Located just north of Downtown Berkeley and the U.C. Berkeley campus, this in-demand neighborhood offers a diverse mix of single-family homes, duplexes, and multi-unit complexes. The farther uphill you head, the more you will find charming Arts and Crafts styles – the kind that put famed architect Bernard Maybeck on the map.

And all these North Berkeley homes are mere minutes from remarkable restaurants, coffee houses, boutiques, galleries, sidewalk dining, and easy transit options such as the North Berkeley BART station. Live Oak Park is a super friendly, easy-to-reach North Berkeley centerpiece with playgrounds, community center, Codornices Creek, tennis courts, and the site of community festivals.

Of course, North Berkeley is best known for its Gourmet Ghetto, the destination for food-obsessed gourmands who want mouthwatering experiences at innovative restaurants like Alice Waters' Chez Panisse (pioneer of California cuisine), the Cheeseboard Cooperative, and Epicurious Garden.

The Gourmet Ghetto is located along Shattuck Avenue, bordered by Rose Street on the north and Hearst on the south.

The area’s history is fascinating: It earned its name in the late 1960s and early ‘70s because of the heavy concentration of restaurateurs who made the area an epicenter of the fresh-food revolution (farm-to-table vs. convenience foods like Velveeta cheese, instant coffee, and TV dinners).

These “you are what you eat” trailblazers include the original Peet’s Coffee & Tea at 2124 Vine St, Alice Waters of Chez Panisse at 1517 Shattuck Ave., the Cheeseboard Collective bakery, cheese, and pizza shop at 1512 and 1504 Shattuck Ave., and Poulet Deli at 1685 Shattuck Ave.

Check out what else we love about this delicious, diverse, family friendly, and walkable district:

More Name-Dropping for Foodies  

Make sure these restaurants are on your bucket list: César European café and tapas bar, Gregoire (crispy potato puffs…yum), Vintage Berkeley Wine,  Cha Ya vegetarian, Masse’s Pastries, LoCoco’s Sicilian, and Saul’s Delicatessen. Or sample a little bit of everything at Epicurious Garden, a one-stop take-out shop.

Now You’re Cookin’ 

Learn from the experts at Kitchen on Fire culinary school located within Epicurious Garden. Workshops cover everything from basic knife skills to French cooking, with couples classes (date night!), teen camps, and private cooking parties. Check their website for a full schedule.

Walk, Talk & Taste

Edible Excursions provides tours through the Gourmet Ghetto’s iconic destinations.

North Berkeley All-Organic Farmers Market 

Foodies flood Shattuck Avenue on Thursday afternoons (2-7 p.m.) for the year-round Farmers Market. Keep an eye out for special events like Thirsty Third Thursdays, a beer and wine garden in the spring and summer.

Special Events

Do you like chocolate? Do you like alliteration? Then you’ll love the Chocolate & Chalk Art Festival every August! Other annual events include a Wine Walk, Sunday Streets Berkeley, and the “Snow Day” festival during the winter holiday season. Find deets about all these events at gourmetghetto.org.

Groceries, Galleries, Boutiques & Books

Shop to your heart's content in North Berkeley's Gourmet Ghetto area! Buy locally sourced meats at The Local Butcher Shop. Decorate your home and find artisan gifts at A Priori. Fill out your wardrobe with chic pieces from Foxglove. Twig & Fig is a hip letterpress studio. Books, Inc. is an independent bookseller that hosts author events. A.C.C.I. Gallery  is a community of artisans located in a sun-filled brick gallery and urban garden.

The Reliez Valley neighborhood in northeastern Lafayette has a sweeping, rural character. Yet no amenity is too far away.

Many of the homes here, nestled in the hills or along the valley floor, are still walking distance from highly acclaimed public schools. And Downtown Lafayette is just a short drive or bike ride away.

Reliez Valley’s residential community includes a mix of traditional neighborhoods and suburban courts, sought-after gated developments such as Baywood (built against the Briones Regional Park open space), and large estates with room for horses to roam and vineyards to grow.

