Montclair Food

Flipper’s Works For Us

Normally we rely on readers to judge food places, but we just have to comment on Flipper’s Gourmet Hamburgers.  It sits in a can’t-miss location (map), which lures you with their pricey burgers and beer.

Most of the time, I tend to go down-market for burgers and hit In-N-Out near the Oakland Airport, Wendy’s on Broadway, or even Nation’s Giant Burger in Orinda.  All these hot spots fulfill carnivorous cravings beyond Mickey D’s and Burger King.

Yesterday, I decided to take my out-of-town guest for a real hamburger and gave Flipper’s another shot.  Even though I pass by countless times while running errands in the Village, I hadn’t eaten there in a long time.  It was a pleasant surprise that puts it in big-burger leagues with Barney’s (Yelp).

Of course, you can get all kinds of hamburger variants at Flipper’s.  The burgers use Niman Ranch beef, which means better underpinnings than in years gone by.  The veggie sandwiches and other options are pretty darn tasty too, and we had a tomato, mozza, eggplant and pesto combo that worked well.

As expected, Flipper’s serves huge portions.  There’s nothing quaint about your plate filled with a big greasy main item, toppings, fries and a little side salad mix.  I think about Flipper’s as a local diner, a sibling and alternative to the Montclair Egg Shop (Yelp) if you want to feed yourself plus your kids.

The Yelp reviews for Flipper’s are pretty mixed but that hasn’t been my experience, at least recently.  Full disclosure is that I have no friends here or conflicts of interest.  Like other Montclarions, I often ignored the place and now realize those big-burger and big-breakfast urges can be satiated right here.

Do you agree?  Are you thumbs up, sideways or down?

Your Everyday Food Winners

We recently surveyed Montclarions about everyday food, including top spots for coffee, grocery shopping, pizza and chocolate.  Coffee seems to be the most local preference, since everyone gets their fixes in town.  When it comes to the other staples, however, you are willing to shop around.

Coffee Houses:

Over 60% of Montclarions prefer Peets, in a resounding and crushing victory.  The rest of you split the remaining votes among Thornhill Coffee, Royal Ground and Nelly in the rear.  Good old Starbucks didn’t register much with locals, but some visitors must keep them in business.  (Click for more Montclair Coffee Shop info.)

Grocery Shopping:

There’s simply no consensus about the best place for groceries.  As the election official, I’ll award the sentimental favorite medal to Farmer Joe’s (Yelp).  There were enough write-ins to make it rank among the balloted candidates.  Here’s what Yelpers had to say:

  • Farmer Joe’s is also a great alternative to battling the parking lot mess and angry hippies at Berkeley Bowl or the feeling of conspicuous consumption at Whole Foods.
  • The prices and quality of the fresh stuff are really really good, especially compared to Safeway or Lucky, and you feel like you’re supporting a family-owned business.
  • This is by far my favorite grocery store in the entire world.
  • I skip over Lucky’s, Safeway and Farmer Joe’s #1 to shop here from the south, where I live; or, from the Berkeley direction where I work, I skip over a far more impressive collection of Safeways, Whole Foods and yes- even Berkeley Bowl, which is now a zoo at all hours of day and night- to shop at Farmer Joe’s #2.

Back to the official election results now.  Within the Village, Lucky received the most votes but no one raved about the market.  They did like the convenience, staples and prices there.  Beyond the Village gates, Trader Joe’s (Yelp) was the preferred alternative.  By comparison, Safeway and Village Market trailed behind and Whole Foods straggled into last place.

Pizzerias:

What a close race, which required a recount of the paper ballots!  The almighty Zachary’s (Yelp), over in Rockridge, came out the overall winner – which means our pizza identity is shaped more by Chicago than anywhere else.  Within Montclair, the two winners were Cybelle’s and Rustica.  The runner up and dark horse was Red Boy (Yelp), just down Park Blvd.  (Click for more Montclair Pizza info.)

Chocolate Sources:

Well who can argue with Berkeley’s Scharffen Berger (Yelp), which came out tops?  It was a three-horse race, with strong contenders Le Bon Bon and XOX Truffles pulling up the rear.  At least we have truly top-notch chocolate around here, so the supermarket option wasn’t much considered by survey respondents.

Thanks all, for your votes and opinions.  What morsels should we survey next?

Everyday Food in Montclair: Vote Now

It’s time to survey the crowd about everyday food in Montclair, and you are an opinionated bunch.  What are your top spots for coffee, grocery shopping, pizza and chocolate?

Please take a minute or two to respond:  click here to vote

Before launching Today in Montclair, I conducted a survey for a now-defunct zip code blog.  Back then, I asked for favorites located right in the Village.

The results?  We were in a heated battle about Peet’s, Nelly and Royal Ground.  Cybelle’s was the main pizza option, while Le Bon Bon was for chocolate lovers.  Both Safeway and Lucky’s had their advocates.

However many Villagers hit spots nearby.  To reflect all your everyday food preferences, I wanted to re-open the survey with more options.  Plus a whole year has gone by and your patterns might have changed.

Please vote early but not often – and I’ll share results soon with everyone.  Thanks!

Flavors India Bistro Arrives In Style

Time to celebrate!  An Indian restaurant has finally opened in the Village, and it’s really good food.

