Comal Restaurant Opening, 10th Annual Berkeley Poetry Festival, Bike to Work Day Events


	May 1, 2012

Comal Brings Regional Mexican Fare to Berkeley's Arts District

Berkeley, CA - On May 4, 2012, Comal, a dynamic new restaurant featuring handmade Mexican cuisine complemented by stellar craft cocktails, a large selection of tap bear and wine, and a stunning rear patio, will open in the heart of Downtown Berkeley's burgeoning Arts District. Restaurateur John Paluska has assembled a vernerable team. Helming the kitchen is Matt Gandin, who recently departed San Francisco's Delfina to pursue Mexican cooking, and Scott Baird and Josh Harris of The Bon Vivants have developed the bar program. Comal's culinary explorationss cover various geographic regions of Mexico with an emphasis on the southern state of Oaxaca and neighboring coastal areas. Much of hte food will be cooked on either the large wood-fired hearth or the custom-made comal, and the menu primarily features small and medium plates to encourage sharing and exploration. Copmal will offer a carefully curated selection of tequilas and mezcals, and will also serve seasonal sangritas flavored with citrus or peppery heat to accompany tequila tastings. The restaurant space consists of a 3,000 square-foot interior that leads to a 2,500 square-foot lush patio with its own bar - half of which will be covered for year-round outdoor dining.

Comal | 2020 Shattuck Avenue (at University Ave.) | www.comalberkeley.com | Dinner seven nights a week 5:30 pm to late

10th Annual Berkeley Poetry Festival

Saturday, May 5 | 1:00 - 4:30 pm

Berkeley City College Auditorium 2050 Center St.

The Berkeley Poetry Festival introduces the public to the work of the community poets through readings and an open mic. This year, we are proud to present the Lifetime Achievement Award in Poetry to Clive Matson and to showcase a special performance, "Sparring With Beatnik Ghosts" featuring Daniel Yaryan, Marc Olmsted and Suzi Kaplan Olmsted. The 10th Poetry Festival will be M.C.'ed by Marc Kockinos and Wes "Scoop" Nisker will lead the Invocation.

2nd Annual Art in the Atrium Festival

Saturday, May 5 | 11:00 am - 4:30 pm

Berkeley City College Atrium 2050 Center St.

The Art in the Atrium Festival presents an ensemble of local visual artists chosen by Berkeley City College instructor, Jan Dove, and Mother's Hen staff person, Marcia Poole. The artists chosen have all participated in juried shows, had their work published, or are currently showing at national, state and/or local art galleries. The Festival will also showcase small press books by the Festival poets and artists that will be available for purchase.

Bike to Work Day Events

Saturday, May 5 | Berkeley's First Blessing of the Bikes | Civic Center Park | 11:00 am - 12:00 pm | FREE

Saturday, May 5 | Sustainable Solutions Family-Friendly Bike Tour | Meet at Civic Center Park | 12:00 - 5:30 pm | $10 suggested donation

Thursday, May 10 | Bike to Work Day Pancake Breakfast | Berkeley Bikestation | 7:00 - 9:00 am | FREE

		Five Restaurant at Hotel Shattuck Plaza Hosts Downtown Berkeley Ambassadors On April 25, the Downtown Berkeley Ambassadors were treated to a Hotel Shattuck Plaza tour conducted by Peggy Tolliver, Director of Corporate Accounts, and a prix fixe lunch at FIVE Restaurant prepared specially by Chef Banks White. Operations Manager, Lance Gorée said, "The Downtown Berkeley Ambassadors are now very knowledgeable about the amazing hotel amenities and guest services, as well as the seasonal and locally-sourced food served in the FIVE Restaurant. They will be able to speak from their personal experience with FIVE Restaurant cuisine to recommend Hotel Shattuck and FIVE Restaurant to Downtown Berkeley visitors and residents. But most importantly, the opportunity to engage with the hotel and restaurant staff has given the Ambassadors a strengthened feeling of partnership and connection to the Hotel Shattuck & the FIVE Restaurant team. We can only hope that our efforts to make the Downtown safe, clean, and welcoming help to reward their kindness and generosity."

