Longbranch Saloon

Was pointed this direction via Berkeley’s restaurant week… and wasn’t let down in the least.
First of all, this place is MASSIVE! Way bigger than it looks from the street.
Great ambiance and service. Food was very very good. So many things I wanted to have off the menu… Looks like I’ll be heading back.

Came for Berkeley restaurant week and tried the $ 35 menu with 4 courses, which surprisingly had quite a bit of variety.
I came with my cousin and we both decided to share our meals and eat family style.
Drinks: Manhattan/​old fashioned
(Sold separately, but great prices if you can make in time for happy hour)
Course 1: chicken liver mousse/​beets salad
Course 2: gnocchi/​house smoked salmon over arugula salad
Course 3: lamb sausage over lentils/​sole dish
Course 4: bourbon crème brûlée /​coconut milk cake
Everything is delicious! Although the portion sizes were small, you do get quite a bit of quality food for a decent price.
The waitress was really sweet and made sure to check on us several times throughout or meal.
I look forward to visiting again.

Great drinks (more on the 10 dollar scale than the five dollar but delicious.) I love the fried cheese curds, the brussels sprouts and ribs are also delicious. Nice waitstaff.

We tried this for Berkeley Restaurant Week and it was excellent fun! The restaurant week menu gave us an excuse to try a new place and we will be coming back. I really loved the house smoked salmon and of course the coconut cake, glutton that I am. It was nice to have so many choices for each of the 4 courses. My boyfriend’s favourite dish was the gnocchi. Service was excellent from every team member. Make sure you get your table this week because I really think this is one of the best restaurant week offers.

Really solid food and cocktails at a great price point

Went last night 8^th Friday two bartender was really great guys and bar itself is awesome food look great and healthy I want go back there soon want try food. They makes great drinks. Manager guy is sweet heart love to help business get more busier! This place look like east coast style love it! Highly recommended !!!

Went there last night with my wife and another couple. We were toasting the holidays and the passing if Gaels titan Joe Barry. Apologies to Kayla/​Kara our waitress for not remembering your name, you were excellent.
The service is great, they do not pester you in any aspect, open spaces (i tend to like to eat meals around AARP time slots as its quiet and I can hear my food talking to my belly).
The fixtures and décor are interesting and the staff is professional and courteous. Oh yeah the Var is Pretty great to.

$ 5 Manhattans and Old Fashioneds during happy hour?!! Sold!
New office in the hood so my boss and I came here to check it out. We got the oyster shooters… omg. Don’t get those with a toothache because of the citrus-​y ice shavings, but the flavors. THE FLAVORS!
Also had some fantastic oysters. Not cheap, but they were big and delicious. I forget what kind they were.
But really…$ 5 Manhattans and Old Fashioneds…

Have you ever had cheese curds? The sound of it isn’t as inviting but they’re so delicious. Their selection of whiskey is good too. I’d recommend trying the flight to experiment with their selection! Cheers!

The food and craft cocktails are great here! Everything I have ordered has always been wonderful, every dish is cooked and prepared with such detail.
I’m personally not a big whiskey fan, but for those who are I have heard great things about their list.
I never leave here disappointed or hungry!

First, Diane… best. server. ever. She handled our party of 8 flawlessly. Glasses were always full. Requests were always answered promptly. She was funny. Made excellent recommendations. Loved loved loved her.
Second. Appetizers and sides. Delicious. Cheese curds… amazing. tasty…light…not like the ones you get in the midwest. Brussel sprouts and mashed potatoes wanted me to eat my veggies!!! So flavorful.
Third. Entrees. Not one bad one at the table. ½ of the table got the fall off the bone ribs. One colleague is from Texas which you can tell from my earlier posts is BBQ capitol of the world. The other ½ got creative… duck mufalda, roasted chicken, and roasted pork loin. I got the roasted pork loin and it reminded me of my favorite dish at another Bay Area favorite– Hops and Hominy.
Fourth. We passed on desserts. Nothing spoke to us.
Fifth. Price point was quite affordable. Food portions are generous.
Would definitely come again and again and again.
My only disappointment was that the menu posted on the website had bone marrow as an app. It apparently was just taken off the menu.

Amazing food — late night happy hour was awesome. Great drink selection. Friendly service, accommodating! All the meat was good from the ribeye to the duck confit to the ribs. We left full and happy.

