O Chame B+
To celebrate our anniversary, I wanted to take Jason out to a yet-untried but recommended Berkeley restaurant. After checking out Grasshopper and Pearl Oyster Bar, I nixed the small plate idea and settled on O Chame. On Berkeley's hippy-meets-yuppie Fourth Street, O Chame has long been recognized as one of the city's culinary staples. A charming wood-fenced storefront near Sur la Table, the place seats few, so remember to make reservations for weekend dinners. While the decor (very Zen) implies a more formal atmosphere, patrons were dressed casually for such a serene setting. Not quite a Japanese restaurant, but not quite Asian fusion, the restaurant is known for its noodles: udon or soba in a fish broth and different choices of delicacies. It is also known for its appetizers. We sampled the grilled eel on endive salad ($9), the sea scallops on baby greens ($9.50) and the scallion and shitake mushroom pancakes ($6.50). While all the dishes were tasty (the eel and scallops were grilled perfectly), the pancakes were the best value. A considerably large portion of light batter and plenty of scallion and mushroom, the pancakes also come with a miso-type dipping sauce.
In comparison to the appetizers, the noodles appear to be quite a bargain at $10.50. Jason and I both ordered the udon: the pork tenderloin and the grilled oysters. The udon noodles were cooked perfectly and my pork was tender, a good addition to the salty soup. Jason's oysters were tastier, however, and I'm definetely getting that the next time around. The soup comes with spices to make the broth spicier, which I also recommend as the soup base can be slighly bland. With the three appetizers and the two soups with tax and tip, our total bill came out to around $60. Not too bad for the amount of food we had. I was pleasantly suprised by the portions for the soup and the pancake. O Chame also serves entres like salmon and skirt steak (each about $20) which, from my observation, come in miniscule portions.
O Chame is an intimate setting for a small group or a first date. Tasty appetizers and filling soup make this place great for a special occasion and is one of Fourth Street's highlights.
To celebrate our anniversary, I wanted to take Jason out to a yet-untried but recommended Berkeley restaurant. After checking out Grasshopper and Pearl Oyster Bar, I nixed the small plate idea and settled on O Chame. On Berkeley's hippy-meets-yuppie Fourth Street, O Chame has long been recognized as one of the city's culinary staples. A charming wood-fenced storefront near Sur la Table, the place seats few, so remember to make reservations for weekend dinners. While the decor (very Zen) implies a more formal atmosphere, patrons were dressed casually for such a serene setting. Not quite a Japanese restaurant, but not quite Asian fusion, the restaurant is known for its noodles: udon or soba in a fish broth and different choices of delicacies. It is also known for its appetizers. We sampled the grilled eel on endive salad ($9), the sea scallops on baby greens ($9.50) and the scallion and shitake mushroom pancakes ($6.50). While all the dishes were tasty (the eel and scallops were grilled perfectly), the pancakes were the best value. A considerably large portion of light batter and plenty of scallion and mushroom, the pancakes also come with a miso-type dipping sauce.
In comparison to the appetizers, the noodles appear to be quite a bargain at $10.50. Jason and I both ordered the udon: the pork tenderloin and the grilled oysters. The udon noodles were cooked perfectly and my pork was tender, a good addition to the salty soup. Jason's oysters were tastier, however, and I'm definetely getting that the next time around. The soup comes with spices to make the broth spicier, which I also recommend as the soup base can be slighly bland. With the three appetizers and the two soups with tax and tip, our total bill came out to around $60. Not too bad for the amount of food we had. I was pleasantly suprised by the portions for the soup and the pancake. O Chame also serves entres like salmon and skirt steak (each about $20) which, from my observation, come in miniscule portions.
O Chame is an intimate setting for a small group or a first date. Tasty appetizers and filling soup make this place great for a special occasion and is one of Fourth Street's highlights.
1 Comments:
At May 3, 2005 at 3:12 AM,
XFI MMA said…
You ladied make me feel like cooking. Ya'll seem so laid back. Excellent blog. Keep up the good work.
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