American comfort food eatery Chow, which opened up a new Oakland location in mid-February, will be closing its doors this month.First reported by Eater, the restaurant announced the closure in a statement on its website, saying it has “fallen short of the requirements necessary for survival.” Its last day in business at 3770 Piedmont Ave. will be Monday, Oct. 29; its remaining Lafayette and San Francisco locations will remain open. “We take great joy in feeding people, and wish we could have been successful doing it here in Oakland. We genuinely appreciate the opportunity to have been a part of your lives here,” the restaurant said in the statement.Berkeleyside reported its grand opening on Valentine’s Day this year, which saw the lodge-like restaurant packed with diners visiting the restaurant, bakery and grocery store mashup. Chow Oakland was first announced in 2014, but it took four years to bring the project to fruition due to development delays. It is Chow’s second hybrid location, similar in concept to its Lafayette restaurant-market, but with a much larger footprint. The 15,000 square foot building comprises two stories, with large outdoor dining areas in addition to indoor seating. Owner Tony Gulisano told the Chronicle that he envisioned that the hybrid model would create a zero waste business: “We don’t throw anything away, there’s zero waste, because it’s a smaller operation and we have professional cooking people running things who know how to do it.”The restaurant’s relatively affordable menu includes all-day breakfast with souped-up brunch fare like avocado toast, smoked salmon hash and organic pork carnitas, in addition to humbler items like pancakes, mac n’ cheese, pizza and hamburgers. The market also offers grab-and-go options and a hot food area, a popular feature with many who work in the area. Chow opened its first restaurant on Church Street in San Francisco’s Castro District in 1997, then Park Chow in the Sunset District on Ninth Avenue. Park Chow closed shortly before the opening of Chow Oakland and Chow Danville, which was in business for 10 years, closed in May. The restaurant has not provided further details about the closures.“To our incredible staff, who has worked so hard to bring Chow to Oakland, we are forever grateful to have been able to count you among our family, and appreciate all you have done,” Chow said in a statement.If we get more updates we’ll post them. Share news tips with Nosh anytime.
