Highly recommend! Stumbled in here a few months back after getting lunch nearby .. Lush gelato was here and I got myself a good serving. They offer gorgeous outdoor seating with an upper and lower level to the side of the establishment. Wish I would've gotten lunch here instead! read more

This reminds me of Emeryville's Public Market in a smaller scale but more gourmet to boost. I came across this space before dining at Cesar next door. Loved the set-up and I wished I worked in the area so that I can visit this place daily. There's a zen-style bamboo teak garden in the patio area where you can take your to-go orders and sit peacefully. read more

I love this place! It's all I could ask for. I can get a new, tasty lunch for work everyday. I love the way it is laid out and the little garden seating area in the back is adorable. So far I have only tried Kirala 2. I had the Udon soup which was delicious!! It was freshly made, I had to wait ten minutes for it. It was well worth it. I can't wait to try Soop, thai, and the taqueria. And don't get me started on the gelato... read more

I had a great lunch in the garden! I love this quiet little oasis. The noodle salad and tempura was delicious and I really appreciated the variety of smaller size items. I was able to try several different foods. It was inexpensive and very fast service. I will definitely be back soon! read more

I love the back garden and multiple tiered seating area! Lunch time is fun, especially when it's sunny. I just tried the spicy noodles at the Imperial Tea Court - so good, and even better was my man's beef stew - succulent! The women who work there are very sweet and very Chinese. It's a good option if it's chilly outside - big heavy tables and comfortable benches. read more

This place is Suepattra heaven. Sashimi. Sushi. Exquisitely beautiful chocolates. Caviar. Gelato. A wine bar. A private Zen garden. Neighbor to Chez Panisse. This place makes me want to move to Berkeley. read more

ooh, i feel a splurging coming on... shyam p. and i visited this new take-out court the other night, and had such a good time. first, we walked up to kitchen on fire and were promptly told to sample three types of soup (carmelized french onion, egg drop and a vegetable soup) and breads. everything was tasty, everyone was really nice. then, we tried some chocolate, which was a touch pretentious, but that spicy hot cocoa was sure good! lastly, we each had a socca. zucchini for me, lamb for him. each was perfectly done and delicious! truly, this place has executed a great idea, and i will definitely be here again to try out the other goods! read more

Thank goodness for this place. When I'm not at home, school, or Camille's--haha--then I'm probably here. It's one of the easier, no-effort places in the North Berkeley area. Soop is awesome for soup (?!) and pre-packaged Thai dishes like curries, rice, and noodles. There's also a semi-"decent" taco place (whatever, I just came home from San Diego, I can hate), a gelato stand, a fancy chocolatier, and some of the cleanest public bathrooms I've ever seen. My favorite is Kirala 2. It's good for quick to-go items such as sushi rolls (pre-packaged, but you can also order fresh stuff off a separate menu), noodles, bento boxes, and salads. I like the chicken vegetable donburi and the miso salmon bento box. It's not the cheapest ($9-10) but the quality is superb, and it always feels nice, light, and healthy. read more

I generally tend to like food courts. This one is no different. The upside is that you can get some damn good food for a decent price here. The vendors in this food court are varied: sushi (Karala); soup (Soop); Mexican Taqueria (Picoso); chocolates; gelato. I highly recommend Picoso and Soop. Both are great finds and serve high-quality food. Karala is still on the expensive side, but they do serve fresh sushi and cheaper bento boxes, if you're into that. On a beautiful day, you can eat outside in the well-manicured, non-Berkeleyesque zen garden. The downside is that in the winter, there's nowhere to eat. There are some stools for you to sit on if you eat at Picoso, but there's just no indoor seating! Overall, though, this is a terrific idea and a welcome change for the ultra snooty Gourmet Ghetto. read more

An interesting collection of high end stores, definately no cheap eats here, but I would think it would be a nice date place except for the lack of good seating. The only seating seemed to be outside which is great for summer, less so great when it is raining. read more

I miss Dale Sanford TV. The food here is all pretty good but WAY expensive. Perhaps the mark up for everything is to pay off the extreme mortgage. read more

Great place to grab soup and sushi then take it to the garden out back. The food is always yummy and the service is superb for the set-up. I love how well maintained the whole establishment is. It's more enjoyable to eat at the garden when the weather is a little warmer, I just wish they had heaters for when the weather is a little chilly. If it is a little cold I will take my food to go because it is that good =) read more

To parrot everyone else, I love this place! Where else can you take 5 picky but hungry people and end up with everyone happy? The garden is lovely and the food is delicious. If the weather is cooperating and you have good company, you really can't get much better than that. The only downside I can think of is that the food is a little pricey. You can get good Mexican and good sushi and good soup and good Chinese and good gelato for less in other places, but that tends to entail far more driving or biking or walking than Epicurious Gardens. read more

Retailers inside: -Soop - wide variety of tasty soups. -Kirala 2 - to go menu from the popular Kirala Japanese restaurant. -Picoso - Mexican cuisine: tacos, burritos, tostadas, aguas frescas, etc. -Lush Gelato - a branch of the popular Berkeley gelateria, specially good on sunny days. -Chocolate Alegio - fancy chocolates. -Imperial tea Garden - tea service and snacks, located in the 2nd floor. -Kitchen on Fire - a fun cooking school located in the top floor. -Mint Leaf - new place, Indian cuisine. It's really delicious read more

I love the urban tea garden in the back. Perfect for a breezy, warm, blue-skied East Bay day.

