Perched in the Oakland hills, Montclair Village is nearing its most flavorful evening of the year, when one\u2019s senses of smell and taste are put to good use.<\/p>\n
A Taste of Montclair Village will return next week from 5 to 8 p.m. Tuesday to unite the neighborhood and local businesses for a night of bites, drinks and family-friendly fun. All ages are welcome at the ticketed event, with proceeds benefiting the Montclair Village Association (MVA), the nonprofit group that puts on the annual gathering.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really nice showcase of restaurants and retail, and it\u2019s an opportunity for people to try some new menu items or connect to a new business or restaurant that they haven\u2019t had a chance to get to know (yet),\u201d said Daniel Swafford, the MVA\u2019s executive director.<\/p>\n
The corner of La Salle Avenue and Mountain Boulevard \u2014 the epicenter of Montclair Village retail and dining \u2014 will come alive with sample dishes, beverages and other offerings from more than 40 local businesses. The event, which typically sells out, also gives residents a chance to reconnect.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat people really love about it is that it\u2019s a chance to meet up with friends, neighbors, folks that they know from PTAs at local schools or the library and their connections there,\u201d Swafford said. \u201cYou get to see people you don\u2019t see as often as you\u2019d like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gene Brtalik, who organizes the Taste of Montclair Village event, described it as a \u201cfamily affair,\u201d noting that it will feature live music from the Jazz Education Ensemble and plenty of activities for kids to enjoy, including face painting and hands-on crafts while parents take full advantage of their all-access \u201cadult tasting passport.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere else can you eat for $50 and get different samples in this day and age?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Youth can also indulge in samples, including cookies, doughnuts, shakes and pizza slices, with passports (tickets) of their own.<\/p>\n
Taste of Montclair Village attendees can expect to find bites and libations from dozens of participating eateries and businesses, such as Daughter Thai Kitchen, Farmstead Cheeses & Wines, Himalayan Curry House, Crogan\u2019s, Payakk Thai restaurant, Oh G Burger, Taqueria Las Comadres, Full Belly Bakery and Yellow Door. Savory, sweet or somewhere in between, Brtalik said the variety of businesses means there\u2019s something \u2014 or many things \u2014 for everyone.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s families and the community coming out and just supporting the Village \u2014 something nice in the Oakland hills that we all need,\u201d said Rob Lam, chef and owner of Perle Bar, one of the participating Montclair restaurants.<\/p>\n
Perle, he said, has been in the neighborhood since 2017, initially as a fine-dining spot with a French- and Mediterranean-inspired food and wine menu.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we opened Perle, we wanted to bring something a little bit more elegant to the community,\u201d he said. \u201cOver the years, as we got through the (COVID-19) pandemic, we realized most people aren\u2019t looking for a luxury. They\u2019re looking for sustainability and something that they can go and get every day of the week versus once a month.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lam said that consideration prompted a reconceptualization of Perle, with business partner Dino Vazquez, as a more casual eatery featuring a bar and centering on Vietnamese cuisine.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just went back to what I know,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
At the Taste of Montclair event, Lam said Perle will showcase one of the new menu items: beef pho broth with banana shank and Vietnamese herbs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe didn\u2019t plan for this heat wave to hit, but usually in the late afternoon, it gets a little chilly up there in the hills, so we wanted to do a little cup of our pho for our guests to walk away with,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Lam said he anticipates the sample enticing attendees to keep coming back to Perle.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s getting people to see that there\u2019s good Vietnamese food being created here in Montclair,\u201d he said. \u201cYou don\u2019t have to drive to downtown Oakland or into West Oakland \u2014 there\u2019s access to it right here on Mountain Boulevard.\u201d<\/p>\n
Swafford said participating businesses have conveyed positive feedback about being able to connect with people at the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s always that introduction to new clients and customers \u2014 people who may have gone to dine or to hang out in Montclair on past occasions but never really got to know the specific restaurant or the business that they\u2019ll be introduced to with the Taste passport,\u201d he said. \u201cSo there\u2019s a direct benefit to the restaurant participant in growing their customer base or showcasing their catering menu or an aspect of their business that people will call them back to connect on.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shirleen Auyoung, the owner of 5 Spiced Kitchen, which specializes in traditional Chinese cuisine, says she\u2019s looking forward to another year of welcoming patrons and new visitors alike.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey show up in droves,\u201d she said, adding, \u201cThe event really puts Montclair on the map.\u201d<\/p>\n
Auyoung has participated in the Taste of Montclair event since opening her restaurant in 2022, but her history in Montclair Village extends well beyond that, as her parents\u2019 restaurant, the Silver Palace, previously occupied her location.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey opened it in 1989, when I was about 13, and then eventually they retired in 2014, so I knew every inch of it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Nearly a decade later, after some prompting from Montclair residents who said they missed having a neighborhood Chinese restaurant, she decided to return when the space became available, establishing her own eatery this time around. She said her dad, Martin Auyoung, is now in his 80s but helps out in 5 Spiced Kitchen. He\u2019s also the one who, many years ago, came up with the recipe for the Mai Tai she\u2019ll serve at next week\u2019s event.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s always a big hit,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Having participated in past annual Taste events, Auyoung is well versed in the prep time needed (approximately three hours) for food and drink items and the number of people she can expect to show up (around 400). She\u2019s eager for even more people from outside Montclair to head to the hills for the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cI hope it continues to bring new people to Montclair to try all the restaurants, because there are a lot of good ones up here,\u201d she said, echoing Lam\u2019s sentiment.<\/p>\n
Swafford pointed out that the event has yet another enticement: it\u2019s distinctly Montclair.<\/p>\n
\u201cLike many shopping corridors and communities in Oakland, Montclair has a unique character, being kind of nestled in the redwoods and having some unique architectural history. You really get an experience here like you don\u2019t get anywhere else,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
JL Odom is a freelance journalist based in San Francisco who can be reached at\u00a0jlodomphd@gmail.com<\/a>. When they\u2019re not covering the Bay Area, they\u2019re usually training for their next marathon.<\/p>\n FYI<\/p>\n Montclair Village is centered around La Salle Avenue and Mountain Boulevard in the Montclair district of the Oakland hills. To purchase a \u201cpassport\u201d (ticket) to the Taste of Montclair Village, go online to events.humanitix.com\/taste-of-montclair-village-2026.<\/p>\n An adult passport is $50 ($53.24 with processing fee); a passport is for those younger than 15 is $20 ($22.07 with processing fee); and a package of four adult passports is $200 (processing fees are waived for a savings of $12.96).<\/p>\n