Good Taste: The best Bay Area Restaurant Week deals
This is Good Taste, your weekly window into the delicious world of Bay Area food. Today, you will find out how to score some solid deals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner over the next few weeks.
It’s officially Restaurant Week season in the Bay Area: Oakland Restaurant Week is on now through Mar. 27, Berkeley Restaurant Week takes place from Mar. 24-Apr. 4, Alameda Restaurant Week goes down on Mar. 25-Apr. 3, and San Francisco Restaurant Week runs from Apr. 1-10.
Though each Restaurant Week is slightly different, the concept is largely the same: participating restaurants offer a special menu for a fixed price. That means there are hundreds of meal deals to be had in the Bay Area over the next few weeks. In San Francisco’s case, for example, you’ll find two-plus-course brunch and lunch deals for $10, $15, $25, and $30 as well as three-plus-course dinner options for $30, $45, $65, and $75.
I encourage you to take a look at the respective Restaurant Week websites to find the best deals for your taste and budget. Here are a few recommendations to whet your appetite.
Oakland Restaurant Week (through Mar. 27)
With 93 participants, you should be able to find something to your liking during the remaining days of Oakland Restaurant Week. If you ask me, this would be an ideal time to try a $25 lunch or dinner combo at Jolly-Jolly Coffee & Kitchen, a Nigerian cafe that opened last April; to try the Ukraine-inspired $45 set dinner by Taiwan Bento, with some proceeds donated to support Ukrainian causes; or to revisit the pizza lusciousness of old-school Chicago-style parlor Zachary’s and BBQ landmark Everett & Jones (deals TBA).
Berkeley Restaurant Week (Mar. 24-Apr. 4)
There are four (confusing) basketball-themed tiers of prices for Berkeley Restaurant Week, but the important detail is that they start at $10 and end at “$40+.” Deals that jump out at me include the $40 tasting menu at Croqueta Burger, a new side project of the tapas bar La Marcha; a $59 tasting at Fish and Bird Sousaku Izakaya, which includes sashimi and local black cod from Half Moon Bay; and the $19 morning set at Sistory Thai Kitchen, which includes a potato and egg curry and a Thai tea pancake.
Alameda Restaurant Week (Mar. 25-Apr. 3)
There are 31 participants in Alameda Restaurant Week, and I noticed right away that there’s a good deal going on at Donut Petit in the mornings. The shop specializes in fun shapes and creative flavors and seems to sell out fairly early every weekend, but if you go on a Restaurant Week day when they’re still open, you can get two free drip coffees with the purchase of a dozen donuts. Unique to this city’s promotion is the participation of the Alameda Cinema Grill and Alameda Comedy Club, in case you want to create an outing out of dinner and a movie or live show.
San Francisco Restaurant Week (Apr. 1-10)
You’ll find multiple deals at La Cocina Municipal Marketplace, including $15 lunches at Boug Cali and Teranga and a $30 lunch or dinner at KAYMA Algerian Eatery (menus TBD). Other potential standouts include the $25 brunch at Fiorella Sunset, which includes a charitable choice of their Alamo Elementary Pie; a two-course lunch at One Market for $25 (with the option to add dessert for $6); and a $45 family style tasting menu at Ritu Indian Soul Food.
Keep feasting with your eyes over at Tamara’s site California Eating.