The Joy of Realizing A Delicious Vision

Parlour Restaurant’s Linda Bradford

While thinking along with her partners about opening another Oakland eating establishment, Linda Bradford says she had a recurring vision for a location for that future restaurant and, truth be told, the vision spanned the entire 19^th Street Corridor. 

“Early on I would get off the Freeway at Oak St., pass Lake Chalet and make a left on to 19^th Street. Once you hit the commercial area… it was straight shot to the Fox Theater. I could just see then that the whole area would become a center of restaurants and small shops... and that’s essentially what the Uptown is turning in to,” said Bradford.

In fact based on that intuition, Bradford and partners Travis Dutton, and Patrick Lynch felt strongly about doubling down on their first 19^th street restaurant success, Bar355. Fast forward to their recently opened new restaurant, Parlour, and you quickly discover one Uptown’s newest and hottest eateries. Chef Jason Tuley’s cuisine at Parlour is perfectly suited to the trio’s vision of a “seasonal, chef-driven menu that draws upon the bounty of top-quality local producers.” 

When Parlour, aka the new “California-Italian restaurant” was reviewed by TheMercury News, it was lauded for going above and beyond expectations. 

Bradford said the group is hoping to continue to create pleasing eateries for both locals and the ever-growing army of visitors who are now frequenting both Downtown and Uptown Oakland

“The 19^th Street restaurant corridor has actually become a perfect storm,” she muses. “There is this renaissance in Uptown combining with great locations, all right next door to an established residential neighborhood. There are both rental apartments and condominium apartments all around, and they are all creating a great opportunity to generate even more foot traffic into the Uptown area.”

Bradford loves being in Oakland; she is obviously energized with more visions about what else the future can bring to Uptown.  “I am excited that it is filling in, of course, but it is the quality of the businesses that are coming in that is building a sustainable future for this entire area. They are small, local—and they want to spend and invest the money locally. That is just so important to the community.”

Parlour Quick Facts:

• The Mercury News called Parlour, “not just a neighborhood gem, but a dining destination"
• A wood-fire oven is the centerpiece of the Parlour’s open kitchen and anything from pizza to octopus can be seen roasting to perfection.
• Syrups & tonics are hand crafted by Parlour’s mixologists.
• Parlour features interior ambiance of reclaimed & raw materials was truly a labor of love.  The owners did most of the construction themselves.