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More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! | Visit YouTube | Visit UShow.com The new Lake Chalet restaurant is really changing the vibe around the nearby intersection of 14th and Lakeside Drive in Oakland, but even with the new eatery, that corner and its area are still dangerous. I write this not to dissuade anyone from visiting what has become a gastronomic center of Oakland culture, but to explain what to do if you use your car to get there. Have their valet service park your car. Why? Well, my good friend's car was broken into Friday night as she parked along 14th not far from Lakeside Drive. The Lake Chalet , where she was headed, is on Lakeside Drive, and so close to 14th Street and the Oakland Public Library that one can comfortably walk to the place after parking along 14th. Trouble is, 14th's still sketchy from Lakeside to Broadway. Let's be honest in our assessment of that stretch: while a couple of apartments have opened

More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! | Visit YouTube | Visit UShow.com Now that the long-awaited Lake Chalet is open, one would think everyone in Oakland's happy that it's done and the boathouse is restored. But no. I'm told some Oakland councilmembers are still upset over a vote that took place three years ago. So much so they won't even set foot in the Lake Chalet! Let's go back three years to 2006, when San Francisco restaurateurs Lara and Gar Trupelli, known for the Beach Chalet and Park Chalet restaurants, were selected over the always good and very popular Everett & Jones Barbeque, in Jack London Square. The Oakland City Council was deadlocked four in favor of the Beach Chalet proposal and four against it. Specifically, Nancy Nadel (Downtown-West Oakland), Oakland Councilmembers Larry Reid (Elmhurst-East Oakland), Desley Brooks (Eastmont-Seminary), and Jean Quan (Montclair-Laurel) against the Beach Chalet pro

More at Zennie62.com | Follow me on Twitter! | Get my widget! | Visit YouTube | Visit UShow.com YouTube , MySpace , Metacafe , DailyMotion , Blip.tv , StupidVideos and Sclipo I couldn't wait to visit the new Lake Chalet Restaurant at the restored Lake Merritt Boathouse, so I made a plan with my friend Gab to be there when the doors opened for the first time right at 5 PM last Monday, August 17th.  As you may recall, I recently posted a video-blog of the day the ribbon was cut to dedicate the boathouse and Lake Chalet owner Lara Truppelli and Executive Chef Jarad Gallagher were kind enough to give me an interview at the bar as the eatery was under construction.  Now, it's open and man is it terrific!  What's so exciting is the setting.  The Boathouse is right on the shore of Lake Merritt and a seat at the "Pumphouse Bar" section of the place on a sunny day as Monday was is a treat to the kind of Oakland many of us have wanted to see and c

Lake Chalet interior The Lake Merritt Boathouse is being transformed into what will be one of the Bay Area's most popular restaurants: The Lake Chalet . The new restaurant will be the focus in part of a ribbon cutting ceremony Thursday, August 6th at 2 PM reopening the historic boathouse. According to conversations I've had with employees, the new outdoor waterfront eatery setting will be just plain awesome. The creators of the Lake Chalet are known for the landmark Beach Chalet and Park Chalet in San Francisco at Ocean Beach.