Not Your Average Snack Bar

The snack has been a globally cherished dining concept for the past
several centuries, but only recently have nibbles and noshes attained
gourmet status here in the United States. Back in the old country,
tapas, mezes, zensai, and zakuski are a time-tested
method to absorb a little protein when a full-on meal requires too much
culinary commitment. Italy in particular offers all kinds of
sip-and-munch establishments: the enoteca, a candlelit nook
fragrant with Barolo, Chianti, and Valpolicella; the
caffè, the ideal venue for espresso-sipping and
people-watching; the antipasti bar with its saucers of salumi
and formaggio; the ornate little pasticceria, where the
sweets and pastries are singular works of art. Cioccolata Di Vino, a
classy new hangout in Berkeley’s Gourmet Ghetto, combines the
pasticceria, the wine bar, the caffè, and the
antipasti joint into one venue, thereby satisfying all of one’s
snacking needs in a single attractive location. The word “snack” does a
disservice to chef/owner Rebecca Bernstein’s carefully crafted
offerings, though. Taken together, her delicious array of sweets and
small plates offers all the makings of a light breakfast, an afternoon
nibble, or a multicourse meal.

The elegant setting combines Old World baroque with Shattuck
Avenue’s friendly neighborhood vibe. Chef Bernstein’s evocative
photographs of urban Firenze accent a warm, rich color scheme of
caramel, chocolate, and burgundy. A high-ceilinged bar area up front
features handcrafted mahogany tables, a curved counter for single
dining, and an open kitchen beyond, while a tucked-away section toward
the back offers a more lounge-y draperies-and-banquettes ambience. It’s
the ideal milieu for a simple snack of not-so-simple delicacies.

The involtini di melanzane, for instance, are filets of
fork-tender eggplant layered with thick shards of Parma prosciutto and
Fior di Latte mozzarella, rolled and grilled until warm and luscious,
and strewn with fresh mint; the combination of sweet-salty prosciutto,
rich and bubbly cheese, and smoky eggplant was earthy and delectable.
Prosciutto also accents a goat cheese tartlet that was mildly sharp in
flavor, dense and creamy in texture, and yummy from start to finish.
The cannellini en cazuela (white beans in casserole) could’ve
used a bit of salt, but the dish’s light, crisp texture and
garlicky-rosemary after-bite made for a nice palate cleanser. It came
with slender toasts of exemplary house-baked ciabatta bread
drizzled with golden olive oil.

A few dishes change daily. We enjoyed a zuppa del giorno of
tomato and eggplant that was so rich, hearty, and rustic in nature, it
was more ratatouille than soup. Our pasta of the day, capellini,
and its plate-mate, smoked Alaskan salmon with capers and lemon, were
perfectly tasty separately, but the ultraskinny pasta needed a heavier
sauce to keep the accompaniments occupied, and the result was an
impenetrable mass of carbohydrates atop a platter of lox. But the
frittata of the day was a light and lovely success, a soufflé
billowing out of its ramekin with bits of onion, pepper, and tomato
ribboned throughout.

Chocolate gets top billing here, and for good reason. Bernstein
favors top-shelf Callebaut Belgian chocolate in her baking, and the
results are worth noting. The chocolate polenta cake was a rich, creamy
slab of black velvet with a bittersweet, almost peppery aftertaste. A
trio of truffles barely larger than aggie marbles were dark as pitch,
barely sweetened, densely sticky, and delivered more zip and endorphins
per milligram than the chewiest espresso. And the chocolate chip pecan
cookies were like nuts and candy chunks barely held together with a
spoonful of undercooked dough: perhaps better than the best Toll
Houses.

The menu’s other desserts were almost as good. Our gelato of the
day, caramel balsamic, was odd in theory and delectable in practice:
buttery, toffeelike ice cream with a fruity, ferocious bite to it, and
irresistible after the first spoonful. The risotto pudding — kind
of sweet, slightly chewy, and suffused with the flavor of brandied fig
— wasn’t as successful. But the honey and pine nut tart layered
whole pignolas atop buttery caramel and a shortbread crust to excellent
sweet-and-salty effect, and the ricotta tart was even better: a
lighter, more refreshing variation on cheesecake, with a lush cornmeal
crust and the sweet tang of orange peel. And if you just want something
to dunk into your coffee, the biscotti were light, buttery, and rich
with the flavor of sesame.

As its name indicates, Cioccolata Di Vino is as much wine bar as
sweet shop, and the place has the (carefully assembled) wine list to
prove it. The cellar’s nearly three dozen offerings were selected to
complement the sweet and spicy flavors of the menu, and they range from
Ronchi di Pietro’s pinot grigio (nice with the goat cheese tartlet) to
Terre di Gioia’s pinot nero (perfect with the involtini) to Terregaie’s
tart, bracing prosecco (a marvelous aperitif all on its own).
There’s also a wide array of dessert wines (natch), including a Bodega
Bay Port Works white port that does those chocolate chip cookies proud.
Most wines are available by the glass (six by the taste); red and white
flights are offered as well. In addition there are two beers on tap,
Alaskan Amber and Blue Moon.

More than half of the items on the antipasti menu are meat-free and
suitable for vegetarians (if not vegans). Options include a platter of
robiola, pecorino, and cambozola cheeses with figs,
almonds, chestnut honey, and macerated apricots; a mixed salad with
crimini mushrooms, dried cranberries, roasted almonds, and gorgonzola;
bruschetta with goat cheese and tomato sauce; savory rosemary-parmesan
biscotti; oven-roasted olives with fresh herbs; and the garlic-rosemary
cannellini beans. (Although the soup and the frittata we sampled were
both vegetarian-friendly, these items change daily.)

Cioccolata Di Vino is a welcome addition to the local dining scene.
It’s a place where you can breakfast on cioccolata densa and a
freshly baked cornetto, enjoy a snack or a meal of zuppa,
pasta, insalata, and gelato, chat with a friend over a couple of
glasses of wine, or sip an espresso and watch the world go by. Just
like in the old country.