Came here for a friend’s birthday, and we thoroughly enjoyed our time here! Good, drinks, and ambiance are all excellent!
For food, I highly recommend the fried cheese curds and the toasted farro cauliflower salad to start. I didn’t think I was a farro fan, but it was so good! For entrees, our group shared the ribs, pork loin, squash, and mashed potatoes.
Their cocktails are great too — try their dirty camping mule! Even comes in a cute camping style cup. If you’re not a cocktails fan, they have a variety of whiskey flights, from Japanese to Kentucky.
All in all, a good time with good company!

Came here after a full hot summer day in the sun with Boyfriend. We just wanted to relax and drink some nice cocktails with dinner. Because it was still sunny outside at 7pm, we decided to sit out in the back patio-​like set up (but it was still indoors). The front, main part of the dining room was beautifully decorated — it was darker, yet still welcoming and had an organic feel. The back area had warm bright wood enclosures that was illuminated by the sun. It was a perfect summer evening with a wonderful atmosphere.
We ordered cocktails. Both of our were delicious and well made. We got the oyster shooters as an appetizer (these were lovely and refreshing) and burgers and mussels for dinner. Boyfriend said his burger was juicy, but a bit overcooked than we would have liked, but still red enough for it to be soft. I was very pleased with my mussels. The sauce was absolutely delicious and the bread that went with it was also well seasoned and toasted. The bread was set in the sauce, which became a bit soggy, but I didn’t mind as much because the sauce was so good.
The dessert selection didn’t quite interest us, but we got a Whiskey flight to end the night instead. The Kentucky Bourbon flight was really nice and my favorite was the Four Roses.
Overall, this was a perfect, rustic, yet modern bar/​restaurant to grab drinks and relax with a nice dinner. Definitely would like to come back again.
Ambiance: ⁵⁄₅
Food and drink: ⁴⁄₅
Service: ⁴⁄₅
Overall Experience: 4.5÷5

My friends surprised me for my birthday here. Gotta say this place is beautiful inside. The interior design is cozy with this mellow ambiance; it is a bit industrial, yet it still has this trendy gastropub feel to it. It’s not too loud and it’s not too quite, it’s just a perfect place for a date or small gatherings.
But you shouldn’t give a place 4 star because of their interior design right? Well no you shouldn’t, but you definitely should when you see their extensive Whiskey menu. Whiskey is the only hard liquor that I drink, and honestly they have all sorts of them. Scotch, bourbon, rye. All of them.
They have variety of dishes from ribs to mussels. Ribs were perfectly cooked, and the mussels were tasty and fresh. The french fries crunchy and flavorful, but not greasy. My only complaint was the staff were not really attentive, and the service was a bit slow.
Can’t wait to go back there and try more of their Whiskey, and their other foods such as the bone marrow.

So after a bit of Unilocal searching I saw this joint pop up on the grid and within a mile from my home. After a quick look through the menu I was instantly sold when I saw Whiskey Flights as one of the key tag lines. I made a reservation and we made our way over to the joint by walking down san Pablo. We made our appearance at the restaurant right on time and as soon as I walked in, I was impressed by the décor and setup. When you walk in the joint is separated by dining room to the right and a long bar with areas to stand to the left. The wall is impressive with a wide array of whiskeys and a ton of beers on tap. This joint felt like a legit gastropub you would hit in the city so I am happy to see it here.
We were greeted promptly for our reservation and brought over to a table to sit down. The servers were quick to come around and take our orders. After a LOT of perusing I decided to keep it simple with a Balvenie (can’t go wrong with a solid single malt). We were more in a «small bite» mood so we decided to order a slew of appetizers. We went with the Cheese Curds, Fries, the smoked pork ribs, the Brussel sprouts, and of course the bone marrow. The Fries came out with a house made ketchup and while the ketchup was unique and interesting the fries were relatively forgettable. I was a bit disappointed and my heart started to sink until we took bites of the Cheese Curds which were delicious and made up for the fries. They again offered a few different dips with the cheese curds and I can say that we enjoyed every last bite of these. The Brusel sprouts were solid and standard in my opinion. The bone marrow itself was solid and a dish I enjoyed. They did a good job of not over oiling it so I was pleasantly surprised and was sad when we had our last bite. Finally the pork ribs were the star of the show. These were seasoned quite well and were just delicious. The portions were quite generous also for appetizers plates. We kept the drinks coming of course and just wish I had more time to enjoy other flights of whiskey.
This is a GREAT addition to this local area and is the perfect gastropub. A few forgettable dishes but those that were on point will want me coming back for more. The selection is impressive and what a great vibe to just chill with friends with a good variety of drinks.

