Le Bateau Ivre

I love the Bateau. The food is classic French, and consistently excellent. The service can be a little slow, and the place definitely has its idiosyncrasies. Which is exactly why I love it. Their website tells their history as an old house purchased and turned into a restaurant. I’ve been coming here several years and a good portion of the waitstaff has obviously been with them for a while. Back room is for dining, front room for café. A surprisingly large bar, especially if all you were expecting was wine and beer. On the one hand, it’s a shame that not more people seem to frequent it, on the other hand, if you need a nice, quiet, decent place to get drinks on the spur of the moment or want a cool place to read and relax, this is an unexpectedly wonderful option and never seems that crowded. I adore this place and its charms, although apparently it isn’t for everyone. Which is fine. I’ll keep it.

Horrible customer service– slow, incompetent waiters. Food takes really long too.

So I wrote this review a while ago. no one from the restaurant ever reply to say anything. This is very sad…
It was not pleasant at all. The server took forever to take our order. At least
15 mins. Then the server took the order it took about 45 mins till it came out.
Then to top it off, my omelet, had a twister tide in it from the bag of bread. How do you get that in there by accident. They are not careful at all. I almost shallow PAPER and METAL!
All they said was we are sorry, we will be more careful next time. They did not offer to make me a new one nor refund my money.
Bad Bad service. I will never ever go back.
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If you’re trying to save your business don’t be rude to your customers. And take French fries off the menu if you don’t have them instead of continuing to repeat «French fries are bad for children, they make them fat.» Really disappointing experience.

Decided to pop in for a latte. The service was great and the coffee was amazing but no handicap access. My daughter is wheelchair bound and I had to pull her up the narrowest stairs. I later found out when I was looking around the beautiful restaurant that I could have gone through the side where there is an outside patio. No one helped direct me, a sign of some sort would have made all the difference in my first impression.

Le Bateau Ivre should have way higher reviews.
It is a bit pricier than your typical brunch place that caters to college students. However, the price definitely makes up for the quality of the food.
Eggs Benedict: These are some of the best eggs Benedict I’ve ever had. The hollandaise sauce is so delicious and thick.
The interior of the restaurant is very cute, especially the back room.

Love the atmosphere of this place. I’ve been a few different times for coffee, dinner & a special event. The latest visit was for dinner where the service was perfect, the food was delicious, and we had a nice cozy table by the fireplace. We look forward to returning!

I don’t know why this place has an average review. I thought the food was excellent (evidenced by my clean plate) and the service was highly attentive. We used an Amazon local deal and wanted to try this place out because we’ve never been here before. My boyfriend’s coworker tried it and agreed that the food was delicious.
FOOD: artichoke scramble with home fries, wheat toast and fruit. It was pleasantly delightful! I really enjoyed it. The artichokes and mushrooms tasted buttery. I loved it on the toast. The home fries were really tasty too! My bf got the beef borignon and the meat was very tender. He really enjoyed his meal as well!
They have live music on Wednesday nights and they take reservations! It’s a great place to grab brunch on a Saturday morning. The place feels cozy (it’s a house converted to a restaurant). I just might be back ;)

My go to lunch spot. Grilled chicken Cesar salad is great. Nice place to have a cup of tea or wine as they also have free wifi!

I have come to this restaurant twice now: one time for brunch and one time for dinner. This restaurant is very cute and homey and definitely has a very unique ambience. It really did feel like I was walking into someone’s home, and usually there isn’t much people here so it is very roomy and not crowded. The brunch was great and the dinner was pretty pricey. For brunch, the atmosphere was very pleasant and this does change for dinner. For dinner, the lighting is greatly dimmed and the candlelit dinner was quite romantic. This is definitely a great place for taking a date and having conversations in a nice, quiet restaurant.

This is a difficult place to review because it is at two extremes at once. On the one hand, it is a pleasant place with a nice ambiance, pleasant servers, and a good bar menu (good drinks, nice variety of small plates, reasonably priced). If you are looking for a place to go for drinks and noshes, I’d give it 4 stars.
The dinner menu, on the other hand, is expensive, limited, and the portions are absurdly small. The $ 25 halibut came with the «chef’s choice» of side dishes, which were an uninspired mound of rice and some sauteed green pepper slices (one of the few vegetables I detest). The portion of halibut was insultingly small – somewhere between 1oz and 1.5oz by my estimation – it was about ¼ a deck of cards.
The upshot: this seems like a fine bar to go do, and maybe for breakfast or lunch. But definitely avoid for dinner.

The ambiance of this little café was really warming, and the place had a quaint je né sais quoi about it. I had the kifta, which was nice and flavorful. Served with bread, fruit, and a light salad. I wish there were more carbs to balance out the lamb, but that may be a little too American of me. The moka I got was also well mixed, and was a light and refreshing drink that complimented the day and décor nicely.
The food getting out was slightly slow, but very friendly. The host/​waiter was attentive, friendly, and contributed to the overall aura of the place.
Would definitely like to come back for breakfast or bunch some time.

Delicious food! Coffee is amazing as well! Lovely service at a cute French-​esque restaurant. Bacon is delicious.
One thing I knocked a star down for was the smell when you first walkin, a little like dishwater. Other than that, great breakfast stop!

