Oakville Grocery open is San Francisco

Oakville Grocery, that famous, tasty, tiny gourmet grocery store, perched just off the pavement of Highway 29 in Oakville, California for more than 100 years, serving as the gateway to Napa Valley wine country, recently opened its doors in another historic building, San Francisco's Del Monte Cannery. For the residents and visitors of San Francisco the store will once again prove to be a gateway to great things gourmet. The new location and design, which has married and merged the feel of the old and quaint with the robustness metal and modern offers customers a comfort from vine country blended with a San Francisco air.

A welcomed neighbor, according to those residents of Russian Hill who quickly came down to peruse the prepared food cases and purchase products from the floor to ceiling shelves, the store was quickly welcomed with open arms by the locals.
"It is so wonderful to have you in the city" said Mrs. Judith Bain. " I love the Napa location and now will not have to wait to get there to order my favorite cheeses and gift baskets for the holidays."

The 4000 square foot store, opened to sunny skies and almost 10,000 people- most were participating in the bridge to bridge race that was held on the opening morning. It was quit a site to see that many people coming towards you as the door opened, said one stock boy who was relieved that the crowd ran by.

Oakville has long been the anchor of the Oakville community. A pioneer on the road to lushness. But with the opening in San Francisco- there are other stores in Healdsburg, on the square and Palo Alto in the Stanford Shoppping Center- is by far one of the company's warmest locations.

Larger than the tiny gem that sits directly in front of the Opus Once Vineyard, the Del Monte Cannery location shouts food. The closest the city has come in emulating a New York City Zabar's, Oakville has twelve feet of prepared foods, a selection of cheeses that would make the population of Point Reyes give a standing o, and a grab and go counter filled with salads, sandwiches, pre-washed fruit and of course piazza fresh from the open hearth oven.

But this Oakville, unlike its cousins in the communities to the north and south, offers room to roam and browse at the tremendous selection of purchasable product that doesn't have to be eaten by days end. The still hard to find anywhere else jams and chutneys. Salsa's and sauces are available, but this Oakville has a variety of gifts and baskets for gift baskets that you will not find in the other locations.

And, of course- flagship stores- as all stores in San Francisco have become known - have to have something different than other locations in a group. The wine tasting bar Oakville offers is the perfect place to go after a long walk down the hill. The other day as I passed through the eatery, I noticed four women who had just finished shopping on Polk St. sitting down with a bottle of wine and four glasses, discussing the purchases they made at Brown Dirt Cowboy. If that isn't cosmopolitan, what is?

If you have not had the time to browse the newest Oakville Grocery, stop in - you'll like what you see. A well known Napa valley resident was shopping in the store last week. When asked what she was doing in the store she comically said, "We love it. It gets us down to the city."