Reliez Valley is a reminder of Lafayette's history as a fertile farming community that started in the 1850s with grain, orchards, and livestock.

Of course, Reliez Valley is just one of several coveted areas.

If you are eyeing homes for sale in Lafayette, CA, check out these other neighborhoods:

Downtown Lafayette

The obvious draw to Downtown Lafayette is its proximity to chic boutiques, bistros, services, farmers market, and events like the Art & Wine Festival.

It’s a thriving commercial district with small-town charm. Attractions and conveniences include the Lafayette BART station, library, bike trails, playgrounds, creeks, excellent grocery options such as Whole Foods and Diablo Foods, and the nearby Lafayette Reservoir with 550-acres of oak woodland.

The Downtown residential neighborhood features diverse housing options, from condos and apartments to large custom homes. Many of the homes built in the 1940s-1960s on the market today have been gorgeously remodeled with high-end upgrades.

And we have to mention the schools again. Lafayette Elementary serves the downtown neighborhood and scored a 9 out of 10 by GreatSchools.org.

Trailside

Next door to Downtown Lafayette is the Trailside neighborhood.

As its name promises, Trailside runs parallel to the bucolic Lafayette-Moraga Trail.

In Trailside, you still live close to everything that Downtown offers, and also have easy access to walk, bike, or ride horses along a 7.65-mile trail with a rich history. It was once used by mule trains to carry redwood from Oakland to Sacramento until steam trains took over.

Today, the trail connects to several schools, including St. Mary's College, local parks, and downtown Moraga. You typically find ranch-style homes in quiet cul-de-sacs along the trail.

Burton Valley

Burton Valley in southeastern Lafayette is the peaceful Mayberry of Lafayette – a neighborhood full of kids on bikes, grassy parks, creek walks, a top-rated elementary school and swim clubs.

Tucked in the "back" of Lafayette away from the bustle of the freeway and downtown, it is a quiet and coveted neighborhood once filled with pear and walnut orchards.

Now Burton Valley is known for large ranch and traditional homes built between 1937 and 2016, with lawns and oaks in front and swimming pools in back.

We have a lot more to say about Burton Valley, so read on here.

Happy Valley

Happy Valley lives up to its name!

This neighborhood is home to some of Lafayette’s most enviable custom estates – houses with 4,000+ square feet on hilltops with views, private grounds behind gated entries, swimming pools, guest cottages, game rooms, and dream kitchens.

Although this area in western Lafayette might seem a world away, it is near everything you want. Happy Valley is only about a mile from Downtown, BART, the freeway, and trail systems.

It is a quiet and coveted neighborhood once filled with pear and walnut orchards prior to the 1920s. Now Burton Valley is known for sprawling ranch and traditional homes built between 1937 and 2016, with lawns and oaks in front and swimming pools in back. The median listing price on a house for sale has held steady at $1.3 million for the last few years.

Ranch-style homes and friendly neighbors

Naturally, many houses have been updated and converted with Craftsman-style accents.

Burton Valley is an especially welcoming suburb -- a mostly flat area where neighbors are out walking dogs, pushing strollers and pedaling to school on bikes. Epic Halloween nights bring the community together, especially along the favorite trick-or-treating loop near Burton Valley Elementary School.

Top schools, parks and trails

Burton Valley has it all, but the biggest draw might be the K-5 school, which earned a perfect score of 10 from Greatschools.org. Even on non-school days, you’ll find families and Little Leaguers enjoying Burton Valley Elementary’s generous fields.

The area’s Mediterranean climate makes it ideal for outdoor living, recreation, barbeques and gardening (happy tomatoes and lavender!). Parks, trails and sports facilities are just minutes away. Las Trampas and Grizzly creeks wind through Burton Valley.

Mariah says locals love their “secret” Silverado Park, shaded by towering oak trees. Walk through the little park for an easy shortcut to Lafayette Community Center and the Community Park.

