A 54-year-old independent grocery store in the Bay Area closed earlier this month, and its new landlord reportedly doubled its rent.
Sonoma Valley Fruit Basket No. 1, located at 24101 Arnold Blvd., closed on March 2 and its rent reportedly increased to $11,000, according to a Nextdoor post by Tony Homran. Homran is not listed as the owner, but may be related to the owners Joewad and Foaz Homran.
“Good night to my local Sonoma Valley family neighbors, I just wanted to tell you that I’m heartbroken that we have to close Fruit Basket One on Arnold Avenue today and it breaks my heart,” Homeland wrote on Nextdoor. “It’s like my child, but a part of life.”
The original owner, John Metallinos, opened the market in 1972, the Press-Democrat reported. The store, which was run by his family and featured a large selection of fresh fruit and vegetables at the front, was visible from the road until the land was put up for sale in 2019. Two years later it was sold to real estate developer Ken Mattson. In 2025, Sacramento-based Socotra Capital took over ownership of the property when Mattson was arrested on suspicion of defrauding investors.
SFGATE reached out to the Homran family but had not received a response before publication of this article.
Interior view of Sonoma Valley 1 Fruit Basket located at 24101 Arnold Blvd., Sonoma, CA (arrow s., via Yelp)
Patty Ciuca, who works at the neighboring Sonoma Country Antiques store, said the closing was “shocking.”
“A lot of people will come from the city, like to Napa, and it will be part of their regular stop,” Chuca told SFGATE in a phone interview. “I worked [at Sonoma Country Antiques] They always serve the best feta cheese I’ve had for lunch on a regular basis over the years. This is a huge loss for the region. “
People in the Nextdoor comments section had similar sentiments.
“I don’t understand why the owners would want to evict a long-standing family business by raising the rent to insane levels,” Jennifer Marshall wrote. “Back in the 1980s, long before I moved to Sonoma in 1991, Arnold’s Fruit Basket was my first visit to Sonoma. I would buy non-fruit items like European cookies and crackers.”
The store also has a second location, Sonoma Valley Fruit Basket No. 2, located at 18474, about 15 minutes away on Highway 12.
“This is what really hurts me because there is so much history behind it and all these corporate people don’t care,” Tony wrote.
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– A 54-year-old Bay Area grocery store was forced to close after its landlord allegedly doubled the rent.
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This article was originally published on A 54-year-old Bay Area grocery store was forced to close after its landlord allegedly doubled the rent..
