Oakland's Restaurant Week Review: Tribune Tavern
OAKLAND (CBS SF) - During the 4th Annual Oakland Restaurant Week, a 10-day event with prix fixe dinners ranging from $20 - $40, CBS San Francisco's Akilah Bolden-Monifa attended one of the featured restaurants, Tribune Tavern located in Oakland's Chinatown.
As the name implies it is in the Tribune Tower, former home to the Oakland Tribune Newspaper. Their hostess said their spacious spot seats around 200 diners. Bolden describes her foodie experience.
The parenthetical describes the food as "New American," our wonderful waiter, Chase said tavern/comfort food. It also seemed a great place to work, a genuine camaraderie between the staff who seemed like family.
Ambiance is fantastic, service excellent bar none.
Now onto the food: I ordered from the prix fixe menu. For starters I had butternut squash soup with brown sugar and pomegranate, entree was Cola braised beef (so incredibly tender, kudos Chef Tracey) with Yukon Gold Potato Fritters, carrots, green onions (pictured above) as well, for dessert we shared the Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding with Vanilla Ice Cream and the Buttermilk Panna Cotta with citrus marmalade and ginger cookies (pictured below).
(credit: Akilah Bolden-Monifa/CBS Local)
I thought I didn't like bread pudding but Pastry Chef Izzie's treatment converted me. Although I only had a sip, the meal featured an endless glass of "Rock Wall" wine.
My dining companion went off the regular menu and ordered a hamburger with the bun made in house as was the bread served with the dinner including "urban sour dough".
And as a bonus, little samples of Fernet (I had never of it but I was told about "taking a train to Bernal Heights" for those of you in the know) and Ginger Beer, thanks Rob. Finally, coffee from Oakland, and the water carafe was from a local Vodka place as I recall.
If I wasn't a foodie before, Tribune Tavern would have turned me into one.
Tribune Tavern opened in April 2013. It's owned by Chris Pastena of Chop Bar and Temoor Noor of Grand Tavern.
One of the tables has a wheel barrel embedded that was in the basement of the Tribune Tower. Nice bathrooms including an abandoned phone booth with plans to convert it, so folks can Skype. And there is a bar that stays open later than the restaurant.
If you are a foodie or want to be a convert, run, do not walk to Tribune Tavern.
For more information on Oakland's Restaurant Week, go to visitoakland.org/restaurantweek.
