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We love eating at:
Bacheeso's, Berkeley - Not top-notch, but an inexpensive, reasonably healthy place to eat with your flexitarian friends. Now several locations in Berkeley/Oakland.
Bistro 1491, Albany - Best menu/cooking at dinner, this laid-back diner offers excellent salads and some surprising upscale touches on the food. No bar, so drinking crowd goes elsewhere for poorer food at higher prices. Their loss, our gain. One negative: service has been iffy lately with brand-new waitstaff. But the soups are amazing, and don't miss the pear salad and any pork belly dish.
Cafe M, Berkeley - Lovely space adds charm to a relaxing breakfast/lunch cafe near the Fourth St. shops
Cafe Rouge, Berkeley - A recent dinner crashed and burned, to our shock. Every bakery item was unpleasantly stale, undermining decent food. We're worried, and will try again soon.
China Village, Albany - We're not in love with CV, but we liked it. Chinese food has fallen so far down that CV stands head & shoulders above the rest...for what that's worth.

Hamro Aangan, Albany - We loved this little Pakistani restaurant for lunch, but have had reports that dinner isn't as good. This is our favorite curry lunch spot, but we still need to try dinner one of these days.
Himalayan Flavors, Berkeley - Excellent food, upscale decor, easy parking - great tandoori, mild curries, and we love the dumplings. Lunch, however, was disorganized and some dishes were actually unpleasant. Stick to dinner.
Iyasare, Berkeley - Former Yoshi chef Shotaro Kamio is cooking up a storm here. Wonderful kappo-style food, but it's better for dinner than lunch - Kamio isn't in the kitchen at lunch hours and the staff isn't as exacting as he is. Very small, not good for crowds.
Julia's @Berkeley City Club, Berkeley - Gorgeous building, well-trained young staff, and the food is almost as good as its supports. Very French but in updated CA style. If the parking weren't so hideous we'd go every week.
Kabana Afghani, Berkeley- Their new location is larger and cleaner, but the food dropped a bit. Still good, but we're continuing to try other places.
KC BBQ, Berkeley - One of the last "real" BBQ joynts, funky and kitschy inside, with great sausage and ribs. Skip the brisket, get the sauce on the side.
Kiku Sushi, Berkeley - A tiny place with excellent sashimi, and a black cod starter that's a bargain meal in itself. Get there early before the line starts forming, though. NOTE: last two lunches the food has been sloppily prepared. We'll try again and see if they've corrected themselves.
La Note, Berkeley - Artisan/Lafayette has a slight edge over La Note as the best French bistro in the EBay, but La Note is very good,with a more traditional, Berkeley-casual vibe. Provencal specialties overcome the noise and crowds, but don't go if you're looking for a quiet romantic dinner or to chat with friends.

Nong Thon, El Cerrito - CLOSED
Origen, Berkeley - CLOSED. 
Revival, Berkeley - sister to Venus, a larger space suffers from erratic waitstaff, but we'll back. Former Pican chef Sophina Uong has taken over the kitchen temporarily thru June 2015, and we love her cooking.
Royal Cafe, Albany - Almost as good as Mama's Royal Cafe in Oakland. Their Solano Delight scramble is terrific and the coffee rocks! Better for breakfast dishes than lunch, however - the hamburger bun was Wonder Bread mushy

Sabuy Sabuy II, Berkeley - Much better than Sabuy Sabuy I/Oakland. Not the Thai food of our dreams, but our lunch was good and we'll come back to try dinner, where there's a much more interesting menu available
Sea Salt, Berkeley - CLOSED
Stella Nonna, Berkeley - Caterer opened up a restaurant: lovely patio space, some good starters. Overall, we'd rank it above Paradiso/SLeandro but below Bistro 1491/Albany. Stella misses too often, especially on desserts. Service is very good, tho.
Timbao, Berkeley - CLOSED
Venus, Berkeley- When uncrowded, the food is terrific but don't take a large party here; space is cramped.

