Going out for Art Murmur this month? There ARE other options to Oakland’s Uptown if you are interested in having a blast this next First Friday. With other regions of Oakland hosting similar events, Art Murmur has spread beyond the typical Uptown area, with activities in West Oakland, Lake Merritt, Temescal, and even the Fruitvale. Here’s some events—and spots—to check out.

Rows of lusciously iced, strawberry-topped cupcakes sit behind the display case at soon-to-open Wastoid Bakery in Oakland’s Temescal District, so perfect they seem to glow.

It's Friday, March 23, at 6 p.m., and I am sitting at the bar at the new Awaken Cafe at 15th and Broadway. This new space - cafe, restaurant, bar and work space rolled into one - is high-ceilinged and amazing, but what's really hitting me is the perfect alignment of the values of being local.

Yeah, we all love food, but at Oakland Local, a lot of what we focus on in our food section are questions and news about food policy, food equity, food access.  This means we write about--okay, are sometimes obsessed with--what's happening wit local efforts to bring fresh, affordable food into a community, community gardens, local markets and