Mitchell Hoffman

MITCHELL HOFFMAN Longtime Bay Area resident and well-known restaurateur, passed away Tuesday at his home in Oakland following a year-long battle with lung cancer. Mitch was born in Winnipeg, Canada, in 1920, to Janett and Alick Hoffman. The family moved to San Francisco in 1924. Mitch graduated Polytechnic High in 1937 and was later inducted into Poly's Sports Hall of Fame for excellence in swimming, water polo and basketball. Mitch, along with his brother Mark, were part of a select group to swim the Golden Gate to commemorate the opening of the Golden Gate Bridge in 1937. Mitch graduated from City College of San Francisco in the Hotel and Restaurant Management Division, which started him on a long and successful restaurant career. He worked at the St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco until drafted into the U.S. Army in 1942. He served at the Presidio of Monterey, where he played on the powerful Army basketball team that gained national attention when his team beat the touring Harlem Globetrotters in Monterey in 1945. After his discharge in 1946, Mitch managed the Senator Hotel in Sacramento. He soon teamed up with his Army buddy Dewey Bargiacchi to run the Villa de la Paix in Oakland. He became a member of the East Bay Society of Gentleman Chefs, and was to serve as president of this organization a number of times over the following decades. In 1953 Mitch opened his own restaurant - Mitch's. Mitch ran this highly successful eatery in downtown Oakland for 15 years. In addition to running Mitch's, he teamed up with another popular restaurateur, Petar Jakovina, to open up Petar's, in Lafayette. Mitch sold the restaurant in Oakland in 1968 and took a short break from the restaurant business when he relocated to North Lake Tahoe to manage the Cal-Neva Lodge for Frank Sinatra. But Mitch soon returned to the Bay Area and to his true calling, partnering with his good friend Jim Costello to open Mitch's and Jim's Sir-Loin on Grand Avenue in Oakland. Mitch retired after selling the Sir-Loin in 1985 but continued to enjoy life. He remained very active, regularly participating in his lifelong love of swimming and tennis. Mitch is survived by his son, Michael; grandchildren, Kevin and Billy; and his longtime friend, Sally Capoferri. A celebration of Mitch's life will be held on Monday, June 13, from 12 noon to 3 p.m. at Francesco's Restaurant, 8520 Pardee and Hegenberger Road, Oakland. Donations in lieu of flowers may be made to a charity of the donor's choice. Sinai Memorial Chapel, (925) 962-3636