In a neighborhood more known for cheap eats and student hangouts, stylish Five restaurant with red glass chandeliers, and Aubrey Beardsley-inspired wallpaper, feels more postdoc than freshman. Chef Banks White riffs on his roots in Austin, Texas, which means his particular style of farm-to-table Cali bistro cooking skews Southern, fuller flavored than the signature style of the Napa Valley kitchens White’s also spent time in (Etoile, Auberge du Soleil). Best place to explore the chef’s bold, bright palate: Five's extensive bar bites menu, which spans lunch and dinner and ends at 11 p.m., late-night dining for Berkeley. White makes his mac and cheese with orzo pasta, seriously upping the sauce-to-starch ratio; the maple-infused, chile-spiked chicken and waffle comes in an adorable mini cast-iron skillet; and the Dungeness crab fritters are a bit like crustacean-flavored hush puppies. With its spicy chili and mustard-laced slaw, the Five burger jolts you (in a good way), but lest you think White can’t do nuanced, his braised short-rib pot roast has the kind of rich, long-developed flavors that would make any French farmhouse cook proud. Hard to believe you’re just a block away from a major college campus.

Orzo “mac and cheese”
Dungeness crab fritters
Chicken and waffle
Five burger
Slow-braised short-rib pot roast with creamy mascarpone polenta view full menu here

Grab a barstool, which gives you prime access to the hefty-portioned bar-food menu and a bird’s-eye view of dining room and hotel lobby.

Hitting up Five before a show at Berkeley Rep? A $25 pre-theater prix fixe offers three a glass of wine and three courses designed for quick execution to get you fed and in your seats fast.

breakfast: Mon.–Fri. 6:30–10:30 PM
brunch: Sat.–Sun. 7 AM–1 PM
lunch: Mon.–Fri. 11:30 AM–1:30 PM
dinner: Sun.–Tues. 5:30–9 PM, Weds. –Sat. 5:30–10 PM
bar dining: daily 2–11 PM

$17 (spinach gnudi) to $28 (grilled lamb chops)