Chez Panisse (Berkeley, CA)
Unique Divinity
I was at Chez Panisse tonight for dinner. So where were you?
Having researched many restaurants around the country, I have always been intrigued with Chez Panisse due to its combination of completely fixed menus, incredibly lofty reviews (top of many lists of the best restaurants in the US, 13th ranked in the world according to Restaurant Magazine), and significance to the California culinary scene. It has always been near the top of my list of restaurants to go to in the US and I had lucked into a reservation several weeks ago. It was with incredible anticipation and exceedingly high expectations that I embarked on this culinary odyssey tonight.
The Restaurant
As you approach Chez Panisse from the outside, you are immediately struck by its darkness. The building is a redwood cottage and is barely lit from the outside. Aside from the painted Chez Panisse sign above the entryway, the only other marker is a double pane glass enclosed bulletin board listing tonight’s menu for the café and the menu for the downstairs restaurant for the week. Chez Panisse offers two distinct dining options, an a la carte menu in the café, and a multi-course prix fixe, with no options, in the main dining room. Menus changes daily and no two menus are ever identical. The menu for each upcoming week is posted on the preceding Saturday. The menus grow in terms of the number of courses, complexity, and price as the week progresses. Both the café and restaurant are closed on Sundays.
Upon entering the restaurant, you see a set of stairs directly in front of you, with the host’s podium on your right. Chez Panisse Café is located upstairs, while Chez Panisse restaurant is located “downstairs” on the entry level. The restroom is accessible by an extremely narrow hallway to the top left of the stairs.
The first thing that I noticed as I entered the dining room was a very distinctive smell of redwood and a burning wood grill. The smell was fantastic and immediately transported me back to my favorite childhood campfire. The room is small with seating for only 50 people but the tables are well spaced apart. The room is earthy, elegant, and extremely romantic. Floral arrangements are on display throughout the room, including a large bouquet at the entrance of the room. The dining room is completely devoid of pretense, which can also be said of the food, the service, and the restaurant in general. The large, open kitchen is visible from the room so that you can watch the chefs create their masterpieces.
The Food
The overriding theme of the food is simple, earthy, and organic. The food honestly tastes as if it was just plucked directly from the ground or fished directly from the sea. Chez Panisse definitely proves the value of fresh, organic foods, which are supplied by a carefully constructed network of over 60 local farms. It is this unique network that makes San Francisco one of only a handful of metropolitan areas that can accommodate such a restaurant. Alice Waters defined California cuisine over 30 years ago when she opened Chez Panisse. She is intimately involved in with all aspects of the dining experience including everything from menu creation, to room lighting, to ingredient selection. In addition, the kitchens of many of the top restaurants in town are run by former Chez Panisse alumni.
The Service
The service was perfect. Simply perfect. We were completely taken care of yet never felt as if we were being waited on. Such a feat is far more difficult to achieve than the more stereotypical fine dining service. Our server intelligently answered all of my questions regarding the food and restaurant and he seemed thrilled to engage in our conversations. We also spent much time speaking with the host both before and during the meal and his graciousness and sincerity were wonderful. As we left the restaurant, we were thanked by multiple members of the staff. The host even asked if we were going to be in town on New Year’s Eve in an attempt to offer us a reservation that is otherwise impossible to get. The staff is the model of genuine, intelligent, caring, unpretentious, and unobtrusive service.
The Meal
After taking our seats, we quickly glanced over the take home copy of the menu that is printed daily and placed on each place setting. We were soon greeted by an extremely gracious server and were presented with a small plate of Nicoise olives. I ordered a glass of Pinot Noir, which was outstanding.
While waiting for our first course, we received a bread basket containing two loaves of bread from the Acme Bread Company, one traditional sourdough loaf and one pan fondue loaf. The pan fondue bread was unbelievably soft. During the course of our meal, we finished two whole loaves. Although the sourdough bread can be purchased from Acme Bread Company, the pan fondue is uniquely baked for Chez Panisse.
