In the Eye of Tea
After a 5-course afternoon tea, the three of us felt our stomachs’ calling. The wind blew chilly moisture from the sea. A hearty dinner of noodle in hot broth would hit the spot, one that was saturated with oolong. Quite appropriately, we walked into O Chamé, meaning “eye of tea”(*) literally and “playful little one” colloquially. It’s Mother’s Day, no reservation, we couldn’t be any luckier that the guy found us three seats at the end of the bar.
Of course, who would skip the appetizers. And of course, we couldn’t decide on just one appetizer, so we ordered three. The potato and snow crab croquette ($8.50), buttery but mild, tastes ten times better after a dip in the plumier-than-usual-and-not-too-sour tonkatsu sauce. Usually I don’t dip my stuff, but the sauce is a must here.
The grilled, caramelized eel ($10.50), Kristen’s choice, is great. Little Mom loves eel, and she would love this. Happy Mother’s Day, Mom! 🙂 A bite into the crisp endive releases a burst of sharp, almost minty air to balance the eel’s fatty sweetness.
Another fatty, sweet thing is the braised pork ribs with ginger and lemon ($8.50), so sweet I could detect neither ginger nor lemon. The leaner pieces looked soft but not too thrilling. One must go for the pieces with lotsa fat and semi-charred ends, those are gold.
Then came the reason we decided on O Chamé: the noodle soups. The broth is light yet hearty. Actually, I’m still in tea mode so I can only think of the word “full-bodied” to describe it. Tender pork as the base, smooth spinach for texture, and thin strips of takuan (pickled daikon) to freshen it up. Both Tiana and Kristen settled on this pork shoulder udon ($14.50). My normal self would, too.
But I chose the tofu udon instead. Lately I’ve decided that I should gauge a restaurant based on their vegetarian/vegan numbers because it’s hard to make vegan stuff taste good (unless it’s a dessert). This shiitake-spinach-aburage (fried tofu skin) udon (13.50) passes the bar, but it would be nice had it been entirely vegan. The broth is a fish stock flavored by the earthy sweetness of mushroom. I prefer the vegan udon at Anzu, whose broth has the more refreshing note of chrysanthemum greens.
Our face bathed in the steam, our stomach getting packed. It was hot. We were dead full half way through the bowl. I did my best picking up all of my spinach and mushroom, but shamefully left half the broth and a third of the noodle. We thought we couldn’t eat anymore, but then we flipped the page and stared at the desserts, then looked among ourselves and grinned: “I don’t think we’re ever too full for ice cream”. 😀 Just one dessert is not gonna hurt. The agony was when we narrowed our choices to four (from nine): sherry custard, poached pear with berries, truffle torte, and what we ended up getting following the waitress’s suggestion: two scoops of caramel balsamic gelato ($5).
The first spoon was, well, interesting. But it grows on you. It has a bite to it. Kinda feisty, or in Kristen’s words, “like yogurt”, which makes sense because both balsamic vinegar and yogurt are products of fermentation, works of microbes, and sour. Definitely worth squeezing in at the last minute.
Address: O Chamé
1830 4th Street
Berkeley, CA 94710
(510) 841-8783
Dinner for three + tax: $81.56
(*) At first I pronounced it |oh-shah-mei|, like a French thing, you know. But seeing its meaning, I guess it must be |oh-jah-mei|, like “cha” (tea) in sencha.
대밤·대구의밤을 찾는 분들을 위한 대구 지역 정보. 동성로·수성못·동대구역·달서구의 저녁 여가와 지역별 특징, 후기 비교 기준, 가격·운영시간·교통 확인사항 및 자주 묻는 질문을 살펴보세요.
1Awsome website! I am loving it!! Will be back later to read some more. I am bookmarking your feeds also.
2Hello, Neat post. There’s an issue along with your web site in web explorer, could test this?K IE still is the market leader and a large portion of other people will pass over your excellent writing because of this problem.
3I’d have to examine with you here. Which is not one thing I usually do! I take pleasure in reading a post that may make folks think. Additionally, thanks for permitting me to comment!
4I found your weblog site on google and test a few of your early posts. Continue to maintain up the superb operate. I just extra up your RSS feed to my MSN Information Reader. Looking for ahead to reading extra from you in a while!…
5Cool blog! Is your theme custom made or did you download it from somewhere? A design like yours with a few simple adjustements would really make my blog shine. Please let me know where you got your design. Thank you
6I believe this site holds some real great information for everyone :D.
7You have brought up a very fantastic points, thanks for the post.
8На нашем портале полно актуального контента. https://kalashny.ru
9This post contains some really useful information. Thanks!. Bookmarked for later reading.
10Excellent writing! I look forward to exploring more of your blog. Great work, looking forward to more posts.
11Really nice post! I appreciate you sharing your knowledge. Thanks for sharing this useful information.
12Very well written! I appreciate the details included in this post. Bookmarked for later reading.
13I needed to send you that very small remark to be able to thank you once again about the pleasant suggestions you’ve shared on this website. This has been quite remarkably open-handed of people like you to convey extensively precisely what a lot of folks might have distributed as an ebook to generate some bucks for their own end, chiefly considering that you might well have tried it if you desired. Those inspiring ideas as well acted to provide a fantastic way to be sure that the rest have similar interest similar to mine to grasp more and more with reference to this matter. I’m sure there are numerous more pleasant moments in the future for people who browse through your website.
