Bar Panisse

Not sure what’s with all the haters but the food was INCREDIBLE as was the service from start to finish. Moreover, the wine was impeccable. Prices reasonable? What more could you ask for. Chez pansies sexy younger sibling is off to a BANGING START.

An absolute delight—drinks, food, service were all perfection. I was there with a big group, so we ordered almost everything on the food menu, and it was all delicious. I especially appreciated my mocktail, the Bitter Mule. The space is gorgeous too, though it was so packed with people it was difficult to take in all the details. I can’t wait to return when it’s a little less busy and raucous—though that was fun too.

Like many of us in the North Berkeley area, I've been a Chez Panisse fan for many years. While I generally think the main Chez Panisse restaurant (both cafe and dining room) does an excellent job of interesting food & great service, I was unfortunately disappointed by my experience at Bar Panisse. Let's start with the positives. The space is beautifully done with natural wood and soft lighting everywhere. The bar does a great job of feeling cozy, yet open. The designers clearly put a lot of work into the space and it shows in many ways. Additionally, everyone we spoke to was kind, friendly, and welcoming. Kudos to the staff for the effort they are putting in; it doesn't go unnoticed. Unfortunately, that's about the extent of our positive experience. In regards to their drinks, the cocktail menu is uninspired; it's classic hits without anything interesting or unique to draw me back. I would've liked to see more original or unique inventions, such as cocktails made with local/natural aromatics or liquors. I would also like to see drinks that match the current season and farm-to-table ingredients. After all, this is what put Chez Panisse on the map originally, so it's odd to see this omitted in the cocktail menu. Additionally, the my sazerac cocktail should have been served in better glassware, ideally with a large cube of ice. (seriously, look at the photo - I almost laughed when it game out). Looking around, it generally seems like cocktail presentation is lackluster at best. The glass and presentation I got was not deserving of the Chez Panisse name, and I hope they will review it. We also ordered some food, but it didn't come out after about ~30 minutes of waiting, so we gave up on it. Thankfully, the staff (who were overall excellent) were understanding and removed it from the bill. We left without eating. That's a real bummer because I think the small bites is where Bar Panisse could really shine, and I think it's an opportunity to differentiate themselves from other bars with local & farm-to-table food. The bar is new and there will definitely be some growing pains. There is also a lot of hype surrounding this opening and the wait can be many hours. I think I'll give them another chance later down the road when things are more organized. That said, I'm in no hurry to come back, and, with the excellent selection of creative bars & eateries in Berkeley, it's hard to recommend this place to anyone who isn't a die-hard Chez Panisse fan.

Gorgeous space, food and service! Alice meets expectations! Space was beautifully redone with exquisite wood detailing and warm lighting. Food was absolutely delicious small bites! Cocktails were on point, creative and not too sweet! We are regulars at Chez Panisse and so glad bar Panisse is finally open and so excellent!!!❤️

delicious food, amazing vibes, incredible staff. good work! can’t wait to come again and again.

We had high hopes having lived in Berkeley for over 20 years and being fans of chez panisse. We were frequent customers at Cesar before it closed and we’ve been waiting for the replacement to open in hopes we could become frequent customers again. We got there before it opened and were in a line with about 4 tables of people in front of us. They seated us quickly. The new space is nice, but quite dark and not as changed as I expected after the long closure. The waitress brought a plate of chips to the table, but they were disappointingly bland and stale or undercooked, not sure which. For 4 people we ordered 2 cocktails, 2 glasses of wine and 1 beer. My lemon drop was well balanced, but lacked any garnish, in particular the sugar on the rim. My husband’s old fashioned came without the normal big ice cube and was too sweet in his opinion. The wines were fine. All drinks were quite slow in being delivered after ordering, especially considering most were not cocktails. The food and service were the main issues. Chez panisse prides itself on both so I had high expectations. The food (a special fish dish, a fried squash dish and a bean dish) were brought to the table with no plates or utensils. The server then dropped a stack of plates with the napkins and utensils off, but did not "set" the table, just left. None of the items included any serving utensils. My companions enjoyed the fish, but it was weirdly served with 2 pieces of parsnip that had not been seasoned, just cooked whole and placed on the plate next to the fish. The squash dish was very different than expected after the description on the menu and by the server. It was overly oily with the frying and the addition of a vinaigrette. The bean dish was served lukewarm as though it had been sitting a while. We did finally ask for serving utensils when we got the bean dish. Overall, I was disappointed. I’m hoping it will improve with time since they were quite newly opened on our first visit, but I won’t rush back.

Very tasty food, nice atmosphere and good service with one glaring exception. We celebrated a birthday tonight with nine people in our party. Occupying four tables, we asked the server if we could scoot the tables closer together. We were told of course, seeing how it would only benefit the other tables at either end of ours by giving them more room. A good deal of money was spent on delicious food and drinks, but this being a special occasion that was fine. The serving staff was very friendly and competent and thanked us when we were done. However ,as we were leaving an employee, I'm not sure if he was a Maitre d or manager, informed us not to put the tables together next time, and not in a friendly manner either. It was an unfortunate way to end an otherwise perfect evening.