The Buzz: New Redding eatery on N. Market St. What's up with From the Hearth in Shasta Lake?

After years of being home to Westside Pizza, the North Market Street building that sits next to the Rodeway Inn is being redeveloped by Raj Kandhola and his family, who are ready to put their own twist on pizza.

The Kandholas, who own the Rodeway Inn, for years leased the restaurant building to a separate operator.

But about a year ago, they took back the building and started work to open their own restaurant.

Calling it Slice, they are keeping the pizza theme, but will add beer and the inside will feature three big-screen TVs.

“I am actually pretty excited. I love renovating buildings and I love bringing them up to standard and I really, really, really want to make downtown look nice. I know this isn’t downtown, it’s a little bit further north, but you know Market Street needs to get beautified a little bit,” Raj recently told me as work continued on the renovation.

The Kandholas are eyeing a March 1 soft opening, but Raj said that is certainly not cemented.

“The beer will not be ready, (but) we’ll have that soft opening,” he said. “I definitely want to be ready for Kool April Nites. … I wanted to be open for the Super Bowl, but it’s not going to happen.”

Westside Pizza closed last spring after 10 years in business. Raj said the first owners did well, then sold the business in 2020.

“We saw that they were getting into financial trouble, and we gave them the option to opt out of their lease if they wanted. … They were nice people,” he said.

Raj and his family saw an opportunity to make the location their own.

“I’ve always looked at this building and it’s always bothered me, but we were always leasing it out to someone, and now that it’s ours, I can go in and do a full, proper remodel,” he said.

The family contacted an architect, hired a contractor, who completely gutted the inside, taking it down to the studs.

“We spent a lot more money on this than I probably originally wanted, but I think that’s how all projects go," Raj said.

The inside of Slice will have a wall mural that depicts North State landmarks like Lake Shasta and Mt. Shasta. Local artist Jesse Jentzen will paint the mural, Raj said.

As for the menu? There will be pizza by the slice or whole pizzas.

We will have “wings and the pasta, but it is a pizza place and hopefully it’s a place that people want to come to, lunchtime or the evening. They can grab a beer, watch a game, watch some sports, you know, whatever they want to do and have a good time.”

The Kandholas moved to Shasta County in 2003 and Raj graduated from Shasta High School in 2008. He went to Shasta College before attending Cal Poly Pomona and Cal State Los Angeles.

“I’m pretty excited. It's something we've never really been in before. We’re more in the hotel industry, but I’m super pump to delve into the restaurant industry,” he said.

From the Hearth closes; Shasta Lake redevelopment update

From the Hearth Espresso & Pie Shop has closed its drive-thru kiosk in the city of Shasta Lake.

A sign on the window says it was a pleasure serving the city and that they are excited to see the many changes that are coming to Shasta Dam Boulevard, where the kiosk did business.

K2 Development President Allen Knott said From the Hearth was leasing the site and the lease was coming to an end, while at the same time the business was opening its Addendum brand on Hartnell Avenue in Cobblestone Court.

“So, I think it worked out good for them to kind of make the transition with staff and equipment,” Knott said.

From the Hearth’s ownership group did not return a message seeking comment.

But back to those changes coming to downtown Shasta Lake.

K2 is partnering with the city and the Redding Rancheria on a major overhaul of the boulevard that will stretch essentially from Cascade Boulevard to Heritage Roasting Company.

“We are heavily in the design phase right now,” Knott said.

For its part, K2 will build 49 affordable apartments and 7,500 square feet of commercial space. Transit, pedestrian and bike improvements through downtown would connect the project to what the Redding Rancheria is doing further east on the boulevard.

The Redding Rancheria project will feature a Homewood Suites hotel, a medical clinic and family fun center near the corner of Shasta Dam and Cascade boulevards.

The Rancheria will manage construction of the curbs, gutters and sidewalks that connect the downtown revitalization project and the tribe’s commercial project.

There is a chance K2 will break ground on the project in the fall or winter. It will take about two years to build, and Knott said it could open in 2025.

And Knott doesn't count out From the Hearth returning to Shasta Lake once the revitalization project is complete.

"We would love to see them in Shasta Lake if it fits their business model in the future, maybe more of a restaurant-type location," Knott said.

New vintage store opens in downtown Redding

Downtown Redding’s newest vintage clothes shop opens this weekend.

Friday’s Vintage at the corner of Yuba and Pine streets, in the former Brew Coffee space, was expected to open at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Co-owner Dylan Mosshart told me the store will be open every day the first week before transitioning to the store’s regular hours, which will be Thursday-Sunday. Mosshart owns the store with his wife, Paige.

Dylan and Paige Mosshart of Friday's Vintage started their clothing business four years ago, selling items via their Instagram page and by other social media means. The business grew during the pandemic and so the husband-and-wife team started thinking about opening a brick-and-mortar location.

Friday’s Vintage joins Abe Haberdashery on Placer Street and Old 44 Vintage at the corner of Yuba and California streets.

This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Redding family brings Slice pizza restaurant to North Market Street