BY FRAN ENDICOTT MILLER

Head a bit beyond Jack London Square to find Oakland’s newest hot spot – Brooklyn Basin. Located along a historic waterfront with stunning views of the Oakland estuary, San Francisco, and the East Bay Hills, this vibrant new mixed-use neighborhood features residences, parks, and plenty of open space. It also features The Kitchen at Rocky’s Market and its expansive 75-seat outdoor patio where social distance dining is easily achieved. 

Rocky’s owners Corinne Kinczel and Brady Bellis are thrilled to add this second location to their repertoire. (Their original Rocky’s Market is located on Oakland’s Leimert Blvd.) This newly redesigned Brooklyn Basin industrial market space is located in the beautifully restored historic 9th Avenue Terminal Building along Oakland’s waterfront. Like the Leimert location, the artisanal market features locally-sourced organic produce, grocery items, craft beer, and local wine. But this new location also serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner items available for either take-out or patio dining.

And what a patio it is. Expansive, fully covered and heated, the picnic-style set-up overlooks a new waterfront park (scheduled to open to the public in August) roughly the size of three football fields and featuring stationary lounge seating, a grassy knoll, and space for entertainment. (An additional four new Brooklyn Basin parks will each have distinct features, water views, playgrounds, and ample green space.)

“Our vision for Rocky’s Market Brooklyn Basin is to create a community-oriented place to shop and dine, while honoring our mission to serve the local neighborhood,” said Kinczel. “We are inspired by the rich and colorful history of the area and are excited to be a part of Brooklyn Basin’s vision to revitalize and complement Oakland’s vibrant waterfront.”

That sense of community is illustrated by the colorful mural that hangs above Rocky’s coffee bar. Designed by teen Vincent Truong, the work (pictured) is the winning entry in an Oakland School for the Arts competition in which Kinczel and Bellis challenged students to design a mural based on a 1930’s photo of the 9th Avenue Terminal interior. More than 60 entries were received. 

Kinczel brings years of experience and expertise in cooking with fresh organic ingredients to the new casual dining restaurant. Her seasonally changing menus are driven by sustainable and locally-sourced seasonal items from Bay Area farmers and artisans. Highlights from the breakfast menu include the Basin Breakfast Sammy on a choice of croissant or brioche bun with lemon aioli, melty Havarti, caramelized onions, housemade bacon or sausage patty, two poached organic farm eggs topped with lemon zest, French toast strips served with housemade seasonal organic fruit compote and organic maple syrup, and organic, freshly baked Boichik Bagels. 

For lunch and dinner, the menu features seasonal dishes such as grilled corn salad with baby heirloom tomato and arugula topped with housemade bacon (add grilled smoked paprika prawns), grilled peach salad with burrata, pistachios, and crispy chicken skin, a hot brisket (housemade) sandwich with stone ground mustard aioli, caramelized onion, dill pickles, and an option to add gruyere cheese, and grilled cheese with an assortment of add-ons, such as the aforementioned bacon. Sweet items include a selection of Woops! macarons for those craving a little taste of Paris, as well as Straus soft serve ice cream with toppings such as smoked sea salt, fresh berries or housemade chocolate sauce. 

The Kitchen at Rocky’s Market full menu can be found here.

Rocky’s Market enforces all CDC regulations and takes extra precautions with enhanced daily cleaning and sanitation/handwashing stations. 288 9th Ave., Oakland, CA 94606, open daily from 7:00 am - 8:00 pm. The Kitchen at Rocky’s Market is open daily for breakfast from 7:30am - 10:30am, and for lunch and dinner from 11am - 8pm. 

Photos courtesy of both Dan Miller, and The Kitchen at Rocky's Market.