Our first course was roasted Atlantic cod with leeks and green garlic. The Atlantic cod was a substitution for warm Monterey Bay squid which had been listed on the menu that had been posted the previous night. When I asked our server about this, he informed that the availability of fresh fish is variable due to the season. This dish had an amazing vibrant green color and a fantastic fresh garden smell. I was impressed even before I took my first bite. As we took our first bite, all three of us began to laugh. It was simply that good. There is no better way to explain it. The cod just melted in our mouths, was incredibly light, and was devoid of any fishy taste. The green garlic and leeks beautifully complemented the fish and gave the dish a wonderful earthiness.
Our second course was a petite garbure, a cabbage and bean soup with goose confit that is common in the Pyrenes (the soup is also often made with duck confit). The beans were gigantic, impressively fresh, and soft. The broth was light and the cabbage was soft. The goose confit was moist and tender. Once again, this dish had an organic flavor to it that was present in all of the dishes that we had.
Our main course was a grilled Sonoma Poultry Liberty duck breast with orange sauce, citrus risotto, and curly cress. The duck was pristine, tender, and uniformly cooked. The risotto was very light and flavorful. Each bite unleashed a splash of citrus flavor that was amazing. By combining one piece of duck with a forkful of the risotto the dish was transformed into a complex combination of flavor and texture. The accompanying greens provided a textural contrast to the risotto and duck.
When our server brought out the dessert beverage menu, I was delighted to see that Blue Bottle Company coffee was being served. Mom and I had tried this coffee earlier in the day for the first time due to an article that I had read which enumerated the best coffeehouses in the country and we both loved it. Apparently, Chez Panisse has only been serving this coffee for two weeks but Alice Waters has already fallen in love with it. The coffee is served French press style and tonight’s blend was Ethiopian Yirgecheffe. My Dad was so taken with the coffee that he even had a cup. As far as I can remember, this is the first time in my life that I have ever seen my father drink coffee so it is saying quite a lot that he chose to indulge in it.
The dessert for this evening was a Sierra Beauty apple tart with glace aux epices. The tart consisted of a paper thin crust covered with finely sliced apple pieces that had been carefully hand arranged onto the crust. The apple tart was accompanied by a spiced ice cream that contained pieces of tangerine rind inside. Each bite into the rind provided a surprising contrast to the flavorful ice cream. All three of us adored the dessert and were impressed with its deep, rich flavor. Our meal concluded with petit fours consisting of cocoa powder dusted nuts and sugared orange rinds.
Overall the food was uniquely organic, light, and extremely flavorful. My senses of smell, sight, and taste were dazzled throughout the evening. Never before have I had a meal captivate my sense of smell as did this one.
Final Thoughts
So was each dish that I had tonight at the absolute top of my list of dishes that I have ever had? No. Was each dish incredible and unique? Absolutely. Is there another restaurant that could pull off these dishes? Possibly but I highly doubt it. Can I count on one hand the number of times that a dish (in this case the roasted Atlantic cod) has caused me to burst out laughing in sheer disbelief? Yes. Will I have other meals with comparable service? I hope so. Will I have ever another meal with this combination of uniqueness AND food quality AND service AND completeness of the dining experience. Not until the next time that I dine at Chez Panisse.
For those of you who know me, the answer to the obvious question is yes, Chez Panisse is better than Vetri. Each time that I leave Vetri, I am even more convinced that it is the best Italian restaurant in the country. However, having left Chez Panisse, I find it hard to imagine any restaurant anywhere in the world surpassing the unique combination of organic flavors, flawless service, and amazing atmosphere. In essence the entire night’s evening is wholly unique and seemingly unsurpassable. To quote Patricia Unterman, San Francisco’s leading food expert, “I’d rather eat here than anywhere else in the world.” At this point in my culinary life, I could not agree more.
The Facts
Name: Chez Panisse
Address:
1517 Shattuck Avenue
Berkeley, CA
Phone: (510) 548-5525
Website: Chez Panisse
Cuisine: Californian with Mediterranean influences
Price: Monday 3-course prix fixe ($50), Tuesday-Thursday 4-course prix fixe ($65), Friday-Saturday 5-course prix fixe ($75), 17% gratuity added for all parties
I was at Chez Panisse tonight for dinner. So where were you?
