Outstanding in every way. Food came out fast and wonderfully prepared. Had the Shaking Beef and the Green Papaya salad to start. Both very flavorful and light. The beef was so tender -- like biting into clouds. On to the Chicken Crispy Rolls -- superior to the regular you get of this standard at other Asian restaurants. Then the Tuna Carpaccio, lightly sauced and slightly tangy, providing a nice contrast to the Shaking Beef. The outlier was the duck confit strudel. It's a hit. A rare combination of Asian and Italian influence in a filo-like dough. For entree we had the Lemongrass seafood. Perfectly cooked. Added a side of stir fried eggplant in a garlic oil. Wonderful. Wonderful. All wonderful. read more

Still like the food, but the bartender and the events coordinator have a serious attitude problem. They were very rude to my colleague. The staff basically yelled at her when she called to organize a lunch. Why go into a service industry if you want to be nasty to people? There are other other occupations that would make better use of this negative energy. read more

This is now my favorite restaurant! All the food is absolutely superb, and also mostly amazingly healthy. You have to try the Mapleleaf ducks strudel! And the garlic eggplant, fish tacos, salmon - tuna - mango poke. And the desserts, and above all, the drinks! Their cocktails are very tasty and imaginative, and nice and strong! read more

The food and ambience at this place are really good. Everything is very fresh and not too chichi fusion-y to still be called Vietnamese. The problem is the service. The last time I was there I was sitting at the bar and broke a glass--I know, my bad. I apologized all over the place but the server gave me a dirty look, didn't respond to my apologies and gave us the cold shoulder for the rest of the night. He then proceeded to break AN ENTIRE SHELF OF GLASSES, muttered to us "you guys started it" and stomped around huffing while he cleaned it up. Really nice dinner atmosphere, eh? I like the food but will never go back. read more

I've eaten at Vanessa's several times before and the food is very inconsistent. I am being completely generous with a one-star rating based on our dining experience last week: We started with the green papaya salad, which was delicious, the perfect crunch and nice balance of flavors. Even though we were specific about the ordering of our plates, we next received the filet mignon. A few other dishes came out which were placed on our table, then taken away (major faux pas), so there was definite disconnect between the front and the kitchen. The flet was good, but the meal rapidly declined with following plates. We next received the halibut -- which I kid you not -- evoked a GAG reflex for both myself and my husband. While I would never voluntarily send back a dish, this piece of fish was sooo bad, we felt obligated to let the kitchen know they should not be serving it to anyone else. The response of the waiter was definitely annoyed (we should have asked him to taste it himself). However, we then were served the rack of lamb. We cut into the chops, and they were clearly raw (we asked for medium rare). My husband stuck his finger into the meat and it was cold. Luckily I had spit out the bite I had almost consumed. We regrettingly sent back this dish as well feeling really bad about complaining, but raw lamb shouldn't be on anyone's table. The ultimate slap in the face: the chef obviously threw the same two chops back into the pan, and reserved them (obvious from teh cuts we had made into the meat), and now they were charred, hard, and needless to say we were horrified that the chef didn't show enough care to at least try to serve a decent plate. Although the staff apologized and agreed that it should absolutely not have been served, nothing was done insofar as crediting the bill. We spent $140, and left hungry only to go to Solano Cellars down the street for cheese and appetizers in the hopes of getting full. Will never go back here after the rude service and sour food. read more

This place was amazing from start to finish. My parents live in Berkeley and have become regulars at Vanessa's, so they took me when I was home for the holidays. When we got there around 7.30pm on a Wed night it was packed. We were greeted immediately by Vanessa's son (his sister also works there) who was very friendly and remembered my parents from previous visits. We had a drink and an appetizer (delicious green papaya salad - just the right flavors. Very delicate) at the bar while we waited for table. Despite the fact that our wait wasn't much longer than 20-30 minutes, our waitress apologized profuseful for making us wait. Everything we ordered was phenomenal. All of it very flavorful without being over powering. The highlights were the garlic eggplant, the green curry with shrimp, the spicy salmon tartar with avocado and the sticky rice with mushrooms. We didn't have room for dessert (or the rest of the menu, which we would have gladly ordered!), but can't wait to go back the next time I'm in town for a visit. Vanessa is apparently at the restaurant every night - we glimpsed her scurrying around the kitchen and going from table to table throughout the night. read more

This is easily one of my favorite places in Berkeley. Great atmosphere and the staff is always friendly and attentive. When Vi is working behind the bar she is always on top of everything. Definitely choose this one over their sister restaurant in Walnut Creek. read more

