This Russian food truck keeps rolling along, even in the hardest times
When the pandemic closed offices and breweries, Kolobok started serving its “Russian soul food” to apartment complexes and offering delivered holiday meals.
Anna Mindess
Anna Mindess is a freelance writer and sign language interpreter who lives in Berkeley.
Articles by Anna
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‘Berkeley citizens buy good quality and they hate to waste,’ says owner of this 70-year-old shoe repair shop
Peter Kemel has used every penny of his retirement money to keep Model Shoe Renew afloat during the pandemic. His loyal customers are grateful.
1951 Coffee Company is still helping refugees despite new challenges
Revenue is down at 1951 Coffee by 90%, but the nonprofit is hopeful it can survive the pandemic and continue helping refugees through its barista training program along the way.
Doors and murals: In Berkeley, creative expression helps process the pandemic
These Berkeleyans are crafting beautiful messages outside their homes â sharing information and offering hope.
Loyal customers have kept this 70-year-old Berkeley stationery store going
Sonny Han, owner of Payn’s Stationery on Solano Avenue, talks about survival and his fortuitous decision to install mailboxes before the pandemic lockdown.
Steaming bowls of noodles capture tastes of China â from Jingdezhen to Yunnan
Berkeley’s Noodles Fresh serves a wide selection of dishes from all over China; once indoor dining resumes, it will also focus on tea.
Berkeley’s Takara Sake offers virtual tasting sessions for you to learn and sip along at home
For $50, the Berkeley-based sake brewery gives attendees five different sakes and a one-hour live Zoom lesson on drinking and pairing sakes.
Immigrant chefs pursue their culinary dreams at Oakland Bloom
Immigrants often face disadvantages in the food industry. This nonprofit is working to change that.
âThere is a void in my heartâ: Chinatownâs beloved Peony restaurant in danger of closing
Renowned for its fresh dim sum and seafood, the eatery is also a social hub for Oaklandâs Chinese community.
Crystal Wahpepah is clearing a path for Indigenous chefs
The celebrated Oakland chef was the first Native contestant to appear on the Food Networkâs âChopped.â
Before the pandemic, this chef fed Berkeley private school students; now she cooks for Emeryville’s hungry
Joan Gallagher’s company Nourish You made hot lunches for students at three Berkeley schools, but since the pandemic, she’s found a new calling feeding low-income, senior and homeless communities.
What do you do when your job requires personal contact? These Oaklanders got creative
A therapist, photographer and hairstylist have innovated to continue their practice in quarantine.
Corner stores step up: Colusa Market
The Kensington neighborhood market is doing double its normal business. Along with its regular customers, some of whom have been shopping here for 30 years, the store is attracting many new shoppers.
For this refugee restaurateur, the American Dream is giving back
Monster Pho owner Tee Tran views the crisis as an opportunity to repay the community and country where he found a home.
CafĂŠ Ohlone founders share ancestral wisdom to help us through the pandemic
Ohlone natives have been practicing some of the measures we’re using to prevent COVID-19 for many generations.
Longtime immigrant-run restaurants hang on for a precarious future
With revenue down by 75%, some are trying new methods, others are just hanging on for better days.
