French and fabulous. Fringale is in my neighborhood of SOMA so it’s a quick walk from work for lunch and an even closer walk from my house for dinner.

I went to Fringale for lunch during the Appetite Stimulus Plan that Open Table did this month. Three course lunch for $21. Not bad. My mixed greens salad was crisp with just the right amount of dressing. I hate salads that have really drippy dressing. That was the most memorable part of the meal. My main course was a pasta dish that was good, but not great.

The atmosphere makes you feel like you just stumbled into a secret place only the locals know about…which is sorta true.

My only complaint is the size of the dessert they offered for lunch! It’s so darn big! I hate wasting food, but who can eat like that and then go back to work?! I just want a taste!

Anyway…you should go if you’re in the neighborhood.

Why is Fingale so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)
Food: 7
Drinks: I had water. The wine list looked great though.
Atmosphere: 8
Price: $20/person
Summary: Worth a visit.

My new obsession. Nothing else really needs to be said. Blue Barn is quite possibly the best lunch place in the entire Bay. It’s in the notoriously difficult to find parking area of the Marina in SF. As most of you know, I live in the Easy Bay. Even with gas being as expensive as it is my little Prius and I have no problem making the trip across the bridge to dine at this haunt.

They make sandwiches and salads using organic and sustainably grown meats and produce. They also have an option to build your own salad and they let you pretty much create any variations to any of the sandwiches too. My favorite sandwich is the grilled Burrata. (Burrata cheese is also one of my newest obsessions…)The tostada salad is also amazing as well. I can never choose between the two. Add steak to it and it’s positively wonderful.

They also have tons of natural tea and chips to choose from to go with your meal.

I enjoy people watching and this place is my favorite place to do that. It’s located on Chestnut St, which not only makes for great people watching, but it really makes me wish I had a dog to walk!

If you try one place in SF….try Blue Barn.

Why is Blue Barn so festive?
(All ratings are out of 10.)
Food: 9
Drinks: 8
Atmosphere: 8
Price: $15/person
Summary: MUST GO!

Whenever I walk into Gregoire I think about that scene in Mrs. Doubtfire where Robin Williams is trying to cook that amazing dinner and ends up burning everything so he has to call out for some equally amazing take out.  This is the place I would call if I was ever in a similar bind.

Their menu changes monthly and they are open for both lunch and dinner.  They have locations in Oakland and Berkeley, but both have very limited seating.

Heston and I joke that we can never get out of there for less than $50 because everything always sounds so yummy that you want to try it all.  I beg to differ….It was only $38 for both of us a few nights ago and we had leftovers!  The March menu let us try the baked boneless Cornish hen with tomato and garlic stuffing with chicken gravy as well as the grilled beef bavette medallions, lemon and parsley butter. YUM!  We also tried the potato puffs, which are completely unnecessary…but amazing and wonderful all at the same time.  You’ve gotta try those!

It’s classy take out for when you want a gourmet meal without going out.   Grab a great bottle of wine to pair with what you order and enjoy.

You can find the changing menu here.

Why is Gregoire so festive?

(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 8

Drinks: n/a

Atmosphere: 4

Price: $18/person

Cheeseboard is a lunchtime staple on the Northside of Berkeley.   They offer one kind of pizza per day so you pretty much walk in an tell them if you want a whole pizza or just a slice.  The only real decision you have to make is what you want to drink.

The pizza we had was red bell peppers, onions, mozzarella, asiago, garlic olive oil, and fresh herbs.  The pizza was good…full of flavor and not too heavy for lunch.  (You can also pick them up for dinner.) The only downside is that when pizza crust is so thin as it is at Cheeseboard it can become rigid and difficult to chew.  Now…don’t get me wrong…this pizza was darn good.

They had live jazz music too!  It’s a Wednesday afternoon!  You really get a sense of community here and I really liked that.  It makes me remember what I enjoyed about living in Berkeley!

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 7

Atmosphere: 6.5

Jupiter is a beerhouse in Berkeley that I’ve enjoyed for years. My boyfriend and I used to live four blocks away so we were there all the time. Now instead of going at least once a week we go a few times a month.

The building is an old stable from the 1890’s that really gives it a unique feel. They have live music Tuesday-Sunday in the summer and on the weekends in the winter. They have an outdoor fire pit and plenty of heaters for the colder Berkeley nights.

They brew all their own beer so it’s not the same old stuff you can get anywhere. They recently got rid of my favorite beer, Sunspot Gold! I was really bummed, but then I found the house lager is good too. Apparently Sunspot is returning this summer. You can find the beer menu here, but I’m not sure how up-to-date it is as Sunspot is still on the menu.

Besides the yummy beer, Jupiter has fantastic salads and an array of wood fired pizzas to choose from. They’ve been updating their menu lately to include some new additions. The Eutropia (everything is Greek god themed) is a new favorite of mine. It has bacon, fresh spinach, tomato, and white cheddar cheese with an olive oil crust. It’s served with ranch dressing on the side. An old standby is the Cassiopeia, which is a BBQ chicken pizza with fresh cilantro. Yum! You can find the entire dinner menu here.

It’s important to note that Jupiter also owns Bear’s Lair and Triple Rock which are also in Berkeley…and also a lot of fun.

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 7.5
Atmosphere: 9

If you’re downtown and need a quick snack or want to meet for drinks Thirsty Bear is a great place. It tends to be a watering hole for the after work crowd both young and old. It’s also popular with the tech crowd.