My husband and I decided to try Vanessa's Bistro recently, what a bad decision it proved to be. We entered the Bistro on a recent evening around 7pm and were greeted in a very rude way by a man asking "do you have a reservation"? We did not and told him this, he turned around and glanced at many empty tables and asked again if we had a reservation, this was repeated 3 times. Finally, we responded "if you are fully booked we can go someplace else". This somehow motivated him to say "do you want to sit at a table or the bar". Since we thought the Bistro might be fully booked we decided to sit at the bar, that was our second mistake of the evening. Although there were just as many empty barstools as their were tables we were told we would have to take the 2 seats between the wall and a large gentleman who had taken up over 2 spaces of the counter with books and writing materials. I was sandwiched between this gentleman and my husband, both who were over 6 feet tall. When my husband asked if we might move over, just until more people showed up he was rudely told by the bartender "No, I am saving those seats for other customers". We found it very interesting that in the hour we were there only 2 more customers showed up and they sat at a table nowhere near the bar. So much for customer service at Vanessas. Next came the drinks, I ordered a Pomegranate Martini, Usaully I love Pomegranate Martinis, but this had a medicine taste that was very unappealing. Next came the food, which I found very difficult to eat since the guy next to me still had most of the counter space in front of me where I needed to put my food and drink. The best thing I had that night were the sweet potato frites, they were far from the best I've had, but at least they were edible. The curry was not very good, the chicken rolls were downright bad and when I tried to get the drink menu back from the bartender so I could order another drink all I got was another bad Pomegrante Martini. When I tried to explain to the bartender that I did not order or want another Pomegranate Martini he told me I had ordered it and walked away. WOW, having worked in food service myself when I was in college I am aware of the challenges of working with the public, but this guy had to be the rudest bartender in the Bay Area, maybe in the whole state. He should definitely not be working with the public. In conclusion, I would have to say that the folks at Vanessas know very little about the hospitality industry, someone should explain to them that you actually are supposed to be hospitaple to the customers. Perhaps some customer servcie training would help these folks, but we won't be back, that's for sure. read more

First of all, I almost never complain, but the prawn with sticky rice main course dish ($14) had TWO prawns. Even the very nice waiter thought that was a mistake & told my husband he'll bring another prawn, but another waiter came up & in a gruff way told us, that's how many you get with that dish. He offered my husband an additional prawn for $4. Reminds me of the song "You get no bread with one meatball!" The food was good, but not good enough to accept highway robbery. P.S. We're not big eaters, but I'm surprised if no one's complained about this before. Oh well. The joint was busy, so I'm sure they could care less about not winning us over. read more

We stumbled upon Vanessa's Bistro when we were strolling down Solano Avenue. What a find! We were there for Mojito Monday, four dollar mojitos! and discovered that they have a huge variety of small plates and entrées on their menu, as well as specialty cocktails. My husband and I both ended up getting entrées, I had the clay pot rice with chicken and shrimp and my husband had the filet mignon. Both were modestly priced and absolutely cooked to perfection. The portions were satisfying but not huge, and we walked away full and pleased. I was so happy with my food, and my husband felt the same. We will definitely come back! read more

being in the berkeley area offers so many choices . if you're looking for a new experience, give this place a shot. you won't be dissapointed. the tapas portions make it easier to venture into different dishes. the french/vietnamese fusion makes sense with the mixture of textures and flavors. check it out !!! read more

i picked this place based on the guardian's best of the east bay edition supplemented with yelp reviews. we went on a wednesday night around 8 pm got parking and a table pretty quickly. our waitress was super sweet and attentive. i got the beet salad, lemongrass tofu and veg pad thai. everything was fresh and piping hot. my boyfriend got pork rolls and the duck, he was pleased with his choices too. to top it off we got the ginger molasses creme burlee. i would eat here again. read more