My new favorite place! Awesome in every sense of the word! The husband and I walked in and were greeted by really nice staff who sat us as requested at the table across from the bar. I ordered an old fashioned and he ordered a beer. The old fashioned was made flawlessly. Nice job! Next drink order was a whiskey flight of bourbon which led me to finding my favorite with Corsair Triple Smoke. Epic!
The appetizer we got was due to a Unilocaler saying this is a must order! Cheese Curds! They were great! But I was hesitant because of their description of «Sour Milk». I have a think about sour milk and just threw up in my mouth a little typing this section. BUT I digress! Cheese Curds were fantastic and will order again.
Main course was Bangers and Mash (see photo) was fantastic! The sausage and «cabbage gravy» were delicious. Mashed potatoes were «okay». I like my mashed potatoes a little thicker and it seemed to lack salt. Honestly, I would order it again just for the sausage and cabbage gravy thing.
The staff were stellar and all were wearing smiles. Really love this place for so many reason. We WILL return!

It’s been awhile since I’ve lived in this neighborhood, but when I had found out a whiskey bar was coming into a long vacant spot where the much-​missed Sea Salt once existed, I was ecstatic. I literally walked by this place every morning with my infant to check on when it would open. First went during its soft open, and visited again recently (after I had long moved out of the neighborhood of course).
Tasty place where you can flights of beer or flights of whiskeys. This place has a ton of local stuff on tap… like taps on taps, as well as a great selection of bourbons, ryes, scotches, etc. For a slick looking gastropub, this place is pretty affordable. Share flights and appetizers with your friends, and you’ll find yourself enjoying great conversation with great food and libations. And a tiny buzz. Don’t know what to get? I recommend the cheese curds, picked veggies, and French fries. Enjoy!

Oh Longbranch Saloon, how legitimately hot and new are you.
When Rare Barrel was a dud, your presence secured me a rescue a few minutes away.
Your rustic vibes, wooden minimalistic décor was on point.
Your open space and abundance of chairs and tables kept me from feeling claustrophobic and uncomfortable.
Your open kitchen answered my curiosity on meal prepping and cooking.
Your drink, the Pamplemousse, was an addicting citrusy concoction that would have left me wanting refills on any other occasion.
Your menu of drinks was plentiful. From whisky flights and hard liquors to mixed drinks and solid beers, there were so many to choose from and so many options one could make, quite troublesome for an indecisive person like myself!
You even do dinner. My golly, what can’t and what won’t you do?

Thank you, trusty Unilocalers, for the vote of confidence here. Longbranch is already drawing a niche crowd for their formidable collection of whiskeys (150+) and beer (25 draught, 50 bottled) but for those who aren’t singularly enchanted by brown booze (me) or brewskis (me again!) there’s plenty more to explore at this modern saloon.
The food is indeed: hearty, unique, and affordable. We went for Berkeley restaurant week where they offered 4-​course prix fixe for $ 30. Amazing deal. We ordered some cheese curds and the «famous» ribs to start. The curds were much creamier than most, almost like deep fried burrata, so perfectly decadent. The ribs fell off the bone like good little piggies, the citrus glaze adding a candy-​like crust. All the dishes to follow were fantastic: the vegetable tian, roasted cauliflower & farro salad, bone marrow, braised oxtail rigatoni, chocolate pot de crème, and a pavlova. All generous portions and inventive flavors — a very refreshing option for Berkeley!
My only bit of critique would be on service: they were just too attentive at the wrong times. Rushing to clear plates and glasses, and bringing the bill with our dessert order. I looked away for a second, and my bowl of mussels was gone (they thought I’d finished but there were many a mollusk I hadn’t touched). Odd to take before asking, no? I appreciate the eagerness to serve, but simmer down a bit and encourage a leisurely meal. It would fit the saloon vibe much better.
Regardless, we’ll definitely be back. Longbranch has a real neighborhood vibe and walks the line between homey and upscale expertly.