Alameda County Restaurants

Located in the unique and historic Lafayette Mercantile Building, Yankee Pier is a lively seafood house offering up locally sourced dishes. Committed to following sustainable practices, Yankee Pier adheres to the strict guidelines of the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program, which promotes healthy ocean wildlife. Choose from a wide variety of options such as the hand-picked Maine Lobster Roll, or Beer battered fish and chips using (surprise) Fish House Ale. Yankee Pier has solid happy hour offerings from beer to bites, as well as a sizeable kid’s menu, ensuring a quality experience for everyone on your guest list.

Located in downtown Lafayette, Amarin Thai Cuisine offers the flavorful Thai dishes in a good atmosphere. Open 7 days a week for lunch and dinner, Amarin has many Thai favorites like Pad Thai Noodles and their own House Curry: Medium spicy red curry with your choice of protein, coconut milk, kaffir lime, bamboo shoots, and Thai basil. Start your meal with their delicious appetizers or soups like their Tom Yum Prawn soup: a healthy arrangement of lemongrass, chili paste, mushrooms baby corn, and prawn. Amarin Thai Cuisine hands down has the go-to Thai restaurant if you are in Downtown Lafayette.

For generations, people have been coming to Silver Dragon to indulge in their authentic Chinese cuisine, making this establishment a tradition for most. Located in Oakland Chinatown, Silver Dragon serves guests from sizes of a dinner of four to large parties from weddings, banquets, and corporate events, serving them favorites like Peking Duck with steamed blossom rolls and Lobster with Braised Noodle. Silver Dragon has been open since 1956, offering tasty Chinese dishes and they plan to continue for generations.

Located in Oakland on Piedmont Ave, Xyclo offers classic Vietnamese cuisine for people that have modern day and complex palettes. Xyclo serves only the freshest and highest ingredients to create playful textures, flavors, and aromas. Modern and minimalistic, Xyclo interior design showcases an arrangement of wood accents and colorful lighting that creates a beautiful and relaxing arena. In addition, their lounge named the “Red Room” creates a sexy environment with custom “puzzle” chandeliers, accent lighting, and candles to have a few drinks with your loved one or friends.

Innovating and unique, Mezze offers a pan-Mediterranean cuisine that changes with the seasons. Their menu has a wide variety of choices that they make special in taste and design like their Housemade Gnocchi served with pulled duck confit. Every night along side with their Dinner menu, Mezze has a three-course prix-fixe menu. In addition, every other month Mezze has a special four-course prix-fixe menu that features traditional dishes from cities all along the Mediterranean Basin. Mezze always tries to give back to the regulars that keep on coming back. So Mezze offers a Corkage-free night on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesday.

Located in the heart of Glenview district in Oakland, Bellanico is a continuation of Chris Shepherd and Elizabeth Frumusa’s legacy of opening fantastic restaurants in North California. Derived from their daughter’s name, Bellancio serves rustic Italian cuisine. By keeping everything fresh and inventive, Bellancio changes their menu every season and is dedicated to serve the best seasonal, local, sustainable, and organic food possible. Inside their establishment, Bellancio has a small wine bar offering Old World wines emphasizing the Italy region. Bellanico is a local gem waiting to serve you when you are in the neighborhood.

Doing its part to be environmentally sound and organic is Lalime’s philosophy: local farmers markets and small distributers provide the restaurant’s produce, and the availability of such ingredients directly influences the menu. This health-conscious mindset manifests itself in a menu that balances freshness and flavor. Cold appetizers like the Cold-Smoked Scottish Salmon highlight fresh, natural flavors , while the Rack of Sonoma Lamb satisfies the appetite and fuels good intentions. Local regional wines also have a place on the menu, and are balanced nicely between Old and New World varieties.

There is nothing intimidating or vicious about T-Rex Barbeque. In fact, its open, two story floor-plan and warm décor are quite inviting. T-Rex is “Berkeley Barbeque” – using only antibiotic and hormone-free meats, sustainable fish, and organic produce (whenever possible) – no bull whips to be found here, folks. You will find a Pulled Pork Omelette, Oysters on the Half Shell, and Grilled Steelhead Salmon. T-Rex also has an international beer selection worthy of applause, and a weeknight happy-hour schedule that encourages you to put it to the test.

When Chez Panisse was conceived in 1971, it was the most atypical of restaurants in America, designing its menu daily based on the freshest seasonal and local ingredients. Though this unique approach to food has since gained momentum, Chez Panisse is still one of the most influential proponents of the move towards a more sustainable approach to food. With Alice Waters at the helm, Chez Panisse stays true to its initial vision, serving one fixed price menu daily, based on what is freshest at the moment. Still in its birthplace in a converted house in liberal-minded Berkeley, Chez Panisse retains …

Yoshi’s San Francisco, the jazz club and Japanese restaurant, has a new location in Oakland. About Yoshi's: Chef Shotaro Kamio has brought the best of his experience as an apprentice to top chefs in Tokyo to his own work here stateside with Yoshi's. Finding the perfect balance between using traditional Japanese cooking methods, seasonal ingredients, and authentic spices, Chef Kamio uses three words to describe his cuisine: Seasonal, Simple, and Surprise. Try the Maple Leap Duck Takaki (with summer vegetables, a Saikyo miso vinaigrette, and Welsh vanilla sea salt) or the Tsukiji Sashimi Selection (five varieties of seasonal fish from …

BayWolf Restaurant in Oakland has been one of the key players in creating and leading the Bay Area dining revolution for over 34 years because of the care, creativity, and inventive approach it takes to provide outstanding food in a relaxed setting. Their monthly menu specializes in French and Italian cuisine with a California attitude. BayWolf has always used local ingredients at their peak with a focus on wonderful duck preparations. The restaurant itself is a comfortable, old house whose modern art collection charms the dinner guests. BayWolf provides a memorable dining experience for romantic dinners as well as family …

A Cote restaurant is symbolic of Oakland’s Rockridge neighborhood--cozy, friendly, and inviting. Jack and Daphne Knowles planned it that way, and their careful choices are reflected not only in the decor, but in the food and atmosphere. Everything in this restaurant reinforces the idea of intimacy, from the family style dishes to the wood fired oven in the open kitchen. Their Mediterranean cuisine is perfect for an intimate dinner for two, or for an after work bite with coworkers after a hard day. This is definitely a place to fill your belly and ease your mind.