I love this restaurant! I have visited Vanessa's Bistro many times, and every meal has been excellent. From their stunning wild mushroom sticky rice, to the almost transcendentally seasoned salmon over salad greens, to the best eggplant I've ever had (seared over a wood fire), Vanessa is a master chef. Their shaking beef, 5 spice duck, and rack of lamb are all very good, and their seafood clay pot is again perfectly prepared and beautifully seasoned. This is the finest restaurant on Solano Avenue and easily one of the best in the East Bay. read more

well, i don't know what to say after i've seen all these reviews, both good and bad. the food was pretty good, almost four star-worthy, i'd say. but the service? i realize that a lot of people have already mentioned the tattooed guy, but after tonight, i have the need to mention him again. we came in, and the atmosphere was pleasant. the decor and lighting made it kind of cosy in there, a good take on "upscale", but still some slight kinks to work out here and there. we sat down and proceeded to wait for the rest of our party (two other people) to get there. i'll tell you, if you don't "make trouble", don't worry about it, the place is excellent and has some fairly good food. but if you complain about anything, if you are picky, or if you send something back to the kitchen, you'd better watch out. i complained twice: i thought there was something in the water, so my parents asked for a replacement glass. We figured out later that it was just a piece of lemon, but how was i to know that for sure before somebody told me? then, towards the end of the meal, i found a dead caterpillar in my food. my dad tried to clear things up with the waiter, and i'll admit that he did say "can you tell me what this is?" to the waiter instead of just saying what he meant, but still. you are telling me that a waiter at an upscale restaurant can't handle a little question like that? My father sounded sincere when he said it (at least to me), it was not meant to be a snide remark, but evidently that was how it was taken by the apparent co-owner of the place, Mr. Tattooed Arm, when our waiter took the plate to him to be examined in better lighting. His face clouded over, and he showed us a pile of sardines (we hadn't ordered anything with sardines in it). He stated to us that it was a sardine, and nobody at my table knew what to say to that, so after a moment of a confused silence, he asked with an intimidating stare, "is there a problem?" obviously, there was a problem. My dad went and heatedly discussed it with him on the other side of the tiny room, but i couldn't hear what they were saying. then the check came, which still had the 18% tip on it that my dad had refused earlier to pay. anyways, it all ended up with Mr. Tattoo asking my dad if he wanted "to take this outside", and the mother of Mr Tattoo coming to save the day by cutting in and trying to negotiate in her son's stead. she did a better job of communicating with the customers, but she still wasn't willing to really admit the gravity of anything that had just happened. she seemed like she was just trying to calm us down and get us out of there without causing too much trouble for her son. it didn't really work, and her daughter had to step in, who at least didn't charge us for the dish where the caterpillar showed up. i felt really bad over the whole situation, and my sister's birthday was not ruined, but seriously toned down after that. if you don't think you will accidentally stir up drama with Mr Tattooed arm, then this is the place for you. read more

One of the best restaurants in the East Bay. The food is Amazing! All family owned and run. Vanessa is an amazing woman, with an amazing history. She deserves MUCH success!!! Her kids Vi, Mike, and Jimmy handle all the front of the house, and her partner Jeremy handles the wine list. The highlights are pretty much EVERYTHING, but to name a few... the shaking beef, the garlic noodles, the pork rolls, the short ribs, the curry, the salt and pepper shrimp, the garlic eggplant, the pad thai, the lemongrass chicken, the halibut, the seabass, the claypot, the frog legs, the oops....i've almost named everything! Did I mention that the food is awesome? Make a reservation!!! Even if you don't think it will be busy. The place is small and popular with local regulars who fill the place nightly! Many people think that the movie Mrs. Doubtfire, is why Bridges Restaurant is popular. Those in the know are aware that Bridges success is actually owed to the genius and uncompromising hard work of one woman..........Vanessa. read more

i'm not positive the food deserves a 4... but my experience was definitely 4-star. the bartender there is wonderful and the ambiance is great. as far as food: we cleaned the place out. we tried: pear salad, shaking beef, halibut w/ noodles, chicken & rice claypot, quail, salt & pepper tofu, sticky rice... AND ginger creme brulee, bananas foster and cocount eggrolls. and an awesome bottle of wine that was not cheap. the presentation of dishes was vibrant and beautiful... and the flavors were nice. but the three of us couldn't help but admit we'd probably still prefer a great mom & pop shop. vietnamese food is so good already there's not much you can do to make it better, so the fusion attempts usually just make me ache for the real thing. but i'll be back; it was definitely fun. read more

Well this is my first Yelp review? Vanessa's Bistro is excellent. I would honestly have given 4.5 stars just because well 5 stars seems well I don't know unattainable perhaps. Well they are excellent. The food was very fresh and well cooked, and came in fairly good portions. Not the largest if that is what you are hoping for, but plenty if you really just enjoy what you eat and perhaps get appetizers and dessert. My bill for 2 people, with dessert and drinks was $60 after tip. However most of the meals can be gotten for $10 -14 a plate. The dessert was outstanding, a very light egg rollish apple pastry with ice cream, and warm sauce. It was very good after the meal. I will definitely be back to try more of the dishers here. I do think perhaps being a seafood lover is something that might help too as they do have a slighter larger selection of seafood dishes, vs chicken, beef, or vegetarian. However they do still have all of these dishes. Just not quite as many as perhaps with some sort of seafood in the course. read more

