The chef, known for his downtown Oakland pop-ups that draw hundreds of customers, opens his first brick-and-mortar restaurant on the east side of the city.
After eight years as a pop-up sensation, Chef Albert Woolley, better known as Chef Smelly, will open a permanent location this summer at 10801 Bancroft Avenue called Chef Smelly’s. There, in his East Oakland neighborhood where he grew up, he plans to serve po’ boys his sandwiches, salads and burgers made to Creole family recipes.
The menu that Woolley is still developing is small, he said, but has plenty of variety.
Some of the more expensive items at his pop-up, such as bone-in ribeye steak and lamb chops, remain downtown.
“I know people want crab, so I think I’ll sneak it onto the menu,” he said.
Above: Chef Edward Woolley, also known as Chef Smelly, at an Oakland pop-up. After years in various locations, the chef is finally settling into a permanent restaurant this summer. Above: Dungeness crab, shrimp and garlic noodles, also known as $60 dollar his conch.
Gabriel Lurie/The ChronicleBorn into a family of cooks, Woolley has honed his skills in the kitchen since childhood. Cooking also provided him a way out of life on the streets after being imprisoned twice. Many customers think Chef Smelly was named after his pungent, garlicky seafood, but the nickname stems from the smelly marijuana he sold in his youth.
Looking for a way out of the back alleys, he enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in San Francisco before his third daughter was born. He graduated her in 2013 and worked alongside local chef Tanya Holland at her restaurant B-Side BBQ.
Chef Smelly started his buzz popping up by joining an existing home catering business run by his mother who shared recipes from Louisiana. But things really took a turn for the better when he moved to his downtown concert venue, The Complex, in 2015 and took over operations himself. (Woolley’s mother still helps prepare salads by making her dressings.) Word of mouth and social posts on his media describe Chef Dungeness’s Garlic His Noodles with Crab, Chicken and Shrimp. News of his potatoes topped with giant fries spread. (@chefsmelly now has over 156,000 followers on his Instagram profile.) The crowd grew, and soon celebrity sightings were a regular sight, including hip-hop stars E-40 and Golden. State Warriors captain Stephen Curry was included among the long list of high-profile players. The guests.
Melanie Ramos (middle) and Christina Galván (right) dining with friends at Chef Smelly’s current pop-up location in Auckland.
Gabriel Lurie/The ChronicleIn 2018, pop-up restrictions forced Woolley to leave the complex. Since then, he’s moved from venue to venue, including his East Oakland staple, Roderick’s Barbecue. The pop-up is now taking over his AU his lounge in downtown Oakland Wednesday through Sunday.
After years of dealing with the pitfalls of running pop-ups, including limited hours, lack of adequate space and equipment at some venues, and eviction orders from previous venues, Woolley is finally ready for his longtime career. I am relieved to have finished the year of searching.
“Working in someone else’s kitchen is cool, but nothing beats having your own,” he said.
Wooley is working to get this space up and running for a summer opening. He said he got a lease in December and wants to open already, but he has not received a tenant improvement grant from the City of Auckland. He has to invest his own money, which slows down the process.
Woolley laments the lack of black-owned independent restaurants in the area and hopes to bring an alternative that is not only affordable but also serves as an example of local success. As an incentive for us, we are thinking of providing free lunches if the grades are good.
“You can do anything if you put your mind to it,” he said.
Please contact Mario Cortez: mario.cortez@sfchronicle.com