Change is on the way in Uptown Oakland: A new restaurant called Captain & Corset (2212 Broadway) is softly opening on Friday, May 23, in a prime Uptown location — part of the same facade shared by Plum (now Ume, as announced last week) and Ike’s Lair, in the space previously occupied by a string of short-lived wine bars.
The most recent incarnation, an Ike’s spinoff called 2212 Wine Bar, was open for just four months. When owners Paul Fitzpatrick and Sam Patel (both execs in the Ike’s sandwich empire) decided to close the wine bar, they put together a team of prominent Bay Area restaurant folks to give the place a complete overhaul. (The prior occupants — The Punchdown and, before that, Franklin Square Wine Bar — were also wine bars.)
The name of the restaurant doesn’t take its inspiration from the title of a steamy romance novel, as I’d imagined, but is meant rather as a kind of stylized juxtaposition between masculine and feminine — a spin on yin and yang, Eschelle explained. The space is small, with room for just 38 seats (all high-tops), so “quaint and charming” will be the goal. Just for fun, a projector will play nothing but Christopher Walken movies with the sound turned off.
- Sophina Uong
- A seared tuna dish currently in development.
The restaurant will eventually apply for a full liquor license, but for now, Uong is creating a selection of wine-based cocktails to supplement the beer and wine list.
Captain & Corset will open this Friday at 4:30 p.m. For now, hours will be Monday to Wednesday, 4:30-11 p.m., and Thursday to Saturday, 4:30-midnight. Lunch service will eventually be added.