friday five - september 18

five area stories of note.

big week: berkeley's bar panisse joins the sixth annual new york times list of 50 favorite restaurants in the country. (nyt gift article)

heartache: berkeley's triple rock to close after december; sfgate broke the story, staffers were told thursday. (sfgate) read the full press release from the team here.

after a sneak preview last night, the new top dog downtown at the breakroom in berkeley is officially open for lunch and dinner starting today at 11am.

smish smash coming to 1823 solano avenue in berkeley in january. (sf chronicle) (in the meantime, oh g burger x chimmelier still open for business in the space.)

chez maeju in oakland soft opens tonight.

september 18, 2026 (please tip your server)