Summer is upon us, and there's no shortage of outdoor venues to enjoy the warm weather -- especially with the surging influx of beer gardens cropping up in the East Bay. Uptown's Lost and Found is the latest addition to the Oakland scene (and check out my recent beer and sausage round up for more options.)
From the owners of the music and art lounge The Layover, husband-and-wife team Christi Vaughn and Tim Martinez debuted the renovated 9,000 sq. foot building and patio (that once housed a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration application support center) in mid-April. The airy indoor space has several communal tables and two adjacent bars for patrons, while the sprawling outdoor patio is a literal beer garden that's decorated with flowers and plants maintained by graduates from a gardening program at San Quentin. There's numerous cafe and picnic tables as well as cozy nooks that are perfect for kicking back and relaxing in the casual setting. And for customers in a more playful mood, there's also a ping pong table and bean bag toss for folks to enjoy.