Flavors India Bistro has taken up residence in the Montclair Plaza building (map), where the old Village Dog used to be.  It took the new occupants a while to renovate, and I think it was worth their effort.

Yesterday, I ordered a late lunch at Flavors.  The service was very nice and sufficiently fast, and I hung out for a while with my mushroom mattar curry and rice.  I ordered this as medium spicy and there was a nice kick.

Flavors is a full-service restaurant with the expected variety, from naan to kheer.  All the veggie, tandoor, chicken, lamb, seafood and tandoori bread options will require repeat visits.  Since the prices aren’t too high, I’ll be adding this to my repertoire for sure.

Have you tried Flavors elsewhere?  There are two other outlets which are well-reviewed on Yelp.  The Rockridge spot has 72 reviews and garners 4/5 stars, while the newer Lakeshore location registers 88 reviews and 3.5/5 stars.  This is a place that appeals to a wide variety of palates.

The Montclair Flavors is opened from 11:30am – 9:30pm (and closed Tuesdays).  Since there are only a few tables, I would arrive before or after typical lunch-dinner hours.  Otherwise, call 510-338-0553 to place take-out orders.  Parking is conveniently located in the metered lot, right by the entrance.

Coffee Chess: Starbucks Stays

Around Montclair, people were buzzing about the Starbucks closings list distributed by the Seattle behemoth.  Everyone I spoke with seemed curious about the Montclair store, which will remain opened after all – right across the street from Peet’s.

The stakes are not terribly high, so why are the emotions?  Local pride, as reported by the East Bay Business Times.  They identified seven East Bay locations slated to close, and gloated about one store that’s closing near the original Peet’s location in Berkeley.

Maybe we want Starbucks to slink away, but that’s not happening soon.  Much like how fast food outlets congregate together, our mix of coffee chains and indie shops means there’s plenty of demand.  Starbucks drafts along with these other shops, and also provides decent jobs and benefits for its employees.

When aliens land in our Village, they’ll likely be scratching their heads about all the coffee places here.  They will learn these shops aren’t only about dispensing coffee – they are about checking in with neighbors too.  Depending on the time of day, they are filled with commuters, moms and kids, local workers and retirees.

Montclair has six options, so where should you go?  That depends on what criteria matters to you:  location, seating, coffee, food or attitude.  Here are some of the choice Yelp reviews below.

  • Peet’s:  Hometown chain and coffee central – Yelp – 2066 Antioch Ct  (Map)

“The montclair village would totally suck if it weren’t for peets.  my husband and i never talk about it but i believe it’s proximity to peets (like 50 yards) is one of the main reasons we bought our house.  (oh… and er… the schools).”

“I love the way there are always giant friendly doggies outside, just waiting for you to pet.”  “The regulars seem to know each other.  I suppose it’s like a 21st century Cheers — where everybody knows your name.”

  • Starbucks:  Megachain, decent cold drinks –  Yelp – 2059 Mountain Blvd  (Map)

“The Montclair one is smaller and the employees are pretty annoying, but I tend to enjoy sitting on their bench”  “For real, the best thing about this starbucks is the window seating and the bench out front.  From there, you can look across the street to see people drinking yummy Peets coffee!”

  • Nelly’s Java:  Mainly coffee plus Wifi –  Yelp – 1952 Mountain Blvd (Map)

“There was a woman (presumably one of the staff) who wiped down the cream/sugar station before leaving for the day and offering her farewells to her coworkers.  When I asked, my suspicions were confirmed…THAT was Nelly.  Having the owner take a few seconds to do a simple task – and not pass that task on to a subordinate – really shows a lot of class!!”

  • Thornhill Coffee House:  Coffee, food and companions –  Yelp – 5772 Thornhill Dr  (Map)

“I love small, locally owned coffee houses, and so was obviously a sucker for Thornhill Coffee House from the very start.  I’m a bit of an idiot some days, and on this particular day, I walked to Thornhill Coffee House without my wallet.  the shop owner handed me the coffee and sandwich, and told me to go ahead and take it, and that I could pay her next time.  This never happens in Oakland!”

  • Noah’s Bagels:  Food first and impersonal – Yelp – 2060 Mountain Blvd  (Map)

“This might be the worst Noah’s anywhere. My bagel is never fully toasted, they often don’t follow the directions on the order form, and the employees don’t really know their products that well.  They’re usually good about fixing mistakes.”

  • Montclair Malt Shop:  Former Royal Ground barista – Yelp -2066 Mountain Blvd  (Map)

“Most cities would love to have a malt shop like this.”  “This is a mom and pop shop … not a chain.   It is very expensive to run a business in Oakland. No wonder prices are not bargain basement.  And Montclair Village is special. It is a jewel in the bay area. There are few places like it.”

2009 Updates: A new coffee shop has opened in the Royal Ground space, after big renovations were made.  We added them to the Montclair Coffee Chess list below.

  • Metro Cafe & Bar:  Individually dripped, lunch spot – Yelp – 2058 Mountain Blvd  (Map)

“I had a cup of drip coffee, I think it was Mocha Java, and it was definitely the best cup of coffee I ever had.  I am not a coffee snob.” “Metro serves beer on tap and excellent ice tea.  The lunch menu is a little pricey for a cafe, but the food is better than you’d expect….I like this new addition to Montclair.  It’s almost, sorta, nearly hip.”