I happened to walk by Vanessa's with a friend at lunch one day and we decided to stop and eat . I had never heard of this bistro, but am a fan of french-vietnamese cuisine. Well, the food was fantastic. The service was excellent. And though not cheap, it was not outrageous either. Sharing 4 small plates with a friend left us both very satisfied. I will definitely go back and I highly recommend the calamari to anyone. It was better than any calamari I have ever tasted. Ask the waiter what to order and you will not be disappointed! read more

Food was excellent. Portions are small...so don't go in too hungry. Main problem was the waiter during Happy Hour (4-6pm) was distant and rude...as if our wanting to eat was a personal inconvenience. It was one of those times when you have a special dinner guest and you want the wait staff to at least be courteous. That didn't happen. Even the best food under those circumstances can leave a bad taste in your mouth. read more

Good. The Tuesday taco special with margarita is a great deal. Happy hour is nice. Some dishes are better than others. Try for yourself.

Came here upon the recommendation from both my sister and our uncle and aunt. I was hesitant to go as they described it as a type of Vietnamese Asian fusion place, and I typically avoid Asian fusion cuisine as it usually involves food that's too sweet, too sour, and too salty, all at the same time. But they usually have similar taste if food as we, so we thought we'd try it. Decor is nice. It's hip and modern. They have a bar area for smaller parties. Their wine list is pretty extensive, as it is a tapas-type place. We didn't have any wine tonight, as we wanted to try the food unfettered. Others may have a different tasting philosophy, and that's cool, too. There were a few items on the Specials menu we ordered. We started with the tuna tartare, which seems similar to the salmon tartare on the regular menu. That was nice dish and a good proportion between 2 people. Next came the duck confit lettuce wraps from the standard menu. The duck and mushrooms were great. My only complaint would be that the lettuce leaves weren't leafed in the best shape to use for wrapping, and things would fall out. Iceberg lettuce is the best for this kind of wrap, but understandably they may not want to use iceberg lettuce, and the taste may not go well with the fresh mint leaves. I would suggest maybe they try other types that are more conducive to wrapping and the mint, Boston lettuce, romaine, etc. If you don't want to mess with the lettuce, just eat the duck plain. Another item from the Specials menu came - the bouillabaisse. I don't believe it followed a traditional recipe, though that's not what was being expected. I would have to say it tasted a lot like my mother's vegetable soup recipe (tomatoes, celery, carrots) with a good and plentiful variety of fish and seafood in it with 1 piece of skillet-grilled (vs. flame grilled) garlic toast. This may not sound very appetizing, but I loved my mother's vegetable soup, and adding the fish to it just made it that much better. A personal favorite for me, and I hope they add it to their standard menu. My only suggestion would be to have maybe 2 pieces of garlic toast, as this dish is meant to be shared, and 2 separate pieces vs. 1 shared piece may be more desirable for diners who aren't related or married to each other. Another suggestion would be to use a grill method that allows the bread to soak up the broth more quickly, though after some soaking, the results are the all the same. Service in a clay pot keeps things nice and warm while you're eating. Garlic butter egg noodles. My sister couldn't stop raving about them and told us we needed to order them. I thought they were good, and had a lot of garlic taste and a good sauce that wasn't too heavy (about just right), but it just reminded me of a type of chow mein, but at a much higher price than at a local Chinese deli or restaurant. We're Chinese, so we're no strangers to all types of chow mein. Order it if you're not getting any other starches in your meal, as it's a nice break between dishes, and there's more than enough for 2-3 people. But a good alternative starchy dish is the claypot rice with chicken, shrimp, and bok choy from the regular menu. Don't expect a Cantonese-style claypot rice, as it's not. And it actually comes in a stone-type pot that is commonly used in Korean tofu houses (still made of ceramic, but if you're familiar, you'll understand), but in this case, this is more appropriate as it better generates the desired crust at the bottom while not burning. While the bok choy was probably intended as a secondary side of the dish, the size and tenderness was very good. Details count. The rice is made with onions, butter, and other stuff at the bottom of the rice. Make sure you scrape everything off the bottom of the pot - don't be shy - as those crispy bits are the best part. Another Specials item was the tiger prawns with a beurre blanc tamarind sauce. Tamarind sauces are usually overly sweet, but they've balanced it out well. The prawns were also very big, and cooked just right - tender, and not overdone. Plenty of mushrooms. A nice food preparation feature was that the shells were peeled all the way down to the tail, but the tail was intact. You can eat the whole shrimp and bite off the tail without any collar of shell to get in your way. Details count. Dessert? Try the ginger molasses creme brulee. The vanilla ice cream is good, too; better than the chocolate. But if you want a nice treat, get the ice cream *and* the creme brulee. Take some ice cream in a scoop, and then get some of the custard (underneath the caramelized sugar) and take it in a a single bite - a very nice treat. The ice cream comes in a waffle-type cookie bowl. Not too sweet, and goes well when scooping up the rest of the creme that isn't already finished. This review may be too long... Thanks for reading. Check out Vanessa's. read more

