Wednesday, December 05, 2007

More Retail and Restuarants News




From "Appetizers with Mike Dunne"




From via "TowerDistrict" "Innov8"
and "Ozone"









- Upper Playground out of SF at 25th and J:

World Wide Domination Continues
Mike Giant, San, Doze Green, and Herbert Baglione.

The Upper Playground Sacramento Store Grand Opening Reception will be


wburg said...

Maybe I'm missing something, but this "Upper Playground" shop basically looks like a place to buy "urban thugwear." While I don't inherently have a problem with this, it doesn't seem like something downtown is desperately missing.

LivingInUrbanSac said...

Take a look at the website, seems like they offer more than that. Books, DVDs, galleries, furniture and other things.

The Brazilian steakhouse is calling my name loudly.

wburg said...

Okay, I checked out the "Shop" part and it primarily listed T-shirts and hoodies. That, plus the logo, was kind of a turn-off...looking at the art books and furniture gives a different impression.

Have you stopped by Bows & Arrows on L Street yet? The other side of the same building as Old Sould Coffee, featuring local designers, resale clothes, mid-century furniture, and scooter repair...kind of a one-stop hipster shop, locally owned.

I'm eager to try out Tuli. I like the way the restaurant is laid out (it reminds me of a particularly fancy greasy-spoon diner) and can't wait to see what the fuss is about.

towerdistrict said...

Upper Playground will be very similar to the Toyroom on K Street. Street wear, artworks, and other sort of pop-culture stuff. Consider it the "hip hop" counter part to the "indie" oriented Bows and Arrows.

I don't think UP's website is much of indication as to what's featured in the stores. And while it's probably not my thing either, I'm glad to see store like that pop up in midtown and downtown. Stores like UnitedState, Upper Playground and The Toyroom will only help each other out.

LivingInUrbanSac said...

I haven't been to Bows and Arrows, but I'm not much of an indie shopper, more of an indie eater.

I'm not into resale clothes or mid-century furniture at all, but like towerdistrict said though, I am very glad to see more interesting places like that pop up around for people who do.

Variety! Variety! Variety!

someone else said...

Midtowns got it's act together, Sacramento has so many positive developments moving forward right now.

wburg said...

LIUS: To be honest I'm not that much into resale clothes (I either go to Macy's or thrift stores, both of which cost less than typical resale shop prices) or mid-century furniture (unless it's mid 19th century.) I'm not all that indie either, but I'm all about the local business with loads of character. Part of why I moved downtown in the first place is because there were a lot of stores like that (at the time, places like Now & Again, How Tacky, House of Monkey, Big Mama's Soul Kitchen, etc.)

This "Upper Playground," assuming I'm reading it correctly, seems pretty much like a high-dollar version of shops like Threadz (the recent arrival on the 700 block of K.)

I do like how midtown's business corridors are filling out with various sorts of small trendy shops, even if I'm not particularly trendy. I can see J Street and 21st Street turning into something like Melrose in Los Angeles, with pretty much continuous blocks of boutiques, restaurants and shops, mostly open until like 10 or 11 PM (or later), appealing to a wide variety of tastes. Once there is a critical mass, it becomes a destination in its own right.

Anonymous said...

Anyone know anything about this "upscale furniture store" in 1801 L? I saw the logo for it today-something like Freddrick Barton. Can't find any info on this person, etc. Anyone know the story?

Zen said...

I would not say Upper Playground is a thug apparel shop either. The brand was sold at Icon in the mall for a while and I have bought some of the shirts. I really don't consider myself a thug but prefer the a somewhat hip hop/urban style when I am not in office work attire. I like we are at least seeing some more boutiques moving into Midtown not just resturants. Now if they would just stay open later.

Speaking of Icon... if they are moving out of the mall that is another hit for Downtown Plaza. I ate at Tuli's today. Limited menu, slow service to start but the sliders and soup I had were excellent. The Pizza my friends ate was ok. The place has great potential. Can't wait to take the cooking classes on Sundays.