We went shopping at the San Francisco premium outlet in Fremont and afterwards we drove to Oakland to have dinner at A16 Rockridge.

We dined at A16 in San Francisco and really enjoyed their food and since we are around the neighborhood we wanted to try out their Oakland location.

A16 restaurant is named for the highway connecting Campania to Puglia.

The usual suspects: Minh, Hoa, Tuan, Maily, Loan and I

While the owners have transported the name and sensibility from San Francisco, the concept here fits into the Rockridge vibe; the interior is larger and more open, and it has a private room that seats 40. The restaurant also has a full liquor license with a specially crafted list of cocktail that is as unique as their Italian wine list.

The main dinning room is modern, chic and rustic at the same time.

This place is always full and the only time and reservation is a must. We got there at 6:30PM and the restaurant is already full of people. By 7:00Pm is was completely full.

Really nice bar that can seat 30 people

The wine bar serves 40 types of wine by the glass. The list is 60 percent Italian, mostly from the South, and the other 40 percent is New World, celebrating premiere Italian varietals grown in California along with many California wines.

The restaurant features a wood oven for their famous Neapolitan Pizza

You can see the charcoal burning inside the oven.

The main dinning room is modern, chic and rustic at the same time.

The restaurant has a nice vibe and it makes us feel really cozy and comfortable.

Home made bread served with olive oil from Italy.  We asked for balsamic vinegar and was told that they do not have it and in the south of Italy people do not use it to mix it with olive oil.

Burrata Olio Nuovo-sea salt, crostini

Calamari braised in red wine served with giant beans.

The beans are cooked and then flash fried so they are a bit crispy and really delicious.  The calamari is also very flavorful- good combination.

Roasted pork chop with stone fruits.

Wow what a delicious dish!  the Pork chops came out moist, perfectly cooked and so tasty!

Salmon with crispy skin an a bed of  roasted vegetables

The salmon was overcooked and was on the dry side.  Out of all the dishes this one is our least favorite one.

Will skip it next time.

Lamb served two ways

Shaved fennel, arugula salad

They change their menu very often and tonight the pasta was bucatini pasta.  Our server warned us that this pasta is served room temperature and not to expect a piping hot dish of pasta.

The pasta looks so simple but it is really tasty, fresh and delicious!  We ate the whole thing.

Pork Fennel Sausage, King Trumpet Mushroom, Fior di Latte, Oregano, Tomato Sauce.

We went a bit overboard and ordered too much but anyway we finished pretty much everything that was served.

Coffee time.

Apple crostata with salted caramel sauce- Delicious!

We also ordered 2 scoops of cinnamon & star   anise flavored gelato.  The Anise is really overwhelming!

View of all the desserts we ordered.

We got a very good meal here, we liked all the dishes with the exception of the Salmon.  Good service so if we are in the neighborhood we will be back.

A16

5356 College Ave. , Oakland

(510) 768-8003

www.a16rockridge.com.

Filed under: Restaurants