oakland spotlight chinatown pr final shopping • pacific renaissance plaza (388 9th street) – the...

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VISITOAKLANDCELEBRATESTHECHINATOWNASTHENEXTFEATUREDOAKLAND

SPOTLIGHTNEIGHBORHOODINJANUARYLunarNewYearEvents,Restaurants,andUniqueStreetArtAttractsVisitors

Oakland,CA(January3,2017)—VisitOakland,thecity’sofficialdestinationmarketingorganization,encouragesvisitorstoexplorethecommunityofChinatownduringthemonthofJanuaryaspartoftheOaklandSpotlightprogram.WhatismostattractivefortheseasonarethemanyChineseNewYearevents,authenticAsiandishes,anduniqueshoppingrelatingtotheholiday.“Oakland’sChinatownisaliving,breathingpartofourcity.It’shometoresidentsofallageswhohavecomefromaroundtheworld,blendingtheiruniquecharacterandspiritinAmerica’smostdiversecity,”saysAbelGuillén,District2CityCouncilmember.“Morethanatouristdestination,OaklandChinatownisavibrantneighborhoodofworldculture,andtheregionalcenterforthebestinChineseandAsianculture,education,diningandentertainment.AnyvisittotheBayAreaisnotcompletewithoutastopinOaklandChinatown.”CHINATOWNOaklandChinatownrunsfrom6thStreetto12thStreet,inbetweenBroadwayandLakeMerritt.Hometoaplethoraofethnicities,includinggroupsfromalloverAsia,theneighborhoodisa“workingChinatown.”Theconstantbustlingwithopenairvendorsandotheractivitiesmaketheareaaconvenientdestinationforlocalshoppers,foodiesanddedicatedtouristslookingforatruelocalgem.Chinatownisaneighborhoodthatencompassesallfivesenses.VisitorswillseeduckshanginginChineseBBQwindows,smelltraditionalherbsandspices,hearvendorssellingtheirgoods,tastethedeliciousfoodsandsnacksinthearea,andtoucheachfreshproduceitemtopurchase.

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Chinatown’sproximitytoDowntownOakland,theOaklandConventionCenterandLakeMerrittmaketheneighborhoodconvenientlyaccessibleandagreatplacetoexperienceOakland’slocalAsiancultureandlifestyle.

EVENTSANDATTRACTIONS

• OaklandChinatownLunarNewYearBazaar2017(9th&FranklinStreets,January14-15)–CelebratetheYearoftheRoosterinOakland!Theannualstreetfestivalrunsfrom10AMto5PMandisfreetothepublic.Enjoyliveperformances,food,andfamilyfunasshoppersbuyitemstocelebratetheLunarNewYear.

• TheOaklandAsianCulturalCenter(3889thStreet,#290)–OACCistheculturalhubofChinatowntopromotecommunityengagementandsocialjusticethroughartsandculture.Artsperformances,showopening,andeventsarescheduledthroughouttheyear.StartinginJanuary,OACCwillbeofferingbeginnerMandarinclasses.

• StreetArt–TheheartofChinatown’sintersectionsarebeautifullypaintedinaredandyellowdesignwherepedestriansareencouragedtowalkdiagonally.Furthermore,thecityisfilledwithblackandgoldmuralsfromtheDragonSchoolmuralistteamwhosemissionistofillChinatown’spublicwallswith99goldendragons.

DINING

• ShanDongRestaurant(32810thStreet,#101)–Oakland’sbestdumplingsareatShanDong’s!Fromcelebritiestofameddignitaries,nostoptoChinatowniscompletewithoutamealtoexperiencehandmadedumplingsandnoodles.Watchthedumplingsandnoodlesbeingmadebehindglassasyouwaitforyourtable.

• SoboRamen(988FranklinStreet,#186)–Thenewlyexpandedramenstophasbeengrowinginpopularitythankstoitsnewhappyhourmenuitemsandbar.LocatedinthepopularPacificRenaissancePlaza,trytheirsojudrinksandOaklandRestaurantWeekmenu.

