Local Buzz covers new businesses, restaurants, closures, local politics, goings on around town and other buzzworthy items in the Conejo Valley and Greater Ventura County. Have a lead? Contact us. Click here for an archive of Local Buzz postings.
Local Buzz covers new restaurants, closures, local politics, goings on around town and other buzzworthy items in the Conejo Valley and Greater Ventura County. Have a lead? Contact us. Click here for an archive of Local Buzz postings.
Post other items directly to the Community Announcements section of the site.
As of Tuesday, December 29, 2020, the new drive-thru Starbucks at Janss Marketplace is opening in 4 days. That’s what the sign says, courtesy of Kira K. The Starbucks a block away next to Jamba Juice is now closed. No word on timing of Wingstop and California Fish Grill. I’d imagine fairly soon in 2021.
The old Starbucks, now closed, at The Village at Moorpark, next to Jamba Juice.
Pretty impressive! El Taco Chico, which opened its first location early this spring at 640 Lindero Canyon Road in Oak Park, announced it just opened a 2nd location at 888 New Los Angeles Avenue, Suite D in Moorpark. To open up not one, but TWO locations during the challenging times of this pandemic is impressive!
Learn more at www.facebook.com/El-Taco-Chico-111477747041837 and eltaco-chico.com.
E+ MON is now open
UPDATE: 12/24/20: They are opening real soon. They indicate before the end of this wonderful year 2020! Stay tuned, or follow their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/E-MON-100212308652662.
A new Japanese sushi and ramen eatery is coming to the Westlake Commons plaza at 2805 Agoura Road in Thousand Oaks. The new place appears to be called E + MON according to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control transfer notice on the door.
Previous occupants of this space included Cake Monkey Bakery (Aut 18 to Sep 19), Tonino's Place Pizzeria (Jul 16 to Feb 19) and awhile back, Bad Ass Coffee, then Royal Aloha Coffee.
Follow-up 12/14/20: ALDI Thousand Oaks is now open.
The ALDI U.S. website indicates the ALDI Thousand Oaks store at Janss Marketplace will be opening its doors on Monday, December 14, 2020. However, there were no signs at the store confirming that specific date, nor would ALDI U.S. confirm the date that has been displayed on their website for the last week.
What I can tell you is that store certainly looks ready to open on the 14th! The shopping carts are in place in front of the store and the shelves appear fully stocked.
So….if you’d like to be one of the first ones into the store, 9am tomorrow (Monday) morning may be it. Or maybe not. But the actual date is quite soon.
Several folks have asked what ALDI is. ALDI is retail grocery chain, with over 2,000 stores in 37 states. The German chain anticipates becoming the third-largest grocery retailer by store count in the U.S. by the end of 2022.
December 2024 Update: No updates since January. We are now at 4 years since the original announcement. Patience is a virtue :)
January 2024 Update: The signs are long gone since this original post in December 2020 but the Mayor of Calabasas indicated in January 2024 that building permits have been pulled for this anticipated new eatery. www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=769359395225750&set=a.547916184036740
The yellow signs are up at 4895 Las Virgenes Road in Calabasas. Salsa & Beer Mexican Grill Family Restaurant from Jerez Zacatecas is coming soon to the former Coco’s location visible from the 101 south.
With locations in North Hollywood and Van Nuys/Lake Balboa, Salsa & Beer offers authentic Mexican food from the town of Jerez, located in the Mexican state of Zacatecas.
The municipality of Jerez was founded in 1569 and its official name is Jerez de Garcia Salinas in honor of local politician Francisco Garcia Salinas in 1952. The original founders of Jerez came from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain.
Back to the restaurant itself…the menu includes traditional Mexican combination plates, fajitas, sizzling spicy Molcajete dishes, Spicy Zacatecas Carnitas, Tampiquena Chicken, Carne Asada Encebollada Charbroiled Steak, their “famous” tortas and much more.
Don’t know the timing as of yet, but the signs are certainly up.
More info at www.salsaandbeernorthhollywood.com.
Lucky’s Steakhouse opened earlier this week at Malibu Country Mart, 3835 Cross Creek Road in Malibu, in the former home of Mr. Chow, offering up steaks, chops, seafood and cocktails. Learn more at www.luckysmalibu.com.
We’ve heard from several Simi Valley folks that the Islands Simi Valley has closed its doors. The signs are down, the location is no longer listed on the Islands website (Agoura Hills and Newbury Park are still there) and the phone is no longer in service. Sorry to hear the news.
