376055 Wed Feb 28 17:40:42 -0800 2007 25 1 San Francisco Bay Area 0 2339590 Anyone have any idea what happened to Oakville Grocery in Fishermans Warf. I've heard they are closed for good. I tried calling and there is no answer. Wed Feb 28 17:40:42 -0800 2007 78723 denochow 1 2339664 We were in there maybe 2 weeks ago, had friends who had never been here and wanted to see the wharf. It was mostly empty and didn't seemed to be very well stocked. Was certainly nothing like the Oakville grocery in Oakville. I even commented that the place looked like a ghost town so wouldn't be surprised at all. Wed Feb 28 17:56:56 -0800 2007 2339590 10925 rtmonty 2 2339682 Their old location near the Jug Shop never had much business, either. Wed Feb 28 18:00:28 -0800 2007 2339664 10255 Gary Soup 1 2339780 I heard a Dean and Deluca might be taking it over. Wed Feb 28 18:35:42 -0800 2007 2339590 16301 Non Cognomina 1 2341196 Oakville Grocery is dead. Filed bankruptcy and closed up shop. Last day for the SF store was 2/14. Big, long discussion here: http://dat.erobertparker.com/bboard/showthread.php?t=107458&page=9&pp=30&highlight=Oakville+Grocery Look for the words in red. Thu Mar 01 08:42:20 -0800 2007 2339590 28122 zin1953 2 2368436 Wow and wow and wow. That discussion of Oakville Grocery's shameful stiffing of wineries and winemakers on the erobertparker link above is fascinating. Not only is it an insight into despicable business practices, but also into wine and food retailing. I was riveted. Many thanks for the link, zin1953. Fri Mar 09 00:03:01 -0800 2007 2341196 18222 maria lorraine 3 2368984 I'm in no way an Oakville Grocery fan, but I thought that discussion was a tempest in a teapot created by a bunch of whine-lovers. Enterprises going into bankruptcy almost always "stiff" creditors (by definition, you might even say), and OG is too small an enterprise to cause serious damage to the industry. It was also full of preposterous half-truths. The reported new owner does not own Dean and Deluca, and I doubt it was a former principal of Oakville Grocery that went on to single-handedly "found" Ferry Plaza. Fri Mar 09 07:33:00 -0800 2007 2368436 10255 Gary Soup 4 2370179 Yes, any time you have a group of folks telling their stories, there will be inaccuracies and subjective (biased) opinions. It's true Leslie Rudd was mischaracterized. He's the new owner of the Oakville OG store, and also owns the Dean & Deluca store in Napa Valley. It's those individual stories that made the discussion so interesting in my mind: the impact of OG's fiscal irresponsibility on individual people's lives, especially in regards to the small-label winemakers trying to make their label thrive and who can't afford to take a hit. The tales of OG employees and wine buyers who were put in an awkward position are in the discussion as well. The collective stories point to a larger story that goes beyond Oakville Grocery -- the general difficulties of wine selling and retailing, and the frustration at the inaction of the alcohol-licensing body when a retailer sells the wine and then doesn't pay the the winery. The "facts" presented in the discussion were sometimes inaccurate, as you point out, Gary, but the discussion was rich with anger, humor, frustration, rants, praise and insights into the real workings of the wine industry. I was fascinated by all the voices. Fri Mar 09 12:05:19 -0800 2007 2368984 18222 maria lorraine 1 2341431 Is the store at the Stanford Shopping Center closed too? I always thought they did fine business there. I liked browsing their products. Never been to the store at Fisherman's Wharf though. Thu Mar 01 09:29:18 -0800 2007 2339590 43882 singleguychef 2 2342480 The chain was poorly run for a long time. Thu Mar 01 13:07:37 -0800 2007 2341431 28122 zin1953 3 2342591 I've never been a fan of any of the Oakville Groceries I've visited, especially the FW one. So, are they all gone? Thu Mar 01 13:27:06 -0800 2007 2342480 10264 rworange 2 2343271 it's still open. was there on presidents day and waited a good 15 minutes for my sandwich. i guess a good tip is not to visit on a holiday since they hadn't stocked the shelves in the refridgerated part that day. Thu Mar 01 16:12:57 -0800 2007 2341431 24791 katg 1 2343097 That Dean & Deluca rumor is interesting. It's well-known enough that it could successfully expand its national presence, and a location in SF, one of the great food cities, seems logical. On the other hand, there's a lot of competition in the "upscale grocer" market here, and it's not clear how many San Franciscans will want to brave the Fisherman's Wharf tourist crush to reach a Dean & Deluca location at the Cannery. Thu Mar 01 15:23:11 -0800 2007 2339590 11816 Agent 510 1 2343298 I just heard that Leslie Rudd who owns the local Dean & Deluca bought Oakville. It's not D&D. Thu Mar 01 16:19:45 -0800 2007 2339590 15739 Earl Grey 1 2345800 I heard at the Cannery location they were bringing in chains. The Cannery has new owners, and many of the merchants are leaving or have left. Oakville at the Wharf was rarely packed in the year or so they were open, nothing like the wine country locations. Fri Mar 02 11:10:56 -0800 2007 2339590 21759 MikeW 2 2347734 That's a tragedy. Allan Temko described the Cannery as "a map of the inside of Leonard Martin's mind" or something of the sort (can't find the original quote). The Martins had a certain spark of genius which the Cannery's location unfortunately throttled. How many Chowhounds even went to the Cannery's all-organic Farmers' Market? The article I dug up provides some of the sad details: http://sanfrancisco.