This is the best place to come to for a little quiet afternoon in Berkeley. The food is delicious, coffee is good, it is so quaint and lovely! It feels so cozy and the floor creaks — it just has the best ambience
It is a bit pricy but sometimes it’s worth it when you’re in the mood

The ‘Drunken Boat’ is a great place to grab brunch in Berkeley. It looks like a bed and breakfast and has a cozy feel as you dine on the first floor of a French house. The place is classy but has a very affordable brunch.
I got the eggs benedict and it came with fresh fruit and potatoes. The eggs were poached well and the hollandaise sauce was not too strong which I really like. A lot of food and I was quite satisfied. I also tried my friend’s mimosa which featured fresh juice and was beautifully presented, and it was quite refreshing.
With good food, nice service, and a relaxing environment, this is a hidden gem in Berkeley!

I came here for breakfast on a Saturday morning visiting Berkley on a trip. Very cute restaurant which is in an old house, we sat outside on the patio and ordered right away. I’m not sure why the service gets bad reviews because the food came out so fast and our waitress was so friendly !!! I got the special omelette which came with a side of home fries, toast and jam, and even fresh fruit! Pretty large portions and was quite delicious !!! Definitely would recommend.

This lovely restaurant has been at this location for a long time. It had been many years since I’ve been here. N suggested we meet here for an early catch-​up dinner.
Stepping into the main dining room is like going on a vacation. The lacy curtains block the view of the street. I felt like I was someplace more interesting than Telegraph Avenue, perhaps some house in the French countryside.
Toni M had written a mouth-​watering review of the steak au poivre, it made it easy for me not to be distracted by the other great sounding dishes. I had a lemon drop while N decided what she wanted to order
I ordered my steak rare, it was medium. This time, I was not too unhappy because the steak was tender and very flavorful, it did have some gristle. The rich mushroom sauce was wonderful. I had a bit of the steak left over and asked them to be sure and get as much of the sauce as they could into my to-​go container.
The mashed potatoes were good the few real potato chunks in it assured me that they did not come from a box. Not even one little speck of potato goodness was left on my plate.
The vegetable looked good. I did not even try them I did want to be to full for dessert.
The dessert menu presented a problem they all sounded good. The mixed berries with a walnut crisp topping won and it was very good. I decided that it would be nice for Snooky to taste my dessert. I saved a small bite for him to try. I told him if he did not eat it as soon as I placed it in his hand that I would.

There has only been more and more positives everytime I come here whether it is for a casual brunch or a formal banquet.
Venue
1. They have a nice and roomy banquet room for hosting events
2. Great cozy and homey indoors with dim lighting to add to the romantic, quaint yet classy ambiance — excellent place for a date, or a professional lunch with professor or just a comfortable and casual treat for yourself, for friends and family
3. Nice outdoors for those that prefer a brighter environment or those who have dogs. It could get cold during
Service
1. Your waiter/​waitress will constantly update you even though the wait isn’t too long. He/​she also check up on you to see if you needed anything
Food
1. DELISH

Brunch at Le Bateau Ivre is a pleasant, calm experience. If you don’t believe me, just look at all the elderly ladies sitting around sipping coffee.
I always pass by when I run, and I love the cute house and its rustic-​looking interior. There was plenty of seating available at 10 AM on Sunday morning, and we chose to sit near the fireplace in the back. They have rotating specials, and I had such a difficult time choosing what to eat. I settled on the Bordelaise poached eggs on buttermilk biscuit with spinach. It doesn’t look like a huge portion when they bring it, but I was so full by the end! The eggs were poached perfectly, not drippy at all, and the buttermilk biscuit was a little sweet and crunchy, and I absolutely loved the bacon. It was cut into little pieces, deliciously crispy and chewy. The fruit was a nice addition, considering you usually have to pay extra for fresh fruit at other places. The melon was shaped into a boat with grapefruit and grapes hanging off of it, which I thought was cute (unless it wasn’t purposeful).
The staff is really nice and continually checks up on you, and the food isn’t expensive. Service was a little slow, but it’s a really nice place to relax and take your Sunday brunch.

Just south of the Cal campus on Telegraph Ave. is this discreet house that was once a French home built in 1898 that was converted in 1972 to Le Bateau Ivre. What’s Le Bateau Ivre, you might ask. Well, it means «The Drunken Boat», the title of a famous French poem.
There are three dining rooms in the restaurant and we were seated in the largest of the three, which appears to have been the living room given the large brick fireplace in the room. With its vintage décor, each table had its own unique set of wooden chairs. But one modern touch to Le Bateau Ivre is free Wi-​Fi!
We ordered:
Prawns, artichoke heart, Portobello and white mushrooms and shrimp butter. The sautéed appetizers rests on top of tasty melted shrimp butter. (
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Quiche with rainbow chard, bacon, jack and cheddar cheese. The quiche was tasty and rich, with a nice flaky crust. (
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Cream of broccoli soup — very creamy and flavorful. (
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Escallops de Porc Picata — medallions of center cut pork tenderloin sautéed in olive oil with wine, lemon, garlic and capers. The three medallions of pork were tender and the entrée came with rice pilaf and sautéed chard. (
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The house French bread — had a nice chewy texture. (
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Caramel Custard — was smooth and tasty. (
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Service was friendly, but when the restaurant got busier, service was not as prompt. It appears that only two waiters were handling all the tables in the three rooms. But overall, good traditional French cuisine in a cute French house.