Empire Building

Charlie Hallowell’s Oakland Empire to Grow Further With Possible Burger Joint, and Penrose & Sons

Hallowell doing some butchery last year in Japan.
Hallowell doing some butchery last year in Japan. Photo: Chris Kronner

We learned in the spring that master pizzaiolo and restaurateur Charlie Hallowell (Pizzaiolo, Boot & Shoe Service) had scooped up a new space across the street from Boot & Shoe for an upcoming non-pizza venture called Penrose & Sons Fine Meats and Spirits (3307 Grand Avenue). That project is now just about to start construction, and Diablo Dish learns that the butcher shop component Hallowell had imagined has been nixed due to the limited square footage. He’s not done expanding, however, and has also acquired a fourth property back up toward the Temescal district at 41st and Broadway for a TBA project that may also be meat-focused.

The menu at Penrose & Company (named for Hallowell’s grandfather) is going to be focused on meats and vegetables grilled on a wood-fired plancha, inspired by some of his recent travels in Latin America and Japan. He says now that the place will be “low-fi” and more of a “drinking place where people can get a snack,” with a full bar and cocktail menu. As for the projected opening, it’s too soon to tell, but probably by late this year or early next.

As for the space at 41st and Broadway, in a building he just purchased near Mama’s Royal Café, Hallowell hints that the neighborhood could use “a kick-ass burger place,” but otherwise he’s staying mum about his plans. There’s also the possibility that his butcher shop idea will be incorporated over there too, since he ran out of space at the Penrose spot. We’ll attempt to get a little more out of him in the coming months.

Weekly Dish [Diablo]
Earlier: Charlie Hallowell’s New Oakland Project to (Probably) Be Called Penrose & Sons Fine Meats and Spirits
Charlie Hallowell Plots a Third Oakland Restaurant, Across From Boot & Shoe

Charlie Hallowell’s Oakland Empire to Grow Further With Possible Burger