Recently in Around Claremont Category

In a blow to West End pie lovers, the Bakers Square restaurant in Claremont has closed. The location, at 710 S. Indian Hill Blvd., just above the 10 Freeway, was among 56 Bakers Square and Village Inn locations across the U.S. that closed after their parent company filed bankruptcy.

A total of 343 of the two restaurants remain in business, including the Bakers Square at 1401 Foothill Blvd. (at Wheeler) in La Verne. So there's that comfort.

Still, the Claremont location will be missed by some. "I really liked their strawberry/pineapple/coconut pie. . . .sigh. . ." reader Joanne Boyajian laments.

I'm more a Flo's and Corky's man myself, or even Marie Callender's, but I passed by the Claremont Bakers Square frequently and it will be a little sad not to see it there.

I dropped into Rhino Records on Saturday for the festivities, managing to miss the in-store bands who performed earlier and later. Too bad, as during the noon set by the soul-inflected Eli "Paperboy" Reed and the True Loves, an incident occurred.

"Local town color Ray Collins (of Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention) interrupted their set to tell them that they sounded great, but the horns were too loud," general manager Dennis Callaci said. "I don't think that is going to happen in the aisles of a Circuit City anytime soon."

At least Collins didn't say they needed more cowbell.

Despite missing that scene, I shopped happily, traded some discs and enjoyed the day's 10 percent discount. So did everyone else: It was Rhino's busiest day of 2008.

I picked up Van Morrison's new CD, "Keep It Simple," which is the best I've heard from him in 20 years. My other purchases, which I haven't had a chance to play yet, are CDs by new bands Vampire Weekend and Los Campesinos and best-ofs from bluesman Jimmy Reed and R&B singer Ruth Brown.

Courtesy of a link from the Claremont Insider blog, here's a charming blog post by a visitor from Occidental College about the amazing food selections at the Claremont Colleges.

Love the bullet point list.

I've eaten at a couple of the Claremont Colleges cafeterias and likewise found the food tasty and plentiful, its range and depth impressive and kind of hilarious. I missed Sushi Day, though.

Reader Shirley Wofford of Montclair posted this note recently on an entry from December. I'll share it here so that people will see it:

"I have been going to Claremont every Wednesday, because the Laemmle Theaters gives seniors the best deal going.

"Fortunately for me, I am still healthy enough to make the trek from the Metrolink Station."

I can see the problem here: Since Claremont doesn't charge for parking, a visitor can't pay for the privilege of parking for an extended period, and with signs limiting the garage to three hours, there's likewise no obvious place to park for an extended period. Even lunch and a movie is longer than three hours.

That said, Shirley is going to have to get over her garage-phobia. Actually, the roof of the parking garage is for all-day parking, so you ought to try that next time, Shirley. Added bonus: It's usually less crowded up there. Also, I believe by evening, or late afternoon, it's possible to park anywhere in the garage for an extended period; a sign is posted to that effect at the entrance.

Incidentally, I met Shirley at the Metrolink Station one day a couple of years ago while heading to L.A. on the first late-night Saturday train. She's a big Metrolink fan. Few people would think to get from, say, Montclair to Claremont by train, but I imagine it's a pleasant little trip.

* Shirley also posted a related comment, on trying to park in the Metrolink parking lot, on another entry, which you can read here.

Responding to my column last Friday on the planned Claremont Trolley to ferry people around the Village, reader Ken Rowland says that while the trolley doesn't seem worthwhile to him, he does like Mayor Peter Yao's earlier talk of a pedestrian bridge over Indian Hill Boulevard to connect to old and new Villages.

Rowland visited Tacoma, Wash., and admired the Glass Bridge there, a structure designed by artist and Tacoma native Dale Chihuly that leads to the Museum of Glass. Artworks are displayed along the path.

Says Rowland:

"My thought was that the local art colony, located in Claremont -- both in the old village and in the village west -- would have a place to prime visitors for things to come as they cross through this novel bridge. I have no idea of cost but the $886K noted (for 3 year trial) for a 'free' tram system seems like it would be a recurring cost, as opposed to a lesser ongoing cost of maintaining an overcrossing."

Well, it does look nice, and perhaps it's adaptable to Claremont, although I remain skeptical.

Note that the Tacoma bridge is 500 feet long and "soars 70 feet into the air," linking downtown and the waterfront. After being narrowed a couple of years back to make crossing the street on foot more inviting, Indian Hill is only three lanes wide. Still. give Rowland credit for thinking imaginatively.

Just catching up on some news after my mini-vacation. Did you read where a drug deal gone wrong in Old Town Pasadena resulted in a shocking (but non-fatal) shooting by a suspect from ... Claremont?

Oh, Claremont. Must you export your drug and crime problems to peaceful communities?

Reader Dave Null of Claremont writes:

"I know that you are always looking for unusual stories. I am a distance student in the MBA (Masters in Business Administration) program at Blekinge Tekniska Högskola in Sweden.

"I am a retired professor from Cal Poly Pomona and already have PhD, JD and LLM degrees, but I am now a finance and administrative officer for the Civil Air Patrol, the Auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, so I need some more training in accounting and management."

The problem with taking university classes in Sweden from California is you miss out on those famous Swedish meatballs and stewardesses.

Tonight you can see Ontario bluesman John Harrelson at The Press in Claremont, no cover charge. (Actually, you can see John Harrelson at The Press plenty of nights, seated at the bar, for no cover charge, but tonight he'll be on stage performing. Capeesh?)

Harrelson, the subject of a column of mine a couple of years back, always puts on a fun show. As he promotes it in his e-mail announcement of the show: "Hear true stories about people you know -- See the 'candle trick.'"

Ah, yes, the candle trick. What Harrelson does is finish his first set with some crowd-pleasing antics on guitar. He plays behind his head. He plays behind his back. And he lays his guitar on the nearest table, using a candle holder as a capo to play slide guitar. It must be seen to be believed.

In fact, you can see it on YouTube right here.

That's John Harrelson and His Fantastic Band at The Press, 129 Harvard Ave., Claremont, starting at 10 p.m.

Here's a note from reader Sharon Williams in response to Sunday's column on the Claremont Village Expansion, and with a holiday theme yet:

"Dear Mr. Allen,

"Sharon Williams, Parent and PFA Member."

Looks like the real Claremont is alive and well, its heart, shall we say, expansive.

Barring a natural disaster, or for that matter an unnatural disaster, Sunday's column will be about Claremont's downtown Village Expansion, which is mostly open for business.

Unlike Victoria Gardens, say, which opened all at once, Claremont's expanded downtown has rolled out over a period of weeks, a store here, a restaurant there, with walkways and streets opening as construction ends. Which may be why you don't know the Expansion is open, because there was no big splash.

Just curious: Have you been, and if so, what are your impressions?