A Day in Berkeley

Eastside Road, February 3, 2012—

SECOND BREAKFAST — or early lunch — at a place new to us, a nice little neighborhood place where we'd had a decent Martini yesterday, when we ducked in to see what this morning's breakfast menu might feature. We had the "Strada," a sort of savory bread pudding involving egg, bread, tomato, corn, peppers, and Fontina, baked, then topped with a thin pesto sauce. A nice way to start the day, with a fine Blue Bottle cappuccino.
• Paisan, 2514 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, California; (510) 649-1031

After a nice five-mile hike, a pot of tea: Mao Jian, a green tea that is absolutely yellow, butter-colored, in the cup; fragrant, a bit fermented, a little tannic toward the end of the third brew.
• Teance, 1780 4th St., Berkeley; (510) 524-2832

A glass or two of Prosecco with an old friend at her house; then dinner downstairs at Chez Panisse. Shrimp and lobster on the menu, but I had delicious substitutes:

Apéritif: Cava flavored with Buddha's hand citrus
Rockfish and winter vegetable tempura with horseradish cream
Jerusalem artichoke velouté with black truffle matchsticks
Grilled yellowfin tuna with lemon and olive salsa, Savoy cabbage and tat soy, and roasted potatoes with green garlic
Crêpes Suzette

no, no photos: just relax and enjoy the eating. And the wines:

Rosé, Domaine Tempier (Bandol), 2010; Chardonnay, Ghostwriter, (Santa Cruz), 2009; Morgon, Côtes de Py, 2010; Riesling, Auslese, Peter Maher, 2001

• Chez Panisse, 1517 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley; 707.548.5525