Cafe 15 (Part II), Oakland

I'm having a love affair with Downtown Oakland and Cafe 15 is what started it. This is my new favorite lunch spot--so much so that I've gone back 3 times in the past 4 days and still want to go back again tomorrow.

Every time the food has been consistently fresh, tasty, creative, affordable, and filling. I'm usually hesitant to give out rave reviews to any restaurant, so it's the service that truly puts Cafe 15 over the top. Everyone who works there is so nice despite how crowded it gets, and they seem to truly appreciate their customers.

So far the best things on the menu in my opinion are the oyster po' boy and the rustic potato hash with eggs. The spicy pulled pork sandwich with a green tangy salsa served with a fresh slaw and Cafe 15 burger (with mixed in bacon and onions!), though, are also delicious, as is the fried chicken sandwich. The fried chicken sandwich is *different* from Bette's, so I'm not even going to compare them.

I'm always too full to order dessert, but today I was offered a free sample of their chocolate eclairs. I'll make room for dessert tomorrow.

Cafe 15, Oakland

Wow, what a find!

I haven't been so excited about a new restaurant in a while. Cafe 15 is a super cute little spot behind the courthouse in downtown Oakland. There is very limited seating but the space is cozy and gets plenty of sunlight. Despite it being crowded, we were immediately greeted by the woman at the register who was happy to chat and answer any questions we had. She also offered us a frequent buyer card. They give you a stamp for every $5 you spend, and after 15 stamps you get a free meal.

In addition to a very tempting menu (think Bakesale Betty type food with a lot more options--yes, I just made that comparison), there are a bunch of daily specials written on the board. I went with the blood orange lemonade and the oyster po' boy with cabbage slaw. My friend had the eggs and potato/fennel sausage hash with toast. While the lemonade was a little too tart for our taste, the food was spectacular.

The potatoes in the hash were soft and perfectly cooked. The fennel sausage was flavorful and melded everything together into a filling, delicious meal. My oyster po-boy had three gigantic fried oysters on a soft, buttery roll and came with a crunchy, fresh cabbage slaw.

It's obvious that the people at Cafe 15 truly care about the food they are serving. The service is impeccable, and when you dine in the cooks will actually bring you your food. I loved everything about my dining experience here and cannot wait to go back.

Cafe 15 is located at 597 15th Street in Downtown Oakland, between Clay and Jefferson.

They are open Monday through Friday from 6:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Brown Sugar Kitchen, Oakland

Have you ever gotten to a restaurant and instantly loved it the second you entered? That's what happened to Greg and me when we got to Brown Sugar Kitchen. The space is friendly, gets plenty of light, and has a very sleek yet homey decor. While I do feel like ultimately the service can be improved upon, I was overall very happy with my experience and cannot wait to go back to try more of the delicious California-inspired Soul Food menu.

We started with coffee and a sticky bun, which was not my favorite, though it made waiting for the main attractions a little easier. Maybe I just have a misconception as to how sticky buns should be but I keep imagining and getting excited for a soft, chewy, sweet pastry and am constantly disappointed (this time was no different) when it's dry and crunchy.

Our main dishes, however, were phenomenal. I had the cheesy grits with poached eggs and a side of bacon. The grits were deliciously creamy, very nicely seasoned, and my poached eggs were cooked perfectly. Greg's egg tart was stuffed with fresh asparagus and a wonderful mix of flavorful cheeses; the accompanying potatoes were crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, and had great flavor.

My only negative was the service. I don't mind slow service, because all of the dishes are made to order, but I thought that the waitstaff was rather inattentive. They were friendly when we could wave them over, but it was difficult to track down the hostess to get our names on the wait list, and our server never checked in with us during our meal except to bring the check. Just a lesson, don't stand in between two pre-health students and a refill on their morning coffee.

When it comes down to it, though, the blips in service were completely overshadowed by the food. Both Greg and I were very impressed and already have plans to go back.

Brown Sugar Kitchen is located at 2534 Mandela Parkway (yes, you read that correctly, it's in the middle of a bunch of warehouses behind the Home Depot strip mall in Emeryville), between 26th Street and Campbell Street.

