Origen Restaurant - Berkeley
By
Carol & Joe Davis
Dining Detectives
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Origen
is a new Berkeley restaurant on Telegraph Avenue not
far from Ashby. It has a Farm to Fork Mission bringing what is
fresh in the markets daily... to the table that night. The interior
décor features a sleek marble topped bar, interesting Botanical
Prints, a semi open kitchen with an In-Kitchen Chef's Table and
lovely pendant lighting. We arrived a few minutes early for our
reservation and opted to have a drink in the bar. The cocktail
menu is interesting, as it is also Seasonally Market driven, opting
to offer specialty drinks that include fresh ingredients including
hand pressed juices. We enjoyed a Pomegranate Drop made
with FAIR Vodka, Lone Oak Poms and Plymouth Sloe. There is full
bar, so straight up drinks are also available.
We
moved to our table and perused the "hot off the press"
menu for the night. We started out with International Olives which
were terrific and ordered wine from their "by the glass"
menu. Our first starter was a very unique, delicious, crunchy
Flash Fried Coke Organics Spinach topped with cracked
pepper and sea salt. This was excellent finger food although most
might be tempted to use a forks but we don't recommend it.
Another
unique dish was the E.U.T.S. Fried Green Tomatoes made
with buttermilk, breadcrumbs and reggiano cheese. This was light
and a must starter when it is available. Next, we had their Wood
Fired Pizza. The Riverdog Butternut Squash Pizza with
gorgonzola, Italian pignoli and Pinnacle red onions was quite
tasty. Next time, we'll ask to leave it in the oven for an extra
minute, as we prefer a crisper browner crust. Our favorite large
plate was the Paella del Mercado de rancheros. It was
slightly spicy like we prefer and made with Matiz calasparra rice,
house sofrito, saffron, olive oil, Laughing Bird shrimp, McGinnis
delicate squash, pistachios, Ledesma piquillos and Happy Boy sage
allioli. This was a very satisfying entree. The shrimp were so
tender and juicy and the pistachios truly added a unique crunchiness!
The wines that we enjoyed included the Etude Carneros Napa Valley
Pinot Gris which paired well with our starters and the Brumaio,
Marche Sangiovese which paired perfectly with the Paella.
We
always save room for dessert. We enjoyed the housemade Flourless
Chocolate Cherry Cake made with quince and dried cherries.
A Maclaughlin Espresso and a 2006 Vinedos Ithaca California
Late Harvest Garnacha Peluda were the perfect finish to our
lovely dinner. Co-Chefs Daniel Clayton and Trace
Leighton have created a perfect restaurant for Berkeley
with their philosophy of sustainability, using local Artisan providers
and a seasonally driven menu which changes daily. Origen is open
for dinner Tuesday-Sunday and will shortly begin serving lunch
and weekend brunch.
Origen
Restaurant - Berkeley
2826 Telegraph Avenue
Berkeley, CA. 94703
510-848-9200
www.OrigenBerkeley.com
