and livermoredowntown.com.
Bowling alleys aren’t exactly known for their fine cuisine, but a new eatery inside the Danville Bowl offers hungry bowlers much more than pretzels and lukewarm pizza. Over the summer Danville’s popular Norm’s Place launched Rocky’s Place, a grill serving “all-American diner food” such as jalapeno poppers, chili dogs, tacos and more. Bowlers can eat in the restaurant or down on their lanes. Learn more and view a menu at danvillebowl.com/news-2.
Opening Update: Flame Broiler celebrates its grand opening today, Nov. 12, in the Danville Livery (according to its Facebook post). Read about the new restaurant here in an earlier Sprouts column.
Wondering when the new Buffalo Wings will open in San Ramon? A company spokesperson says the new sports bar and grill is on track to open at the end of the month, replacing Izzy’s in the Marketplace. We’ll get details about grand opening specials when the new eatery has a firmer opening date set. For more, see earlier Patch coverage.
Rose Motorcars opened last month in San Ramon on Omega Road next to the skating rink. Rose Motorcars buys and sells used cars, provides car consignment services and offers financing. The new dealership can also conduct inventory searches to help buyers find a particular car. Learn more at rosemotorcars.com.
Want to find out what else is opening in the East Bay? Sprouts & Shutters now covers 21 cities on 18 Patch sites. Read the latest columns for the Central Contra Costa, Berkeley/Oakland and Fremont/Tri-Cities communities.
Did you miss Patch's last retail and restaurant roundup? Read about these and more in our last Sprouts & Shutters column:
- Togo's and Diablo CrossFit in Danville
- Gianni's Italian Bistro in San Ramon
- Caps & Taps in Dublin
- Forever 21 and Berry Delight Frozen Yogurt in Pleasanton
- Paragon Outlets and Tri-Valley Bank in Livermore
Know of a business opening or closing in the Tri-Valley? Please tell Patch about it for a future Sprouts & Shutters column. Simply add it to this short form. Or send me a news tip at patchsprouts@gmail.com.
For more local business news, follow Patch on Twitter @EBayPatchBiz.