14F*ckin’ remarkable things here. I’m very glad to look your post. Thank you a lot and i’m having a look ahead to touch you. Will you kindly drop me a e-mail?
15I think other site proprietors should take this web site as an model, very clean and wonderful user genial style and design, as well as the content. You are an expert in this topic!
16Thank you for sharing this wonderful post. I truly enjoy your site. Thank you for providing a space for me to comment on your web page. I look forward to more engaging articles from you in the near future.
17Hello There. I found your weblog the usage of msn. This is a really neatly written article. I will be sure to bookmark it and return to read extra of your helpful information. Thank you for the post. I’ll certainly return.
18A great addition to your blog. Looking forward to more updates. Very helpful article, thanks again.
19A great addition to your blog. Looking forward to more updates. Very helpful article, thanks again.
20Wonderful article! Keep sharing more interesting content. This is exactly what I was looking for.
21I am glad I found this blog. Keep sharing quality content!. Very helpful article, thanks again.
22Howdy very nice site!! Guy .. Excellent .. Amazing .. I’ll bookmark your blog and take the feeds additionally. Nice write-up, keep it up.
23You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and found most people will approve with your blog.
24Thank you for providing this valuable post. I absolutely love your website. Thank you for providing a space for me to comment on your web page. I look forward to more interesting posts from you soon.
25Тут полно важных материалов. https://invaexpo.ru/
26Бренд Rick Owens представляет собой в числе самых самобытных авангардных лейблов известным благодаря своему уникальному стилю а также роскошным исполнению. Рик Оуэнс представляет вещи для поклонников ценит самовыражение вместе с креативность и каждый предмет гардероба является настоящим произведением искусства. rick-owens-boutique.ru
27I’ve read some excellent stuff here. Certainly value bookmarking for revisiting. I wonder how so much effort you set to create this type of great informative site.
28Hello, i read your blog from time to time and i own a similar one and i was just wondering if you get a lot of spam feedback? If so how do you reduce it, any plugin or anything you can recommend? I get so much lately it’s driving me insane so any assistance is very much appreciated.
29I have not checked in here for some time since I thought it was getting boring, but the last several posts are great quality so I guess I’ll add you back to my daily bloglist. You deserve it my friend 🙂
30I have recently started a site, the information you offer on this web site has helped me greatly. Thank you for all of your time & work.
31Many thanks for posting such interesting content. I absolutely love your web page. Thanks again for providing a space for me to comment on your web page. I would love to see more interesting posts from you in the future.
32Thanks so much for sharing this valuable content. I truly enjoy your site. Thanks again for allowing me to comment on your website. I would love to see more engaging articles from you in the near future.
33I really appreciate you for publishing this wonderful content. I truly enjoy your blog. Many thanks for giving me the opportunity to comment on your blog post. I hope additional interesting updates from you soon.
34Концепция ответственной игры в онлайн-гейминге — это осознанный способ к ставкам что ставит во главу угла умеренность и благополучие игрока. aurora-casinos.com Такая практика помогает пользователям самостоятельно устанавливать ясные рамки по времени и бюджету и соблюдать регулярные перерывы и своевременно получать помощь в случае риске избыточной игровой зависимости.
35I view something truly special in this web site.
36Thanks for a marvelous posting! I actually enjoyed reading it, you’re a great author.I will ensure that I bookmark your blog and will come back at some point. I want to encourage continue your great writing, have a nice weekend!
37Great, I should definitely pronounce, impressed with your web site. I had no trouble navigating through all the tabs and related info ended up being truly easy to do to access. I recently found what I hoped for before you know it in the least. Quite unusual. Is likely to appreciate it for those who add forums or something, website theme . a tones way for your client to communicate. Excellent task.
38Great awesome things here. I am very satisfied to look your post. Thanks a lot and i am looking forward to touch you. Will you please drop me a mail?
39I simply couldn’t leave your website prior to suggesting that I really enjoyed the standard information an individual provide in your visitors? Is going to be back often in order to check out new posts
40It’s perfect time to make a few plans for the long run and it’s time to be happy. I’ve read this put up and if I may just I want to counsel you few attention-grabbing issues or suggestions. Maybe you could write subsequent articles referring to this article. I want to learn even more things approximately it!
41Thanks so much for sharing such great content. I love your web page. Many thanks for allowing me to comment on your website. I look forward to more useful content from you in the future.
42As a Newbie, I am constantly exploring online for articles that can aid me. Thank you
43구미오피는 이 페이지에서 구미의 오피스텔 형태 공간에서 일반 관리 서비스를 제공하는 곳을 뜻합니다. 프로그램 이름만 보고 결정하기 어렵다면 관리 항목과 실제
44Hello There. I discovered your weblog using msn. This is a very well written article. I’ll make sure to bookmark it and come back to learn more of your useful info. Thank you for the post. I’ll certainly comeback.
45Very interesting information!Perfect just what I was searching for!
46구미오피는 이 페이지에서 구미의 오피스텔 형태 공간에서 일반 관리 서비스를 제공하는 곳을 뜻합니다. 프로그램 이름만 보고 결정하기 어렵다면 관리 항목과 실제
47I really appreciate you for sharing such great article. I truly enjoy your web page. Thanks again for providing a space for me to comment on your blog post. I look forward to more useful content from you soon.
48I really appreciate you for providing this great post. I really like your web page. Many thanks for providing a space for me to comment on your website. I look forward to more informative publications from you soon.
49This was an enjoyable read. Thanks for publishing it!. Really appreciate the detailed explanation.
50