Juanita & Maude

An amazing meal, perfect for that special night out.

We sat outside and had nice romantic heaters and fluffy blankets. Food was fantastic and adventurous. Had Thai influenced vermicelli noodles with crab as a first and then a house-smoked kielbasa for a main, it was a very exciting meal and very memorable. The kitchen seems like they are having a lot of fun and take each dish very seriously. Cocktails are always great, waiter's wine suggestions were always on point. Desserts are the best I've had. I don't have a sweet tooth but always have to get dessert here. Will be back soon.

Fantastic food! Excellent service! But too cold on the patio in February- even with heaters and blankets. The nice part about being out there was that that it was nice and quiet. Will return on a summer evening!

Great seasoning to the food, excellent service! My second time dining so I will return with another new guest (-: enjoyed it with my hubby!

it should be noted that the outdoor seating is a covered, heated very hep area. it was a cold evening; but, heating was sufficient and comfortable. food was carefully designed/arranged on the plate. service was totally attentive. chief was on top of it. i have been there many times and expect to continue. maybe a bit pricey; but, sooooo totally enjoyably delicious and worth every cent.

Love love love!!! Recommend reservation!!!! Wonderful for date night

Nice place to go for good food but still staying casual. Small portions but really good food.

Food was good not great. The waiter new nothing about the food or wine. Most of the wines where imported so hard to guess what we would like.

The food and service was amazing! We felt well taken care of and definitely well fed throughout our entire time there. Dishes were creative and adventurous and popping with flavor. Can’t wait to come back on a regular night to try their regular menu.

Valentine’s Day dinner. Prix fixe menu $85 per person. Food was great, lovely presentation, fabulous flavors. Service was not up to par with the pricing and caliber of the food.

Here is what I chose or what was served in the Valentine's Day prix-fixe menu:

Scented Cracker Jack
Almond, dates, saffron, cardamom, coconut, rose
Interesting, creative idea

Beet Jardiniere
Buckwheat, cucumber, yogurt, pepitas, dill, cilantro -
All the ingredients were exquisite, except that I did not care for the buckwheat.

Intermezzo
Parsnip Pancake
Caviar, sour cream
This was really good, although the caviar was pretty sparse - mostly ornamental.

Seared Scallops
Sunchoke purée, black trumpet mushrooms, pea shoots
This dish was the evening standout.

Chocolate Mousse Cake
Peanuts, spiced dates, crème fraîche
Delicious.

Courses were well paced, and there was just the right amount of food. I also got the wine-pairing, which turned out to be too much wine. Will order by the glass next time.

Second visit and certainly was a great experience. If only the menu we were given was the same as the one on the web site, and if only the wine list was on the website.

The menu choices are only exceeded by the preparation. Every dish we have chosen has been interesting on the plate and exceptional in flavor and texture combinations.

A generally lovely, eclectic meal, but two things stood out: 1) the service was fantastic, including the bartender balking at serving a cocktail he thought I might not like, and then inventing a new one to suit my tastes. 2) The earl grey ice cream was off the hook - served with grapefruit granita, fresh grapefruit, earl grey merengue, and toasted almonds. Quirky and utterly delicious.

Great all around experience. Eclectic and thoughtful menu that is executed at the highest level. A hidden neighborhood gem in Albany.

The place was noisy. For the price point expected a lot more unique flavors and experience. It did not live up to hype. Swordfish was dry. Filet mignon was ok.

Food was excellent, the restaurant is attractive and the service professional. But the sound level was deafening. Very hard to converse.

Celebrated a birthday

Excellent food and wait service. I recommend this restaurant--it's one of the best in the East Bay.

Everything about this place was really nice, except for the noise level. We arrived at 5:45, sat at the table for 2 nearest the kitchen, and it was fine. But when we left 2 hours later, we were having a lot of trouble hearing. I would probably not come back for a later reservation, but maybe eating early is a good thing!

A terrific evening - our guests were impressed! The menu was original and the food was excellent. We were all full but managed to kill an order of chief is for dessert. Delicious! The service was great, too. The only downside is that we live too far away to make it a regular stop.

We were there a bit early for our reservation and while we were waiting the staff chatted with us and brought yummy champagne. We were treated like royalty. This is a very special place. My son in law proposed to my daughter here one year ago and it will forever be magical to all of the family. I also treated a few friends that helped us out this last year for date nights and/or gift certificates. And oh yeah, did I mention...I enjoyed the best steak of my life at Juanita and Maude.

As was expected our dining experience was top drawer. We have dined here many times and plan to return.

This was delicious! Definitely Berkeley 'chic' and pricey, but VERY delicious!

Good food, nice environment... small portions for the price compared to other similar East Bay restaurants and atmospheres.

We had 7:30 reservations and weren’t seated until after 7:45

Limited menu but some excellent dishes. Only beef stroganoff a disappointment. Maybe they forgot to put in the sour cream? Biggest issue is wine list. All European, and not anything most people would recognize. Wait staff not too helpful in explaining what varietals the wines were made from. Suggest some additional notes on the wine list explaining each wine.

Each one of the staff is exceptional at giving service and detailed information on their wine and food.
I can hardly believe our good fortune to have a restaurant this exceptional in our neighborhood. I equate the delectable food to Chez Panisse. I'm a pescatarian and found the options and flavors extraordinary. I am grateful to your hard work, thank you! I can hardly wait to return.

Terrific food and service

Surprisingly great hole in the wall. The millet was fabulous! Menu needed a little deciphering at first, but happy with everything we had. The rosemary butter was de-lish! I would go again for sure.

The food was delicious, but the portions (appetizer, primi, second I) were smaller than the price suggested (with the exception of my husbands fried chicken)

Food good and service excellent. Hand crafted cocktails. Nice, quiet outside patio, which I would recommend. The inside restaurant is a little noisy.

I love this place and the food is amazing, so is the service. I think the portions are too small (most of them)
the filet, the risotto, the salmon, but the desserts are a good size. The noise level is high, not sure you can do anything about that. I live in the neighborhood.

Fresh, unusual combinations of flavors; well-prepared. Very attentive service but not overbearing. Portion sizes were just right.

We waited for what felt like 5-10 minutes with other diners at the door before the host emerged and despite having a booking and arriving right on time, had another 15 minutes to wait. The bartender and our eventual waiter were both lovely and the food very tasty. There was a mixup with our check but I would say the dishes were generally quite reasonably priced.

Really nice staff. Outdoor seating lovely and quiet. Indoor noise level was high. Food was good but not extraordinary.

Best restaurant in the area! Comprable to Chez Panisse. Don't miss it.

Outstanding food. Fresh and incredibly tasteful. Great ambiance.

The food was excellent! My only gripe was that they ran out of the fish which I wanted to order, but what I chose instead was spectacular. We will definitely return. Especially loved the tempura starter.

Always a treat! I always look forward to the changing cocktail menu and then the Food! It's fun to share the Beginnings & Firsts and then order your own Second.