Having researched many restaurants around the country, I have always been intrigued with Chez Panisse due to its combination of completely fixed menus, incredibly lofty reviews (top of many lists of the best restaurants in the US, 13th ranked in the world according to Restaurant Magazine), and significance to the California culinary scene. It has always been near the top of my list of restaurants to go to in the US and I had lucked into a reservation several weeks ago. It was with incredible anticipation and exceedingly high expectations that I embarked on this culinary odyssey tonight.
The Restaurant
As you approach Chez Panisse from the outside, you are immediately struck by its darkness. The building is a redwood cottage and is barely lit from the outside. Aside from the painted Chez Panisse sign above the entryway, the only other marker is a double pane glass enclosed bulletin board listing tonight’s menu for the café and the menu for the downstairs restaurant for the week. Chez Panisse offers two distinct dining options, an a la carte menu in the café, and a multi-course prix fixe, with no options, in the main dining room. Menus changes daily and no two menus are ever identical. The menu for each upcoming week is posted on the preceding Saturday. The menus grow in terms of the number of courses, complexity, and price as the week progresses. Both the café and restaurant are closed on Sundays.
Upon entering the restaurant, you see a set of stairs directly in front of you, with the host’s podium on your right. Chez Panisse Café is located upstairs, while Chez Panisse restaurant is located “downstairs” on the entry level. The restroom is accessible by an extremely narrow hallway to the top left of the stairs.
The first thing that I noticed as I entered the dining room was a very distinctive smell of redwood and a burning wood grill. The smell was fantastic and immediately transported me back to my favorite childhood campfire. The room is small with seating for only 50 people but the tables are well spaced apart. The room is earthy, elegant, and extremely romantic. Floral arrangements are on display throughout the room, including a large bouquet at the entrance of the room. The dining room is completely devoid of pretense, which can also be said of the food, the service, and the restaurant in general. The large, open kitchen is visible from the room so that you can watch the chefs create their masterpieces.
The Food
The overriding theme of the food is simple, earthy, and organic. The food honestly tastes as if it was just plucked directly from the ground or fished directly from the sea. Chez Panisse definitely proves the value of fresh, organic foods, which are supplied by a carefully constructed network of over 60 local farms. It is this unique network that makes San Francisco one of only a handful of metropolitan areas that can accommodate such a restaurant. Alice Waters defined California cuisine over 30 years ago when she opened Chez Panisse. She is intimately involved in with all aspects of the dining experience including everything from menu creation, to room lighting, to ingredient selection. In addition, the kitchens of many of the top restaurants in town are run by former Chez Panisse alumni.
The Service
The service was perfect. Simply perfect. We were completely taken care of yet never felt as if we were being waited on. Such a feat is far more difficult to achieve than the more stereotypical fine dining service. Our server intelligently answered all of my questions regarding the food and restaurant and he seemed thrilled to engage in our conversations. We also spent much time speaking with the host both before and during the meal and his graciousness and sincerity were wonderful. As we left the restaurant, we were thanked by multiple members of the staff. The host even asked if we were going to be in town on New Year’s Eve in an attempt to offer us a reservation that is otherwise impossible to get. The staff is the model of genuine, intelligent, caring, unpretentious, and unobtrusive service.
The Meal
After taking our seats, we quickly glanced over the take home copy of the menu that is printed daily and placed on each place setting. We were soon greeted by an extremely gracious server and were presented with a small plate of Nicoise olives. I ordered a glass of Pinot Noir, which was outstanding.
While waiting for our first course, we received a bread basket containing two loaves of bread from the Acme Bread Company, one traditional sourdough loaf and one pan fondue loaf. The pan fondue bread was unbelievably soft. During the course of our meal, we finished two whole loaves. Although the sourdough bread can be purchased from Acme Bread Company, the pan fondue is uniquely baked for Chez Panisse.
