Santa Claus Comes to Town with Opera Piccola

For the last few years Lakeshore has celebrated the holidays by hosting the Opera Piccola Carolers, who dress in Dickens garb and sing old fashioned Christmas Carols. They’ll be on Lakeshore Avenue from noon to 2 PM on Sunday, December 16th, and on the Saturday before Christmas, the 22nd, also from noon to 2.

Santa Claus will also visit us on those dates and times. On the 22nd he will take a seat at the Grand Lake Farmers’ Market to listen to children’s fondest desires, and on the 16th he’ll travel up and down the Avenue giving out candy canes and chatting with the young at heart. If you visit the Farmers’ Market on the 22nd, please vote for your favorite holiday window on Lakeshore or Lake Park Avenues. The merchant that you choose will win a prize.

Music Everywhere on Lakeshore

Many of our merchants offer live music on the weekends and evenings. For instance:

  • Our very successful restaurant Mezze, at 3407 Lakeshore, presents live jazz on Sunday evenings starting at 6:30.

  • Easy Lounge, at 3255 Lakeshore, has built a reputation as one of the East Bay’s favorite places to go for a well-made cocktail with an eclectic assortment of DJ-ed music and a good place to sip a drink after loading up with produce at the Farmers’ Market.

  • On Friday evenings the Café Cote d’Or at 3227 Lakeshore hosts jazz and wonderful authentic crepes from 7 to 10 PM throughout the year.

In December, many shops and cafes will hold seasonal music and art events:

  • Visit our new tea bar, L’Amyx at 3437 Lakeshore, which is showcasing local talent, Richard Young, on December 22nd from 8 to 10 PM, and original works of art by children from the Lincoln Child Center in Oakland till the end of December. All of the proceeds from the sale of the children’s art will go back to the Center for the purchase of more art supplies. If you can’t afford a work of original art—in Oakland almost everyone can; it’s very affordable—you can buy cards of the children’s original works in a boxed set for only $10.

  • You can also shop for gifts at our hip gift shop, Urban Indigo, at 3339 Lakeshore, while listening to live jazz at their special holiday event on Wednesday, December 12, from 6 to 9 PM.

For all those who have been watching the transformation of the former frame shop into a beautiful new wine shop and club, you’ll soon get a peak inside the Vine Wine Bar at 3343 Lakeshore just in time for your holiday shopping and imbibing. Vine promises to open by mid December.

Shop Oakland Passport

Merchants throughout Oakland are participating in the Shop Oakland Passport program, and Lakeshore’s are among them them. Pick up your passport at participating merchants and get it stamped at any one of 16 Oakland commercial districts. Then mail your stamped passport to the Oakland Merchant Leadership Forum at the address given. You may win any one of three valuable prizes.

On Lakeshore, at 3342, New Fangles Fashions featuring dress and casual clothing for the tall woman, Silver Lining Jewelry at 3340, Shirley’s Designs at 3405, L’Amyx Tea Bar at 3437, Walter Bennett Cameras at 3268, and Fabmation Graphic Design at 3337 are all participating merchants. You can pick up your passport and get your first stamp from any of them. Then set out to visit all of our wonderful neighborhood districts by March. The ads in the passport booklet also contain many valuable coupons.

Every dollar you spend in your hometown helps fund your parks, schools, police and fire departments. It brings us together in the public square and makes our streets safer. Shop Oakland. Shop the world at home.