Islands was established in West Los Angeles in 1982. In 2001, there were 31 Islands locations, including 27 in California and 4 in Arizona. Today there are around 45 California locations and 2 in Arizona. www.islandsrestaurants.com
State’s Stay Home Order Triggered in Southern California Region, Effective December 6, Midnight
The State of California’s Stay Home Order will go into effect on Sunday, December 6 at midnight in Ventura County and in all Counties in Southern California, after the Southern California Region's hospital ICU capacity dropped below 15%. The order closes many businesses and activities and urges people to stay at home whenever possible.
The California Department of Public Health reported on Friday evening that Southern California's ICU capacity dropped to 13.1%, triggering the Stay Home Order.
The order requires bars, wineries, nail salons, hair salons and barbershops, and other personal care services to close. Private gatherings of any size are prohibited. Restaurants can stay open for takeout and delivery, but they have to shut down both indoor and outdoor dining.
The Southern California Region Ventura County was placed in has, by itself, more than half the State’s total population. The region includes 11 counties. The County is urging the Governor to consider smaller, more targeted regions. The County, along with 58 Counties throughout the State, are also urging the Governor to consider additional, immediate assistance for impacted workers, families and businesses. The County of Ventura will continue to advocate and engage with the State on behalf of our County on a regular basis.
Schools opened while Ventura County was in the purple tier can stay open. K-6 schools that were given a waiver to reopen will be allowed to stay open. Retail stores will be allowed to stay open at 20% capacity.
Additionally, all non-essential travel is temporarily restricted statewide. Hotels and motels are now restricted to guests traveling for an essential reason.
Ventura County and all Counties in the Southern California Region are required by the State to stay under the lockdown for at least three weeks. After that, state health officials will evaluate ICU capacity and transmission rates to project at least four weeks into the future to determine if the stay home order can be lifted.
All Ventura County residents are further urged to help slow the spread by wearing a mask, social distancing and not gathering during this critical time. “Given the significant increase we have been experiencing in our county with COVID-19 with cases, test positivity, and hospitalizations, this order is the only remaining measure to flatten the curve as soon as possible,” said Rigoberto Vargas, Ventura County Public Health Director.
“Since it will take several weeks for these additional restrictions to slow in particular the very concerning rising hospitalizations, collectively and as the strong community that Ventura County is known for, I urge every resident and sector to support the measure in this order so that we can once and for all, given also the upcoming COVID-19 vaccine, get this virus under control. We will then be able to return to the path toward fully opening our business, schools and other sectors,” added Vargas.
The following activities and sectors must close by midnight on Sunday, December 6:
Indoor and outdoor playgrounds
Indoor recreational facilities
Hair salons and barbershops
Personal care services
Museums, zoos, and aquariums
Movie theaters
Wineries
Bars, breweries and distilleries
Family entertainment centers
Cardrooms and satellite wagering
Limited services
Live audience sports
Amusement parks
Other sectors that will be allowed to stay open when operating remotely is not possible include:
Critical Infrastructure
Schools that are already open for in-person learning
Non-urgent medical and dental care
Childcare and pre-K
The following sectors will have additional modifications in addition to 100% masking and physical distancing:
Outdoor recreational facilities: Allow outdoor operation only without any food, drink or alcohol sales. Additionally, overnight stays at campgrounds will not be permitted.
Retail: Allow indoor operation at 20% capacity with entrance metering and no eating or drinking in the stores. Additionally, special hours should be instituted for seniors and others with chronic conditions or compromised immune systems.
Shopping centers: Allow indoor operation at 20% capacity with entrance metering and no eating or drinking in the stores. Additionally, special hours should be instituted for seniors and others with chronic conditions or compromised immune systems.
Hotels and lodging: Allow to open for critical infrastructure support only.
Restaurants: Allow only for take-out, pick-up, or delivery. No indoor or outdoor dining.
Offices: Allow remote only except for critical infrastructure sectors where remote working is not possible.
Places of worship and political expression: Allow outdoor services only.
Entertainment production including professional sports: Allow operation without live audiences. Additionally, testing protocol and “bubbles” are highly encouraged.
More information about the Stay Home Order can be found at: covid19.ca.gov/stay-home-except-for-essential-needs. Local information at www.venturacountyrecovers.org.
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