If you want plan to make a day out of it in Davis and walk across campus rather than stay in the 10 min walk downtown area, I’ve gotten some excellent food from Chengdu Style during the pandemic. I’d appreciate any updates on Downtown eateries too!
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In Berkeley, Augie’s is closed indefinitely. On Fourth St. I can recommend Pollara Pizza, “Roman” style with a remarkably light crust. There’s the higher-end Cal-Italian Zut!, with outdoor seating, and Bette’s, a retro American diner (with very long waits at lunch time).
The Emeryville Public Market has only about a third of the stalls it had before the renovation. Super Duper is good. Minnie Bell’s fried chicken is superlative. There’s also a decent enough ramen place. A Palestinian stall, Mamma Lamees, gets good reviews but I haven’t tried it yet.
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Thank you!
Not ready to “test” son and DIL, who recently arrived after a few years in Turkey, with Mamma Lamees. It might be perfect in a few months!
I’ve been to Bette’s and enjoyed it, but not sure it’s an Amtrak destination for me. I might have to add something to my agenda besides eating!
Unless it’s fried chicken. I could spend a day sampling fried chicken.
I might have to bring my car.
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Augie’s went on hiatus a few weeks ago and I think they are still closed. That stop is only a block away from the heart of 4th St. I have not eaten on 4th since Cafe Rouge closed but Bette’s used to be good. I do like Catahoula Coffee which is 1 block south of this stop.
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It’s been a while, but I did have a nice meal at Iyasare on 4th St several years ago.
About 11 years ago, I enjoyed La Furia Chalaca on Broadway, for Peruvian. I haven’t had that much Peruvian food, and there might be better options elsewhere, but I thought it was a neat place for a resto pretty close to JLS.
The website seems to have expired , here is the menu via Grub Hub (realize the online reviews are mediocre) https://www.grubhub.com/restaurant/la-furia-chalaca-310-broadway-oakland/1095865?affiliate=1143&utm_source=tripadvisor-affiliate-network&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=1143&utm_content=1095865
Our only Burmese restaurant in Toronto closed in 2019, so I’m hoping to have Burmese food next time I visit the East Bay (or Saskatoon- nice Burmese restaurant in Saskatoon!)
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Thank you!
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Sadly, Slainte is closing at the end of this month, citing lower traffic and higher crime rates. We had another great fish & chips dinner there yesterday.
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Quite a few restaurants closing more recently in the Bay area - feels like it is accelerating
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I’m sure OP has had her excursion.
I wouldn’t recommend travelling alone, a group would be best.
Not yet! And since then, daughter moved to Oakland.
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Dim sum in Chinatown is another option in Oakland that isn’t too far from JLS.
While the location isn’t close to the Amtrak station, I like the restaurants on one stretch of Piedmont Ave.https://www.piedmontavenue.org/resturants
Sorry Shrinkwrap, I guess you didn’t get there yet.
My old crew has abandoned Oakland because of the crime, everywhere and have gone elsewhere. Yoshi’s was our favorite BITD and has grown immensley. Great Jazz. Be safe!
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Thank you for the update. We go, but by car.
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I loved going to Sacto from Oakland for a day trip on Amtrak on the CC. Took the kids a few times BITD to the Rail Museum and old town. Of course BITD you could go anywhere without a care. We could walk to JLS from the boardwalk, the Gingerbread House, Mexicali Rose, El Caballo all without caution. Please watch where you park in Oakland. Something has been going very wrong there recently and the crime has driven great eateries and their customers out. Our friends, who actually live across the tube, had their little Prius ‘smashed and grabbed’ at the Amtrak station just last week. The booty? Two bags of dirty laundry😆. Not so funny.
Maybe look at Alameda’s choices?
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I’m sad to hear this. My uncle lived in Oakland until he passed away, and we would usually meet him at restaurants around JLS. I probably ate at 2 dozen restaurants within a mile of JLS from the 1970s until 2010.
We ate at Scott’s Seafood the most.
I remember staying at the Best Western on Broadway around 2008, and it was already a fairly scary place to stay. There was dried blood on one of the clean towels 
We stayed at the small hotel on JLS once, which was nice inside, but it didn’t feel too safe walking around after dusk. I stayed at an inn on the water in San Leandro another time, around 2013. The hotel itself was nice, but it was disturbing to see a middle-aged male guest check in with a much, much, much younger woman who appeared to be a sex worker.
Our last 3 visits to the area, we stayed in Berkeley when we stayed closer to Oakland. On my most recent visit in 2018, we stayed further away, closer to Orinda, for a wedding taking place near Orinda.
I’m really sad to hear the crime and poverty have become worse. It’s become worse here, in Canada, too.
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And let’s not forget substance use, and illness, mental and otherwise.
I don’t know how long it’s been like this, but I felt it when visiting New Orleans as well.
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Yes. I can imagine it is like this in many cities right now.
I realize this is your area of expertise.
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Chop Bar has closed https://www.sfgate.com/food/article/chop-bar-oakland-restaurant-closed-18262921.php
Slainte is closing at the end of this month https://oaklandside.org/2023/10/04/restaurant-closing-slainte-mama-judy-kaffa-galeto/
Blus Bottle JLS is long gone, and now Cellarmaker Brewery https://sfist.com/2022/01/25/sfs-cellarmaker-brewing-to-take-over-former-blue-bottle-warehouse-in-oakland-for-new-pizza-and-beer-spot/
Lanesplitter on University is long gone https://www.berkeleyside.org/2021/12/10/lanesplitter-pizza-closing-babette-bampfa-opens-berkeley
Things change fast around here these days, so check with places before making plans!
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Those earlier days were the best for memories. We’d do our Christmas shopping around the square, hit up all the many old timey seafood restaurants, old style Italian Luigi’s on Broadway, the Sirloin & Brew for great salads, cheap wine and questionable steak products, visit The Elegant Farmer restaurant on my great aunt’s b’day (it was her favorite) and if we planned it right, we’d watch the holiday estuary parade where all the fancy boats would show off their lighted yachts and speedboats. Had a few reunion parties at Scott’s. Sigh.
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