The countdown to complete holiday shopping has begun, and Nosh is here to help with the foodie on your gift list. East Bay residents are in a good position to come up with gifts and goodies for loved ones who love cooking, eating or both – all available at local shops and businesses. Whether you’re trying to please someone with a sweet tooth, a wannabe cook or baker, a coffee lover or an adventurous gastronome, you can find the perfect present by shopping locally. You will find an array of gifts below, from online cooking classes to Top Chef-crafted desserts.
Eye-catching confections
As the saying goes, good things come in small packages. Each of these distinctive desserts-in-a-jar was created by former Top Chef contestant and cookbook author Fabio Viviani and are available from JARS at Bay Street Emeryville, which opened in October. Each jar is filled with a unique combination of textures and flavors: cake, creamy custard, cookies and fruit, topped with sweet embellishments. Current offerings include raspberry double chocolate cake, Mexican spiced hot chocolate and pumpkin cheesecake. Fan favorites are banana cream Pie and oreo cookies and cream. In December, JARS will offer two seasonal flavors — gingerbread house and peppermint mocha eggnog. The jars are available in a party pack of six ($47.99), or twelve-packs of minis (classic or seasonal) for $48.99. Individual jars are $8.29. Dessert is covered!
JARS by Fabio Viviani: 5649 Bay Street (across from the Apple Store), Emeryville
Fourth Street foodie finds
A spin through Sur la Table and Builders Booksource on Berkeley’s Fourth Street produced inspired gift ideas for the holidays.
First, books: Smitten Kitchen Every Day: Triumphant & Unfussy New Favorites by Deb Perelman, and The Cheese Board Collective Works by the Cheese Board Collective. For the adventurous: Gastro Obscura: A Food Adventurer’s Guide by Cecily Wong and Dylan Thuras; and Willie and Annie Nelson’s Cannabis Cookbook. Finally, for those who are anticipating a dry January or just looking for non-alcoholic beverage options: Nixology: Low to No Alcohol Cocktails by Elouise Anders.
Some creative gift ideas for people who enjoy entertaining others and/or serving spectacular waffles: The Cheese Board Deck: 50 Cards for Styling Spreads, Savory & Sweet by Meg Quinn — a beautifully illustrated guide for creating outstanding edible displays with all manner of fruits, cheeses, vegetables and garnishes. Or, consider several types of seasoning blends (cacio e pepe, truffle parmesan, French mustard herb or anchor honey citrus) — all under the Sur la Table label. In the waffle department, look for the Belgian or Liège waffle mixes and select from a choice of syrups: Runamok maple syrup with sparkles, salted caramel maple, or pumpkin spice.
How about a popcorn and movie night party package? All the supplies you’ll need are here: a variety of seasonings (white cheddar, movie theater butter, sweet caramel), and several types of popcorn — or check out the set that includes popcorn and five seasonings. Popcorn poppers and red and white striped popcorn boxes complete the theme.
Sur la Table: 1806 Fourth St., Berkeley; surlatable.com
Builders Booksource: 1817 4th St., Berkeley; https://www.buildersbooksource.com/
Cupcake of the Month Club
Just in time for gifting season, Angel Cakes Collective has reinstituted one of its most delectable gift ideas — a subscription for monthly pickup or delivery of Angel Cakes cupcakes Each order will include three each of crowd-pleasing Meyer Lemon Cream, Chocolate Salted Caramel, and Red Velvet cupcakes, along with seasonal and specialty varieties. Choose how many cupcakes per order and how many months you want your gift to keep on giving. Prices range from $45 to $65 per dozen, depending on delivery. Or, let your intended recipients choose from the tempting offerings by giving them a gift certificate.
