Staffers Ashley (left) and Ella at the new Cupcakin’ Bake Shop location in the former Virginia Bakery space in North Berkeley show off the wares. Photo: Joanna Della Penna
When Nosh posted its list of February openings and closings this time last year, there was very little hint as to the looming pandemic lockdown and ongoing months of crisis soon to come. Looking back now, it is remarkable to note that despite the year’s unparalleled challenges, only three of the 18 East Bay food and drink businesses that opened last February have since closed.
Hard-won resilience stories from that February 2020 list include the resurrected Persian restaurant Alborz in downtown Berkeley; U :Dessert Story, still treating folks on Shattuck Avenue; Oakland’s Shawarmaji, that has since morphed from a pop-up to a popular brick-and-mortar; Nibs, a former El Cerrito favorite now slinging pancakes and burgers in West Oakland; and Arizmendi Emeryville, that overcame more than a year of repairs after
Sandwiched between La Farine and Boichik Bagels on College Avenue is the newest addition to Berkeley’s baked goods scene Casa Barotti, a casual grab-and-go “spizzicheria” offering regional Italian bites.
As soon as customers walk inside Casa Barotti, they are greeted with platters of freshly baked focaccia, crispy squares of handcrafted pizza and focaccia farcita with thin slices of porchetta.
“We came up with the name (spizzicheria) because ‘spizzicare’ in Italian means to nibble on,” said Daniele Carsano, the owner of the restaurant. “We thought it would be fun to open a small neighborhood place where people can come down to have a quick glass of wine, a few drinks and a couple of bites of things and these bites being examples of street food from all over our beloved country (Italy).”
A first look inside Casa Barotti spizzicheria in Berkeley berkeleyside.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from berkeleyside.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Sliver Pizzeria heads Uptown
Reader Alan G. sent us a tip that Berkeley-based mini-chain Sliver Pizzeria known for its changing daily menu of one vegetarian pizza and one salad has plans for a new location on the ground floor at Alta Waverly apartment complex in Uptown Oakland. He spotted a public notice for alcoholic beverage sales that stated Sliver’s intentions to occupy suite B at 2300 Valdez St. It was posted in September. Nosh contacted Sliver, which confirmed that the new site its fourth restaurant, joining two others in Berkeley and one in North Oakland is still in the works. Sliver CEO Eduardo Perez (brother of Sliver founder Willy Perez, a Cheese Board alum) told Nosh, “We are excited for our new location in Uptown Oakland. We are currently waiting on our final permits. COVID has slowed down the permitting process. Hopefully, we will open by the summer.”