Thirsty Bear brews all organic beers right there and they offer Spanish style small plates. The food is good…but the drinks are better. The Valencia Wheat beer is my favorite as well as a Persephone’s Kiss that’s pomegranate juice and some special vodka. Both of those are a must try.

Like I said…the food isn’t too memorable but it’s good. I recommend the Spanish meatballs and the mixed greens salad. The one plate that I get everytime and definitely stands apart from the rest is the calamari. The only place that I’ve liked the calamari more is at The Paragon. A good rule of thumb is to order at least 1-2 plates per person depending on how hungry you are. I was recently there for lunch with a friend and we shared 3 plates between us.

Check it out if you’re in the neighborhood or visiting Moscone for a conference.

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 7

Atmosphere: 7

I decided to take a mid-week trip over to Marin to do some shopping and catch up with some friends. We decided to try Table Cafe. We ended up walking really far down Magnolia Ave. in Larkspur because thought it was close to all the cute shops in that area. Turns out it was actually really far down and on the border of Kentfield! I think it was more than a mile each way.

Table Cafe was definitely worth the walk! When we got there we were greeted by a woman that, I think, owns the place. She explained the different nature of the food there and teased us for having red cheeks and walking all that way. She was very nice.

The food there is mostly dosai. Dosai are Indian style crepes that have all kinds of lovely things inside of them. It’s basically a crepe and a burrito with anything you could ever want inside. I ordered the chicken, spinach, and goat cheese dosai. They serve each dosai with three choices of sides/dips. The first is this amazing pear chutney that has hints of cinnamon. The second is mango avocado and the last is apple and onion…which sounds weird, but it’s actually pretty unique.

They also have tons of salads and soups if you’re not into being adventurous with the dosai. They make a killer Arnold Palmer too. (That’s iced tea and lemonade for all you noobs.) One of the best parts is that they use all locally grown and organic produce. Much of their menu is organic.

Table Cafe used to be Tabla Cafe a few years ago. (The owners had to change their name due to a lawsuit from a Tabla in NYC.) They don’t have a website, but you can find them here:

1167 Magnolia Ave. Larkspur, CA 415-461-6787

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 7.5

Atmosphere: 6

La Note is hands down THE BEST place for brunch in Berkeley and unfortunately, everyone knows it! (The only exception would be the champagne brunch at the Claremont on Sundays.)

On the weekends the wait for La Note can easily be two hours to get a seat in this small provincial haunt. (Try the mimosas…they’re awesome.) I’ve been there many times for brunch so for this review we’re going to talk about lunch only.

I went with some friends on a lazy Saturday and ordered the poulet grille. (Poulet means chicken in French.) It’s a chicken sandwich with marinated grilled chicken breast with roasted red peppers, aioli, with sun dried tomato pesto on a warm roll. It was so good that I ate the entire thing. I usually stay away from sandwiches with all kinds of stuff on them because they tend to get sloppy and fall apart. They are usually really good, just tough to eat!

I highly recommend La Note for any meal. I’ve taken my parents there, my boyfriends parents, and anyone else that comes to visit. It’s great and totally affordable. You can find their menu here.

Why is La Note so festive?

(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 8

Drinks: 6

Atmosphere: 8

Price: $22/person for dinner or $16/person for lunch

I’ve always enjoyed Pizza My Heart since my family vacations every year in the Monterey area. Over the past few years PMH has expanded their offerings to other parts of the Bay Area. It was nice to see that Bay Street in Emeryville was picked for one of their locations. Since I live on top of Bay St. This was even better.

I usually just order a slice at a time, which is fun because you can get a shirt and a slice for $5. Great deal since the slices are pretty big. Now that I’ve got my collection of PMH shirts…I clearly do not need anymore! This time I decided to go with an entire pizza to share with Heston (my boyfriend). We ordered the Natural Bridges since it has ricotta and pesto with tomatoes on it. Yum! They delivered the pizza right to our door. (I remember this from when I had a broken foot and couldn’t walk anywhere!) We enjoyed the pizza for two meals since it was so big and thought that it was a quick fix if we’re ever in a bind for dinner.

It’s not the healthiest, unique, or most festive option, but it gets the job done. Their menu can be found at their website.

Ratings (out of 10):

Food: 5

Drinks: n/a

Atmosphere: 5

Price: $5/person

Cancun is a great lunch spot in downtown Berkeley that it totally worth the drive into congested downtown if you’re not already in the area. When Heston and I used to live in the area this was always a cheap standby for a quick lunch or last minute dinner.

They’ll make anything you really want. I’ve made some pretty odd requests over the years and they’ve never let me down. I recommend the chicken quesadilla. The way they grill it makes the whole thing really crunchy and yummy.

The chicken tacos are also worth a try, but they can be pretty greasy. If you’re not worried about exactly what you’re eating Cancun is great. If you are…then…it might not be for you because most things here can be pretty unhealthy….but IT’S SO GOOD!

I think what makes people come back so often is the giant salsa bar. They have over 30 different types of salsas that they rotate through their salsa bar. Everything from avocado salsa to mango and chipotle. Very good and worth a trip just for the salsa.

Cancun does not have a reliable website as it is often down, but you can find their menu here.

Why is Cancun so festive?

(All ratings are out of 10.)

Food: 6

Drinks: 6 (Great Horchata!)

Atmosphere: 4

Price: $7/person