Tartine’s Eagerly Awaited Berkeley Location Opens Today

The real San Francisco treat, Tartine, opens its first East Bay cafe and bakery location today in Berkeley. It’s the latest extension of a growing empire (with two LA and three Seoul outposts) founded by wife-and-husband team Elisabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson in 2002. They just opened their third San Francisco location, in the Inner Sunset, this July.

Tartine Berkeley, which is the team’s fifth Bay Area location, is tucked into a window-lined sunroom at Berkeley’s Graduate Hotel (FKA the Hotel Durant). At 2600 Durant Ave, it’s mere steps from campus, and Berkeleyside reports that Cal faculty and students will get a 10 percent discount on Tartine’s entire menu (below).

That includes Tartine’s idolized croissants, lemon almond poppyseed teacakes, and open-faced smørrebrød sandwiches on dense rye bread. Everything’s proofed and baked at the new shop, though prepared at a larger facility nearby, and coffee comes from the company’s Jack London Square roasting facility, Coffee Manufactory. The new cafe space is relatively small, with an entrance for grab-and-go items on Durant Avenue and a lounge area accessible through the main hotel entrance.

Graduate Hotels Berkeley

Tartine’s new presence at the Graduate hotel comes as part of a nearly $50 million transformation from the Hotel Durant to the Graduate Hotel, a boutique hotel chain popping up in college towns. It follows a big overhaul of the hotel Durant’s popular game-day drinking establishment, Henry’s, reborn last year under chef Chris Kronner (known for his beloved Kronnerburger). Tartine has even played a supporting role at the new Henry’s: Kronner’s buns and some pastry items already come from the bakery. Now Kronner will update the Henry’s menu to incorporate even more Tartine items, according to Berkeleyside.

Current hours at the new Tartine are 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays, closed on weekends.

• Tartine Bakery brings morning buns, rustic loaves and coffee to Berkeley’s Graduate hotel [ESF]
• Tartine Bakery Plans First East Bay Outpost in Historic Berkeley Hotel [ESF]