Diners' Choice: Neighborhood gem restaurants in East Bay

OpenTable

Updated January 05, 2025

Looking for the best restaurants that are the best neighborhood gems in East Bay? You’re in the right place. Each month, OpenTable analyzes nearly 2 million global diner reviews from the past four months. We sort the results by location and category to help you discover new favorite restaurants. It's a great partnership: you reserve, eat, and review. We listen...and deliver the results for all to benefit. Enjoy!

Nonni's Bistro

4.9

4.9 (1320)

$30 and under

European

Pleasanton

About the restaurant

Come join us at Nonni's where you are part of the family. Our food is always made from scratch and is always from the heart.

Top review

EverardoVIP

Dined 3 days ago

Had a great experience got Cheff jhon to help me pair the wine for the home made smoked salmon appetizer. Had great mussels after , really a European cousin . I’m glad I found it .

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Popular dish

French Onion Soup

Forbidden Island Tiki Lounge

4.9

4.9 (418)

$30 and under

Cocktail Bar

Alameda

About the restaurant

About
Forbidden Island Tiki Lounge is a tropical vacation spot right in the middle of your hometown! Serving award-winning, world famous classic and exotic cocktails along with many original recipes, along with some tasty snacks, Forbidden Island is a retro-oasis in the desert of your busy modern day! Now open indoors (seated capacity only) as well as outdoors in our Tiki Garden/ Patio, 7 days a week.

* Please note that all reservations are limited to 90 minutes for groups of 1-3 and 2 hours for groups of 4-8.

Top review

Jonathan

Dined 4 days ago

Always a great experience. The drinks are amazing—ask about them even if they aren’t on the menu. The 1934 Zombie is my favorite.

Tri Valley Bistro

4.9

4.9 (399)

$30 and under

American

Pleasanton

About the restaurant

For parties greater than 8 guests for the weekend ,please contact the restaurant at (925)523-3815.
Thank you!

Tri Valley Bistro offers Creative Modern Californian American Cuisine including steaks, seafood, pasta and vegetarian options supporting gluten-free
and dairy free meals during dinner and brunch/lunch with a great wine selection and a tasteful weekend brunch selections and bottomless Mimosas

Top review

NancyVIP

Dined 3 days ago

We had delicious brussels sprouts, ribeye steak, and mahi-mahi. The ribeye steak was cooked at medium rare and very tasty, although chewy, which was unexpected. I didn’t mind that. However, the mahi-mahi was slightly overcooked, which is why I gave them four stars instead of five. My husband loved everything!

Roses on Adeline

4.9

4.9 (45)

$30 and under

Californian

Berkeley

About the restaurant

All guests must be 21+
Where love for Food, Art & Community thrives.

Seasonally driven bar food & cocktails with an emphasis on quality and freshness, beer, wine & great vibes too!

Our menu features comforts & classics with a sprinkle of innovation and creativity.
Fresh, seasonal, local California fusion.

Top review

Michael

Dined on Jan 4, 2025

Loved my cocktail! And the food was super tasty. So glad this place opened!

Marzano

4.8

4.8 (1051)

$30 and under

Italian

Oakland

About the restaurant

Just like the small family-owned trattorias of Italy, Marzano is simple, rustic, and generous in spirit. Executive Chef, Robert Holt, draws his inspiration from Southern-Italy, with an emphasis on wood-fired Neapolitan pizza.

Top review

Diana

Dined on Jan 4, 2025

It’s always a relaxed vibe and great food at this go to neighborhood spot.

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Experience

25% OFF Bottles of Wine on Wednesday

Experience

Aperetivo O'Clock

Oasis Restaurant & Wine Lounge

4.7

4.7 (689)

$31 to $50

Mediterranean

Pleasanton

About the restaurant

According to the Mercury News (2007), "The menu in the main restaurant is equally eclectic (compared to its wine lounge), with unusual dishes such as pumpkin borani, which features spicy peppers and garlic, and aushak, pasta filled with leek and cilantro and topped with garlic-yogurt sauce and sautéed ground beef, and simpler starters and entrees such as grilled salmon and beef, shrimp, lamb, and chicken kabobs. The owners have designed their menu to accommodate the palates of those who like spicier, more exotic dishes and those who prefer milder, well-prepared salads, vegetables, and grilled seafood and meat.” Come experience this treasure in Downtown Pleasanton in either the main dining room or our relaxing wine lounge.

