As promised, here is the low down on Berkeley restaurants. I personally think this is not something to be spelled out all in one post but briefly, there are about 100 restaurants around the campus-check that, 150 maybe. About 60 will feed you a huge meal for about $6. Most are edible and have some flavor.
Once you step off of the campus area, it will be hard to find a meal for $6 unless your going for a burrito, no extras. Aside from that fact, there are many places to get good food around town and it’s a great excuse to visit a new neighborhood. Out-of-towners, don’t forget to wear layers. If you don’t know what that mean’s because you come from a place with consistent weather, I assure you, despite my hatred for carrying any extraneous items, I have learned to wear several items of clothing that I intend to peel off and carry around with me for a while. Good thing for the ladies that it is now fashionable to wear purses the size of overnight bags.
So for today, I will give you the names of three hidden treasures which I am slightly loath to share as they are already pretty crowded (yes, yes, they are then not that hidden but it’s new to you). The first is Gioia’s Pizza on Hopkins. I am a New York City transplant and if you want amazing, genuine New York style pizza with a twist (the gourmet toppings) go to Gioia’s. Some people may be a little dismayed that I am not highlighting the Cheese Board (I am mentioning it though) because it is awesome, not NY Style pizza but yum; but I feel like the Cheese Board needs to be categorized as Gourmet Ghetto (are you taking notes?) and can be discussed in a later post. Also, the Board is far from being a hidden treasure. It’s kind of synonymous with North Berkeley and I’ll give you a little tour next time.
The second place I want to mention is Bakesale Betties in Temescal. There claim to fame is their chicken fried sandwich. I have a special fondness for this place because they took up a corner store that in prior years held businesses that just kept closing down. That to me is heartbreaking and it makes the neighborhood look bad. After they opened shop, there is so much more character to that ever-densely-trafficked part of town. And they give away free cookies all the time. Please don’t go there with expectations and a droopy face when they don’t hand you a free cookie. It is a gift not a right to get a free Bakesale Betty cookie that just melts in your mouth and makes you happy for possibly 48 hours.
And finally, to close out the triad, let’s talk about Vik’s Chaat Corner. Ok, when you get to Vik’s you will see that, no, Vik’s is no secret. But you need to understand that Vik’s fame grew slowly and just through word of mouth. I first went to Vik’s a decade ago when they occupied half the space they do now and had just a metal, roll-down gate for a front door. It was pretty secret back then, never more than 3 or 4 people seated in the dining area. Now they have customers busting out of their seams and they still deliver consistent amazing food. It’s so affordable that you don’t mind the cafeteria style dining, especially since half of Berkeley is sitting there with you, making it impossible not to run into people you know. Anyway, I think most people take about 2 years before someone lets them in on Vik’s and you wouldn’t go there intuitively because it’s on the edge of town. Walk a few blocks north and you can do a little walk through Berkeley’s 4th Street shopping area. It’s kind of like Berkeley’s version of 5th Avenue, (although, the last time I was in NYC, it looked like Fifth Avenue swallowed the entire city and left nothing to the commoners, for shame) .
Next time, Gourmet Ghetto, Lake Merritt and Solano Avenue Dining. This will be more of a tour for the parents because, though there are plenty of affordable eats in those areas, the restaurants worth talking about do not fit into a college students budget.