A unique 5-star experience:
Alegio Chocolate Tasting, Berkeley - We guarantee you will never look at chocolate the same way, even famous-name artisanal chocolates, after going through the unique educational tasting of Claudio Corallo's earthy, heirloom bean, unadulterated-by-salt-vanilla-and-lecithin chocolates. To have this in our own backyard is a priceless experience. Make a reservation, and GO!

We like (not love) eating at:
168, Richmond, 99 Ranch Mall - Sichuan green beans are superb at 168 but everything else was greasy and cheapo.
Anh Hong, Berkeley - Originator of the Bo 7 Mon beef banquet, but other restaurants do it better. Still, a good value and nice intro to Viet food.
Assemble, RIchmond - Good, not great, American comfort food. Location is convenient if you're visiting the Rosie Riveter Museum which is right across the sidewalk.
Au Coquelet,Berkeley - Too sweet on desserts, and the coffee is horrible, but the espresso drinks are good so this is our standard for 'need a lift' if the blood sugar drops.
Bay Grille, Berkeley - For dinner, a better than average restaurant hidden inside the Doubletreel Hilton in the Berkeley Marina. Limited view, plain dining, but service is very good and food is surprisingly well executed. Sadly, lunch was mediocre with too-expensive so-so sandwiches.
Broom Bush Cafe, Berkeley - Decent breakfast in a dilapidated diner, but they try hard and the basics are good.

Cafe Colucci, Berkeley - Berkeley-ized Ethiopian wins raves from olive oil lovers but not us. It's okay, but the flavors, especially on the veggie dishes, lack the depth of using the authentic red palm oil and niter kibbeh, the spiced butter essential to this cuisine. We like Cafe Romanat, Red Sea, and Enssaro better.
Cafe Tibet, Berkeley - Cute little cafe with good beef momos, and an outstanding fried eggplant 'chips' dish
Comal, Berkeley - The Millennials darling, a bar with food, actually pulls it off, unlike District and Fonda. Some of the starters are quite good, although the middle menu section of tacos and quesadillas is a level down. High quality ingredients and execution; happiness here will depend on getting a good waiter, however.
Daimo, Richmond - Adequate dim sum in the 99 Ranch Mall off Hwy 80. It's dropped a level compared to Saigon Seafood. But I like the deli roast pork which wasn't overcooked.
EurAsia, El Cerrito - If you like onions, you'll like EurAsia. Basic Mongolian greasy spoon, but the owners are sweet.
Everest Cafe, Berkeley - If the tandoori hadn't been overcooked this would be a winner over Himalayan Flavors, the saag paneer was amazing. More standard menu than HF, though.

Five, Berkeley - We're not as fond of Chef Tonnelier as we were of Banks White. Dinner off our list, but brunch seemed okay.
Fonda, Albany - really a bar with some good Cal-Mex snacks
Gather, Berkeley - Flexitarian menu got sloppy on our second visit, but the newly promoted chef looks promising.
Gaumenkitzel, Berkeley - Very European, clean spare dining room and modest-sized high quality portions. We don't love it, but we like it. Disappointingly, the desserts have slid down a level.
Giovanni, Berkeley - Tired old-style Cal-Italian except for an amazing spicy seafood pasta.
House of Curries, Berkeley/Albany (note: Oakland location reviewed separately): - Inexpensive curry takeout chain, but amazingly good lamb kebabs for cheap
Indus Village, Berkeley - The food got prettier, but the spicing got wimpy. It's cheap, but not exceptional any longer.
Jimmy Beans, Berkeley - Sold to new owners, now called Lama Beans but menu is purportedly the same.
Joshu-Ya Brasserie, Berkeley - A cheaper Iyasare and half as good. Great sliders, tho! But the sashimi platter was pretty yet tasteless. Tiny tables, barely average waitstaff.
Kathmandu, Albany - Painfully slow (most people get take-out) but their lamb mo-mo's are the real thing: homemade dough, shreds of juicy hand-cut lamb.

