FOB Kitchen opens in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood

Janice Dulce’s wife, Brandi, had to convince her they needed to set a grand opening date for FOB Kitchen, the duo’s new restaurant in Oakland’s Temescal neighborhood.

The recent friends and family nights had gone off without a hitch. A brunch menu was in place. The cocktails were ready to go. It was time to make a decision for when everyone could start showing up, Brandi said.

“I was nervous,” Janice said Wednesday night while sitting outside of the restaurant. “A grand opening date was like, making it a real thing. Like, we’re really doing this. We’re opening a restaurant, something we’ve never done before.”

After talking it over, last week they decided to have a grand opening event on Nov. 16. Then, after mulling it over so more, they quietly opened their doors this week for official service, more than a week ahead of when they initially planned.

FOB Kitchen has been a popular Bay Area pop-up for years, its longest residency being at Gashead Tavern in the Mission. The menu at the FOB Kitchen brick-and-mortar includes the pork lumpia and pork adobo from the pop-up, but now the dishes are served in a larger format, more meant for family-style sharing. Cali Gold, a 2017 Chronicle Bar Star, created the restaurant’s cocktail menu, which includes a “Juhu Beach Club” option made with Indian rum, chai, lemon, ginger and cardamom.

See the full dinner menu here.

See the cocktail menu here.

FOB Kitchen is located in the former home of Juhu Beach Club, the Indian spot from chef Preeti Mistry and wife Ann Nadeau that closed last year. Replacing the quirky pinks and red-hued colors of Juhu are a series of teals, blues and whites in FOB Kitchen.

At around 6 p.m. Wednesday, the restaurant was relatively quiet, save for a few customers scattered about the tables. Every few minutes, a car would loop into the parking lot and slide into a spot in front of the restaurant. An individual or a small group of folks would meander up to the entrance, peeking inside, before asking if the location was open.

“We’re open,” Brandi told a young couple, before smiling, placing her index finder in front of her lips and adding “shhh.”

FOB Kitchen: 5179 Telegraph Ave; Oakland; Dinner on Wednesday and Thursday 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. and Friday 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Weekend brunch from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday dinner service from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. will be added later.

Justin Phillips is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: jphillips@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JustMrPhillips