Our first course was roasted Atlantic cod with leeks and green garlic. The Atlantic cod was a substitution for warm Monterey Bay squid which had been listed on the menu that had been posted the previous night. When I asked our server about this, he informed that the availability of fresh fish is variable due to the season. This dish had an amazing vibrant green color and a fantastic fresh garden smell. I was impressed even before I took my first bite. As we took our first bite, all three of us began to laugh. It was simply that good. There is no better way to explain it. The cod just melted in our mouths, was incredibly light, and was devoid of any fishy taste. The green garlic and leeks beautifully complemented the fish and gave the dish a wonderful earthiness.
Our second course was a petite garbure, a cabbage and bean soup with goose confit that is common in the Pyrenes (the soup is also often made with duck confit). The beans were gigantic, impressively fresh, and soft. The broth was light and the cabbage was soft. The goose confit was moist and tender. Once again, this dish had an organic flavor to it that was present in all of the dishes that we had.
Our main course was a grilled Sonoma Poultry Liberty duck breast with orange sauce, citrus risotto, and curly cress. The duck was pristine, tender, and uniformly cooked. The risotto was very light and flavorful. Each bite unleashed a splash of citrus flavor that was amazing. By combining one piece of duck with a forkful of the risotto the dish was transformed into a complex combination of flavor and texture. The accompanying greens provided a textural contrast to the risotto and duck.
When our server brought out the dessert beverage menu, I was delighted to see that Blue Bottle Company coffee was being served. Mom and I had tried this coffee earlier in the day for the first time due to an article that I had read which enumerated the best coffeehouses in the country and we both loved it. Apparently, Chez Panisse has only been serving this coffee for two weeks but Alice Waters has already fallen in love with it. The coffee is served French press style and tonight’s blend was Ethiopian Yirgecheffe. My Dad was so taken with the coffee that he even had a cup. As far as I can remember, this is the first time in my life that I have ever seen my father drink coffee so it is saying quite a lot that he chose to indulge in it.
The dessert for this evening was a Sierra Beauty apple tart with glace aux epices. The tart consisted of a paper thin crust covered with finely sliced apple pieces that had been carefully hand arranged onto the crust. The apple tart was accompanied by a spiced ice cream that contained pieces of tangerine rind inside. Each bite into the rind provided a surprising contrast to the flavorful ice cream. All three of us adored the dessert and were impressed with its deep, rich flavor. Our meal concluded with petit fours consisting of cocoa powder dusted nuts and sugared orange rinds.
Overall the food was uniquely organic, light, and extremely flavorful. My senses of smell, sight, and taste were dazzled throughout the evening. Never before have I had a meal captivate my sense of smell as did this one.
Final Thoughts
So was each dish that I had tonight at the absolute top of my list of dishes that I have ever had? No. Was each dish incredible and unique? Absolutely. Is there another restaurant that could pull off these dishes? Possibly but I highly doubt it. Can I count on one hand the number of times that a dish (in this case the roasted Atlantic cod) has caused me to burst out laughing in sheer disbelief? Yes. Will I have other meals with comparable service? I hope so. Will I have ever another meal with this combination of uniqueness AND food quality AND service AND completeness of the dining experience. Not until the next time that I dine at Chez Panisse.
For those of you who know me, the answer to the obvious question is yes, Chez Panisse is better than Vetri. Each time that I leave Vetri, I am even more convinced that it is the best Italian restaurant in the country. However, having left Chez Panisse, I find it hard to imagine any restaurant anywhere in the world surpassing the unique combination of organic flavors, flawless service, and amazing atmosphere. In essence the entire night’s evening is wholly unique and seemingly unsurpassable. To quote Patricia Unterman, San Francisco’s leading food expert, “I’d rather eat here than anywhere else in the world.” At this point in my culinary life, I could not agree more.
The Facts
Name: Chez Panisse
Address:
1517 Shattuck Avenue
Berkeley, CA
Phone: (510) 548-5525
Website: Chez Panisse
Cuisine: Californian with Mediterranean influences
Price: Monday 3-course prix fixe ($50), Tuesday-Thursday 4-course prix fixe ($65), Friday-Saturday 5-course prix fixe ($75), 17% gratuity added for all parties
posted by Mike at
6:00 PM