Whether you've purchased food inside or at the Cheeseboard, you can still sit in the gloriously peaceful courtyard in back, which is probably the most relaxing area in the Gourmet Ghetto. Unless you are one of the people who insists on sitting in the median on Shattuck, you weirdo. read more

Great opportunities for quick lunchtime gourmet fun (except Socca Oven is gone--I'll miss those things). But no tables. Sitting on a bench works, somewhat, for a small tray of sushi, but not for soup or anything that requires utensils. Perhaps it's because I never ate in front of the TV as a kid and I'm too table-centric. Are they shooting for the gourmet take-home market? read more

Reason #8956 why the Yay is so much better than the suburbs. This place is adorable! A great "grown up" mini food court. We peeked in on a friday, and its def. not "Friday Night" fare, but if youre in the neighborhood on a weekday night or lunch, dont miss this spot for a quick gourmet grab and go! read more

Wonderful lil find....we attempted for Kirala at the Ward St location however the wait was 1 hour. We were starving hence we were driving towards the direction of Albany and then we saw a sign of Kirala2. We found parking, ran in and found that it was a lil high-end food court area with Kirala2, Soop, Ciao Bella, etc. I had the miso cod bento box for $11.50, friends had ready made sushi which was kinda on the dry side but it's pre-made sushi hence you can almost always bet that it's dry. Bf had a Chicken Socca - flat bread pizza from Socca Oven. We sat in the back patio which a lovely sanctuary with zen-like garden setting with deep oak wood benches....Well, since we didn't end up at the full-service Kirala, this Kirala2 to-go wasn't bad but I am really looking forward to get into Kirala at the 5:30 seating at some point! read more

Great food in here! Home of my fave soup stop, Soop. And the flan at the mexican place is creamy and delicious. Lush Gelato is a great treat too. Parking is crappy on Shattuck though :( read more

I'm not sure who designed the concept for this, but I don't think the result is what they envisioned, and if it is, that's quite disturbing. Everything from the basement feel, to the pretentiousness of the place, to the overpriced food. None of it is very good, except Lush. That's really the only place that seems to fit the neighborhood. It's unassuming, tasty, and reasonably priced. The taqueria is mediocre, the sushi overpriced, the soup place is ok I guess, and that chocolate place seems a little funny, too. The garden in back doesn't seem to fit the gourmet ghetto's aesthetic very well, but the food at Imperial Tea is actually tasty. Sorry to be so critical, but this is the gourmet ghetto. It's hard to compete with Gregoire, Chez Panisse, and Cheeseboard. read more

This is specifically about the Mexican restaurant in the court. It's overpriced and the food we ordered was dried out...the chicken was charred. I'm regretting we tipped the surly order taker. I'm giving the court itself 3 stars because I like the Vietnamese sandwiches at another restaurant in the complex and I like the overall setting. I'm surprised the place hasn't gone out of business during the winter. It's freezing outside (no heat lamps) and no places to sit inside. read more

Food court done right. I particularly love Kirala^2 and Ciao Bella Gelato. The garden is really pretty. It's a perfect place for a lunch date, romantic or otherwise. read more

Good to have this place in North Berkeley, but I have to admit that I've rarely eaten there. I've walked in a few times and walked out. But I love the options the place provides. read more

Excellent Mexican food, Great sushi selection and a lovely gelato bar. Great place to sit outside and eat on a sunny day. Pure Berkeley brilliance. read more

so i like the concept, and it certainly fits in with north berkeley's gourmet ghetto. it was way crowded for the reception on opening night, and some places weren't quite ready, so i cant really judge the space fairly since i didnt see it used during normal commercial hours. some of the places i liked were don petroff caviar, ciao bella, the imperial tea court (is this sounding like another place we know?.....) and kirala. not much needs to be said about these places, other than they put out a decent product. the soop place is... well..... soop...... and i if you need to spell soup soop... then well.....thats just gimicky. and whoever decided to open up the pizza stall right across the street from cheeseboard is either really bold or really stupid. i wish them a lot of luck, because after tasting their pizza, they're gonna need it. not only does it not compare to cheeseboard, but it was just downright tasteless. the garden in the back is pleasant, and the imperial tea court looks great! im wondering though if there will be any general seating, because it didnt look like there was any room for it. i think the grassy center divide is going to be extra crowded now.....although there is a nice raised deck out back. if i were in north berkeley again, i would end up getting a couple slices at cheeseboard, then maybe head over to the imperial tea court for a nice afternoon tea. read more