They are open Tuesday through Thursday from 7:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m, Friday through Saturday, 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., and Sundays 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Website: www.brownsugarkitchen.com

International House Cafe, Berkeley

In addition to being a crazed foodie, I on occasion do my fair share of schoolwork/studying. The plan is to incorporate some cafe reviews into my food blog as well. While most of the places I recommend will not have stellar food, I'm basing my final judgment on these places on a study-friendly scale. But, staying true to my blog the food will be evaluated too. Hopefully this will be useful to all four of my readers. Here it goes...

Internet: Yes, with a UC Berkeley log-in.
Prices: Moderate for the quality.
Noise/Music: Loud, usually playing 94.9 FM.
Parking: 2-hour street parking or UC Berkeley lots.

I'm really not.that.cool. Yet I've known the words to every single from Rihanna, Chris Brown, Akon, Lady Gaga, Usher, and Kanye that has come out in the past year, all thanks to the I-House Cafe.

There's something soothing about listening to hip-hop in a loud room where tree-sitters bathed, international students drink beer, the creepy guy gives you dirty looks for taking "his" table, and the smelly chess corner gets overly animated. Plus, taking a study break to look up and see my friend Greg (photo of Greg's ipod here: http://george.hotelling.net/90percent/pics/npr_podcast.png) awkwardly bouncing his head to rap never gets old.

The coffee's terrible and the food mostly comes out of a microwave, but the nachos are a huge guilty pleasure of mine, and the lasagne isn't half bad if they re-heat it all the way through. I also really like the Italian Salad (topped with artichoke hearts, olives, tomato, red bell pepper, garbanzo beans, and mozzarella that I substitute with chicken). Skip the pastries (they're never as good as they look) and any espresso drinks. Also, skip the pasta salads. They always have a weird acidic taste that I can't quite put my finger on. That said, over all if you know what to order and appreciate a place that stays open late, this is one of my favorite study venues.

I'll keep studying here until the university realizes I've stolen my sister's wireless password.

Sunnyside Cafe, Albany

I really didn't understand the hype of this place for the longest time. A friend of mine convinced me to go a few times and it was always 2-3 stars. Until I had the Alameda. Gawd that thing is good.

I don't know who thought to make a savory french toast with a balsamic reduction but whoever did deserves a special place in foodie heaven. Sandwiched between two gigantic slices of french toast is some thinly sliced ham, portabello mushroom, and tomato. It's then topped with two sunnyside-up eggs, hollandaise and a balsamic reduction. Every bite is a delight for my mouth.

Everything else on the menu is pretty underwhelming. I have sometimes gotten swayed by the specials and the fancy mimosas but they've never been worth it.

The Sunnyside Cafe is located at 1499 Solano Avenue in Albany.

The Alley Cafe, Pinole

"I told you." --Andy

Andy is the pickiest eater on the planet. This is his favorite breakfast place on earth. I hate to admit it, but I love The Alley too. This is the perfect place to go when you're in the mood for a no-nonsense, no frills greasy spoon breakfast. Don't expect any rosemary potatoes or eggs benedict here...They only accept cash and you will leave with arteries slightly more clogged than usual.

They serve hash browns, not home fries, and the toast comes pre-buttered. According to Andy these are the two signs of a great restaurant. While I'm not sure I agree with that, I do agree with paying $4.50 for two sunny side up eggs, four slices of sourdough toast, two entire hot links, and about five potatoes worth of hash browns.

The service here is very nice, sometimes slow when it's busy (there's usually only one waitress and one cook), and they are really big Giants fans. This is the only negative aspect of the place as far as I can tell. There is an old lady who comes in every day wearing an A's jacket, though, and they seem to treat her fine so I'm not too worried about it.

Living in El Cerrito, this place is close enough that it's not a bad trip. If you are in the area and in the mood for a classic greasy spoon diner with charm, check this place out! I try to go later in the morning on Saturdays because it can get packed early on and after church on Sundays. It's a balancing act because they close at 2pm, but if you can, give this place a shot.

The Alley Cafe is located at 2265 Pear Street in Pinole.

Jimmy Beans, Berkeley

I had been meaning to try Jimmy Beans forever because it's one of those cafes that are written up everywhere, and Kete is a partial owner in that group of restaurants (Jimmy Beans, Sea Salt, Lalime's, T-Rex and Fonda). So, since Andy offered to take me anywhere I wanted for lunch and Bette's had already closed, I dragged him to Jimmy Beans.