Great food, but someone over there changed my tip from 20 something to forty something, and no i wasnt stingy with the tip, i normally add min. 15%. Good thing I kept my receipt! Sneaky!... Sadness that I have not come back since then. So FYI! Check your final amount with this place!! Or bring cash! read more

This place is ridiculously good. Pricey sure, but totally worth it. I've tried many different dishes and each one is amazing. The variety of flavors in each bite is amazing. It's a party for your palate! If food can be described as 'sexy' then this is it :). I definitely recommend the shaking beef, the duck conduit thingy (forgot the actual name). The staff is friendly and hip. I wish i could eat here more often, guess I should find a higher paying job, lol... read more

Vanessa's bistro is truly spot on Solano Avenue. Great happy hour, presentation throughout, family-oriented and always willing to share and listen . Reasonable pricing complemented by family and staff that expect the best out of themselves, with fresh local vegetables. choice of beef and seafood , and an imagination that always ends with a sweet offer to take home or enjoy at the bistro. Enjoy! read more

The food here is great! Was easily seated on a Saturday night without a problem. Would recommend trying the garlic noodles, shaken beef and clay pot rice. All of the dishes that we got were very tasty! read more

Stumbled upon this great little neighborhood place for dinner and so glad we did. Everything we ordered was delicious - the fresh crab salad, duck lettuce wraps, quail, bouillabaisse, and prawns with garlic noodles. All the ingredients were fresh and tasty and not heavy or greasy. We enjoyed our meal sooo much! We live in the Oakland hills but would make the drive here again to try more of the menu. Although we were full, it's a nice street to stroll and then get ice cream from Tristan's on Solano. read more

I was escorting my favorite foodies from Chicago to some of the 'must try' restos in the Bay Area. Thurs night we got in to the Slanted Door and were underwhelmed, despite the palpable homage of the ambience. Following Weds afternoon we looked for a late lunch spot on Solano and wound up at Vanessa's Bistro. We sampled about 8 small plates and each one was excellent, came out fast and fresh from the kitchen. We tried the quail, salt and pepper prawns, shaking beef, pork rolls and soup among others. Some that resemble items on the SD menu like the shaking beef were stand outs. Ordered a second bowl of the pumpkin lemongrass soup so one of us could get her fill. We could see Vanessa in the kitchen, rolling more of her beautiful spring rolls and got a smile and a wave for our 'three thumbs up'. So I give Vanessa's 5 stars, and if i were going to bother rating the Slanted Door, I'd give it 2 in comparison. read more

This was surprisingly good. We started with the calamari and the duck strudel. Both were pretty good, but the strongest flavor of the strudel was the puff pastry and I didn't taste much of the duck or mushroom. The tamarind prawns with mushroom sticky rice was very good. I ended the very filling meal with a bite of the pecan pie and that was also very good. Service was good too. read more

our party of 3 had the shaking (filet mignon) beef, salt/pepper tofu, rack-o-lamb (special)...all were GREAT as was the duck wrap and sweet potato fry apps. friendly service, reasonable priced, nice ambiance. read more