Koreana Kitchen, Richmond - Would rank better if the rice hadn't been hard. Cheap and standardized, neither offensive nor exciting.
Lalime, Berkeley - Once one of our favorites, went downhill for a while but has come back up again. But service is erratic and customer service by the management sucks, big-time. The pastas are excellent, but just too uneven to recommend without hesitation.
Mangia Mangia, Albany - They make a good smoked chicken cannelloni. But most of it's mediocre and service is unreliable.
Meritage at Claremont Resort, Berkeley - Don't love the new chef; half-portions have been dropped. Dinner weekdays only! If you need a view, this is the place, but it'll cost you.
Nizza La Bella, Albany - We were disappointed in a recent dinner. Cost-cutting and sloppy prep drops them a full level below where they were. We're disheartened by the sad state of French cuisine in the East Bay.
Pikanha Brazil BBQ, Richmond - Inexpensive all-you-can-eat, friendly place but meats are very salty. Galeto's/Oakland is slightly more expensive but better overall.
Post Meridian, Kensington - CLOSED
Ran Kanom Thai, Richmond - @99 Ranch Mkt location still open. City of San Pablo location CLOSED. Inexpensive combo take-out/sit-down restaurant, good for the low price. But the crispy rice salad is better at Vientian/Oakland.
Rendez Vous Cafe, Albany  - Neighborhood bistro from the bad old days. But they do have a very good seafood vol-au-vent, a rare classic that's done well.

Riva Cucina, Berkeley - At one time we rated this the best restaurant in Berkeley, but no longer. Cost-cutting has taken a toll - it's pleasant, but now Oakland's authentic Italian places are better (Desco, Lungomare, and Alameda's Trabocco).
Rivoli, Berkeley - Same owners as Corso, but more bistro CA-French. Starters are better than entrees, and desserts aren't as good they should be. Very popular so reservations are essential.
Saigon Seafood, Richmond - Like Daimo, a little flawed; but overall it has better dim sum. But the service can be awful sometimes, dropping them down a level. Roast duck is excellent but only when they use the Liberty instead of the Pekin; it's never oversalted like Daimo's.
Saul's Deli, Berkeley - Skip the latkes (Speisekammer/Alameda does them better) and the Reuben is eclipsed by Doyle Street Cafe/Emeryville. The corned beef/pastrami hash is pretty good, though.
Sichuan Fusion, Richmond, 99 Ranch Mall - A little too heavy on the sugar, but the food is back to the second level Sichuan it was before. We do enjoy those stir-fried rice cakes, but not much else.
Taki Sushi, El Cerrito - We've had two good dinners here, but waitstaff can be distressingly erratic. For some reason the kitchen has trouble timing the cooked food.
Tomate Cafe, Berkeley - Good inexpensive breakfast/lunches right out of the 1970's commune days
Toot Sweets Bakery, Berkeley - When the cookies are fresh, they're soft and yummy. But be careful, often they're stale. Vegetarian flatbread wasn't half-bad, either. Skip the oversweetened, fake buttercream cakes.
Vault Cafe, Berkeley - Inexpensive and pleasant if you're nearby and desperately need breakfast.
Venezia, Berkeley  - CLOSED
Zut, Berkeley - Kept Eccolo's lovely decor, but food has fallen off; now ordinary in both concept and execution. Still, Christmas is an especially nice time to go; 4th St. is lit up.