Top review

Jill

Dined 3 days ago

Delicious food and excellent service! The pumpkin borani is our favorite!

Bellanico Restaurant and Wine Bar

4.7

4.7 (2070)

$30 and under

Italian

Oakland

About the restaurant

Bellanico Restaurant & Wine Bar saves some tables for walk-ins, please call Bellanico directly for large party reservations. Bellanico is a continuation of Chris Shepherd & Elizabeth Frumusa’s successful restaurant in San Francisco, Aperto in Potrero Hill. Bellanico is a neighborhood restaurant located in the Glenview district of Oakland. The name Bellanico is derived from their daughters’ nicknames, Bella & Nico. The Bellanico staff take great pride in food, service and wine. We serve rustic Italian cuisine that changes seasonally. We are dedicated to serving the best seasonal, local, sustainable and organic products that they can find. Bellanico features Pitman Farms Chicken, Prather Ranch Meat, Duroc Pork and only wild caught fish and seafood. It also features a wine bar offering Old World wines with an emphasis on Italian wines. There are more than 25 wines by the glass & 6 different flights of wine.

Top review

RobinVIP

Dined 4 days ago

We had not been back for years so we were very happy to see the restsurant really thriving!!! The menu is excellent, wonderful potatoes& lerk soup was out starter. Thrn mussels which was amazing, very plump and meaty. Then pasta one with meat ragu and one with tomatoes and bacon. Very different sauces but both quite good. They have a special processca from Italy which we had never had before. It is very smooth!!! T he desserts were perfectly decadent too! Chocolate made to order cake, small dinut balls with angliase and bittersweet sauce and a pannacotta. All wonderful

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Popular dish

Fried Squash Blossoms

Perle Wine Bar

4.7

4.7 (160)

$31 to $50

French

Oakland

About the restaurant

Perle is a neighborhood wine bar, specializing in french-California focused cuisine. We strive to casually exceed our customer's expectations with interesting food options and a wine list that is varied and affordable. Two San Francisco restaurant personalities, Chef Rob Lam from Butterfly & Sommelier Marcus Garcia from Fleur de Lys decided to open a hip and comfortable wine lounge and restaurant loaded with great wines, spirits, craft cocktails and beer... In the small, quaint, Montclair village in the hills of Oakland. House specialties include caviar, oysters, mussels and other gems of the sea... classic fromage and charcuterie... to a burger considered one of Oakland's best! Currently in San Francisco Chronicle's Top French Restaurants!!!

Top review

Dallas

Dined on Jan 5, 2025

Hello! Food was great! Service was good! The only thing that was a problem for us was the TV over the bar. One couldn't help but look at it. Awful. We were unfortunately seated in the table area around the bar and the TV was unavoidable.

Blue Sakana - Blackhawk (Formerly Blue Gingko - Blackhawk)

4.7

4.7 (143)

$30 and under

Japanese

San Ramon

About the restaurant

Come to unwind, stay for the unexpected

Blue Sakana is an Izakaya style restaurant with share plates where friends can go to have a drink and unwind after a long day. Chef and owner, JD prepares Japanese influenced dishes from around the world consisting of an eclectic mix of local and seasonal meat, noodle, sashimi, and traditional sushi specialties, with an emphasis on a unique variety of fresh seafood.

The staff welcomes you into their house and offers up comfort, hospitality and fun. Blue Sakana Blackhawk features an outdoor patio and a full bar, stocked with an extensive selection of sake, where our team happily introduce diners to the world of sake.

Top review

MutluVIP

Dined on Dec 7, 2024

The food was very fresh, well prepared and very presentable. The service was excellent with very frequent visits from waitstaff. The indoors was a bit noisy as it was full. Overall, a great place to have Japanese food, especially sushi! Highly recommended.

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