Lafayette Community Park is 68 acres of sports fields, playgrounds, nature trails and a pétanque court  (French bocce). Walk, bike or ride horses along the nearby Lafayette-Moraga Regional Trail, a 7.65-mile park that parallels St. Mary’s Road through Lafayette and Moraga.

(Trail fun fact: Mule trains used to carry redwood from Oakland to Sacramento along this trail before steam trains replaced them. In later years, the parks system took over the abandoned Sacramento Northern Railroad tracks to create one of the first rail-trails in California.)

Got hockey? Yes Burton Valley does! The outdoor Lafayette Rink on St. Mary’s Road is equipped with full sized hockey dasher boards, basketball hoops, hockey goals and a sport court surface.

Got goggles? This neighborhood also is home to two swim clubs: Rancho Colorados Swim & Tennis Club, nestled in scenic oak studded hills, and Las Trampas Pool, located on the Lafayette-Moraga Regional Trail.

Location matters

Burton Valley may be tucked away in Lafayette, but it is not isolated. Mariah notes how easy it is to get to Moraga and Orinda. “You just hop over the hill and you can catch a flick at the awesome Rheem Theatre  in Moraga or cut over to Orinda.”

About Rossmoor Senior Community

Development of the community began in 1963, and today, there are more than 6,700 residential units in three co-op, 12 condominium, congregate and single-family home developments. Rossmoor offers a variety of home styles, from garden-style duplexes and four-plexes, eight-and-12-plexes, mid-to-high-rises, and 63 single-family homes. Homes vary in price from around $125,000 for some co-ops to over $1 million for the single-family homes and garden-style condominiums. At least one resident must be 55 years of age or older to live in a home in Rossmoor. The average age is 73.

Security 

Rossmoor has its own 24-hour security/public safety service. The entry plaza is staffed around-the-clock with security officers who screen visitors. The officers also make frequent patrols throughout the community. Residents are given radio frequency ID tags for their cars for expedient passage through a gated entry. Police protection is provided by the City of Walnut Creek and the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department. A fire department is just outside the gate.

Residents of Rossmoor need to be able to live independently. Skilled-nursing facilities are located just outside the gate, apart from Rossmoor. Rossmoor has congregate condo housing in a 300-unit facility called the Waterford. The Waterford offers fine dining, housekeeping services and recreational activities on-site.

Two large hospitals are nearby: John Muir Medical Center, which is about six miles away, and Kaiser Permanente, about two miles away near downtown Walnut Creek. There are also several medical facilities just outside the Rossmoor gate.

The John Muir Outpatient Center is a nearby medical facility open to all Rossmoor residents. The center has a full-time staff of physicians offering internal medicine, as well as part-time physicians offering specialized medicine, and nurses and dentists. The center offers x-rays, rehabilitation services and a laboratory. Several other medical facilities are also just outside the Rossmoor gate.

Bus Service

Rossmoor buses operate seven days a week, taking residents to destinations throughout Rossmoor and to nearby stores, churches, community centers and the Medical Center and downtown Walnut Creek. A paratransit bus service with a wheelchair lift serves residents who can’t board the regular buses. Rossmoor is close to county bus lines and Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), which makes it easy to commute to San Francisco, Oakland and Berkeley for work or pleasure.

Activities 

Rossmoor has several large clubhouses and a variety of meeting rooms. Rossmoor residents have a variety of choices when it comes to activities. There are 18-hole and nine-hole golf courses (fees are charged for golf), a driving range, a full-service pro shop, three swimming facilities, including a covered pool facility with a spa, a fitness center and exercise rooms, picnic areas, lawn bowling greens, tennis courts, table tennis facilities, bocce ball courts and hiking trails. There are studios for art, ceramics woodworking, lapidary and jewelry and sewing. There is a billiard room, a social center, a bridge facility, full-service library, large and small meeting/social rooms, a computer information center and a 150-seat theater. In addition, Rossmoor has a full-service restaurant with a bar, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner six days a week.

More than 200 clubs and organizations are also available to residents. Clubs range from service organizations to more social-oriented groups, dinner/dance groups, drama and film clubs, musical groups, political organizations, alumni clubs and wine and food groups. There are also several bridge and hobby groups.

