Oakland has a new seafood-centric bistro that performs a lovely balancing act between rustic and refined, Sirene.
The restaurant opened in the Grand Lake neighborhood in January in the former spot of the pizzeria, Sister. It is run by chef Gavin Schmidt and veteran sommelier Paul Einbund, owner of San Francisco’s Michelin-recognized The Morris, and like that establishment, has a strong focus on interesting wines (here, picked by wine director Alec Cummings).
Entering Sirene, you’ll find a cafe on the left and an airy dining room on the right, with a back patio draped with hanging vines. The decor is a homey mix of wood and brick — “simple,” as one Google reviewer puts it, “as if it was blown in on a warm breeze from the Normandy coast of France.” Both sections were fully booked on a recent stop-in, but there’s always open seating at the bar.
Sirene means “mermaid” in French, and the call of the ocean is all over the menu. But the day actually begins on land with coffee service, running until 2 p.m., featuring a “fifty-fifty” (half coffee, half tea) and high-end brews like gesha. A pastry case is loaded with crusty, buttery treats, such as Meyer lemon danish, popovers with raclette and jam, miso-chocolate cookies and croissants filled with soft egg or ham and gruyere.
Before dinner starts at 5 p.m., the restaurant fills with a lovely, smoky aroma, thanks to the pizza oven Sister left behind that’s been repurposed to roast oceanic delights. Schmidt does a whole petrale sole ($55) that’s dry-aged for days to create a crackling skin in the oven, served with roasted sunchokes and an herb-butter persillade sauce. Other entrees include black cod ($34) with black-trumpet mushrooms and nettle jus and a bavette steak frites ($38) with lobster bearnaise — or if you’re content with pub grub, a cod-and-chips ($21) with piquillo aioli.
There’s the obligatory seafood tower ($115), which depending on the season might include shucked oysters, spiny lobster, Santa Barbara uni and succulent chunks of Dungeness crab. These are dunked in grapefruit ponzu or spicy kimchi dressing or simply squeezed with lemon. The tower’s components can be ordered individually, alongside house-made seafood charcuterie like shellfish-and-leek terrine ($18), alpine gravlax ($12) and duck-and-lobster “mortadella” ($21).
Then there’s the half-page on the menu that’s just “Fried Chicken” ($18-$55). Well, not just — the chef has provided a smorgasbord of accompaniments ($6 each) to his buttermilk-battered bird, like mashed potatoes and braised collards, scallion biscuits and andouille gravy. High-rollers have the option of bedazzling it with caviar ($15-$55 per half-ounce), including smoked-trout roe, kaluga and white sturgeon.
Wine lovers should have a ball. You’ll find house wine sold by the centimeter — you pay what you drink — and a pinot noir in the “tradition” of Champagne and, from the local Rare Wine Company, insane selections like an 1895 Franca Netto Bual Julia de (only $200 for 2 ounces). This is in addition to cocktails, draft beer, amaro and chartreuse of the yellow or green variety.
Details: Open 8 a.m.-2 p.m. for coffee and pastries and 5 p.m.-9:30 p.m. for dinner service at 3308 Grand Ave., Oakland; sirene-oak.com.
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