Berkeley has plenty of bars, but relatively few that focus on carefully crafted cocktails. Many lean toward student crowds or beer programs. Nearby Oakland has a far more developed cocktail scene, a contrast that can elicit a twinge of envy for those living north of the town line.
It’s this gap that the newly opened Bar Panisse is helping to close. It’s a neighborhood cocktail bar, not a typical college-town spot. The focus is classic cocktails and a short menu of seasonal small plates.
“We approached it with the idea of building the kind of place we’d want to visit ourselves … welcoming, consistent and easy to return to regularly,” manager Zachary Becerra said.
The bar sits next door to Chez Panisse, in the former beloved César space on Shattuck Avenue. It’s walk-in only and is now open seven days a week.
The room is compact. If you’re seated, guests waiting for tables may be standing nearby. It’s energetic and a little compressed, closer to a café rhythm than a formal dining room. If you’ve been to the bar in the Café upstairs, Bar Panisse will feel familiar, like a modern extension. The craftsman bar and trim match the energy of the restaurants next door. The matte green tables make the food and drinks pop.
The bar program is the clearest part of the concept. In Panisse fashion, otherwise classic cocktails have seasonal touches, like the lemon verbena in my martini, which was perfectly chilled and well-balanced.
It’s a simple approach: “classic drinks made with ingredients that reflect where we are,” Becerra said. The lemon verbena in my martini came from Seven Moons Farm, and locally grown Meyer lemons are featured in the gimlet. Honey is sourced from the restaurant’s rooftop hives. This philosophy carries over from next door at Chez Panisse and the Café, which fosters close relationships with a curated network of farms and purveyors.
Cocktails run $12 to $14 (the martini was $12), which feels more than fair for the Bay Area.
Chef Amelia Telc leads the kitchen. “I write the menu keeping in mind that people may be stopping in for a quick drink and snack or looking for a more casual experience,” she said. “It suits many different occasions.”
I previously staged in Chez Panisse’s downstairs kitchen, where the menus change frequently and are intentionally restrained. That same structure carries over here, but Telc adapts the format to better serve the pace of the room. Dishes come out quickly and are built to pair with drinks, whether guests are stopping in for a snack or settling in for a longer meal.
I ordered the gougères, butter beans, fried scallions and a trifle.
The gougères ($6) are cheesy choux pastries served with pickled carrot and mustard, reflecting the influence of Chez Panisse’s pastry program. “I anticipate the gougères will be a staple,” Telc said.
The butter beans ($14) were tender, with nice heat and a bright gremolata. The spigarello broccoli is at its peak this time of year. The broth leaned loose and soaked into the beans.
The scallions ($14) were savory, crisp and light. They are dredged in a batter of rice flour, chickpea flour and buttermilk, fried, and then served with Strauss yogurt and honey, bringing acidity and sweetness.
The trifle ($15) layered almond cake, cream and cherries in syrup. It was fluffy, delicate and not overly sweet. The subtotal came to $61. With tax and tip, the final tab was just under $80.
If you go, get there early. The line begins forming around 4:30 p.m. As demand has grown, the team has adjusted how the space is used. “We’ve opened up more room for guests to mingle and have a drink while they wait,” Becerra said, adding that the bar has also expanded to seven days a week to help spread out crowds.
While waiting outside, I met Charles Ellmaker, a part-time Berkeley resident who admitted he walked up skeptical. Like many in the neighborhood, he had loved César and wondered why it took years for the space to reopen. After the meal, we followed up by email, and he said he was pleasantly surprised.
“We were quite surprised at how unstuffy they’re playing it,” Ellmaker wrote. “The staff were professional but affable. It’s nice to see it’s not just the Cheese Board that can get people lined up on this block.”
The expectations and history surrounding the space may shape how it’s received, but judging by the crowds, Bar Panisse is resonating in Berkeley.
