Last year, the Jack London Square tree lighting was set for Saturday, November 29, in the plaza near Plank. This year it lands on Saturday, November 28, from 5:45 to 8 p.m., and the square's own event listing puts it in "the Plaza by Scott's Seafood."
The tree's new spot shows how the waterfront is laid out this winter. The 2026 season runs between the oldest restaurant on the square and the newest one. Scott's has held 2 Broadway since late 1984. Reem's opened at 85 Webster Street this June. The two biggest family events on the holiday calendar each sit right beside one of them.
Why the plaza changed hands
Plank opened at 98 Broadway in 2014. The 45,500-square-foot venue had bowling lanes, an arcade, bocce courts and indoor-outdoor bars, and it was custom built for the site after Barnes & Noble closed there in 2010. Its last day was Sunday, August 2, 2026, and CBS San Francisco noted that live jazz was playing in the square that afternoon, as it often does.
With Plank closed, the 2026 lighting moved to the plaza beside Scott's, which has been on the waterfront longer than any of the venues that opened and closed around it.
A 50th birthday Oakland carries on its own
Scott's Seafood Grill and Bar celebrated its 50th anniversary in September, though the Oakland restaurant is younger than the brand. As Berkeleyside's Nosh reported, Scott's began in 1976 in San Francisco's Marina District at Lombard and Scott streets. The Oakland restaurant came in late 1984, taking over the old Sea Wolf space. The San Francisco original closed in 1998. That makes the 50-year name a San Francisco story, while the restaurant still standing has spent its whole life on the Oakland estuary.
The same article describes a Jack London Square that some people once hoped would rival Fisherman's Wharf. Night clubs like Square Apple booked Tower of Power, and Kirby's Elegant Farmer and The Grotto served the waterfront dining crowd. Many of those places later closed. Scott's stayed.
Its staying power shows up in the details Nosh collected:
- The dish that pays the bills. The seafood sauté combines Pacific prawns, scallops and Dungeness crab legs in a lemon butter garlic sauce over rice. It makes up 45% to 55% of the dining room's daily sales.
- The original menu, still running. The seafood sauté, Boston clam chowder, signature calamari and seafood salad have all been served since 1976.
- The kitchen's tenure. Head chef Gregorio Lopez has been with Scott's for 37 years and started as a dishwasher at the Walnut Creek location. Juan Martinez has 35 years. Juan Robledo joined in 1991.
- The regulars. Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee dines there often, and its spot near the Port of Oakland offices has made it a regular venue for Port business lunches.
Managing partner Ramiro Carabez came to Scott's at 19, 34 years ago, and asked for a job. He was turned away and came back eight more times before owner Ray Gallagher put him in the dish pit. Today the restaurant has almost 100 employees, and Lopez, Martinez and Robledo help run a 35-person kitchen. Carabez gave Nosh his explanation for why the place has lasted:
"Our number one asset is our employees. We ensure that our employees are happy and, you know, they do a great job for us, and it's a big family."
That kitchen will be cooking through the tree lighting. Head chef Lopez told Nosh that his favorite moments come after the kitchen gets through a busy holiday shift, when he finally gets a few minutes with his staff before heading home.
Reem's holds the other end
The newest anchor arrived in summer. Reem's Jack London Square held its grand opening on June 26, 2026, at 85 Webster Street. It is the brand's first worker-owned location, and the building also houses the company's wholesale production facility, according to Nosh.
The square has scheduled its second big family draw next to it. Selfies With Santa runs from noon to 4 p.m. on December 12, 13, 19 and 20. It is free and set up next door to Reem's. With the tree at the Scott's end and Santa at the Reem's end, families visiting on those weekends will cover most of the waterfront between Broadway and Webster.
The season, date by date
Here is how the calendar lines up from publish day forward. The square lists the tree lighting, the Patchwork Show and Selfies With Santa as free.
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Nov. 9 to Dec. 13 | One Warm Coat | Jack London Square |
| Tuesday, Nov. 17 | Community Blood Drive | Jack London Square |
| Saturday, Nov. 28, 5:45 to 8 p.m. | Holiday Tree Lighting | Plaza by Scott's Seafood |
| Saturday, Dec. 5, parade at 5:30 p.m. | Lighted Yacht Parade | Oakland Estuary, crossing at Jack London Square |
| Saturday, Dec. 12 | Patchwork Show makers market | Water Street |
| Dec. 12, 13, 19 and 20, noon to 4 p.m. | Selfies With Santa | Next door to Reem's |
| Sunday, Dec. 13, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. | Final 2026 farmers market | Jack London Square |
The weekend of December 12 and 13 has the most going on. Saturday brings the Patchwork Show to Water Street along with Santa's first afternoon. Sunday brings Santa's second afternoon and the last Sunday farmers market of the year, since the square has taken December 20 and 27 off the 2026 schedule. Anyone who shops the market for holiday tables should plan around December 13.
Tree night, in order
The tree lighting follows a set sequence. Santa lights the tree. Next comes the square's annual laser light show set to holiday music, run twice that evening. After the lasers, faux snow falls over the plaza whatever the weather. Frosty, a Christmas Teddy Bear and the Peppermint Princess walk through the crowd for photos, so bring your own phone or camera. The nonprofit Oaktown Jazz Workshops and the Lyric Performing Arts Academy perform. No pre-registration is required.
Since the event now sits at the Scott's end of the square, dinner and the tree are only steps apart. The restaurant is at 2 Broadway, and its website is the place to plan a table that night.
Parade night belongs to the water
One week after the lighting, on Saturday, December 5, the focus moves out to the estuary. The Lighted Yacht Parade starts at 5:30 p.m. Boats stage between Wind River and Fortman Marina's public pier, then run along Alameda's shore past the yacht clubs and Pasta Pelican. They cross to the Oakland side at Jack London Square and continue down that shore.
That route gives two kinds of viewing. On the Oakland side, the square is where the boats arrive after crossing, so the same waterfront that hosts the tree becomes a parade viewing spot a week later. On the Alameda side, Encinal Yacht Club invites spectators onto its decks, docks and lawn, and lists a 5 p.m. start for the event ahead of the 5:30 p.m. parade.
Scott's and Reem's both face this same stretch of water, and that is what ties the season together. The tree, Santa, the makers market, the last farmers market and the boats all happen within a short walk along the estuary. The oldest restaurant on the square and the newest one mark the two ends.
Longevity on the waterfront takes steady upkeep, whether it's a seafood house or a well-kept home. If you're wondering what your own place near the estuary is worth this season, Teri Carlisle & Alexandra Dierkx would be glad to help. Request a complimentary home valuation, and we'll give you a clear, unhurried read on where you stand.
