New American Restaurants in Oakland, CA

“Always an interesting experience and fun treat. Classic cocktails in a classic atmosphere. Service is on point! Food is innovative yet still comforting and familiar. Never disappointed.“

“I’ve recently cut out all dairy and pretty much all meat, although I will make an exception for special occasions and eat meat seldomly. anyway the options here are delicious if you’re a vegan! Their menu is full of tasty choices. U couldn’t be happier with my recent door dash orders“

“I’ve recently cut out all dairy and pretty much all meat, although I will make an exception for special occasions and eat meat seldomly. anyway the options here are delicious if you’re a vegan! Their menu is full of tasty choices. U couldn’t be happier with my recent door dash orders“

“Loved our lunch today ! Bison stew with fry bread and bison meatballs. Hibiscus tea was awesome. Staff was so incredible. Busy and very full today. Great atmosphere.“

“My only prior experience with Commis' culinary output was tracking their takeout format during the pandemic, making this my first opportunity to witness the menu executed in its native environment.

Arrived slightly behind schedule due to a minor orientation error on approach from the west. The prominent exterior 'Commis' signage is actually positioned over a secondary doorway—blocked by a rope and obscured by a black curtain—which I mistakenly flagged as the threshold. After waiting until 5:06 PM, I stepped further east down the sidewalk to discover the actual entrance. Once inside, check-in was seamless. I was engineered into a stunning table boasting an uncompromised, direct line of sight into the kitchen —an ideal vantage point for observation. For those driving, district parking is highly efficient; there is an open lot a three-minute walk away completely integrated with the ParkMobile app.

The dining room operates with high aesthetic intent. The table setting is beautifully minimalist, accented by fresh floral arrangements. Ambient audio consists of low-profile, rhythmic electronic beats without discernible tracking, allowing the focus to remain on the room’s acoustics. Notable property asset: the restroom features neatly folded, reusable linen cloths, a detail I always inspect and appreciate.

The beverage program opened strong with a well-balanced cocktail featuring a flawless, hyper-clarified ice block cleanly monogrammed with the house branding.

Plating geometry across the board was visually stunning. Certain courses were deployed using a strict three-point presentation matrix on the table, showing deliberate service choreography.

The clear peak of the engineering here is their legendary signature dish: the slow-poached egg yolk resting in a malted cream base with smoked dates and crisp alliums. It is a brilliant study in texture—velvety, rich, and profoundly comforting. This singular dish justifies the entire booking.

From an operational standpoint, the pacing of this meal was exceptional—easily ranking in the top five dining experiences I have tracked globally. The kitchen and floor staff maintained a hyper-focused, synchronized posture throughout the multi-hour window. Service movements were fluid, deliberate, and entirely free of friction.

Crucially, the clearing of empty plates was immediate, and successive courses materialized without a single dead gap. Staff check-ins were frequent but entirely non-invasive. This baseline pace never wavered, holding perfectly steady even as the dining room reached peak capacity later in the evening. A masterfully managed system.“

“Outstanding restaurant, we have dined at Wood Tavern more times than I can recollect . We we rather disappointed recently when we called to make reservations for 4 for lunch on 2/25/2022 and were informed they only take reservations for 5 or more. Is this true ? If so they should so state on their web site.“

“I loved everything about this place. The food was just the right amount and so creative.“

“They're always so nice to me here! Mama loves the craft cocktails and the book curations. We live nearby so it's a favorite neighborhood hang, and we appreciate all the thought that went into the menus.“

“Loved my birthday dinner tonight! Portions small for the prices in our opinion. A scallops main dish with 3 scallops is small. Drinks were amazing, decor fabulous and great service. My son had to go eat more food afterwards as he was still hungry. Bigger portions would be good. Loved everything else! Great choices, appetizers, main dishes and creative drinks were delicious. Kind of surprised knowing they knew it was my birthday that they didn't offer me a birthday "something" to make it special. For these prices I would expect something.“

“Tummy comfort food in great post-industrial space. Friendly service, craft cocktails. Good menu options and specials. Outdoor tables also available.“

“I had the chicken Alex had the pork loin both cooked to perfection �“

“Treated my parents to a lovely dinner from Kiana for their 50 th wedding anniversary!!! Everything was delicious!“

