Shake Shack’s Nationally Famous Smashburgers and Cheese Fries Arrive in Wine Country

Shake Shack is bringing its smashed patties to wine country on Thursday, February 29.

National burger chain Shake Shack will open its first outpost in California’s wine country this month The San Francisco Chronicle reports the fourteenth Northern California Shake Shack restaurant will open in the Montgomery Village outdoor shopping center in Santa Rosa on Thursday, February 29. The restaurant will host several opening events throughout the weekend including a mural debut from local artist David Winters and a food drive hosted by the Redwood Empire Food Bank. And, yes, the Bay’s regional sandwich the Golden State Double — made with two grass-fed beef patties with cheddar and smoked garlic aioli — will be on the menu.

The burger chain came to the Bay Area for the first time in 2018, opening a location in Palo Alto, and expanded to San Francisco in January 2020, setting up shop in Cow Hollow. By spring 2022, there were seven Bay Area outposts, including at San Francisco’s Stonestown Galleria, and the Chronicle reports the company plans to open 80 restaurants throughout the country in 2024. The North Bay opening comes after a 2023 lawsuit wherein the company paid an Oakland worker $20,000 after co-workers harassed and misgendered the employee numerous times and management failed to ameliorate the situation.

Beloved Berkeley Chinese restaurant shutters

East Bay Chinese restaurant King Dong closed on Shattuck Avenue after more than three decades of serving crab cheese wontons and pork fried rice. East Bay Nosh reports the restaurant closed on Sunday, February 11 without a word, though its website hosts a short farewell message: “We are closing our business. Thank you so much to our longtime customers.”

New sushi restaurant debuts on Valencia Street

Echigo Home Cook just opened in the former Borderlands Cafe space on Valencia Street, one of the Mission’s busiest economic corridors. Serving bento boxes, pork katsu sandos, and sushi rolls, Mission Local reports the prime location — next to Beehive and across the street from Gola — quietly opened in mid-February.

Classic Mexican restaurant closes temporarily

Pedro’s Los Gatos, one of the Peninsula’s go-to destinations for tortas and margaritas, temporarily closed for a few months on Sunday, February 18. In an email, representatives for the restaurant say it’s the first time the 52-year-old Pedro’s location has seen such major renovations, as this summer guests can expect a brand new menu and redesigned space. The Santa Clara outpost will remain open.