Amy's Drive Thru to Bring Organic Fast Food to Thousand Oaks in Early 2022 (UPDATE: June 15, 2023)

UPDATE: June 15, 2023 is the grand opening date.

Amy’s Drive Thru is bringing organic fast food to Thousand Oaks in early 2022. This will be the first location for the organic fast food chain in Southern California and part of its larger plan to expand up and down the West Coast throughout the next five years.

The location of Amy’s Drive Thru Thousand Oaks will be 400 N. Moorpark Road - the former home of Mimi’s Cafe.

Amy’s Drive Thru was started by the Berliners, the same family that founded Amy’s Kitchen and pioneered the organic food movement. Continuing their mission to make it easy and enjoyable for everyone to eat well, the Berliners opened Amy’s Drive Thru, a fresh take on classic American fast food, in 2015. Everything on the Amy's Drive Thru is vegetarian and made to order, including its popular and tasty burgers, fries, milkshakes, and salads all made from organic ingredients, served thoughtfully and sustainably. From menu to packaging to restaurant design, the Drive Thru operates as sustainably as possible, striving for zero waste and zero impact at each location. In 2020, Amy’s Drive Thru became one of the first and only B Corp Certified fast food restaurants.

There are currently three Amy's Drive Thru locations in the Bay Area with a fourth opening late 2021 in Roseville. The new Thousand Oaks location is part of the team’s plans to rapidly expand up and down the West Coast within the next five years.

Learn more about Amy’s at amysdrivethru.com.

County of Ventura Poised to Move to Orange Tier on April 7th

County of Ventura poised to move to State’s Orange Tier Next Week - Declining Cases and Hospitalizations are a Hopeful Sign; Progress on Vaccinations Continues Despite Supply Challenges

The State of California announced today that the County of Ventura has met requirements for the State’s Orange Tier for the first week of the two-week required time frame. If the County meets the Orange Tier requirements at the next review on April 6, the County will be able to move to Orange on April 7. As with the shift to the Red Tier, the County will continue to align with the State’s framework for Orange Tier activities.

All activities authorized under the State’s Orange Tier can resume in accordance with State capacity limits and safety protocols, including:

• Amusement parks: smaller parks can open outdoors with 25% max occupancy or 500 people, whichever is fewer; there must be reservations or advanced ticket sales and only local attendees are allowed (from the same county as the park’s location)

• Bars (where no meal is served): open outdoors with modifications

• Cardrooms and satellite wagering: open indoors with 25% max occupancy

• Family entertainment centers: open indoors for naturally distanced activities like bowling alleys and escape rooms; kart racing, mini golf and batting cages are outdoors only with modifications

• Fitness centers and gyms: open indoors with 25% max occupancy; indoor pools open at 25% occupancy

• Hotels and lodging: fitness centers can now open indoors with 25% max occupancy; indoor pools open at 25% occupancy

• Movie theaters: open indoors with 50% max occupancy or 200 people, whichever is fewer

• Museums, zoos, and aquariums: open indoors with 50% max occupancy

• Offices: open indoors with modifications though telework is still encouraged

• Outdoor live events: open at 20% capacity; reservations required with assigned seating only; regional attendees only (120-mile radius of venue).

• Retail (including standalone grocers): open indoors at full capacity with modifications

• Restaurants open indoors with 50% max occupancy or 200 people, whichever is fewer; only members of same household may share a table

• Shopping centers (including swap meets and indoor malls): open indoors at full capacity with modifications; common areas must remain closed and food courts are at reduced capacity

• Wineries, breweries and distilleries: open indoors with 25% max occupancy or 100 people, whichever is fewer; only members of same household may share a table

• Youth sports: competitions between two teams are allowed in certain sports according to the State’s Youth Sports Guidance

The State has also issued new guidance for the following activities:

• Outdoor live audience events including ballparks and stadiums

• Guidance for commencement and graduation ceremonies

After reaching the Orange Tier the County would need to remain in the Orange Tier for 3-consecutive weeks to be able to progress to the less restrictive Yellow Tier.

For more information on what the State allows in the Orange Tier, please visit covid19.ca.gov.

Nick the Greek Souvlaki & Gyro House Now Open at the North Ranch Mall in Westlake Village

UPDATE: Nick the Greek opened its doors in mid-May.

Nick the Greek Souvlaki & Gyro House is opening soon at 3955B E. Thousand Oaks Blvd, Westlake Village, in the North Ranch Mall, in the space formerly occupied by Peet's Coffee (and prior to that, GameStop, and a long time ago, Oak Tree Deli). Some of you may be familiar with Nick the Greek at its location at 440 E. Main Street in Ventura. They offer delicious gyros, pitas, plates and bowls with souvlaki, falafel, beefteki and more, along with hummus, spicy yogurt, tzatziki, etc. You'll also find scrumptious baklava and frozen greek yogurt here too. Specific timing TBA. www.nickthegreeksj.com

Barney's Gourmet Hamburgers Coming in 2022 to The Commons at Calabasas (NOW OPEN)

UPDATE: Now open as of February 2022.

Barney's Gourmet Hamburgers looks to be opening this summer at The Commons at Calabasas, in the space previously occupied by Menchies Frozen Yogurt, near Corner Bakery and Kings Fish House.

Barneys originated in Oakland in 1978 and has locations in Santa Monica and Brentwood. Their menu has a variety of gourmet hamburgers, salads, sandwiches and hot dogs. Looks pretty good.

Burger choices include 1/2 lb or 1 lb burgers, Beyond Meat patties, turkey patties, salmon patties, garden burgers and grilled chicken breast.