“Food was great and drinks was great.“

“This is my favorite restaurant in Oakland! The food is amazing and so are the cocktails. The vive is is unreal!!!“

“I had the jerk chicken, amazing flavors and super tender. Large servings, excellent food and a great atmosphere. Definitely going back!“

“Delicious food and cocktails.“

“I love Zs cafe. Its like going to Cheers. The staff is warm and friendly. The food is great and so are the cocktails. Big shout out to Pia who makes the best drinks in town! The owner of Zs, Medhi has created a little piece of heaven in Oaklad.“

“Had the Italian style sandwich here..... Really solid sandwich. What really got me though is the cook gave me this fantastic in-house made habanero sauce then I just ended up dunking over every bite I was absolutely in love with it. Really cool to sit at the counter and watch them cook, chef was such a friendly dude and the server as well! Really enjoyed the vibe of just hanging out and eating my meal“

“Outstanding in every possible way. Best fried fish I’ve ever eaten, and everything on the tasting menu was excellent: the corn bread, salad, boiled peanuts, shishito peppers, hushpuppies and beans and rice. So much care has been put into the details, from the food to the atmosphere to the lighting.“

“Great local eatery with delicious beers and wonderful taps. Joe, the owner, is one of the most sweetest guys you’ll ever meet. Highly recommend!“

“good drinks, good food, friendly service, outdoor dining, i'll be back“

“Been coming here since 1977. Always great food and adult beverages. Best is fried zucchini!!!!“

“Excellent food and owners! Always fresh.“

“I had the Chicken Mix Bowl with the smokey chipotle sauce and it was AMAZING. I am allergic to dairy, gluten, and soy so being able to not worry about that with my meal was so nice. I also have ARFID (avoidant restrictive food intake disorder) and have a really hard with certain textures, usually chicken is really hard for me to eat but I had no issues with this chicken!! The texture was consistent all the way through, pulled apart really easily, and was just overall amazing. The portions are really good and the food is very flavorful. I'm really happy with my meal. Thank you guys for the amazing food. I highly recommend this place!!“

“Great place to have dinner! Absolutely enjoyed the trivia night they had. The garbage bread is a must try! The penne pasta is delicious. The burgers are perfect! Let’s not forget the chips and the salsa. Everything was great! Service was superb.
Definitely made my family happy to eat here before we headed out in the morning.
We will be back next time we come out here.“

“Fun and lively place for drinks and light snacks. Drinks were great, and the manager was very friendly. She was vibing and talking to us a lot. It was nice hospitality.

The wings were great! Loved it. It was very juicy and would recommend getting them. The ceasar salad was okay.

Great to come here for happy hour or for a game as they have TVs around.“

“Food was excellent, unfortunately the service that are waitress give us was not good at all, she take are order and after that she never went back to check if everything was ok r if we need anything all’s, we wait for are dessert 🍮 like 30 mints until I ask another person for it 🤷‍♀️. But otherwise it was excellent place and good We just had bad luck with the person that was in charge ford are table“

“my friend and I enjoyed our brunch on the outside patio. food service was fast“

“Delicious food, generous portions, and great service. The chicken combo and aloha bbq mix are a must-try—so flavorful and perfectly cooked. iLava is consistently good every time!“

“Great go-to destination in Uptown!“

“Actually Hatch Oakland is superb, good, clean and healthy atmosphere as well as good drinks 🍻 and decor“

“we love the vibe, service and menu at GLK on Grand and have been going there for years. On our last visit we were surprised by how salty the food was. I think the cooks are overly generous with salt. Both our brussel sprouts and the scallops were really over salted. Next visit we will be sure to order low/no salt, and send back anything that's too salty.“

“food was great atmosphere was nice recommend going there“

“t The food is fantastic. Especially easy to grab and go after work. Try a couple entrees to share. Yummy.“

“Great quality food made with LOVE! Wonderful family business with great service to match. I really enjoyed the salmon sliders.. by far my favorite on the menu. The salmon nuggets are nice and juicy and comes with so much flavor. Definitely recommend trying this place.“

“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.“

“this place is a lovely spot“

“Quite a number of tables and chairs for customers to enjoy a nice meal there. There was also outdoor seating too. Where you can have a simple small garden view when having a meal break. I must highly introduce you to all the people who want to enjoy there meal! Strongly recommended!“