East Bay Food

Berkeley

Chez Panisse - famous birthplace of "California cuisine," where founder Alice Waters touched off a revolution in American food with a focus on local, fresh ingredients.
Kirala Japanese Restaurant - 2100 Ward (@ Shattuck), 510-549-3486, highly rated sushi
Almare Gelato - pretty good gelato in downtown Berkeley near BART
?Caravaggio Gelato Lab - worth a try? a bit north of downtown
Vegetarian: Gather Kitchen - 2200 Oxford (@ Allston, near BART and just W of campus), focuses on local/sustainable food, also has highly rated burger [related to The Plant Cafe in SF??]
Great China - double skin and sauteed crab rec'd by chowhounds
Grégoire - French takeout
Cheese Board Collective - pizzeria, bakery, and cheese shop, with famous co-op collective governance
# Standard Fare - looks nice, organic counter service, West Berkeley
French Bakery: Fournée - rec'd by many

Pizzaiolo in Rockridge/North Oakland (similar but better than 00?)
# Belotti Ristorante e Bottega - rec'd Italian food, Valentina's husband is pasta chef!
? Homeroom - fancy mac & cheese
Wood Tavern - North Oakland California Cuisine
Burma Superstar - 4721 Telegraph (North Oakland), branch of popular SF place, don't miss the tea leaf salad
Boichik Bagels - New York style bagels, rec'd New York Times (technically in Berkeley but in Rockridge neighborhood)

--> need to organize this by neighborhood
?Israeli/Middle Eastern: Pomella - looks nice, Piedmont Ave area
Korean: Sura (4869 Telegraph in Oakland...other places in Temescal corridor rec'd, like Koryo, Ohgane, Sahn Maru, and Casserole House)
Horn Barbeque - rec'd Michelin, West Oakland

***Sushi: Hanazen - 87 Orinda Way, 925-254-3611, husband-and-wife team make sushi the old-fashioned way, with amazing flavor...the chef is a bit like the "Soup Nazi of Sushi", since he insists on you having a reservation, showing up exactly on time, and eating in the prescribed manner, but it's worth the hassle! See this Diablo Magazine article for more.