Local 123 Cafe
Today marks the grand opening of Local 123 Cafe at 2049 San Pablo in Berkeley (between University and Addison, on the east side of the street). I’m often on that block on foot and have watched the progress of the construction with interest and I went to check it out this morning and take some photos.
The storefront is not very eye-catching from the street, but there’s a wooden sign hanging over the sidewalk.
Local 123 Cafe from the median strip of San Pablo, looking north
From the sidewalk the sign is more prominent.
Local 123 from the sidewalk
The ambiance is spare but inviting and the prices are reasonable.
Front counter and drinks board
Out of sight until you’re almost upon it is a little nook in the back with couches and a door to a small but sunny (at least this morning) patio.
Cozy nook and back patio
I’m by no means an expert, but I very much enjoyed my cappuccino and pain au chocolat. They’ve got a good selection of coffee drinks, teas, pastries (including vegan donuts), and sandwiches.
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Great pictures! The place looks really serene and totally worth checking out. Thanks for the review!
Sweet pics. Definitely gonna check this place out. I love good coffee. Thanks for the post!
I visited this place for the first time today. I had a light lunch (the “local” = bread, herb butter, and two hardboiled eggs) with an espresso, and then hung out in the back courtyard with the café cat (http://twitpic.com/cwdgl) while on a client conference call.
All in all, it was great. They’re still taking care of some details, so for example there was some noisy construction on the electrical conduit while I was there, but the service, food, espresso, and atmosphere were all top-notch. I’ll definitely be back.