• PeonySeafoodRestaurant(3889thStreet,#288)–Oakland’spremierdimsumandChinesebanquetmenu,thisrestaurantbustlesontheweekendsforfamilybrunchandnighttimeweddingandpartyreceptions.Therestauranthasbeeninbusinessfor20yearsandisastapleofOaklandChinatowncuisine.

• CinnamonTreeChineseCuisine(708FranklinStreet)–Thisiconicrestaurantisanarchitecturalgemforphotographers,especiallyatnightwhenthebuilding’spagodalightsupthestreetsofChinatown.CinnamonTreeoffersdimsumandbanquetmenusaswellaseverydaylunchanddinneroptionsaswell.

• TaoYuenPastry(816FranklinStreet)–Don’tbesurprisedtofindlinesoutthedoorforthissmalldimsumdeliandpartytrayrestaurant.Theyserveupfreshdailydimsumandlunchitemsto-go(there’snotablestositdownandeat).Perfectforaquickbreakfast,snackoralunchonthegotoeatatthePacificRenaissancePlazaandpeoplewatch.

• BestTasteRestaurant(814FranklinStreet)–FamilyownedrestaurantwithfreshChineseBBQandroastedduckshanginginthewindow,thisisafastandaffordablelunchanddinneroptionfordinersunfamiliarwithChinesefood.Stopinforthemorefamiliarfriedrice,chowmein,orchowfunorbeadventurousandorderthepickledchickenfeetandtraditionalentréeitemsonthemenu!

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SHOPPING

• PacificRenaissancePlaza(3889thStreet)–ThehubofChinatownisthisshoppingplazaandapartmentcomplex.Completewithitsownparkinggarage,itiseasilythebestlocationtomeetupwithothersbeforeexploringChinatowntogether.Hometoavarietyofrestaurants,stores,andjewelryshops,thisshouldbeyourfirststopinyourChinatownvisit.

• NewTin’sMarket(3107thStreet)–AlocalstaplefromthefamousTinfamilyinChinatownwhoownedmultiplebusinessesandrestaurantsinChinatown,theNewTin’sMarketisundernewownership.However,thestorestillsellstraditionalChinesegroceryfareincludingameatcounter,freshfish,andopenairproducesection.CheckouttheirnewChineseBBQsectioncompletewithroastpigandducks!

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TheOaklandSpotlightprogramisOakland’sfirst-everneighborhoodpromotioninitiativedesignedtosupportlocalbusinesses,spreadeconomicbenefits,andexpandtourismimpacttoareasoutsideoftraditionalvisitorlocations.Featuredinformationwillincludeinformationonwheretodineandshopintheneighborhood,aswellasinformationoneventsandculturalactivitieshappeningthatmonth.Venuesandattractionswillbeselectedwithinputfromcommunityleadersandgroupsfromeachneighborhood.TheprogramembracesthediversityandrichnessofOaklandbyfocusingonanewneighborhoodeachmonth,encouragingresidentsandvisitorsaliketogetoutandexploredifferentpartsofthecity.Visitwww.oaklandspotlight.comtolearnmoreabouttheinitiativeandfeaturedneighborhoods.ABOUTVISITOAKLANDVisitOaklandisaprivate,not-for-profit,501(c)(6)organization,witha21-memberboardofdirectorsandfulltimestaffwhosegoalistoincreasetourism’seconomicimpacttoOaklandthroughdestinationdevelopmentandbrandmanagement.Formoreinformation,visitwww.visitoakland.org.CONTACTFrancesWong,PR&CommunityRelationsManager,VisitOaklandO:(510)208-0561C:(510)396-8367E:frances@visitoakland.orgAllieNeal,PR&MarketingCoordinator,VisitOaklandO:(510)208-0529E:allie@visitoakland.org