Property maintenance 

Work on the exterior of buildings, such as roof replacement and painting, as well as landscape maintenance on most of the homes is provided by the Homeowners Associations through an on-site property manager. Any exterior modifications require approval, and a permit is required to plant any special flowers, trees and other plants in the common areas.

Monthly assessments for property maintenance, operation of community facilities and certain recreational and community services range from around $570 to $948 per month, depending upon the type of housing owned. There is a membership transfer fee, which is currently $7,000, for residents new to the Rossmoor community.

Limited recreational vehicle storage is available within Rossmoor on a first-come, first-serve basis for a nominal annual fee. There are no extra storage facilities on site.

Rossmoor publishes its own weekly newspaper and has a community access television station, both of which provide news, information and features on Rossmoor.

Shopping

The Tice Valley Shopping Center is just outside the Rossmoor gates, offering grocery and gift stores, banks, offices and assorted services. Additional shopping is just moments away, via nearby BART, as well as in downtown Walnut Creek.

Questions Commonly Asked About Rossmoor

What is Rossmoor?

Rossmoor is a planned community for active adults age 55 and over with a spouse 55 or over, whether still employed, planning retirement, or now enjoying active retirement years. Rossmoor includes a broad range of activities and facilities, together with attractive and comfortable residences.

Where is Rossmoor?

Rossmoor is in Walnut Creek, California, 2 miles from downtown, 2.5 miles from BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit), and twenty-five miles east of San Francisco and the Pacific Ocean.

What is the Climate?

Rossmoor is within the only Mediterranean climate area in all of North America. In the foothills of the east¬ern side of the Coast Range, summers are sunny, clear and warm with cool evenings. The average maxi¬mum daily temperate is 72 degrees, with summer daytime temperature in the middle 80’s and low humidity. Average annual rainfall is 20 inches.

It has a "far from the city" feel yet is centrally located with easy access to highways 24/13/580.

Oakmore is home to beautiful Dimond Park, which features serene Sausal Creek, a playground, tennis courts, public pool, and ample picnic spots.

After a day of play (or work), pop by Rocky's gourmet market to grab some rosé, cheese, and olives. Or walk to one of the Thai or Italian restaurants on Leimert. Otherwise, Montclair Village and Glenview, with their hip shops and family restaurants, are just minutes away.

If you love the outdoors, Oakmore also is near the vast Oakland redwoods, where you can take your bike out for a spin or the family on a hike.

Oakmore is a gem to come home to!

But, what's in a name? The historic neighborhood was once called Klinknerville, named for the man who built some of the first houses here around 1885.

The Golden Gate District is close to Pixar, Clif Bar, Guitar Center, multiple recording studios, and makers' workshops. You'll also find galleries, ashrams, yoga studios, breweries, street art, performance halls, a cooking school, and a popular yarn store – all committed to bringing the diverse groups living here together.

It is easily freeway/bridge accessible and a breeze to navigate on transit, bike, or foot. Whether you are looking to move or just visiting Oakland's Golden Gate District, you'll see it is close to everything and is undergoing quite an evolution!

Here's a taste:

Grocers:

• Berkeley Bowl
• Sprouts
• Trader Joe's
• Berkeley Farmers Market – Every Tuesday, 2-6:30 p.m. at 63rd and Adeline.

Coffee and Sweets:

• Vegan Donut Farm – Vegan donuts, coffee, brunch, and lunch.  6037 San Pablo Ave. Oakland
• Sweet Adeline Bakeshop  – Pecan cinnamon buns! Apple turnovers! Ricotta cheese galette! And special occasion cakes, too. 3350 Adeline St., Berkeley
• James & the Giant Cupcake  – The shop name says it all. And who wouldn't want to try their Cupquake: graham cracker crusted chocolate cupcakes with marshmallow fluff filling, chocolate buttercream, dipped in graham cracker crumbles, topped with a chocolate dipped toasted marshmallow. 6326 San Pablo Ave., Oakland

Dining:

• Noodle Theory Provisions – Fresh noodles, dumplings, soups, and salads. 5849 San Pablo Ave.,  Oakland
• Chile Jalapeño – A family-owned taqueria with a colorful ambiance and back patio. Their Mexican mixed drinks are a local favorite!  6706 San Pablo Ave., Oakland
• Yuzu Ramen & Broffee – Handmade noodles and savory broths. 1298 65th St. #1, Emeryville
• The Vault – A neighborhood brunch and lunch spot. 3250 Adeline St. Berkeley
• Town House Bar & Grill – This chef-driven restaurant is fine California dining at its best. The building itself has a colorful history that includes life as a former speakeasy. If those walls could talk...  5862 Doyle St. Emeryville

Draft Brews & Pub Eats

• Novel Brewing Company has a literary-themed tasting room in North Oakland at 6510 San Pablo Ave.
• Hoi Polloi Brewpub and Beat Lounge – A casual mini-micro-brewery, which serves a handful of home brews and lots of other labels. Whatever you drink, pair it with Hoi Polloi’s truffle popcorn.  1763 Alcatraz Ave., Berkeley
• Moxy Beer Garden – Local craft beers on tap, "craft burgers,"  and a fab beer garden. 3136 Sacramento St., Berkeley
• Wolfhound – A dog-friendly destination, known for its jukebox and Pub Quiz Tuesdays. 5516 San Pablo Ave., Oakland,

Community Centers & Associations

• Charles Porter Golden Gate Recreation Center – Basketball court, baseball field, picnic sites, and patio.
• Golden Gate Community Association – It's all about growing a tight-knit community (join a "block club") and improving the neighborhood with projects like the Lowell Street Mural.
• Golden Gate Branch Oakland Public Library – This is one of five Carnegie libraries in Oakland and is well known for its Summer Jazz on Sundays series. This branch also houses the African American Museum & Library, a unique resource on the history of African Americans in Northern California.

For Makers, Artists, & Art Lovers

• A Verb for Keeping Warm – Yarn, classes, and knitting circles
• Strings – A cozy setting for appreciating original acoustic music, in the style of a house concert.
• Kala – An art-making hub with a gallery that supports artists with an artist-in-residence program and youth education.
• The Compound Gallery and Studios – Voted Best Art Hang Out 2012 and Best Art Complex 2015.

SaveSave

This affluent neighborhood shares a border with Piedmont and sits between Oakland's Grand Lake, Trestle Glen, and Glenview neighborhoods. The area spans from Lakeshore Avenue to Mandana Boulevard. It’s easily accessible from 580 (the Lakeshore exit).

Gentle hills and walkable, shaded streets are a wonderful backdrop for the elegant Tudor, Spanish, Arts and Crafts, Beaux Arts, Art Deco, and Traditional style homes here. You’ll find authentic street lamps from the 1920s, some white picket fences, and inspired English-style gardens. The area has a rich history and was named for railroad baron Charles Crocker.

Many residents belong to the Lakeshore Homeowners Association, the second oldest homeowners association west of the Mississippi. It was founded in 1917 to protect the neighborhood’s sycamore trees, for which we are so thankful! Check out their website lakeshorehomes.net for great old-timey photos and modern aerial shots.

Out on the playground at nearby Mandana Plaza Park, you’ll meet many families who moved to the area from S.F. ,in part for Crocker Highlands Elementary, one of the top Oakland Unified schools. (Go Cougars!)

What we especially love about Crocker Highlands: It’s so close to Oakland’s dining and shopping epicenter at Grand and Lakeshore avenues. You’ll know you’ve arrived when you see the giant marquee for the historic Grand Lake Theater, where pre-movie entertainment includes a Wurlitzer concert.

Delicious dining includes the acclaimed Camino, Mijori Sushi, Boot and Shoe Service (where the food tastes nothing like leather).

The neighborhood also has easy access to Lake Merritt, a great spot for a 3-mile walk or run and home to the whimsical Children’s Fairyland (one of Walt Disney’s early inspirations for his own amusement park).

The Grand Lake Farmer’s Market on Lakeshore on Saturdays is one of the Bay Area’s best, where you can find fresh-from-the-fields fruit, veggies and eggs and craft ferments, coffee and local art. Grab lunch from one of the many food trucks, like red snapper in a banana leaf from Andy and Cindy’s Thai Cuisine or a lamb gyro from the reliable Gyro stand.

Crocker Highlands is a place flush with charm and convenience, and a place that fills its residents with pride and devotion, leaving the rest of us just a little bit envious.

The community presence in South Berkeley can be felt while visiting the Shotgun Players theatre company, or Funky Riddims Records store. When the mood strikes to finally attempt Pinterest inspired DIY projects, Berkeley residents can borrow tools from the Berkeley Tool Lending Library at the Tarea Hall Pittman South Branch Library, named after the local civil right’s activist. 

Residents have easy access to the rest of the Bay Area by hopping on one of the many bus lines available through AC Transit or by the Bay’s favorite way to get around, BART. The Ashby station is walking distance for South Berkeley residents. On weekends, local vendors transform the Ashby BART Station parking lot into the Berkeley Flea Market, a local favorite walk & shop for items like incense, jewelry, and of course food.

For more food and drinks, top South Berkeley restaurants and bars include Kirala Japanese, The Fat Fish, or the restaurant/pub/nightclub all mixed into one: The Starry Plough. 

Restaurants in Temescal include Cholita Linda, Pizziaolo, Burma Superstar, Bakesale Betty, Sacred Wheel, Bowl'd, Homeroom, and Dona Tomas. If you're struggling to choose a restaurant, make sure you attend the fall event Taste of Temescal, where you can sample from each of these popular restaurants and more!

Grab a post dinner drink at one of the original Oakland businesses like Kingfish Pub & Cafe (not actually a cafe, but hey - there's free popcorn!). Kingfish opened as a bait shop in 1922 and transformed over the years to the Temescal dive bar we know and love today. Beers are also served at the nearby Temescal Brewing, a new beer garden with a hip vibe that features the occasional food truck.

Buried underneath the bustling neighborhood lies parts of Temescal Creek. It was covered in the 60s and 70s to make room for the urban development we see today. The creek received its name from the native tribes that used to inhabit the area. They built small sweat houses, called Temescals, along the creek. The tribes would socialize in these heated houses and when the temperature became unbearable they would jump into the water to cool off. These days we can hang with the Friends of Temescal Creek to discuss the natural resources this area once provided, to help maintain the neighborhoods parks, and to feel that sense of community this area is known for.

This hamlet at the foot of the Oakland Hills, which started out as a sleepy burb, was named for its beautiful rock outcroppings and old quarry. Now it’s a vibrant community anchored by the Rockridge BART station and College Avenue (the main commercial street).

The microclimate here offers lots of sun and warmth. The leafy residential areas feature lovingly restored Craftsman bungalows and cottages built between the 1910s and 1930s. The colorful gardens, particularly on Lawton and Manila, can be abloom with roses, lavender and wisteria. The community-built Rockridge-Temescal Greenbelt Park (a.k.a. Frog Park) is loved for its butterfly garden, dog park, play structures and path along Temescal Creek.

Many families call Rockridge home, and there are wonderful childcare and preschool options as well as top-rated elementary schools.

College Avenue is both funky and chic. It’s hard not to get sucked into the two indie bookstores (Pegasus and Diesel), Maison D’Etre for home goods, Pretty Penny for vintage treasures or Bella Vita for fashion.

Get caffeinated at Highwire Coffee Roasters, where the coffee is roasted locally in small batches. Highwire is one of eight shops that make Market Hall, a European-style marketplace with delectable groceries, flowers, and treats. Grab a gourmet burrito at Cactus Taqueria, a bowl at Ramen Shop or a Chicago-style stuffed slice at Zachary’s Pizza. Or just relax at À Côté bistro.

For your sweet tooth, a string of ice-cream makers vie for your attention, including Tara’s and Smitten, which makes high-tech, organic ice cream using liquid nitrogen.

