A Pandora Mini-Guide

Dear Pandora,

Thanks for being a cool company. Your love for music and ability to pay artists for their work is inspiring. Because of you I’ve learned about new bands and new sounds. Thanks for your recommendations.

But most of all, thank you for staying in Oakland after you became a public company. Thanks for believing in this awesome city, and thanks for creating a program to mentor local small business owners. Thanks for answering my questions and believing in my vision.

I made you this mini-guide so you could vacation on your lunch break or enjoy Oaktown after work. Maybe you already know these spots so they serve as a reminder what’s in your vicinity, maybe you haven’t yet had the time to explore them. Either way I hope you enjoy some of my recommendations to you since you’ve given me so many good ones.

Pandora Mini-Guide: Good Fun and Good Eats within blocks of Pandora HQ

You Pandorians are lucky to work in the heart of Oakland on a block edged by Downtown, Uptown, Lake Merritt, and the burgeoning Telegraph Arts District. If it were me, I’d be planning my next lunch break or after-work soiree on the daily.

Here are just a few of the many worthwhile stops that are close to the Pandora offices – all of whom give back to the community, the environment, and the local economy in some way. Most are locally-owned and employ Oaklanders, some use independent banks that give small loans to new local businesses, others recycle and compost and re-purpose materials or use organic and fair trade products. They often consider their footprints and use high efficiency appliances or promote community through interaction and learning. I encourage you to explore and find your own favorites – there are new spots popping up all the time, and hidden gems tucked in these storied blocks.

Even with your busy days making radio better and spreading good music (and comedy – I’ve been tuning in to my George Carlin station regularly since I discovered this feature!) we all need a little mini-vacance sometimes, don’t we? In Oakland you can easily weave that vacation mentality into your day if you know where to go…

All phone numbers are (510) area code unless otherwise mentioned. Guide after the break…

Drinks

Flora, 1900 Telegraph Ave., 286.0100, http://floraoakland.com, Open Tues-Fri 11:30a-2:30p, 5-9:30p (‘til 11p Fri-Sat), Sat 10a-2:30p, 5-11p

Just walking by Flora, located right across from the newly renovated fabulous Fox Theater, you’ll want to head inside. The luminous indigo tile work at Oakland’s old floral depot is now home to the fanciest cocktails around. Perfumed flavors, sophisticated liquors and delicate herbs find themselves paired up on the most interesting house drink menu in town. Bring a date here, whether a new beau or a long time love, and they’ll be singing your praises after just one toast. Opt for a classic Flora Martini – each glass is washed with a house-made elderflower infusion, with Plymouth Gin, or go green with the absinthe-laced Corpse Reviver, mixed with fresh lemon and Beefeater Gin. Chin Chin! And I haven’t even begun to talk about the food…

Other favorites: Era, Luka’s Taproom and Lounge, Stork Club, Plum Bar

Eats

True Burger 146 Grand Ave., 208.5678, www.trueburgeroakland.com, Open Mon-Tues 11a-2:30p, Wed-Sat 11a-9:30p

Probably Oakland’s best burger. The owners worked at Baywolf – Oakland’s longest standing bastion of haute California cuisine – and with some help from supportive parents opened this dream spot: a place where chef’s would want to come after they got off work. It’s a casual place serving burgers, fries, and shakes made from the same high quality ingredients Baywolf would use if they were a low-key burger joint. When I first got wind of True Burger my mother and I came here for lunch three days in a row – we were that smitten. We found the parents working the cash register – it’s that kind of family place. And if you know my guidebooks at all you know I’m a fan of architectural line drawings – True Burger has just such a mural of the city skyline covering an entire wall. Check plus.

Bakesale Betty, 2228 Broadway, 251.2100, www.bakesalebetty.com, Only open Tuesdays 10:30a-2p, but Wed-Sat at her Temescal location at 5098 Telegraph (word is this location might be closing.)

Alison does make a mean sammie. She came from down under to work in the patisserie of Chez Panisse before breaking out on her own to sell cookies and strawberry shortcake to adoring Farmers Market goers. Now she’s a veritable Oakland original with her blue wig and basic menu of fried chicken or egg salad sandwiches, cookies and scones, seasonal desserts like the aforementioned strawberry shortcake of which I am a diehard fan, and good coffee. It’s a pleasant place to grab lunch even when there’s a line – crowds are frequently pacified with free gingerbread. Wouldn’t you know if but her second location is right around the corner from Pandora. Lucky you.

Other favorites: Hawker Fare, Plum, Farley’s East, Luka’s Taproom and Lounge, Mua, Nex, Ike’s Lair

Shops

Favorites: Hat Library, Hat Guys, Just Pet Me, Koreana Plaza, Oakollective, Oaklandish, Entrez-Open House

Arts

Oakland Art Murmur, http://oaklandartmurmu.org, First Fridays 6-9p, every Sat 1-5p and additional hours at each location

I sincerely hope you’ve already taken a stroll around these galleries once on a first Friday… This monthly event is one of the biggest draws to the city these days, and for good reason. The galleries are hoppin’ but the art spills out onto the streets too with roving musicians, handmade crafts and clothing, and a rainbow of people – it’s a rare place where you’ll find San Francisco art prospectors, Danville collectors, hipsters, bucksters, and Oaktown natives from all walks of life. A must. And if you aren’t down for the after-dark crowd, come any Saturday for a different side of the murmur.

Favorites: The Great Wall of Oakland, Bonsai Gardens, Rock Paper Scissors, Mama Buzz Café, Betti Ono Gallery, Johansson Projects

Romps

Paramount Theatre, 2025 Broadway, 465.6400, www.paramounttheatre.com, Calendar schedule varies, check ahead

By now you all know that fancy deco façade well – but have you been inside? There are myriad ways to discover this historic theater. One of my favorites is going to one of their Movie Classics nights – complete with Mighty Wurlitzer music, old newsreels and pre-movie cartoons, and a give-away game. It’s only $5 for a ticket – talk about classy on the cheap… Also the first and third Saturdays at 10a there are comprehensive theater tours for the same $5 fee, where you’ll get to know the history behind these gilded walls. The tour guide is a gem, a gem, I tell you. If you’re into art deco or a museum-quality furniture geek, this tour is an obvious must. Plus, it’s ladies’ only chance to go inside the uber-fancy men’s room with its “crotch maple” veneer.

Lawn Bowling, 660 Bellevue Ave., 625.9937, http://oaklandbowls.homestead.com/, Tuesdays and Thursday 10a-1p

OK, I know you all can see 24 Hour Fitness in plain view from the 16^th floor, but who said you can’t mix up your workout routine with a little old school sporting? Lawn Bowling might conjure images of retirement and wearing entirely too much white, but it’s surprisingly fun once you grasp the jargon-y rules. The Oakland Lawn Bowling Club was founded more than 100 years ago, and there are free introductory lessons right around lunchtime. Seated at the edge of Lake Merritt in Lakeside Park, the lawn is a pleasant swatch of green and the club members are a friendly mix of Oaklanders from whom I’ve learned quite an earful of town history while I tried my hand at bowling close to the jack.

Other favorites: Downtown Oakland YMCA, 2350 Broadway, 451.9622 lets members of most other YMCAs use the facilities free of charge – there’s squash courts, a 25-yard pool, and loads of classes like spin and kickboxing. Lake Merritt is America’s first wildlife refuge (1869) and has one of the most interesting histories of any inner city lake, read more about it and definitely take the paved 3-mile loop around it. More info: http://www.oaklandnet.com/parks/facilities/points_lakemerritt.asp

Inspirations

Favorites: Ella Baker Center, California Genealogical Society, The Gardens at Lake Merritt, California Tomorrow (archive only)