Homemade Cafe Hosts a “Late-Summer Night’s Dream” Pop-Up Dinner

Homemade Cafe in Berkeley, California has announced that Friday, August 24 with seatings at either 6:00 or 8:30 p.m. will be the date and times of their next monthly pop-up dinner themed “A Late-Summer Night’s Dream.” The four-course prix fixe menu prepared with locally sourced, organic ingredients will be priced at $85.00 inclusive of tax and gratuity and there will also be an optional pairing of wines by the glass for an additional $24.00. A vegetarian option for $65.00 will be available but must be requested in advance. Reservations can be made by calling (510) 845-1940 or emailing to collindoran@yahoo.com.

The August menu will include Titania’s Tidbit, sweet corn soup with fried basil and heirloom-tomato-jam crostini; Puck’s Plate, fresh mozzarella, heirloom tomatoes and basil dressed with an avocado vinaigrette and coconut-horseradish shrimp; Hippolyta’s Hungry, butcher’s steak with salsa verde, bacon-corn-cheddar mashed potatoes and fried green tomatoes; and Bottom’s Up, semolina-and-olive-oil cake with sweet mascarpone cheese, strawberries and a fig-balsamic reduction.

Homemade Cafe was opened in 1979 by Norm Berzon and Janet Hinze who sold it to longtime employee Collin Doran in 2011. Doran grew up in Berkeley eating at Homemade and subsequently worked as a busboy at the cafe’s Hollis Street location (now closed). Doran’s first restaurant job was at Bay Wolf. Over the years he has worked as everything from dishwasher to kitchen manager to chef and is currently active in all day-to-day activities at Homemade that is soon to celebrate its 40th anniversary. Over nearly four decades, the venue has been renowned for serving breakfast and lunch. Pop-up dinners debuted in 2018.

Highlights of the casual 50-seat dining room include booth seating, fanciful chandeliers and an exhibition kitchen fronted by counter seats plus, weather permitting, there are sidewalk tables for 12 guests.

Homemade Cafe is located at 2454 Sacramento Street, at the corner of Dwight Way, in Berkeley, California. When not serving monthly pop-up dinners, the restaurant is open Monday through Friday from 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Neighborhood street parking is often an option. For more information, call (510) 845-1940. The web address is http://www.homemade-cafe.com/.