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/stories/2006/12/11/story5.html Fri Mar 02 20:26:41 -0800 2007 2345800 10255 Gary Soup 1 2360613 As a supplier to the Oakville Grocery Stores over the last five years, I can tell you about the most frustrating collection efforts ever experienced over the last 20 months: PURE HELL! Now a true glimmer of hope; we were contacted today to resume deliveries...sure enough (as I was told today by management); it will now soon indeed be operated by Leslie Rudd & Co. So delighted and hopeful. Wed Mar 07 00:04:25 -0800 2007 2339590 80556 frontrail 1 2364067 Update from "The Inside Scoop" at SFGate.com, for those who haven't read the SF Chronicle's Food section today: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/07/FDG3ROFB821.DTL Turns out Oakville Grocery is "teetering on the brink of bankruptcy," according to the article. It also says that all of the stores, including the original store in Oakville, are "on life support." Their attorney says they are trying to avoid Chapter 7 or 11. Article also confirms that Dean & Deluca, as mentioned in other replies in this thread, is interested in buying "the stores" (not just the SF location). Wed Mar 07 19:44:50 -0800 2007 2339590 40520 HungryMojo 2 2365154 Need to clarify. It's not Dean and Deluca, it's the guy who owns the local D&D franchise. Thu Mar 08 08:32:14 -0800 2007 2364067 15739 Earl Grey 3 2365434 Actually, SFGate says it's the former CEO of Dean and DeLuca. I don't think D&D is franchising its concept. Awhile back they considered going public and selling stock and reverted from that idea too. So I doubt they would franchise to outsiders. I think because this guy used to work for D&D, he's been able to tap those connections to see if there's an interest in Oakville. I guess we just have to wait and see what happens. Thu Mar 08 09:39:30 -0800 2007 2365154 43882 singleguychef 1 2370416 Oakville Grocery has always symbolized the snooty, precious, and expensive stores that I hate (and most are tourist traps). Everything is more expensive than elsewhere, and the customers are looking to be part of that "Napa" or "Sonoma" lifestyle by buying something that they can take home and show off to friends or eat and say they partook of the wine country experience. I feel pretty much the same way about Dean and DeLuca, Sur la Table and Wms Sonoma. They've hooked me in the past, and years ago I bought a knife and some pans at WS that cost at least half as much more than in other places, e.g., on sale at Macy's. Sorry for the ravings, but the mention of Oakville Groc. made me remember the last time I was there and saw all these different-colored chicken and duck eggs for sale at high prices. Fri Mar 09 12:59:19 -0800 2007 2339590 10245 oakjoan 2 2371163 Thank you! I totally agree. Years ago it was a decent little store but now its just a expensive souvenir shop. Fri Mar 09 16:04:44 -0800 2007 2370416 10252 larochelle 1 2370496 Is their mail order site also being run be D&D at this point? I used to like their shop in Oakville years ago. It's too bad. Fri Mar 09 13:17:46 -0800 2007 2339590 80328 fini 1 2371450 I am parked across the street from Oakville Grocery in Healdsburg (using the open WiFiHealdsburg network). It's still open for business, even seems busy tonight with many patrons having a glass of wine on the patio. But a couple months ago, I felt that the shelves were rather thinly stocked and the cheese counter was a shadow of its former self. Fri Mar 09 17:55:39 -0800 2007 2339590 10039 Melanie Wong 2 2371657 Their website resembles that as well. They show most of their products as being out of stock Fri Mar 09 19:24:18 -0800 2007 2371450 80328 fini 2 2773769 Just wanted to update this thread after a walk-through of Oakville Grocery in Healdsburg yesterday. The cheese counter is looking better than it has in ages. Della Fattoria bread has returned, but at $6.95 per loaf vs. the $5.95 charged at Supper in Plaza Farms, you can guess where I'll head. I didn't check the inventory carefully, but at least the shelves are stocked again and the deli counter seemed to be doing a good business. Sun Jul 22 22:55:28 -0700 2007 2371450 10039 Melanie Wong