Spotlight on Sticky Rice Club: Activating public space with mindfulness & healing
At Oakland Bloom, we believe that food is political expression and healing. Food is culture, and it’s community.
Our community hub in Oakland Chinatown, called Open Test Kitchen, is a place for neighbors to gather and be themselves. If you are anything like us, whenever we invite people over, we all end up crowded and laughing in the kitchen. Over the next few months, we want to introduce you to the partners and collaborators who have brought more people to our kitchen and made it their own.
Teresa Trinh is an Oakland-based psychotherapist and Program Director of Healing & Arts with Sticky Rice Club. For the past four years, Sticky Rice Club and Oakland Bloom have organized the annual Lantern Festival in the heart of Oakland Chinatown.
We spoke with Teresa about their work with Sticky Rice Club and how they’ve infused healing and mindfulness with the Lantern Festival. Grab your free ticket. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Oakland Bloom: To start things off, what brings Oakland Bloom and Sticky Rice Club together?
Teresa Trinh: We’re organizing the 4th annual Lantern Festival this year. We’re focused on activating public spaces. For the past four years, the festival has been held at the Pacific Renaissance Plaza. There’s also a focus on mindfulness and healing. Every year, we’ve cultivated a dedicated healing space at the festival, bringing in healers of different modalities and last year, an acupuncture pop-up called QiKi Club.
Together, we’re networking with healers, artists and performers. Many participants and collaborators from the past years’ festivals are coming back and tell us that this is their favorite event of the year. I’m excited to have that continuity. It’s welcoming and collaborative, and also led by many queer community members.
With our focus on healing, we make sure the festival has places to sit and rest. We’re thoughtful about that.
OB: How did you get involved in the festival and Sticky Rice Club?
TT: I wanted to organize a Lunar New Year event, and a mutual friend connected me with Sticky Rice Club. It worked well that first year, and we continued from there, gradually growing. We offer mindfulness and cooking programs, collaborate with artists and healers for community programming, and activate spaces to gather in Chinatown. I’m always excited to talk to people and hear about their passions and connections to Chinatown.
OB: What else should folks know about Sticky Rice Club, especially if they want to get involved?
TT: We’re going to launch a mural campaign across Chinatown to help artists get grants to paint murals. We’re building relationships with muralists and with shop owners, and lifting up personal stories through these projects. We are also always interested in connecting with aligned collaborators, artists, healers, and community-builders connected to Chinatown.
I’m excited for the direction that we’re going in: building relationships and cultivating a shared vision. Many of us have a Buddhist practice and philosophy and it’s implicit in our work. Being attuned to ourselves and taking care of ourselves and each other. I really appreciate that about Sticky Rice Club.
ICYMI: Join Sticky Rice Club and Oakland Bloom at the Lantern Festival 2026 in Oakland Chinatown for a magical night of food, performances, maker market and all ages fun! Sunday, March 1, from 3-8pm. RSVP for your free ticket.