Uptown Oakland’s alaMar Kitchen & Bar will celebrate its sixth anniversary this Friday, May 1, with a contactless, social-distancing, Covid-19-crisis parade.
“In celebration of this milestone, we are asking all of our fans and supporters to parade in the safety of their cars,” management announced in a press release today.
Friday evening at 6:30 p.m., “everyone can ‘parade’ in their cars” by driving “around alaMar while honking as a way to wish us ‘Happy Anniversary,'” the announcement reads.
To those who drive past the restaurant and honk, “we will be giving away a free treat as a small token of thanks.”
Presumably, cyclists can also ride past and ring their bells.
Also marking the anniversary, served from May 1 through May 3, alaMar will bring back one of its best-selling pre-Covid-19 menu items: two cheese empanadas for $6. During those same dates, the restaurant is also offering a $60 Seafood Boil Family Meal which includes a whole Alaskan snow crab along with shrimp and red potatoes submerged in sauce, accompanied by garlic noodles and bread. These specials will be available on alaMar’s website through online ordering, or through DoorDash and Grubhub, or phone orders — while supplies last.
Executive chef and owner Nelson German grew up in New York City but settled in Oakland ten years ago with his Oakland-bred wife. Having earned multiple Michelin recommendations, alaMar was Oakland’s first fast-casual restaurant to serve seafood boils in a quick-service format.
These days, alaMar has transitioned to a takeout/delivery model. In addition, its staff has served 300 free meals a day, five days a week, to displaced restaurant workers as part of the Lee Initiative.
German opened the Afro-Latino cocktail lounge Sobre Mesa in Oakland last month — nine days before the shelter-in-place was issued.
“This was not the way we envisioned the celebration of a big milestone,” today’s press release reads.
“But we support the social-distancing protocols and we put the health of our guests and team members first. We wish to thank everyone from the bottom of our hearts for their support in the last six years. We truly have the most passionate fans.”
