Cafeterias near Berkeley, CA

“[Legal disclaimer: The following post was written by a junior transfer student in the University of California, Berkeley, and is not meant to represent the university’s opinion, but rather the opinion of the individual.] Crossroads, not to be conflated with the Crossroads Trading Post which shares a similar name and in the same city, has excellent food, exactly contrary to popular dining hall stereotypical belief. I heard it being called Xroads, but that could be just internal jargon found in the napkin holder. Service was trivially and vacuously excellent (you serve yourself, no one serves you here other than having to use your Cal 1 card as fiat currency and payment). Atmosphere was excellent too. The staff even remind you to get another plate if you get too much. Pricing is fair. It is highly unlikely you can ever get a satiable lunch for $10 and dinner for $11 at nearby adjacent restaurant properties. Unfortunately, Google is not compatible with me putting flex dollars in the amount spent per person, so I had to go with visitor pricing for that one to better assist the general public. For recommendations for visiting this place, may I suggest getting the grill item early in lunch? If you get the grill item late, a queue suddenly materializes out of nowhere, and it can stretch all the way to the allergen friendly section. Also, try going there during dinner if you care to spend one extra flex dollar or $2. Anyways, I am now writing this review because my meal plan is depleted of flex dollars and I have no intentions of refilling my flex dollar balance at this time. Also, takeout is permitted, but limited to fruit or dessert. As for delivery, I wish Crossroads would deliver. Thank you for reading this review. Be sure to leave an upvote if this actually helped! Also, do you know that most five-star reviews are short? Mine is long, showing the effort that I put into this review and it was not generated by a bot striving to inflate the restaurant’s rating. I do not want to violate any platform’s Terms of Service, nor that I intend to in the near future.

Also, Google rated my review as detailed. I think it may be the most detailed review on Crossroads.

Vegetarian options: Plant Forward is an excellent vegetarian section.

Dietary restrictions: For people with dietary restrictions and dietary needs, avoid the allergen friendly section and just get stuff. Of course, read the menu before you decide.

Parking: For Crossroads, you unfortunately have to pay for parking. Adjacent streets such as Bowditch and Channing should provide ample parking space for your vehicle.

Wheelchair accessibility: Wheelchair accessible ramps exist if you go east on Channing. It will be on your right. And also, press the wheelchair button to automatically open up one of the doors.“

“I have been eating at the Clark Kerr Dining Hall now for 3 years and it rarely disappoints compared to the other UC Berkeley Dining Halls. It is 10 steps above any other dining hall and I actually feel as if the food is cooked with love here. There are times where I actually leave feeling happy and enjoyed the meal I had. If I didn't have a meal plan I would still come here every now and again to eat a bunch of food for $13. I think what makes this dining hall my favorite is the peaceful atmosphere and nostalgic music. I even have taken my great aunt and great grandma here and we feasted and about 6 months later, they still can't stop talking about how great the food was. The only thing I truly dislike is how sometimes I am limited to a piece or two of salmon or catfish and have to circle around a bunch of times until I finally get the amount I want. Overall, I am satisfied with the quality of food and the great atmosphere that Clark Kerr Dining provides.“

“It's pretty good for a dining hall. Especially good if you're vegan or vegetarian. They keep the station with the meat separate which is nice. The employees are much nicer than the ones at crossroads. It's not that big though so sometimes it can be hard to find a seat.“

“I come upon this cafeteria by chance! I'm glad I was able to walk around this wonderful cafeteria when I discovered it. Their place was immaculately clean and far superior to mine. Their staff was professional and welcoming from the moment I walked in the door until I took a seat. The best customer service! Thumbs up!“

“This place is a hidden Gem! I came here today, randomly, and ordered 5 Popusa revueltas! There were absolutely AMAZING! So flavorful and FRESH! The ladies that work there are super nice and sweet! I will be coming back whenever I’m in the east bay! Thank you Richmond Eats!!!“

“Kaiser Permanente Broadway Cafe*****Food: Excellent cafeteria food made with fresh and healthy ingredients. They have hot dishes, fresh fruit, coffee, antioxidant drinks, a beverage bar, a soup bar, cookies, and low-calorie ice cream.***** Ambience: Really good for cafeteria. There is lots of space for social distancing. There are also large windows that you can sit by and watch the world by.**** Cost: is reasonable.*** Accessibility: there is great access for people in wheelchairs. Parking can be difficult during busy times of the day. There is an eight story parking garage that took me 15 minutes to find a parking spot at 11 in the morning on a Thursday.***** Service: it is self service for the coffee, the drinks, fresh fruit, packaged items, and the hot food is served by servers that are behind the counter. Check out with the cashier is easy.Bonus points for having large, well labeled bins for disposal of compostable items and trash. Also, the restaurant looked impeccably clean.“