We’ve been to a lot of tiki bars. Trust us. Hawaii? Check. SoCal? Check. Florida? Check. Las Vegas? Check. Even Portland, Oregon? Check. But nothing compares with this side-street dive in the middle of Alameda, an island just across the water from Oakland.  With a flower in her hair and always dressed in a flowing muumuu, the proprietor delivers flaming bowls...

With its gorgeous vintage neon sign, the Fox casts a spell on Uptown Oakland, especially on rainy nights. Originally opened as a 1920s movie palace, complete with a Wurlitzer organ, the theater is an Art Deco vision of an Indian palace with terra-cotta tiles and golden statues. These days, it’s one of the coolest concert venues in the Bay Area. The line-up...

The Oracle Arena is the home of the championship Golden State Warriors, Oakland’s NBA basketball team, while the underdog Oakland A’s, the city’s MLB baseball team, and the down-and-dirty Oakland Raiders NFL football team play next door at the Oakland Alameda Coliseum. Located in East Oakland, these twin venues are also where superstar touring acts from Adele to Carrie Underwood to Prince perform...

With a blinking neon sign, this National Historic Landmark has lit up Oakland’s Broadway since 1931, when it first opened as a grand movie palace. Glitteringly restored in the early 1970s, the Paramount Theatre impresses right away with its high-ceilinged lobby and idiosyncratic interior design that is neither entirely art deco nor moderne. Look up at the intricate ceiling panels and at...

A cabaret-style nightclub in the traditional jazz style, Yoshi’s is a landmark venue near Jack London Square. Founded in the 1970s in North Berkeley, today Yoshi’s books big-name jazz acts and break-out vocalists and jazz combos for intimate stage shows. Even from the cheapest, most crowded high-top tables at the back of the club, you’ll still be able to get...