Kirala, Berkeley

2100 Ward St. Berkeley
510.549.3486

Kirala, a Japanese restaurant, is located at the corner at Ward St. and Shattuck Ave. across the street from Walgreen's. It was a convenient place for my friend and me to have lunch. I got there at noon, and it was fully packed and we had to wait for a table for 10 min., which was ok. But when we were seated, we both wanted to order sushi lunch special. To our disappointment, it was sold out! So we ordered the other special lunch, which was called kitchen special. We got the last two.

It came with a so-so miso soup with bean sprouts (I never had miso soup with sprouts before), and a small bowl of udon, chichen teriyaki, deep-fried scallops and a shrimp, a small plate of oshinko (pickled hakusai cabbage), and a bowl of rice. I haven't had rice and udon in one meal before. I thought it was an interesting combination. Udon and fried seafood were ok, but chicken teriyaki was a bit dry, and the sauce had a taste I am not used to.

My friend says it better at night, so I will have to give it a chance at night. Actually, sushi looked very fresh, and I was told they also have robata-yaki, food grilled in front of you. So I will write about their dinner in later days.

Saigon Seafood Harbor, Richmond

3150 Pierce St. Richmond
510.559.9388

Dubbed as a poor man's Koi Palace, food is excellent, in spite of its noise level. This is the fifth time I have eaten here, and everytime I am happy with most of the food I get.
We had Salt and Pepper Calamari, that came with chopped jalapeno peppers ($4.50). We had to ask for lemon slices, but it was crispy outside and the squid was tender. It was good but a tad too salty. We also tried Peking chili pork tossed noodle ($5.75). I didn't know what to expect; it came with pork in sweet sauce on a bed of egg noodles, accompanied by greens. It was a bit too sweet for my taste.
Dim sum is very good here. We had a lot of chicken feet ($2.00), shrimp in bean curd skin rolls ($3.50), and sesame balls ($2.00). Their ha gau is excellent, and I like rice noodle rolls with stuffings also.
Service is not the best feature in this restaurant. This time we were lucky we got an attentive waitress, but normally, you almost have to yell to get somebody's attention.
This is not the most romantic restaurant, but if you are after good eats, this restaurant definitely fits the category.
To get there, just take Center Ave. exit in Albany. Turn towards the mountains, make a right after the freeway exits. Just before you get to Ranch 99 compound, it is to your left.

My Other Favourite Places

I like Left Bank on Magnolia in Larkspur. They serve French/American food. People are so friendly and food is reliable. Insalata in San Anselmo is another of my favourite places, but the seats are uncomfortable, and I feel cold there.
For Japanese food, I recommend Sushiko in Larkspur Landing. Food is reasonable and good. I usually have sushi there, but they have great tempura, unagi, soba, and udon. Goro in Mill Valley by the freeway, is also good, and if you are in Sausalito, Sushi Ran is worth trying.
If Chinese food is what you are craving for, I am afraid you have to go across San Rafael-Richomond Bridge, and go to Saigon just before you get to Ranch 99 complex. They serve dim sum at lunch time, and their crabs are fantastic! It is off Center Ave. exit in Albany, so you can go shopping in Costco after lunch.

Kitchen, Novato

868 Grant Ave. Novato
415.892.6100



On fashionably refurbished Grant Ave. is a cozy and nicely decorated restaurant, Kithcen. It has been open for a few months, and frankly, I didn't expect too much from this restaurant. Novato is not a great town for fantastic restaurants, at least until now.
As my friend and I went in, I was a little surprised with the beautiful decor, with a large chandelier hanging in the middle and small red lights over each table. Seats were quite comfortable, and although the restaurant is noisy, it was comfortable enough to have conversations.
Although I was told it was not neccessary to make a reservation, I was glad we had one, because the restaurant was almost full. Service was prompt, and my water glass was filled right away when it needed to be filled.
We shared an arugula salad with Manchego cheese and cherries ($8). Reduced balsamic vinegar gave the salad a sweet taste, and Manchego cheese added a tang. Mt. Rainier cherries were unexpected addition to the salad and almonds gave a nice crunch.
For entrees, my friend ordered Seared Sea Scallops ($21). The scallops were accompanied by an unexpected sauce of cumin. At first, we thought it was curry flavor, but we discovered flavor came from cumin and saffron cooked with fresh tomatoes. The sauce was a pleasant addtion to the sweetness of scallops.

I ordered Roasted Halibut on a bed of olive oil mashed potatoes, fennel, and tapenade ($19). The halibut had a very mild flavor, and cooked to perfection. I kept wondering what the unusual flavor was, and I found out it came from extra virgin olive oil in mashed potatoes. The olive oil + rosemary flavor was permeating into the fish, which was truly enjoyable. The sharp tapenade of olives was complimenting otherwise bland (although good) fish, and the sweetness of anise taste from fennel added another dimension to the dish.
Skirt Steak ($22) at the neighbouring table looked just medium rare and looked really tempting!
Santa Rosa Plum Crisp for a dessert was a bit too sour, even with a big dollop of ice cream it came with.
Overall the restaurant is very pleasant, and combination of ingredients were unexpected and successfully so. It was most welcome because we were tired of usual combinations of ingredients.
We thought it was worth visiting many more times, and the prices were fair.