Former NBA star Kevin Johnson to open a soul food kitchen in Oakland
Fixins Oakland will serve chicken and waffles, deep-fried deviled eggs and “Adult Kool-Aid.”
Kevin Johnson, former NBA player and Sacramento mayor, intends to expand his soul food empire to Oakland.
The full-service restaurant, Fixins Oakland, is set to open next spring near Lake Merritt. Other Fixins Soul Kitchen locations include Sacramento, Los Angeles, and Tulsa, with a Denver location on the way. Johnson will formally announce the new location on September 6 at a private event in Oakland attended by Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao and Fredrika Newton, the widow of the Black Panther Party’s Huey P. Newton.
“Fixins Oakland will be located in the Lake Merritt neighborhood, which has become a symbol of Black resilience combating the erasure of historically Black spaces in the years since the Black Panther Party was founded in Oakland in the late 1960s,” according to Johnson’s team via email. “Oakland’s rich musical history will be reflected in the restaurant’s interior wall art, paying homage to the city’s impact on jazz, blues, funk, and hip-hop.”
The 7,000-square-foot restaurant, which will open in March 2024 at 306 24th St., will have indoor and outdoor seating for up to 215 people.Here are some preliminary renderings:
