Walnut Creek Yacht Club strikes again

I’ve written about how much I like the Walnut Creek Yacht Club before. You’ll remember my blog about last year’s Lobsterfest at the Yacht Club, but I’ve never actually written just about sitting at the bar, eating dinner, and enjoying my meal in a normal setting before. It has great bar seating, with a view looking outside and is one of my favorite bars to just eat dinner either alone or with a friend. The bar is also a great place to hang out to drink and socialize.

I recently went to meet my friend Victoria before going to a movie. Of course, we sat at the bar, I was running late and when I got there, she was socializing with a neighboring patron soaking up all the good WCYC vibes. I ordered Zarzuela de Mariscos – Spanish Seafood Stew with prawns, octopus, mussels, clams & rock cod tomato-shellfish broth, serrano ham, garlic, almonds saffron rice pilaf, grilled Acme levain bread, and lemon aioli for $29.00; the special for the month of May. It was like a tomatoey seafood risotto. Victoria had WCYC Fish‘n’Chips, with California ling cod beer battered in Anchor Steam, with WCYC tartar sauce, regatta fries and WYCY coleslaw for $18.00.

In the past, the service has always been top notch, this time, the bar service was a bit lackluster or aloof, usually they chat you up and are refilling your water and asking what else you might need, but this night was not to their standard tip-top shape. If you are local, you will usually run into someone you know and this evening was no different! Jodi was there socializing with friends and her new baby!

I love the food and the drinks and their special dinners and tasting – it is great to be a member. Of course, if you go often, you get some sort of gift at the end of the year and an envelope not to be opened until a specific date. After you open the envelope, you have to go back in and eat! Check them out!

Let’s talk about Millennials and Real Estate

My sons are Millennials. My Walnut Creek Lifestyle freelance writer is a Millennial. More and more of my clients and colleagues are Millennials, as that generation continues to age into home-buyers.

So, realtors like myself are starting to notice more trends with the market geared toward that age group. It’s a different real estate market for Millennials than it was for their parents – nowadays, they are graduating with huge student loan debts, having trouble finding lucrative work out of college, and then struggling to pay sky-high rents and mortgages once they do get jobs.

That said, Millennials are driving the real estate market right now, which has made the following observations more obvious.

From San Francisco realtor John Solaegui:

There is a low inventory of single-family homes in San Francisco
Millennial buyers don’t care about parking spaces (though this might be more prevalent in San Francisco – it’s contradicted by the graphic above!) with the rise of ridesharing apps – they’d prefer having decks or gardens for outdoor entertaining
Areas like Noe Valley, Glen Park, Bernal Heights and The Sunset in San Francisco are extremely popular with Millennial buyers right now

From the California Association of Realtors’ REALTOR Magazine:

Millennials are cashing in on equity at a historic rate, thanks to rising home prices
One-third of Millennials say they are considering applying for a HELOC (home equity line of credit) in the next 18 months – much more than Gen-X or Baby Boomers
HELOC’s are popular with Millennials because they can consolidate debt and afford home remodels with them

I think this is an interesting trend in our market. Home prices are high, but so are the debts and loans owed by Millennials, so we’re seeing more and more interest in new ways around that issue. And even more interestingly, Millennials are changing the way we market homes – who cares about parking when you don’t have a car, right?

Broadway Plaza summer concert series kicks off tonight!

If you’re looking for a good activity to get out of the house this evening, I have good news for you. The Broadway Plaza summer concert series is back in downtown Walnut Creek!

Tonight, from 6:30-8:30 p.m., marks the first in a series of shows played at Event Plaza. If you like what you hear and see, you can go again on any Thursday in August.

First up tonight is SuperHuey, followed by The Purple Ones on August 10th, and Fleetwood Mask (that’s “Mask,” before you get too excited…) on August 17th. Festivities include the music, vendors, shopping, and more.

It’s a perfect family outing for people of all ages. Bring a blanket or chair and a few dollars for a glass of wine, and enjoy the summer air with your fellow East Bay music lovers!’s

Note: with the new development, the events plaza is in front of Macy’s and I find the area not that welcoming to large crowds. it gets really tight with limited seating, so many people are just standing around. If you are there to shop, you will find yourself in tight quarters and a swarm of people. Personally I miss the old parking lot space.

Check out Arhaus, cool new furniture store

For fans of my recent Anthropologie blog, you’ll be happy to know that there’s another awesome new store in Walnut Creek that can fit your furniture needs. Arhaus is located in Broadway Plaza and has everything you’d ever need when looking to upgrade the interior and yards of your home.

Arhaus started in 1986, but just recently opened their Walnut Creek location. They pride themselves on unique, quality pieces made with natural hardwoods, stone and fabrics.

One of the coolest things Arhaus does is that they use recycled natural resources like copper and tree roots to make some of their more functional pieces, and they have a commitment to never using wood from endangered rainforests.

I was really impressed with the style Arhaus offered and took a few photos (see below) of the store. The wide range of unique furniture caught my eye, and I’ll definitely be coming back when I went to re-furnish any part of my home with new pieces!

Summer Music in Walnut Creek

Who doesn’t love sitting in the grass under a warm summer sun, jamming to some live music? Opportunities to do so are common in the Bay Area, but you don’t need to spend a ton of money or travel to San Francisco for a music festival to do so.

In fact, two events are happening in Walnut Creek this summer that may be the perfect fit for someone looking to take in an easy, cheap outdoor concert.

Summer Sounds Outside is a series of free concerts on the Lesher Center for the Arts plaza. On June 30th from 5:30-7:00 p.m., Box Set Duo Trio – who has played with artists like Dave Matthews Band and Willie Nelson – performs. You can take your pick from jazz to classical to acapella – check out the lineup and additional dates on their website here. In addition to Box Set Duo Trio, Chris Cain, Anderson & Roe and Blue Jupiter A Capella will perform this summer.

If you’re still looking for something fun to do on 4th of July, you can check out a free musical tribute by the Walnut Creek Concert Band (under the direction of Harvey Benstein). Head out to Civic Park before 6 p.m. to catch the show!

Always a fun evening, so don’t forget about the Broadway Plaza Summer Concert Series, which has live performances every Thursday night in August:

August 4th: Petty Theft
August 11th: Foreverland
August 18th: Mustache Harbor
August 25th: Tainted Love

Hope to see you there!

1777 Park Place Rd. Open House

The perks to this beautiful home are endless! Located in the Summer Lake neighborhood of Oakley, this new property (built in 2012) is close to hiking and jogging trails, and just one mile from the Delta. The neighborhood boasts the lake, a pool, tennis courts and playgrounds.

It gets even better when you go inside – enjoy a home office, open-floor plan between the eat-in kitchen and living room, and an upstairs den that is perfect for the kids! One of the master suites is on the first level, and the other is upstairs for total privacy. That was not a typo; there are two master suites in this home! And still, there’s more – in the backyard, you can relax near the pond or have a drink around the outdoor gas fireplace.

Don’t let this one pass you by. Stop in and see the Open House this weekend! We’ll be open from 1-4 p.m both Saturday (3/12) and Sunday (3/13).

You can see a virtual tour of 1777 Park Place Rd. right here.