Le Zest, the continental restaurant at 75 S. San Tomas Aquino Road, No. 1 in the Kirkwood Plaza, has closed. In its place, The Sushi Zone, specializing in very fresh fish, will open later this year. Check back here soon for more details.

Looking to stay cool in the heat this summer? Nearby Capers Eat & Drink, 1710 W. Campbell Ave. in the Kirkwood Plaza, is offering two-for-one martinis on Monday and Tuesday evenings. For details and other specials, call 408.374.5777 or visit www.caperseatanddrink.com.

Also in the Kirkwood Plaza, Barda's Coffee & Café, 1820-B W. Campbell Ave., just received their much-anticipated liquor license. Owner Frank Bardascino says he's in the process of finishing up the new menu, as well as developing a new beer and wine list.

Start marking your calendars now for several upcoming special events and sales in downtown Campbell.

A big sidewalk sale is planned for downtown on Friday, July 18 and 19, from noon till 8:00 p.m. Voila L'Afrique Manager Marsha Bolster and staff member Karen Nessel spearheaded the event. For details call them at 408.378.8567.

Lulubelle, the new urban clothing store at 401 E. Campbell Ave., co-owned by a duet of servers from Mio Vicino, Tiffany Tomakin and Kelly Smith, officially opened its doors on June 15.

"Things are going really well so far. We've had a lot of traffic, especially on farmer's market days, and right now we're testing out the foot traffic by being open as much as possible," Smith says. "We specialize in a great bottom line, with a lot of denim as well as funky going-out clothes. We also offer a bath line, along with jewelry, accessories and purses."

The store is open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. On Thursdays, with the Music in the Park summer concert series, they're following the trend of other downtown merchants and staying open until 9 p.m.

Another recently opened clothing store, Toastshop at 381 E. Campbell Ave., just announced plans for their official grand opening, to be held July 18 from 6 to 9 p.m. Owner Laura Jaeger plans to include music, appetizers and new items for the event.

On that same weekend, plan to stop by Campbell's only winery, located at 165 Cristich Lane.

"Yes, there really is a winery in Campbell," laughs Marie Pinder, who co-owns Pinder Winery with her husband, John Pinder. The open house at the winery is set for July 19 from noon to 6 p.m. Pinder offers cabernet, chardonnay, mourvedre, carignane, syrah and zinfandel wines. The Pinders also plan on offering winemaker dinners sometime in the future. To learn more, visit www.pinderwine.com or call 877.684.2601.

Something else to look forward to: Blendz should be open by mid-summer. Unfortunately, a bit of a slowdown pushed back Matt and Denise Phipps' intended opening date. Plan to visit the new salad, sandwich and smoothie shop, 267 E. Campbell Ave., Suite A the weekend of July 19.

Marsha Smith, owner of Mio Vicino, 384 E. Campbell Ave., is featuring a winner of a summer deal, whether you just want to avoid cooking in the heat or are looking for a delicious, affordable meal to go. Her take-out special features regular menu favorites, such as chicken cannelloni and penne with chicken for $9.99 each as long as the food is to go. Call 408.378.0335 to place your order.

The Campbell Chamber of Commerce holds its 39th annual golf tournament on Aug. 7 at Cinnabar Hills Golf Club in San Jose. Call the Chamber at 408.378.6252 or visit www.campbellchamber.com to sign up.

On another note, several popular businesses recently celebrated their one-year anniversary, including Togo's, which relocated to the Pruneyard Shopping Center last June, and The Pruneyard Florist, which actually hit their one-year anniversary in May (on Mother's Day, of course).

The mother-daughter team of Alice and Eileen Tanaka of Alie's Corner Cafe, 360 E. Campbell Ave., celebrated their six-year anniversary in May also. The pair has not only brought great food to the downtown but is also a great example of civic pride and support.

And I could really get hurt if I forgot this one. Alex Alamul, the 2001 tae kwon do world champion, celebrated the one-year anniversary of Sidekick Martial Arts & Fitness, 2627 S. Bascom Ave. this June. Students seeking lessons in tae kwon do, cardio kickboxing or yoga or one-on-one training time can call 408.377.5500.

Speaking of getting hurt: Last July the West Valley Regional Public Health Department moved from San Jose to its current location at 577 Salmar Ave. Regional manager Judy Martus of WVRPHD reminds the public that she and her team of resource nurses are available to help with a variety of public health issues, such as communicable disease testing and investigation—TB and hepatitis—as well as testing and early intervention programs for diabetes (for those diagnosed within the past three years) and children with asthma. They can be reached at 408.874.5000, or visit the website at http://www.sccphd.org.

Got a cool new Campbell business, a hot news tip or a business anniversary or special event to announce? We'd love to hear about it. Contact Michelle Crowe at 408.378.9056 or a1writers@hotmail.com.