We were disappointed by:
3 Hermanas, El Cerrito - Good chile rellenos and iced tea, but outside of those La Calaca/Oakland beats them by a mile.
938 Crawfish, Albany - Disappointing, sloppy food. And I hate Crystal hot sauce, which is all the heat there was.
Angeline's Louisiana Kitchen, Berkeley - Decent gumbo, oversalted jambalaya, cheap andouille sausages. Spouse went back a year later and said ribs were much better now, but fried fish was DOA.
Asian Pearl, Richmond 99 Ranch Mall - mediocre dim sum
Bistro Liaison, Berkeley - We'll try again - Yelpers liked dishes we didn't try the first time
Cape Cod, Albany - Pleasant but tired old-timer on Solano Ave.
Chez Panisse, Berkeley - Nope, we didn't enjoy the stultifyingly rigid food, nor the impersonal "well, we don't know you" waitstaff.
Chez Panisse Cafe, Berkeley - This trendsetter gave us a well-executed, yet uninteresting meal. Somebody's mistaking boring for simplicity.

Cugini, Albany - Sloppy, salty food at lunch didn't interest or impress us
El Chalan Peruvian, Richmond - We just don't understand the fuss about this peasant cuisine. The tripe was good, the catfish fresh with no muddy taste. But you've got to like corn, raw onions, and potatoes, which are in everything. It's okay, but we'd rather go Cal Mex, or Asian of any type.
Everett & Jones BBQ, Berkeley, University Ave - Outside of the 'ham on a stick'...er, pork ribs, the location is sketchy, the brisket and sausage were sub-par, and the sauce can barely redeem things. Go a block south to KC BBQ and have the real thing.
Fat Apple, Berkeley - Just okay, the street parking is tight, and with Royal Cafe/Albany and Bistro 1491/Berkeley so close, why bother?
Genki, Berkeley - CLOSED

Jayakarta Indonesian, Berkeley - Skip the disappointing rijstaffel and order noodles or rice instead. Tries to do too much with a tiny kitchen.
Juan's Place, Berkeley - Old-style Mexican and fading fast. I got sick from their food; enough said.
King Tsin, Berkeley - limited dim sum, but erratic. Our visit was decent, but a visit by my niece was a horror. As it's so close to Daimo and Saigon Harbor in 99 Mall/Richmond, why bother taking a chance?
Le Bedaine, Albany - A disappointing pastry shop. The butter used is low quality, but we'll return to try the charcuterie.
Mehak Indian, Berkeley - Awful, cheap, indifferent Indian, at least for the buffet lunch.
Muang Thai, Albany - This was our fault: we ended up trying a mix of Viet and Thai dishes, but no Thai curries. Muang didn't do a good job on any of these, but we have reliable reports that their curries are good. We'll try again.
900 Grayson, Berkeley - Lunch is better than breakfast, but it's just too small to be comfortable with all those people trying to get in.
Paisan Pizzeria, Berkeley  - Pizza was okay but not interesting. We prefer Star/Oakland.
Renee's Place, Albany - One of the early Chinese/bistro fusion restaurants, but far eclipsed by other places like Bowl'd and China Village.

Smoke BBQ, Berkeley - Much lauded, heavy smoke/low salt, we found it disappointing. And the staff was surly and uncooperative, making us want to run back to the warmth and cheerfulness of KC BBQ across the street.
Skates, Berkeley - We didn't like Kincaid's, and Skates is now just another sister restaurant in a corporate conglomerate that only cares about bottom line profits. Service was so-so and food was tired. 
Talavera, Albany - It's less than a block to Gordo's. Do not stop here, save your $$, and eat better at Gorgo's. Same owners as Montero Night Club and La Mission Taqueria/Berkeley.
T-Rex, Berkeley - Whatever it is, it ain't real BBQ. Has been sold Sept 2012 to new owners, food hasn't improved per reports.
Trattoria Corso, Berkeley - We loved their pizza, but they have stopped making it. A return visit brought excessive saltiness on every dish, ruining the good quality ingredients. Only the polenta was worthwhile, but that's just not enough.
Trevino's Mexican, El Cerrito - Old style Cal-Mex is tired and bland.
White Lotus Thai, Albany - Our first visit was a downer, our second was okay, but the third was terrible. They're off our list.