On July 12, Café La Peña opened and served our new menu to a full-house, which includes old favorites like Sangría and empanadas, as well as new items like organic ales, organic chicken, and vegan eggplant/tofu/lentils.
After many years of partnership with Café Valparaíso*, La Peña Cultural Center is running the café under its own management. Our goal is to recreate a gathering place that brings together performances, cutting edge discussions, and the food and drink that make for good times. We are also reinvigorating the restaurant with an affordable, healthy menu and a new look.
While we know that many of you are probably sad to see Valparaíso go (visit them at their new spot – info below), we’re hoping that by taking over the management of the café we’ll be able to better coordinate programming between the theater and the café to create a truly integrated “Peña” concept (that of a gathering place). Over the course of the next year we’ll also be building a new outdoor seating area and adding large windows in order to let more natural light into the café. Even more exciting is our Café Lounge, which will provide an intimate setting to offer new types of events. Café La Peña provides us with new possibilities for exploring issues of food justice, wellness, and sustainability. As always, our programming will focus on multiculturalism and themes of social justice!
Our Café La Peña menu includes empanadas (beef, chicken, and spinach/ricotta), rice and beans, salads, organic chicken, seasonal fish, and vegan options like eggplant/tofu/lentils over basmati rice. We also have a rotating selection of local and handcrafted draft beers, including Oakland Brewing Company’s IPA and Berkeley’s Bison Brewery Organic Honey Basil Ale. We also sell bottled beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages like Guayaki Yerba Mate, Reed’s Ginger Brew and hot coffee and tea. And we’re still serving Sangría, in both red and white wine varieties! Qué rico!
Our full menu will be available online soon. In the meantime, why not come on down and visit Café La Peña for yourself?
*Cafe Valaparaíso moved to 1403 Solano Ave. Albany, CA. Tel: (510) 841-3800