		Got Graffiti??? Your Downtown Berkeley Ambassador team can help!! As the clean up of Downtown Berkeley continues, so does the nagging issue of graffiti. With your consent, Downtown Berkeley Ambassadors may be able to help you with graffiti issues, even on your personal property. With the completion and submittal of a Graffiti Removal Authorization form, The DBA will remove or cover graffiti from the first floor of buildings or other structures whenever the graffiti is visible from a public right of way. You can find the form on the Downtown Berkeley Association website HERE. Please complete it and submit it to the DBA via fax, email or hand to an Ambassador. Thank you for helping keep Downtown Berkeley beautiful!

		The NEW Downtown Berkeley Events Calendar The revamped Downtown Berkeley website now includes a completely new online events calendar, which compiles ALL of the events occurring in Downtown Berkeley in one location. You can view all the listings of events happening in the Downtown, or selectively view events by category: Visual Arts, Community Events, Music, Food & Drink, Theater & Dance, Lectures & Literature, and Other. The events on the calendar can be displayed by day, week, month, or even for the entire year. The calendar listings are constantly being updated, and we strive to have the most accurate and complete listing of all events in Downtown Berkeley. The events calendar can be found on the "Events" tab at www.downtownberkeley.com. If you would like your event to be listed on the Downtown Berkeley Event Calendar, please email the event details to info@downtownberkeley.com.

		Welcome to New Downtown Berkeley Businesses The Downtown Berkeley Association extends a warm welcome to our many new businesses that have just opened in Downtown Berkeley in the last couple of weeks: Berkeley CPR Classes \| 2076 University Ave. Suite B \| 510.225.6216 \| berkeleycprclasses@gmail.com Café Clem \| 2020 Kittredge St. \| 510.280.3881 \| cafeclem-downtown.com \| lanote@sonic.net \| French Cafe & Bakery Crunch \| 2144 Center St. \| 510.704.1101 \| crunchberkeley@yahoo.com \| Japanese Cuisine FRin Graphics \| 1936 University Ave. #100 \| 510.280.5191 \| fringraphics.com \| Graphic Design & Photo Studio Mobile Kangaroo \| 133 Berkeley Sq. \| 510.509.1877 \| www.mobilekangaroo.com \| info@mobilekangaroo.com \| Computer & Cellphone Repair

		May 5 \| Cinco de Mayo Celebrations Cancun Beach Cinco de Mayo Fiesta \| BEC's Bar & Bistro \| 6:00 pm - 1:30 am \| No Cover Cinco de Mayo Saturday \| Shattuck Down Low \| 9:00 pm - 2:00 am \| No Cover A complete listing of Mexican restaurants in Downtown Berkeley can be found on our website HERE.

		May 13 \| Mother's Day Events Mother's Day Brunch \| Bistro Liaison \| $36 Prix Fixe beverages not included, $18 Children's Menu \| Reservations required Mother's Day Brunch Buffet \| Five Restaurant \| 10:00 am - 2:00 pm \| $65 per person including bottomless mimosas, juice, coffee & ice teas Mother's Day at Revival \| Revival Bar + Kitchen \| Opening Early \| Gift of lavender cookies for mothers dining on entrees

		Startup Cluster & Technology Events Wednesday, May 2 \| EUREKA! Innovation in Berkeley \| 5:30 - 8:30 pm \| Crystal Ballroom, Hotel Shattuck Plaza 2086 Allston Way \| $20 ($10 for students) Thursday, May 3 \| Health Mobile Apps Happy Hour \| 6:00 - 8:00 pm \| Berkeley Skydeck 2150 Shattuck Avenue (Penthouse Floor) \| Free, RSVP required Wednesday, May 16 \| INFUSION/Berkeley Startup Cluster Lunch: Larry Downes on The Laws of Disruption \| 12:00 - 1:30 pm \| Berkeley Repertory Theater \| Free, RSVP to receive a $10 lunch

email: info@downtownberkeley.com web: downtownberkeley.com Tel: 510.549.2230