After burglary, Oakland’s Michelin-listed Hi Felicia shuts down indefinitely

Hi Felicia, the buzzy Oakland restaurant that got a glowing Michelin Guide write-up just this February, is shutting down indefinitely and making plans to pivot after a burglary.

Chef and owner Imana (just one name) took to Instagram yesterday to disclose the news, as first reported by SFGATE. “Last night Hi Felicia was violently broken into,” she wrote. “Our upstairs safe was thrown downstairs, glass door completely shattered, our cash register was broken…. This will take a long time to clean up, and it is with a heavy heart that I announce Hi Felicia will be closing effective immediately.”

“Last night wasn’t a coincidence, it was a message to me that this chapter of my life is over,” she added. “To everyone who has supported me, and made this restaurant what it is, I want to say thank you.”

Hi Felicia began as an underground supper club inside Imana’s Oakland apartment and last year moved into a brick-and-mortar space near 23rd and Webster streets. Reservations quickly became hot commodities. The Michelin Guide listed the restaurant that year, and this year gushed: “With an emphasis on equity, diversity, and of course, incredibly delicious dishes, the mononymous owner-chef Imana has created a fine dining experience unlike anything the world has seen before, as bold and brash as the building’s exterior.”

Hi Felicia’s sister wine bar in San Francisco, Sluts, remains open. In fact, Imana shared on Instagram that she might turn the Hi Felicia space into another wine bar, writing: “I want to pour what I have learned into my next project. I am going to open a sleek & sexy wine bar in what was formerly Hi Felicia. I can’t wait to share it with you all, but for now, I am taking some time for myself.”