Chow’s Oakland closure is third for chain

Comfort food eatery Chow, the restaurant-market hybrid, has closed its Piedmont Avenue doors after only eight months in business.

The restaurant announced the closure in a statement on its website in late October, saying it has “fallen short of the requirements necessary for survival.”

“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 statement said.

The two-story, 15,000-squarefoot building housed two large outdoor dining areas in addition to indoor seating. Much like Chow’s other locations, it was a place where you could score allday breakfast options alongside organic versions of American comfort-food classics, like burgers and macaroni and cheese, while picking up fresh spinach for dinner that night.

But from the beginning, the Oakland location was a challenging undertaking, according to owner Tony Gulisano. “It took a few years longer to develop and open that property, and the time and cost was just crushing,” he said over the phone. “I couldn’t deal with the financial needs and couldn’t keep it going. It was a giant undertaking and the cost was profound.”

The closure marks the third in one year for the San Francisco-born chain. The Danville location in Iron Horse Plaza closed in May after a 10-year run. Park Chow, in San Francisco, closed a few months before that after serving the inner Sunset District for 20 years. That leaves two locations — Chow Lafayette and the original Chow on Church Street in San Francisco.

Both locations are doing well and continue to be “a blessing,” Gulisano says.

“We’re still committed to doing the best we can to advance healthful, sustainable food at everyday prices,” he said.