Burdell, the Bay Area’s “modern Soul food restaurant that focuses on nostalgia, family recipes, and obsessive sourcing” by Chef Geoff Davis, has filed for a Beer and Wine license for its first brick-and-mortar location.
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Currently operating as a roving pop-up, the Burdell website shares, “We are finalizing the last details for our forever home. We are fundraising, if you’d like to be involved, please reach out.” Public records confirm the address at 4640 Telegraph Ave in Oakland, and Aunt Mary’s Café — the comfort food restaurant currently at this location — announces on its website that it is closing after November 6th.
The Burdell website shares the motivation behind the eatery — “The restaurant will tell the story of Black impact on American food and the lost history of farming, ranching, fishing, and foraging.” The menu is composed of “California comfort food that is clever, fun, and modern,” with ingredients supplied by local organic farmers like Dirty Girl Produce, and Corvus Farm and Ranch. “Supporting the food is a robust wine list, with great producers from around the world, focusing on minimal intervention and sustainable farming practices.”
Chef Geoff Davis shares his recipe for rabbit, inspired by his grandfather’s stories in a recent post to the eatery’s Instagram page — “@corvusfarm Rabbits, brined with Buttermilk, beer, bay leaves for a few hours and dusted with flour, some starches, and secret spices. All the bones and livers get turned into a gravy with lots of @dirtygirlproduce spring onion, mustard, vinegar, Worcestershire… white pepper… and bone stock. The rabbit is fried and then glazed in this rich gravy with fresh scallions, a pat of butter, and some cracked pepper.”
Prior to launching Burdell, Davis worked in upscale Bay Area restaurants such as Cyrus, Aqua, True Laurel, and Penny Roma.
An opening date has not yet been announced. What Now San Francisco briefly contacted Davis, but he was unable to provide additional information.