A brief history of Biff's

From Randy Garbin's Roadside #32 "Oakland Emerging":

"Biff's Coffee Shop, a circular restaurant designed by noted Googie-style architects Armet & Davis, opened in Oakland at the tail end of the "Populuxe" era. As defined by Thomas Hine in his book Populuxe, Googie fit into the post-war optimism that lasted until 1964, the final year of the New York World's Fair. Not long afterwards, America plunged into an orgy of Early American and Environmentalist design influences, leaving these odd space-age architectural anomalies to stand out in the landscape like crashed UFOs.

Biff's did a fine business into the 1980s when it eventually became J.J.'s Diner, but then closed after four more years of operation. In stepped Chevron Oil, which owned the property and planned to demolish the dowdy structure to erect a gas station/fast-food/quickie-mart mutation. Into the breach rushed about 50 concerned citizens mindful that Biff's had once served as an anchor for the local neighborhood. These activists reminded the city that the place represented one of the last coffee shops from this era and one of the few in the Bay Area. Calling themselves the Friends of J.J.'s, the group sought to help market this property to prospective restaurateurs looking to take advantage of the Oakland revitalization."

"Supportive elements for the Biffs restaurant included a palm tree and signs (internally illuminated neo-60s on original crossed pole supports, replacing animated neon bullseye "Biff's" sign).

The Biff's/JJ's restaurant was vital to the livelihood of the Broadway Autorow community especially the senior citizens from several senior residential centers located on 28th Street."

Special thanks to Randy Garbin (www.randygarbin.com) and Charles Brown. These pieces originally appeared in Roadside Magazine and the Beat 8 newsletter, respectively.