Scott’s, Oakland’s unofficial boardroom, is turning 50. Meet the chefs who have made a million cioppinos

Fifty years ago, Scott’s Seafood Grill and Bar sprang up in San Francisco’s Marina District, before expanding across the bridge to Jack London Square.

Jack London seemed like the ideal destination for Scott’s second iteration — it was growing, a hub lined by retail stores, boats and restaurants. Night clubs like Square Apple hosted popular funk acts like Tower of Power, while restaurants like Kirby’s Elegant Farmer and The Grotto held down the waterfront dining scene with menus filled with fried clam raviolis and buffalo steak.

Some saw Jack London Square as the second coming of San Francisco’s Fisherman’s Wharf, as business owners and officials hoped to create an Oakland destination that could rival the wharf’s buzz and active tourism. When Scott’s came onto the scene in late 1984, replacing longstanding restaurant Sea Wolf, that promise was still alive. But that soon faded, and over time, the waterfront tourist destination saw a wave of closures.

Scott’s Seafood Grill and Bar, located at Jack London Square, celebrated its 50th anniversary in September. Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

But not Scott’s. The seafood restaurant has waded through economic downturns, crime, and even a global pandemic. Meanwhile, the original restaurant at the corner of Lombard and Scott Streets in San Francisco closed in 1998. In its four decades in The Town, Scott’s has become a place where Oakland’s power brokers meet and make handshake deals, and where families celebrate graduations, engagements and other momentous occasions. Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee is a frequent diner, and, thanks to its proximity to the Port of Oakland offices, Scott’s has hosted many high-stakes business lunches. Scott’s managing partner Ramiro Carabez credits this longevity to the restaurant’s staff — their unwavering commitment to service has propelled the restaurant through its toughest years.

“Our number one asset is our employees,” Carabez said. “We ensure that our employees are happy and, you know, they do a great job for us, and it’s a big family. We have almost 100 employees and everyone works towards the same goal, providing a nice experience for our guests.”

Thirty-four years ago, a 19-year-old Carabez, new to the U.S., walked into Scott’s looking for a job. Carabez had moved from Michoacan, Mexico, and landed positions at places like 7-Eleven and Home Depot, but was looking for more. After his first visit to Scott’s, Carabez says he fell for the bustle and infectious energy of the restaurant business, so he asked for a job, only to be promptly rejected. He was undeterred. Carabez went back eight more times until Scott’s owner Ray Gallagher cracked and gave him a position in the dish pit.

“He finally gave in, and he was like, ‘Okay, you want to start working here? Grab a uniform and get to washing dishes,’” Carabez said.

Scott’s seafood sauté, Boston clam chowder, signature calamari and its seafood salad have been on the menu since it first opened in 1976. Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

Carabez worked his way up year after year, moving from dishwashing to prepping then cooking, even choosing to come in on his days off. It was in this kitchen where he met Scott’s tenured chefs — Gregorio Lopez, Juan Robledo, and Juan Martinez — who, combined, have over a century of experience at the seafood restaurant.

“You know, it’s been fun. I mean, we’ve grown older together, and we know each other so well that there’s no secret between us,” Carabez said. “You know, we’ve seen each other making mistakes and learning and it’s just been really fun because you have these very different individuals that come from different parts of Mexico and we all have the same goal.”

On any given day, Lopez, Robledo and Martinez, along with one other chef, manage the kitchen’s 35-person staff, which consists of prep cooks, pantry cooks, banquet cooks and dishwashers. At 7 a.m., the trio start off each shift by checking ingredients, confirming the total number of reservations for that day, and prepping. Then, from 11 a.m. to close, the chefs lead their kitchen through a steady stream of orders, including staples like the Dungeness crab and seafood cioppino and seafood sauté, the restaurant’s most popular dish. Made with pacific prawns, scallops, and Dungeness crab legs sauteed in a glossy lemon butter garlic sauce, and served over rice with an assortment of vegetables. The dish accounts for anywhere between 45% to 55% of Scott’s dining room sales each day.

To Carabez, the restaurant’s longevity isn’t just a story about a prevailing business, but it’s also about people like Lopez, Robledo and Martinez who have spent decades working behind its kitchen doors.

Nosh sat down with these three chefs to learn more about the culinary forces behind Scott’s.

Gregorio Lopez

Head chef Gregorio Lopez, 57, immigrated to the U.S from Mexico and has been working at Scott’s Seafood grill and bar for 37 years. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

Like Carabez, Gregorio Lopez started in Scott’s dishwashing pit, but at the Walnut Creek location. After moving from his hometown, Zacatecas, Mexico, Lopez heard about the position from some old friends who were already working at Scott’s and helped him get his foot in the door. On his first day, Lopez recalls his excitement upon entering; the kitchen felt unfamiliar, yet inviting.