Angel Cakes: 745 Fifth St. (at Brush), Oakland; angelcakes510.com
Learn all about lamination from a pro
Have a friend or family member who is a budding baker? A video tutorial ($60) on making hand-laminated croissants from Green House Bakery founder Rachel Caygill might encourage them to try making some to share. Green House Bakery is located in the Maxwell Park neighborhood in East Oakland, specializing in small-batch handmade pastries that attract lines before the doors open. Prior to going into business for herself, Caygill worked at New York’s Gramercy Tavern, Market Restaurant and Bar in Del Mar and as a private chef. Caygill recently demoed her video instruction skills for Nosh, breaking down her pancake recipe for Breakfast Week.
Grean House Bakery: greenhousebakeryoakland.com
Cocktail kits fit for a celebration
For your cocktail-loving friends and family, check out these kits that contain “Everything you need to make awesome cocktails at home (except citrus).” Get the party started with Reconquista: A Mezcal Negroni, with ingredients for 20 cocktails; Bee’s Knees: A classic honey gin sour, with ingredients for 12 cocktails (lemon juice required); and the ever-popular East Bay original Mai Tai, with ingredients (Denizen Vatted Rum, Cointreau, orgeat and cane sirop — lime juice required) for 12 cocktails. A (mostly) locally focused Negroni kit comes with St. George Spirits Valley gin, Mommenpop Kumquat Pop aperito, and Tximista Blanco Vermouth from the Basque Region of Spain. The kit ($99.99) contains the makings for 25 cocktails. Is there a Japanese whisky aficionado on your gift list? Know someone looking for the best Agricole rum? You’ll find a staggering array of options to choose from here.
Prizefighter Bottle Shop 1320 67th St. (at Hollis), Emeryville; prizefighterbottleshop.com
Hone your kitchen skills
Is someone you know looking to expand their culinary skills and explore new food options? Kitchen on Fire in Oakland and Berkeley offers classes in person or virtually. There are cllasses in a wide range of international cuisines, an introduction to knife skills,and a class on making Italian holiday cookies. Individual classes cost around $200.
Kitchen on Fire: 1509 Shattuck Ave in Berkeley and 6506 San Pablo in Oakland; kitchenonfire.com
A Cookbook from East Bay-grown talent
Oakland-raised chef Tu David Phu has closed out 2024 strongly. He recently launched his new San Francisco wine bar, Gigi’s, and his cookbook written with Soleil Ho, The Memory of Taste: Vietnamese American Recipes from Phú Quoc, Oakland, and the Spaces Between, came out in September. Stories of Phu’s childhood in Oakland are interspersed with seafood-heavy recipes drawn from his Vietnamese roots, pop-ups and restaurants. The book includes Phu’s Oakland Vietnamese restaurant recommendations, and when Nosh interviewed him around the time of the book’s release, Phu called the book a love letter to Oakland and his mom. Signed copies of the book can be purchased for $32.50 from TalkShop.
A one-stop, one-day shop for coffee lovers
Pick up the right gift for the java fanatic in your life at the Oakland Coffee Market on Dec. 14 , an event celebrating Oakland’s fantastic and diverse collection of coffee shops and roasters. Among the offerings is Sāe’s Holiday Black Box, which includes a bag of coveted award-winning La Noria Reserve coffee beans from Ecuador. Attendees will be able to shop for all sorts of coffee-related gifts, sample some brew, check out new equipment and possibly win prizes. RSVP is required.
Oakland Coffee Market: Dec. 14 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Kahn’s Alley, Oakland (Frank Ogawa Plaza, Broadway at 15th Street); oaklandcoffeemarket.com
Something for the tea devotee
This compact tea shop carries white teas, green teas, black/red teas, matcha and much more. You can also find an array of attractive teaware: pitchers, pots, cups and tea utensils.“Blue Willow tea is a community-oriented labor of love,” the website bio states. “Owned and operated by Ali Roth since 2012, Blue Willow is one of the few tea distributors in the United States committed to providing single-origin teas directly from farms dedicated to sustainable practices and humane living conditions for tea workers and their families.” Whatever your tea aficionado loves, you will likely find it here among the more than 50 selections — and if they live outside the Bay Area, Blue Willow will ship.
Blue Willow Tea: 1200 10th St. near Gilman, Berkeley; bluewillowtea.com
