East Bay residents have had a front-row seat to Oakland’s steady rise to the top of the Bay Area’s restaurant scene.
There have been more than a few hiccups along the way—extraordinary food doesn’t always translate into a restaurant’s survival in The Town’s challenging business climate—but Oakland’s chefs aren’t just immensely talented; they’re scrappy as hell.
That’s good news for the rest of us. Whether you live nearby or call San Francisco, Marin, or the Peninsula home, it’s hard to go wrong with a meal in Oakland. From Daytrip Counter to Jaji, these six new restaurants are well worth braving traffic for.
Sirene
(Courtesy of @sirene_oak)
Like the mythical, fish-tailed women who lured sailors to the sea, Sirene is irresistible. California seafood is the restaurant’s lure: spiny lobster and leek terrine, abalone with garlic butter, halibut crudo with mussel vinaigrette, whole-roasted petrale sole with persillade sauce. But this slinky gal from the deep has more than one trick up her sleeve—the most abundant of which is chef Gavin Schmidt’s fried chicken, a tower of wings and legs that comes with an array of sauce and side choices. With its exposed brick walls and wood-beam ceilings, Sirene leans more casual than fine dining, but don’t tell the kitchen (or the wine list). Here, impeccable quality and great taste are happily betrothed to the comfy, neighborhood vibe.
// 3308 Grand Ave. (Oakland), sirene-oak.com
Understory
(Courtesy of @understoryoakland)
Understory isn’t exactly new—it just feels that way. The worker-owned cooperative with a virtually unheard-of pay-what-you-can-model left its original location last June rather than compromise its radical, people-first model. But last week, Understory reopened its doors, this time in a space nearly double the size of the original in the Fruitvale District. The largely POC- and queer-owned restaurant, which sources seasonal ingredients from local BIPOC producers, specializes in comforting dishes from around the globe: think pork lumpia, short rib kaldereta, and chicken inasal, plus a daily sliding-scale lugaw (savory rice porridge with mushrooms). Tuesday through Friday from 9am to 2pm, the restaurant turns on its cafe charm, offering specialty non-alcoholic drinks like ube horchata and tres leches matcha lattes, sandwiches, and a work-from-home-friendly atmosphere.
// 3340 International Blvd. (Oakland), understoryoakland.com
Jaji
(Courtesy of Jaji)
The contemporary Afghani restaurant Jaji is completely different from its Colombian sibling Parche (2295 Broadway), but still clearly a part of the family, with both spots sharing festive vibes, expertly executed cocktails, and a celebration of rich ancestral food traditions. Named for co-owner Sophia Akbar’s Pashtun tribe, Jaji is rooted in the stories of Afghan women. The menu reflects both heritage flavors and modern, diasporic influences with dishes like savory bolani triangles (roasted winter squash, crispy leeks, green chutney), ducktu (confit duck dumplings with miso-ginger consommé), and the showstopping whole McFarland trout (jalebi, green cardamom-chili, herb salad, sour orange-saffron rice, candied cara cara). Don’t skip dessert. We’d go for the dark chocolate pistachio cake and green cardamom Basque cheesecake alone.
// 422 24th St. (Oakland), jajioak.com
Daytrip Counter
(Courtesy of @daytripcounter)
Like everyone else in town, we were more than disappointed when Daytrip, North Oakland’s celebration of all things fermentation, closed down late last year. But all was not lost. Last week, co-owners Finn Stern and Stella Denning opened a more casual, more affordable spinoff: Daytrip Counter. The menu has been overhauled with an eye toward how much bang in flavor and quality they can get for their buck. Their spit-roasted chickens, injected with butter and stock and smothered in spice, are definitely the stars of the revamped show, along with intriguing salads and sides like hot honey butter green beans and jammy, umami eggs. The restaurant, decked out with a new marigold sheen, is open daily for lunch and dinner.
// 4316 Telegraph Ave. (Oakland), daytripcounter.com
Sun Moon Studio
(Courtesy of @sun_moon_studio_)
Food critic MacKenzie Chung Fegan called it first: West Oakland’s Sun Moon Studio is the best “new restaurant in the Bay Area,” she wrote in the SF Chronicle in December. Michelin jumped on board in March, adding the hole-in-the-wall restaurant to their California guide—the only restaurant from the East Bay to be added all year. Clearly, chefs Alan Hsu and Sarah Cooper are doing something right. Just four tables can partake in Sun Moon Studio’s farmer- and producer-driven tasting menu at a time, a meal that may include anything from tomato tart with Shaoxing wine–oyster sauce reduction to brioche-wrapped Taiwanese sausage buns to rock shrimp noodles with peas and yuzu kosho. Due to its small stature and glowing reputation, this is one you’ll definitely have to plan ahead for. Reservations are released six weeks in advance.
// 1940 Union St., Ste. 21 (Oakland), sunmoonstudio.com
June’s Pizza
(Courtesy of @junes_pizza)
Another former loss is once again Oakland’s gain. After a three-year hiatus, cult-favorite pop-up June’s Pizza was resurrected late last year as a West Oakland brick-and-mortar. The concept is simple, but the pies are anything but—two pizza offerings a day: margherita and a special, like morel mushrooms with ramps and buttermilk cream or spicy coppa with honey (a handful of extra toppings can be added to either). Be prepared to brave a crowd and go early—they’ve been known to sell out at ridiculous speeds.
// 2408 Mandela Pkwy (Oakland), junespizza.com
