Brown Sugar Kitchen
2534 Mandela Pkwy [map]
Oakland, CA 94607
Ph: (510) 839-7685
Hours: Closed Monday; Tue-Sat 7am-3pm; Sun 8am-3pm
Facebook: Brown Sugar Kitchen
Twitter: @BrownSugarKitch
Price Range: $$ Entrees ($11-$17)

The Perennial

The Perennial has a small fish tank in the restaurant to demonstrate the aquaponic system they use to grow their lettuce. (Shelby Pope)

The Perennial wants to “fight climate change with delicious food and drinks.” This admirable goal is achieved through a variety of creative methods that go beyond the Bay Area mainstay of “local and organic produce.” They use an aquaponic greenhouse to raise their greens and fish. Their bread isn’t Acme or Tartine, but made in-house from Kernza, a perennial grain that’s better for the soil than wheat. Their meat comes from ranches that use carbon farming, a technique that produces less methane than traditional methods. They’ve received a lot of attention for their efforts--”Did you see the New York Times article?” a beaming server asked the table next to us--and on a recent weeknight, the place was filled with couples on dates and cheerful groups of coworkers.

The Perennial's bread is made from Kernza, an alternative to wheat that's better for the soil. (Shelby Pope)

The restaurant's greens come from an aquaponic farm in West Oakland. (Shelby Pope)

The menu is available as a three or four course meal, but is also available a la carte, our server said. When she found out that my friend and I wanted to order a few dishes and split an entree, she muttered something about needing to order two entrees and OpenTable points as she walked away. (I scoured my reservation email and the website, but didn’t see any such requirement.) Eventually she returned, dumping our dishes on the table. The Kernza bread was hearty and slightly nutty, similar to a levain sourdough. “If I could only eat this bread the rest of my life, I’d be ok with that,” my friend said, and I agreed. The aquaponic greens come from the restaurant's West Oakland greenhouse, and were crisp, delicately dressed in a vinaigrette atop a few dabs of a creamy, avocado based dressing. Our lamb (a note on the menu mentioned that a carbon ranching surcharge would be added to our bill “to reflect the true cost of beef and lamb”) was meltingly tender, surrounded by cauliflower prepared in a variety of methods. Some florets were pickled, others roasted, and the whole arrangement was accompanied by a slick of roasted cauliflower puree, assertively salted and almost cheesy tasting.

The lamb and cauliflower entree included a surcharge to "reflect the true cost of beef and lamb." (Shelby Pope)

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