At Jimmy Beans, you order at the counter and then the food is brought to you. As we walked in, I wasn't too impressed with the inside. I know the place has been around for a while, but it just seemed like a few bottles of bleach would do wonders inside. Also, the guy at the counter was not the most friendly. He basically ignored me until I asked if I could please order.

I was in the mood for breakfast, so I got the Eggs Blackstone (English muffins with tomato, bacon, poached eggs and hollandaise sauce), which comes with a "trio of sauces." Andy got a steak sandwich. After waiting a good twenty minutes (the place was practically empty, so why it took so long, I don't know), they came with our food. My eggs were delicious. The hollandaise sauce was actually done really well, and the bacon was perfectly cooked. After my first egg, I was already full. The rest of the plate, though, I was not too impressed with. The potatoes were pretty uneven--some undercooked and others were burned. It also came with the sauce trio, whatever that was. Basically, they put three dollops on my plate next to the eggs--one was a pesto, the other a tomato salsa and the last was some kind of sweet red pepper sour cream or something to that extent. I didn't really see the point. They were put next to my eggs, so most of the sauces mixed in with the hollandaise which was pretty gross, and I guess it might be interesting to use with the potatoes, but none of the flavors even went together--especially for breakfast! It was confusing and a total waste in my opinion.

Andy can't wait until I get this review up and going because he wants to rant about how awful his steak sandwich was. So, I'll let you all wait to read his commentary on this blog post.

All in all, the eggs were good, everything else, I wasn't too into. I'd much rather go to Bette's for a much cuter atmosphere, better service, better prices (this total came to $27 where Bette's would probably be about $22), and way better food (i.e., no sauce trio business)!

If you would like to go to Jimmy Beans despite my recommendation that Bette's is infinitely better, they are located at 1290 6th Street in Berkeley.
Phone: (510) 528-3435

They are open Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Saturday through Sunday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

They have a website, too: http://www.jimmybeans.com/

Bette's Oceanview Diner, Berkeley

This place has come to be one of my favorite breakfast places in the area. Rachel and I used to always go across the street (from Nolo) to the Westside Bakery and Cafe, and every single time we went, we'd swear to never go again because the food is terrible, the service is terrible, and they are really really really slow. Now that we've found Bette's, we are never going back to Westside.

Bette's is located on Fourth Street in Berkeley, across the street from Eccolo. It is a very small and cute place that serves both breakfast and lunch in and old-time style diner. The service there has been very fast and friendly each time that I've gone there, but make sure to note that they are always very busy--there is usually at least a 15 minute wait each time.

The first time I went to Bette's, I ordered the Maryland Breakfast, which consists of corned beef hash, two poached eggs and toast. The thing I love about their corned beef is that it's fresh and made from scratch. They also cook it well so that it has a nice crispy top to it, but not so it's overcooked--the meat is very tender and the potatoes melt in your mouth. The poached eggs on top are perfectly runny and kind of bring everything together.

My other favorite breakfast at Bette's is the California Breakfast--you get home fries, roasted tomatoes, and toast topped with ham and two poached eggs, covered in a lemon-herb butter sauce. With sourdough toast, this meal is to die for. I sometimes find myself dreaming about the California Breakfast at about 4 a.m. It's very filling, but I never feel heavy after eating it, I think because all of the ingredients are fresh. The eggs are cooked perfectly and the lemon-herb butter has real fresh chives in it. The homefries at Bette's are also pretty exceptional. Unlike most places, they really use a lot of onions and cook the potatoes so that they are crispy and full of flavor. I recommend this meal to anyone.

The beauty of Bette's is that it's a pretty unassuming place in the middle of 4th Street--and all of the meals are at or below $10, which is a really great deal in that area. Go here if you are in the area or just want a really good breakfast.

Bette's is located at 1807 Fourth Street, in Berkeley.
They do not take reservations, but if you want to call them for take-out, they can be reached at (510) 644-3230.

They are open Monday through Friday, 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Saturday through Sunday, 6:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

They also have a website with the menu and information on the take-out store: http://www.worldpantry.com/bettes/home.html