Wine aficionados will have a fresh place to sip with the expected arrival this month of the Library Social Club, a new wine bar that will offer libations and small bites in downtown Walnut Creek.

The long-in-development wine bar, which is going into the former Guava Eats space at 1506 N. Main St., is headed by co-owners JB Balingit, Eddy Negrete and Leo Negrete at the Hideout Kitchen in Lafayette. Like the Hideout, which specializes in American comfort cuisine, the Library Social Club plans to serve its food offerings in the form of small plates and charcuterie-style nibbles.

“During COVID, we had to shut the doors to our guests at the Hideout, which was heartbreaking,” says Macy Delzell, director of operations at Balingit’s Morello Restaurant Solutions. “They came up with a wine club as a service to guests, where they could pick up wines once a month. Once we reopened, we wanted to just focus on guests getting the best experience possible, and the wine club got put on the back burner. So when this downtown Walnut Creek location became available, we jumped on that to do the club once again.”

The Library Social Club plans to be a membership-based service and “social experience,” complete with repurposed vintage decor and a blend of esoteric and classic wines and local brews.

Membership packages vary in price. On the low end, there’s The Apprentice for $100 per month, which includes one to two bottles of wine plus a tasting and various discounts. For $150 per month, The Academic includes one to two bottles, three tastings, priority invitations to winemaker dinners and vineyard/brewery tours and other perks.

And what kind of wines will be featured? “JB loves to be all over the place. He wants to bring in new varieties every month, so people can drink and learn from them,” Delzell says.

Rubio’s closes San Jose eatery; 3 left in Bay Area

Rubio’s Coastal Grill, a chain famous for popularizing the fish taco, has closed one of its four Bay Area locations, with the company announcing the news in an e-mail blast to customers and members of its loyalty club.

“We’ve made the difficult decision to close our location at The Plant (San Jose). But don’t worry. Our San Jose-Brokaw Plaza location is open and we’re excited to continue serving you there,” the note read.

A Rubio’s in Sunnyvale and one in Pleasant Hill also remain open, leaving the Bay Area with three locations. The chain operates several in the Sacramento area, and one in Tracy. The bulk of the locations are in Southern California.

Rubio’s was co-founded in San Diego in 1983 by Ralph Rubio, a San Diego State student who brought inspiration from a spring break trip to Baja California back to his hometown.

His Original Fish Taco is made with sustainable wild Alaskan pollock, cooked in a seasoned beer batter and topped with salsa, cabbage and Rubio’s signature white sauce. Mahi-mahi tacos are available grilled or blackened. Other sustainable seafood choices — available in bowls, salads, burritos and more — include shrimp, tilapia and wild Alaskan coho salmon. Currently featured are a Baja Chimichurri Red Shrimp Bowl and Taco Platter and a Puerto Nuevo Burrito with Langostino Lobster.

Details >> The local restaurants open are at 2390 Monument Blvd., Pleasant Hill; 1078 E. Brokaw Road, San Jose; and 108 E. El Camino Real, Sunnyvale. www.rubios.com

Fogo de Chao will open first East Bay steakhouse

The Brazilian steakhouse Fogo de Chao will start serving gaucho-style meals later this year in Emeryville.

The Bay Street Emeryville restaurant will be the third Bay Area location for the chain, and the first in the East Bay. The inaugural location opened in 2014 at San Jose’s Santana Row, followed by one in San Francisco.

Founded 45 years ago, Fogo de Chao (pronounced fogo-dee-shown, the company says) is a high-end churrascaria that offers a dozen types and cuts of meat — from filet mignon to lamb to linguica — roasted over an open fire, then carved to order tableside. It’s an all-you-can-eat affair that includes trips to the Market Table & Feijoada Bar for charcuterie, salads and Brazilian stew.

Besides Emeryville, Fogo de Chao will add steakhouses in Southern California, Washington state, Maryland and New Jersey and make its first forays into Turkey and Ecuador. The company currently has 75 locations worldwide.

Details >> 5633 Bay St., Emeryville; https://baystreetemeryville.com/

Send restaurant news tips to lzavoral@bayareanewsgroup.com. or john metcalfe at jmetcalfe@bayareanewsgroup.com