The Sad Saga of OB People’s Quest for a Vegetarian Restaurant Has Ended

People’s Cafe Property for Sale

Indeed, the former OB Garden Cafe property is for sale by OB People’s Organic Market. It’s a sad ending to People’s saga for a new vegetarian restaurant. A neighbor told this reporter that he believed the sale price was for $2 million. This has not been confirmed.

It was in 2014 that People’s purchased the property with Tiny’s Tavern and some other structures on the lot. But in January 2015, Tiny’s owner passed away. Here’s what we reported 5 years ago:

The expansion plans of Ocean Beach’s largest employer, the famous OB People’s Organic Food Market, have been placed on hold due to the unfortunate and untimely death of “Tiny”, the owner of Tiny’s Tavern.

Tiny’s Tavern was a mainstay on Voltaire for many a moon. It was some people’s neighborhood bar.

The market co-op, which is a mainstay on Voltaire Street in OB, has just recently purchased the two parcels of land directly to the store’s east, one containing a duplex and the other containing Tiny’s Tavern. And part of the store’s expansion plans were based on an agreement with “Tiny” who was on the verge of retiring from operating his bar and small grill. “Tiny” – the nickname of Alan Kajiwara – had planned to use the land sale to the co-op as a push for him to move back to Hawaii where he has family, but his fatal stroke at the age of 54 ended all that.

But by November of 2016, we reported:

There was a groundbreaking event for People’s Organic Food store’s new organic cafe and juice bar on Saturday, November 12th.

And in December 2017, the doors were opened:

In mid-December, Ocean Beach People’s Organic Food Market opened its new restaurant, O.B. Garden Café, just a few doors east of the market on Voltaire Street between Sunset Cliffs and Ebers Street.

Yet, we then reported in September 2019:

People’s Cafe Has Closed

OB People’s organic cafe on Voltaire Street has closed. The O.B. Garden Café, at 4741 Voltaire, just opened their doors in mid-December 2017. Then last summer, the eatery was nominated for an Orchid in San Diego’s annual Orchids & Onions contest. But the fact remains, the doors are now closed – and we don’t know for how long.

Now with the sale – not just the lease – of the entire property and newly-built restaurant, the quest by OB’s organic market for a veggie restaurant has ended.