My wife and I moved here several years ago and since our arrival a majority of our time has been spent on Park St. It is the hub of the island, we met new friends there, went to the festivals, our doctors are there. etc. But coming from San Francisco we believe in neighborhoods and living close to Little John Webster St was supposed to be our neighborhood hub. Unfortunately, when we would go explore it was just depressing. There was nothing to do and the shops and eateries were just awful. If I did go it was for a specific reason and that was for a burrito at Calafia one of the best Taqueria's on the island. And maybe Nation's because Scolari's and The Red Onion didn't exist. I did try to support whatever businesses were there like Tilly's and New Zealander but they were horrible so inevitably I would always end back up on Park St.
During the last couple of years I've noticed that things have been slowly changing since the opening of Wes Cafe which was an instant hit. I think the West End was just starving for something decent and they now had a real cafe with outdoor seating and a fairly good breakfast and lunch menu given the size of the non kitchen they were working in. Tilly's closed and the building underwent a rehab through the cities Webster St rehab program. When it was completed Webster St had another instant hit and the reason was because Jolie's menu and food was not only great but the space is beautiful. You want to eat there, hang out there and invite your friends there. In that time New Zealander changed hands and is now 1400 and they seem to be doing well. I have been back since they changed hands and the service attentive, it's lively and fun. I am at Croll's Pizza every week and 1400 always seem to always have a decent crowd and just today I stood outside and talked to families I knew for a bit and the vibe was excellent. It was nice to hand out with friends in the evening sun without the crowds bumping in to our kids which has become the norm on Park St. The farmers market also moved from the parking lot on Webster to Haight St which was a great improvement and it now feels like more of a meet-up, social/community get together.
As these improvements were being made we found ourselves a little more open to trying new things and attended the Peanut Butter Jam aka Webster Street Jam aka Neptune Beach festival which I had more fun attending than the Park Street fair (blasphemy) but there was something about climbing a three story slide that overlooked all of Alameda and racing with my son. It was just more fun. But the latest change that inspired me to write this was walking into the new space for Wes Cafe. It just made my jaw drop. I really can't describe it but it was breathtaking to see what they did with the space that was previously occupied by the awful food of everett and jones, which I found out didn't have a kitchen the food was brought in from their other restaurant and re-heated. This could be a metaphor for what Webster street used to be or how business owners and landlords perceived it. As I sat in the Patio with my wife and kids, we just couldn't stop talking about how nice it was and how we were really happy for Wes Cafe and that they had been successful enough to move into a bigger space. We also found ourselves discussing how we/Webster are having a little renaissance and how we don't go to Park St as much and how it has changed our lives because we enjoy riding our bikes down the bay trail along the estuary, over the tunnel, pass Target through the college and up Webster to eat before heading home or maybe just to grab an ice cream sandwich at Cookie Bar.
I am really proud of the owners were brave enough to invest in the area with what I feel are high end establishments. I'm sure that they are tickled pink knowing that if they built it we would come. And we did.
That said, since we know are spending more time there eating and walking around we have discovered more things to love about Webster that we have always missed like Alameda Sports Cards and Comics (which is just full of really cool items besides comics) and Fireside Bar whose signature cocktails feature St. George Distillery spirits and they are delicious. Croll's has Faction Brewery's Seasonal Ale on tap along with a bunch of other craft beers and it seems whenever I am there I always run into to someone I know.
Webster St still has a way to go but for now we find ourselves gladly staying closer to home and happy to support the local merchants and be part of something special. There is definitely something happening here for sure and I invite you to check it out and let me know what you think.
So if you haven't been I dare you to come and explore.
http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/6/1680462/restaurant/Cafe-Jolie-Alameda
http://www.cookiebarshop.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TheWescafe
http://www.crollspizza.com/Home.html
http://www.yelp.com/biz/alberts-cafe-alameda
http://alameda.patch.com/listings/alameda-sports-cards-comics-2
http://www.eastoceanseafoodrestaurant.com/
http://pacificpinball.org/
http://www.thefiresidelounge.com/
http://taqueriacalafia.wix.com/website
http://www.yelp.com/biz/chicha-bistro-alameda
