Eating Local: Berkeley Style

FREMONT, CALIF — I went jogging around Mission Blvd this morning. I forget about eating healthy on my Cali trips. So I try to burn off calories with my running shoes.

I’ve also managed to keep up my Eat Local Challenge in the Bay Area. It’s easy to do when so many vegetables and fruits are in season. (I know, California doesn’t have “seasons”….but I think it’s so frickin’ cool we can have roses blooming in the winter.)

I spent my first day in Cali at the best public university in the world: the University of California Berkeley. I knew I was in Berkeley when I walked into this ladies restroom at Kroeber Hall.

Go Bears! Today, we’re rooting for our #6 football team to take down Oregon. That’s #6 in the COUNTRY. Go Bears!

Before my Cali trip, I had major cravings for Cheese Board Pizza. Baked with fresh, local ingredients and cheesy goodness. I also loved it when they brush olive oil over the thin crust pie. Basically, this is California gourmet food with a Berkeley attitude. Their daily specials are always veggie and they always taste good.

Bottom line: Cheese Board makes my favorite pizza in the WORLD.
And I knew my first Cali dinner had to be at this North Berkeley institution.

There’s always a wait for Cheese Board pizza. Most folks know it’s worth standing in line 15-20 minutes and then biting into one of the best pies in California, if not the world. The Cheese Board Co-op has been around since 1967 and they started making pizza in 1985. When I used to work at Haas, I’d stop by the Cheese Board for fresh baked goodies, like the sourdough cheese rolls and coffee. I remember they had an opening for the co-op. They asked for a minimum commitment of five years from any candidates.

Everyone who works at the Cheese Board is a member of the collective with equal decision making power. There is no boss, manager, or non-owner worker. Everyone makes the same hourly wage. – from the Cheese Board web site

I’m amazed by how much it has grown while at the same time maintaining the quality of the food.

On my last trip to Cheese Board, they were serving slices out of a closet-like space. Folks found al fresco dining on the median. Now, the space has expanded for indoor dining and restrooms. But I wanted the old school dining experience. So Mark jaywalked with me to a grassy table.

Unlike other pizza joints, Cheese Board offers one type of pizza. The daily specials are based on what’s seasonal and what taste good. Our dinner special was made with corn, zucchini, onion, feta, mozzarella cheese, garlic, olive oil, cilantro and lime. I liked squeezing the lime juice over me cheese, tying in nicely with the veggie flavors.