This place isn't spectacular, but the dishes are quite tasty and reasonably priced. My girlfriend and I had the sticky rice with wild mushrooms, the lemongrass tofu curry, the salt and pepper calamari, and the ahi tuna and salmon poke. I thought the sticky rice with wild mushrooms was simply amazing, but my girlfriend thought it was flavorless. I love love love mushrooms, so that probably explains the difference in opinion. The ahi tuna and salmon poke had a plethora of interesting flavors, which combined into an exquisite dish. Definitely recommended. The salt and pepper calamari was good, but I'm not sure that it was all the special. I thought that the lemongrass tofu curry would have more curry sauce, but it was only lightly sauced. Not rich enough for me, but probably a lot healthier. It was still good, but just not noteworthy. The portions were definitely small plate sizes, but weren't tiny like other tapas places. At $7~ a plate, it seemed ok priced. Good thing my girlfriend has a small appetite, I definitely ate more than my fair share. The wait staff was pretty good, serving us at the appropriate moments and brought the food out exceedingly quickly. We went there tonight at 8, and had a reservation, although I noticed that there was a small bar table and 2 4-person tables still empty, so I don't think the reservation was necessary that late in the evening. I'd definitely go back here again. Probably not soon, because there are still too many restaurants in the area that I need to explore! read more

Maybe this place was good once upon a time but I did not enjoy our meal. The flavors were all off. Some dishes were too sweet, too much fish sauce or had spices that I do not associate with Vietnamese cuisine. For example, the grilled shrimp over garlic noodles tasted like it had cumin in it. I peaked in the open kitchen and it seemed like there were a whole lot of line cooks but no head chef which would explain why flavors were not there. Also a sign of bad things to come was the long menu with a long list of specials. For me, too many dishes usually means a lot of mediocre dishes. I did like my lemonade (which may have been lemon/limeade) otherwise I'd give this place one star. read more

We made reservation for four people on Friday . We were seated on time and our waitress was very friendly . However it was our first time and we were not sure how to order . For someone who knows the Vietnamese food I felt it was more American with a mix of Asian food . The drinks were good . I ordered bloody marry basil martini and it was perfect . We ordered their garlic noodles and their fish tacos , shaking steak salad, tuna tartar . Their dishes are small and we were still hungry, so we ordered more . If you go here stay with their Tapa menu and make sure your not very hungry because you will need more that one or two dish . It's walnut creek and you pay for your food lots of $$$$. I am into simple good food that I can enjoy and I like little places or I should say little hole in the wall places . Won't go there again I feel there are more places like this in walnut creek and it's not worth going . read more

Great service, delicious food, reasonable prices. They know their regulars and treat them extremely well. Poke, clay pot chicken, shaking beef are some of my faves but everything on the menu is very good. read more

found this on yelp! found out there are two bistros, one in berkeley hills n one in walnut creek. decided to go the the one in berkeley hills since it was on our way home from san francisco...happy hour on sundays. service was great. food was made fast and delicious! best was the tacos and the filet mignon! we had filet mignon at scoma's in fisherman's wharf the night before and asked them to cook it medium. it was well done. the filet mignon at vanessa's was perfectly cooked medium! the waiter was always tending to us making sure everything was good! would love to go here again! read more

What a gem! The food is yummy! I've been there a few times have never been disappointed. Portion size is appropriate for description as tapas, definitely enough to share. This is not typical Vietnamese food in any way. Presentation is top-notch, more like what you get in a very high-end restaurant. Service was friendly, but then again I'm not very high maintenance... you don't need to kiss my a$$ and treat me like royalty, just bring me good food... I rather like the guys with the tattoos and mohawks.... read more

We love you Vanessa's Bistro! Vanessa's has been consistently delicious every time we've visited. We have friends that we brought here while they were visiting from Seattle, and the next time they visited, they actually said they made time in their schedule to come here twice! Any time we have friends visiting, or need a night out just to relax with a nice cocktail, and amazing food, this is where we go. Our favorite dish is the Shaking Beef. They are also just wonderful people, and always treat us like family when we come in. read more

very nice place, took my wife there and we loved it.

It always amazes me that Berkeley has a Happy Hour crowd. They must all show up at Vanessa's. Nice light food, with interesting flavors. I think of Sex in the City meets Berkeley suburbs. If you want a city vibe while not being in the city this place does a nice impression on weekends. read more

We went here for my son's 30th birthday and I will be trying the one that is in Walnut Creek. The staff is very friendly and attentive. They were 6 of us and we tried the shaking beef that was very tasting, even though I only had the salad part. We tried some veggie rolls and I would skip those next time. I had a mushroom risotto that was so so good. The food is full of flavor! Will try other things next time. I will be back! read more

Delicious innovative food along with good cocktails make it a very nice dinner spot. I have tried them on multiple occasions and they have never failed us. read more