Special gourmet burgers include 19 choices…Baja, Bacon Cheese, Guacamole, Gastropub, Santa Fe and more.

Learn more at www.barneyshamburgers.com.

Batchoyan Ilonggo Restaurant (Filipino Cuisine) Opened in Camarillo Last October

Batchoyan Ilonggo Restaurant opened last October (somehow I missed it - I’ll just blame it on the pandemic) at 1775 E. Daily Drive in Camarillo, in the former home of Cafe India.

Batchoyan Ilonggo serves authentic Filipino food, including Batchoy, a hearty noodle soup that originated in the district of La Paz, Iloilo City in the Philippines, made with pork offal, crushed pork cracklings, chicken stock, beef loin and round noodles.

They also serve a whole host of Filipino dishes I'm mostly unfamiliar with, such as pancit, lumpia, pancit molo, lechon kawali, halo halo, leche flan and egg pie. That said, I’m looking forward to familiarizing myself with them soon.

Mullin Automotive Museum to Reopen to the Public on Friday, April 9th

The Mullin Automotive Museum will reopen to the public on Friday, April 9, 2021, establishing a new schedule of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday through Sunday. Fans of the museum and new visitors will see Concours “Best of Show” winners such as the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet H6B “Xenia,” and the 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS Goutte d’Eau; as well as crowd favorites such as the 1994 Bugatti EB 110 Supersport “Le Mans” and the world’s most extensive collection of Bugatti artwork, sculpture, and furniture.

The museum will follow health and safety guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), State of California, and County of Ventura to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Staff members, docents, and visitors will have their temperature taken prior to entry and must always wear protective face coverings. No personal items such as purses, bags or backpacks will be allowed in the museum. Additionally, the museum will enforce social distancing guidelines of at least six feet between unrelated groups. The museum will also increase the frequency of routine cleaning and provide hand sanitizer stations throughout the facility.

Visitors must purchase tickets in advance on the museum website. For more information about the Mullin Automotive Museum and its exhibits, visit MullinAutomotiveMuseum.com.

The museum is located at 1421 Emerson Avenue in Oxnard.

IRS Announces Individual Tax Returns Due May 17, 2021

The IRS announced yesterday that the tax filing deadline has been moved from April 15th to May 17th for individual tax returns. The State of California has conformed to this change.

You can still file an extension to file your returns as late as October 15th, though you are required to pay your taxes, by May 17th or risk penalties and interest. www.irs.gov

Harley's Valley Bowl and Harley's Camarillo Bowl to Open for Business Starting March 24th

Harley’s announced today that it will be reopening its Harley’s Valley Bowl (east Simi Valley) and Harley’s Camarillo Bowl locations as “training and fitness” facilities per CDPH guidelines starting March 24th. The Harley’s Simi Bowl location will not be operating at this time.

Guidelines announced include:

• Reservations must be made in advance at harleysbowl.com

• Bookings are for practice/training bowling sessions.

• Masks must be worn at all times.

• Outside food and beverages are prohibited (water bottles available for purchase).

• All bowling sessions are for 1 1/2 hours at $30 per lane, including shoes,if needed, for up to 4 people per lane.

Ventura County Moves to the Red Tier Beginning Wednesday, March 17th

According to the County of Ventura, the County will move to the State’s Red Tier beginning 12:01 am Wednesday, March 17, 2021.

The State’s Blueprint tracks three metrics: the seven-day adjusted case rate, the seven-day testing
positivity rate and the health equity metric. Ventura County’s case rate is 6.5, testing positivity is 2.8%
(orange tier) and health equity testing positivity is 5.0% (orange).

Moving from the purple tier into the red tier for the County means:
• Restaurants can open indoors with 25 percent capacity or a maximum of 100 people, whichever
is fewer. The 11 pm closure requirement is lifted. The single household dining limitation is lifted.
State gathering guidance limits gatherings to 3 households or less.
• Retail establishments can open indoors at 50 percent capacity.
• Indoor shopping malls can increase capacity to 50 percent with common areas remaining closed;
food courts can open at 25 percent capacity adhering to the restaurant guidance for indoor
dining.
• Movie theaters can open indoors with 25 percent capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer.
• Gyms, fitness centers, yoga and dance studios can open indoors with 10 percent capacity with
6-ft social distancing instead of the previous requirement of 12 ft.
• Museums, zoos, and aquariums can open indoor activities at 25 percent capacity.

• Breweries, wineries and distilleries that do not serve meals can open outdoors only with
modifications. The modifications include ensuring that patrons have reservations and patrons
observe a 90-minute time limit. Service for on-site consumption must end by 8:00 p.m.
• Bars that do not serve meals remain closed in the Purple and Red tiers.
• Private gatherings can occur both outdoors and indoors with up to 3 separate households.
• Schools are permitted to re-open for in-person instruction adhering to all state and county
directives. This includes grades 7-12. Grades kindergarten - 6 already had the option of opening.
• Family entertainment centers (kart racing, mini-golf, batting cages) can open outdoors with
modifications.
• Personal care services can continue to operate indoors following state guidance.

Additional updated guidance:
• Golf carts do not need a partition between members of different households. They are
recommended but not required.
• Local HOA pool guidance has been lifted. HOA pools are encouraged to follow suggested County
guidance. Public or community pools continue to follow state issued guidance.
• 2 swimmers per lane are permitted in a public outdoor swimming pool.
• Wind instruments are allowed outdoors with bell covers and 6 feet distance between
instruments. There must be 20 feet distance at a minimum between the instruments and the
audience.

For more information please visit www.venturacountyrecovers.org or by calling the COVID Business
Compliance line at 805-202-1805.