Mix It Up with Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan

This week, Mix It Up East Bay is relaunching with a new format. If you’ve never been to Mix It Up, you’ve been missing out on the premier monthly happy hour bringing together young (and not so young) activists, organizers and leaders in the East Bay. It’s been going strong for nearly three years, featuring several speakers each month on various issues, including transportation, criminal justice, water policies, Oakland arts, marriage equality, and much, much more.

But starting this month, Mix It Up will shift to featuring just one dynamic feature at each event. And who better to launch this new format than Oakland’s At-Large City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan. She’ll be giving a speech entitled “It’s the Economy, and We’re not Stupid: Creative Approaches to Job Creation.” From green jobs in transit and building to the other kind of green jobs in Oaksterdam, Kaplan knows her stuff when it comes to thinking outside of the box on economic issues.

The speaking program begins at 7pm, but come early to enjoy free food and ridiculously cheap drink specials. Stay late to mix it up with active community members from around the East Bay.

Mix It Up East Bay is held every 2nd Thursday of the month from 6-9pm at Shashamane, 2507 Broadway. It’s accessible by 19th Street BART station or by AC Transit lines 1/1R, 51, 59. For more info and to RSVP, visit the event’s Facebook page.

Rediscovering Downtown Oakland: Ethiopian Restaurants

When most people think of Ethiopian in Oakland, they think of North Oakland, or more specifically, Telegraph Avenue. But downtown Oakland is now home to two Ethiopian restaurants that I recommend checking out.

Shashamane Bar and Grill – Broadway between 25th & 26th

Shashamane is not just the place where Mix It Up East Bay is held every month – it’s also an excellent Ethiopian restaurant. If you just want a drink and a snack, Shashamane is the place to go after work. During their 5-7 happy hour, beer is $2.50. Have a couple of those, get an order of sambusas for $5, and you can get out of there for $10, feeling very satisfied. If you’ve never had sambusas, I highly recommend them. They’re similar to samosas, except that they’re filled with lentils or beef. Shashamane also has a full Ethiopian menu – I’ve only tried a few of the dishes, but they’ve all been delicious and the portions are generous. Though I’ve never made it there on a weekend, they have djs or live music on weekend evenings.

Damera Restaurant – Franklin between 14th & 15th

Damera is brand new, opening just over a month ago. Sadly, Dazz Thai, which I really liked, closed down just a few months after opening and after the space sat vacant for several months, Damera opened. I’ve only been there once, in the evening, but I enjoyed my meal. The place was basically empty and the service was a bit slow, but the food was very tasty. I ordered the vegetarian platter and had too much food to possibly finish. Though the service wasn’t as quick as it could have been, our server was very nice, and hopefully the service will improve over time. If anybody else has been here, I’d love to hear about your experience.

You might have noticed that it’s been a long time since I’ve done a rediscovering downtown Oakland post, and that’s partly because I feel like I’ve run out of categories to write about. So if you have any requests for topics to be covered, please share them in the comments below.

July Parties Part 1: Political Mixers

Though I post a list of Oakland events nearly every Sunday, I know that they’re sometimes a bit overwhelming and important events can get lost in the mix. So I wanted to highlight a few events in the next couple days. Today, I’ll be covering two parties that are political in nature but should also be extremely fun. Tomorrow, I’ll cover two parties brought to you by the Burning Man community, involving tons of art and fire.

TONIGHT (Thursday) – Mix It Up East Bay Two Year Anniversary Bash

Mix It Up East Bay is celebrating its two year anniversary tonight! It you’ve never been, Mix It Up is a monthly happy hour bringing together young activists, organizers and leaders in the East Bay. Most months, Mix It Up features speakers talking about various important East Bay issues. Past events have covered transportation, criminal justice, water policies, Oakland arts, marriage equality, and much, much more. But tonight is just going to be a straight up party without speakers. There will be free delicious food, a raffle, and drink specials. So head down for a drink or two to check it out and to meet young, active community members.

Mix It Up East Bay is held every 2nd Thursday of the month from 6-9pm at Shashamane at 2507 Broadway. It’s accessible by 19th Street BART station or by AC Transit lines 1/1R, 51, 59. Tonight’s party is sponsored by ACLU of Northern California, East Bay Young Dems, Greenlining Institute, Public Advocates & Shashamane Bar and Grill.

Monday, July 13th – Summertime in the East Bay Mixer

Can’t make it tonight? Not to worry because East Bay Young Dems are hosting another mixer on Monday. If you made it to our awards gala or inauguration party, you know that EBYD knows how to put on a good party. Join us for a cool summertime drink with fellow young leaders and organizers, local elected officials, and meet candidates in the 10th Congressional District race.

This happy hour is FREE for members. (We request a $5 donation from non-members, though no one will be turned away.  All are welcome!) If you’d like to become a member, you can do so at www.ebyd.org.

The mixer will be held Monday, July 13th from 6:30-8:30pm at the beautiful and new Grand Tavern, 3601 Grand Avenue, Oakland. Food will be provided for early arrivals and our brief program will commence at 7:15. Please RSVP on Facebook.

BACKGROUND ON THE CA-10 RACE:
With formerly long-time seated Congresswoman Ellen Tauscher confirmed and moving to the Department of State as Under-Secretary of Arms Control and International Security, a diverse group of incredibly qualified contenders are vying for her seat. We invited all Democratic candidates to join us for a drink prior to our August 10th endorsement meeting, for more substantive discussions one-on-one. There will also be an opportunity for each attending candidate to address the crowd.  Click here for the district map.

INVITED:

• Assemblymember Joan Buchanan
• Senator Mark DeSaulnier
• Lt. Governor John Garamendi (confirmed)
• Adriel Hampton
• Captain Anthony Woods (confirmed)

Oakland Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan will also join us to update Oaklanders about the city’s vote-by-mail election coming up and the city’s package of proposed measures.

Pre-Valentine’s Day Parties

This week, there are a couple of pre-Valentine’s Day parties that would be great places to take your Valentine or to meet someone new.

On Thursday night, have a few drinks, meet politically engaged Oaklanders, and learn about marriage equality at Mix It Up East Bay. If you haven’t been to this monthly mixer, this is the month to check it. Reps from several Bay Area advocacy groups working on marriage equality will speak about the fight and tell you how you can get involved. Sean Sullivan, who ran for Oakland City Council, will be one of the speakers, representing Equality California.

Remember that Mix It Up has a new location, Shashamane on Broadway at 29th. The first Mix It Up of 2009 was held there, and the space worked perfectly. Drinks are nearly half the price of what they cost at Arsimona, Mix It Up’s previous location, and there aren’t TVs blaring in the background so you’ll actually be able to hear the speakers. You can find out all the details at the East Bay Young Dems’ new blog.

On Friday, take your Valentine to Cafe Van Kleef to celebrate Friday the 13th with Damon and the Heathens, who have a standing show there every Friday the 13th. Damon and the Heathens describe themselves as:

a six-piece punk soul band from Oakland, California. We combine the sounds of New Orleans brass bands with Detroit garage rock, blues, jazz, and funk to create a sound best described as horn-fueled Oakland grit. Known for a raucous live show and a tight sound, the only thing holding us back now is our bar tab.

I talked to Damon last night and he told me that their Friday the 13th shows were his favorites so expect high energy, incredible music, and the urge to get up and dance overtaking you.