It’s no surprise that Rockridge has been named one of the East Bay’s most walkable, transit-friendly and livable neighborhoods, with the Rockridge BART station at its core. It takes about 20 minutes get from Rockridge BART to San Francisco’s financial district.

Even if you aren’t commuting, visit the BART station to see the mural made of 2,000 hand-painted tiles, many by children, depicting the Oakland Hills firestorm of 1991. The project honors those who fought and those who were lost, and is a beautiful example of the Rockridge community vibe.

- Linnette Edwards

Saranap has just a little over 5,200 residents and is filled with a diverse and eclectic group of homes,  from the '50s rancher with wood beam ceilings to the two-story modern charmer. There is even a home with its very own grape vineyard!

So what’s all the buzz about this tiny little residential area of Walnut Creek?

Saranap comes as a surprise to many. This diverse little 'hood, within walking distance to trails and downtown Walnut Creek, is a happy blend of longtime residents who remember the days of walnut orchards and young families with kids running from house to house.

You'll see your neighbors (a.k.a Saranapans) taking relaxed evening strolls, and you'll probably get invited to spontaneous socials and holiday block parties. Today, you have a few fun spots in the Saranap neighborhood aside from the 7-11 slurpees such as Florali, Wish, Just Be Yoga , Dewing pool, Morucci’s, Walnut Creek Produce and Pizza Olivia. Many residents are hoping they can one day walk to the proposed Saranap Village by Hall Equities Group.

Saranap was named after Sarah Naphtaly, who owned the majority of the land in the area during the early 1900’s. At that time, Saranap was a destination for those coming from San Francisco by train to escape the fog and go to the Walnut Festivals and summer homes. Today, Saranap is home to those wanting more land, warmer weather and laid back eclectic charm, all while having easy access to Lafayette, downtown Walnut Creek and Highways 24 and 680.

Oh yeah, schools are great too! Unlike the rest of Walnut Creek, part of Saranap goes to Lafayette Schools and the other half falls within the Acalanes School District. Don’t miss the private, yet affordable The Meher Schools.

Over the last couple of years, the little neighborhood of Saranap has been getting a lot of attention with the expansion of the Sufism Reoriented sanctuary, the proposed Saranap Village and annexing the Walnut Creek portion of Saranap into Lafayette. In our opinion, this adds to the Saranap charm showing a genuine interest in improving Saranap, creating walkability, yet striving to keep its original rural integrity that us Saranapans love.

- Linnette Edwards and Beth Anne Gardner

It is quite a lively neighborhood with many feet and wheels (two and/or four) passing through, from the runners taking their 3.5 mile loop around Lake Merritt to the coffee seekers visiting Peet’s on Lakeshore, to diners seeking to satisfy their inner gourmand at spots like Penrose, Boot and Shoe, Camino, and Shakewell. Don't forget the Grand Lake Theater, a magnificent historic movie theater open since 1929, featuring the famed "Mighty Wurlitzer" Organ, which is played before Friday and Saturday night shows.

Retail stores have also joined the ranks with the majority of them flying their independent local colors (Walden Pond Books, Urban Indigo, Ordinaire Wine Shop, Michael Mischer Chocolates, Apothecary, that Shoe Shop, etc.). Fairyland is every young child's delight (and Walt Disney's inspiration) for pint-sized fun from puppet shows, to carousels, and merry-go-round.

At the northern tip of beautiful Lake Merritt lies the Splash Pad Park (at Grand Ave and Lake Park Avenue) where you will find one of the finest farmer’s markets in the East Bay. Every Saturday, rain or shine, over 44 local farmers, 30 specialty food suppliers gather and show their best. At this open air market one can find a variety of seasonal fruits and vegetables, meats, cheeses, baked goods and more. Some of the more include flowers, warm breakfast and lunch treats, knife sharpening services to massages.

Be it a sunny day or rainy day, there will always be activity in this vibrant and diverse area of Oakland.

- Cameron and Nicole Platt