A report by Dana Massey-Todd. As previously noted on tablehopper, partners Chris Pastena, Temoor Noor, and Tom Henderson are bringing food and drink to the former Oakland Tribune building. The new spot, appropriately named TRIBUNE TAVERN, opened Wednesday April 10th in the former “Local Room,” i.e., where local reporters used to work (but now it’s a nice tie-in to our local food ethos). The menu, from Huw Thornton (previously of A16 and SPQR) runs the gamut from seasonal small plates to T-bone and rib-eye steaks, with a lot in between. Look for smaller plates like grilled ox tongue, Monterey sardines, and fried sunchokes, and larger plates like buttermilk fried chicken, a burger, and the sausage platter (for four to five good eaters—it comes with a pitcher of beer). There’s also a special section of the menu devoted to charcuterie; take a look at the full menu here.
Paul Christensen (of Haven, Lungomare, and Plum Bar) heads the cocktail program, which sounds pretty exciting. He’ll have access to an entire, separate kitchen, which will allow for tons of housemade flourishes like sodas, bitters, tonics, and barrel-aged ingredients. There are also four white and six red wines on tap, plus 60 bottles on the wine list, with a focus on California small-production wineries. In the beer department, you’ll find eight local choices on tap, and two are exclusive cask beers from Linden Street Brewery.
The space was designed by Jim Maxwell of Architects II and focuses on highlighting the building’s rich history (it was built in 1923). Many of the space’s new details came from local designers and artisans, while others like the marble bar are original to the building and have been restored. There’s room for 150 diners inside, with a 28-seat bar and room on the patio for 14. To start, they’ll be open for dinner Sun-Thu 5pm-10:30pm and Fri-Sat 5pm-11pm. Lunch and happy hour are coming soon. 401 13th St. at Franklin, Oakland, 510-452-8742.
Photo courtesy Tribune Tavern.