“When my friends brought me to see the place, I entered in the guest door, not in the back doors, so I saw everything,” Lopez said. “I saw the bar. I saw the tables. I saw some guests inside. I saw the cooks. I said to myself, ‘I’d like to stay here.’”

And he did. Over the next 37 years, Lopez worked his way up the food chain, holding positions as a line cook, then pantry and banquet cook, a position he held for almost two decades until he was promoted to head chef. Now, at 57, what Lopez enjoys most about his position is the variety: checking deliveries, inspecting ingredients, cooking and moving through the kitchen, directing his cooks. He often gravitates towards the sauté station, one that, in Carabez’s words, sees the most action, and regularly hops on the line with his cooks.

One of the most popular dishes at Scott’s is the Dungeness crab and seafood cioppino. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

But his favorite moments typically come after the kitchen has survived a busy holiday shift, or a dizzying dinner rush, where he’s finally allotted a moment of rest with his staff before heading home.

“I don’t leave. I go through the line and say ‘hey guys, thank you,’ or ‘thank you’, to everybody, because all day we’re busy working,” Lopez said.

Ultimately, for Lopez, what has kept him at Scott’s all this time isn’t just the kitchen or the work environment, but that warm feeling he gets after customers praise the food prepared by him and his staff.

“I feel very, very happy when the guests are happy, “ Lopez said.

Juan Martinez

Chef Juan Martinez, 50, started off as a dishwasher and worked his way through Scott’s ranks over his 35 year tenure at the restaurant. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

For 50-year-old Juan Martinez, the road to Scott’s kitchen started with his brother, who was already working at the restaurant when Martinez arrived from Mexico City. Like Lopez, he started at Scott’s as a dishwasher, then moved on to work as a busser, pantry cook, and prep cook before his promotion to chef.

Martinez’s first day at Scott’s was, like others, marked by excitement, yet he also vividly recalls the fear he felt. It was a new environment, a new language and new techniques that he had to catch up on. Still, he saw the kitchen as an opportunity to learn. He quickly learned the rhythm of the restaurant, and studied cookbooks in his free time to improve his technique.

“When I started, I liked it, but it was just different, you know, cooking,” Martinez said. “But you learn more, more and more. I love it”

The stuffed tomatoes are another staple of the Scott’s menu. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

This love of learning has carried him through his 35 years at the restaurant. Martinez’s favorite memories at Scott’s are marked by holiday parties and celebrations at the restaurant, including the staff’s annual Christmas celebration. For Martinez, these moments reflect how the restaurant is more than just a workplace.

“It’s like a family,” Martinez said.

Juan Robledo

Chef Juan Robledo, 64, joined Scott’s staff in 1991 as a prep cook. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

What stood out most during Robledo’s first day at Scott’s wasn’t his excitement, or any first-day nerves that come with a new job, but the food. When Robledo first walked into Scott’s on April 29, 1991, to start as a prep cook, what stood out to him the most were Scott’s ingredients.

“The first day I came to work, I [was] a new guy starting, and I had to see everything first,” Martinez said. “Everything was fresh, and everything was quality.”

The vibrant colors of the vegetables and seafood stuck with him, cementing how important a first impression can be, an ideal he’s carried throughout his time in the kitchen. While freshness and quality matter to the 64-year-old, the true measure of a good restaurant comes down to customer satisfaction.

“The most important [thing] is the customer,” Robledo said. “Always we are looking to do the best things for the customer, for everybody.”

That ethos has become something of a kitchen philosophy for Robledo. Although its menu has changed over time, some dishes have endured, like the seafood saute, Scott’s famous Boston clam chowder, and the restaurant’s signature calamari.

Juan Robledo’s traditional work uniform and work shoes. Robledo has cooked at Scott’s Seafood Grill and Bar for 35 years. Credit: Ximena Natera for East Bay Nosh

Robledo’s favorite moments aren’t confined to the kitchen. Over the years, the cook has watched politicians, celebrities, professional athletes, and musicians walk through the restaurant’s doors. Yet the famous faces aren’t what’s kept him clocking in for over 35 years; it’s the standard that he and other colleagues have set for each person who walks through Scott’s doors.

“I think Scott’s is the best restaurant in the Bay Area,” Robledo said. “It’s a little expensive, but everything is fresh and everything is good.”

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