Michel Bistro

Truly amazing dining experience that re-​sets the scale by which every other meal will henceforth be measured. The ambiance is very relaxed, minimal décor. Less is always more. Loved the projected video playing on the bare brick wall. We were seated at the little nook by the front window. Great acoustics for chatting. The service was attentive but not intrusive, respectful in answering our questions, and very pleasant without being patronizing. The food was outstanding in its quality and preparation, very creative. The portions were ample without being overwhelming. The drinks displayed the same attention to presentation and creativity. It is a delight to see someone execute an idea of a restaurant and its food and hit the mark spot on. Cheers!

We started off with the bone marrow, which was excellent but unfortunately one of our two smallish bones had an even smaller middle that barely produced a tiny marrow-​spoonful. Also got an order of mussels for the table, which was also excellent and a good size portion. I got the chicken, once again excellent, looking like art I didn’t want to destroy when it came out. My friend’s steak was a bit dry for «medium» but was delicious anyway. Props to the owner for naming wine flights after Warriors players (I had the Draymond Green, three generous pours of a white, syrah, and a malbec, only $ 13). We waited upstairs for our table, the upstairs being visually disconnected from the downstairs décor, but still cool. Great atmosphere, clever use of old LPs as clipboards for the drink menu (we got Rod Stewart).

Wow! So surprised to find such good French dining on Lakeshore Avenue in Oakland! I will definitely be back. Everything was great… beginning with the bread in the burlap basket and the olive spread. Once you sit down, order the bone marrow as it takes 20 minutes to come out. So worth the wait. I could’ve eaten only that for dinner! It comes with toasted and buttered bread with a whole bulb of roasted garlic to spread. To. Die. For.
We went early enough to be able to enjoy the early bird 3 course meal with choice of red or white wine for $ 30. Go between 5:30 — 6:30 to get the deal: I chose the mussel bisque over salad and had the the burger with pomme frites over the mussels and was then given a huge crème brûlée for dessert. I shared my meal and was stuffed!
Service was also top notch. We definitely felt taken care of!

This is a really nice dining experience. My only complaint is that they don’t have more vegetarian options, but that’s because it’s not that kind of restaurant. They did offer one solid veg entrée – pea and ricotta crepes. Delicious. I also got a starter salad, which was delicious. They have a great wine list, the service is good, and the restaurant itself is so warm and charming. I would recommend it for a date night!

Came here on Mother’s Day as a walk-​in and we were so relieved that the manager took us in because they were booked for the whole night. We had private seating in the upstairs area and our waitress was lovely! Our food was taking a little longer than usual and she kept bringing us appetizers on the house to keep us occupied so we wouldn’t starve and complain. The food was beyond delcious and we were so thankful that they seated us even though they were fully booked.
Definitely appreciated everything about this restaurant! :)

I went to Michele for my birthday dinner. I desired a romantic evening, with edible delights for sharing, and tasty and unique libations. Granted, I was under the influence of the elation that came from celebrating my birthday, Michele certainly delivered!
My boyfriend, who spent part of his childhood in Geneva Switzerland (and has a better understanding for French cuisine and culture) and is often lackluster when it comes to food, was not only impressed but also enthusiastic to order and share. All things, from the belgium style muscles, escargot, lamb burger, and delicious bread that comes with the meal, were FANTASTIC! We ordered a wonderful french wine flight, delicious cocktail, and after dinner Pastis, which is an anise-​flavored spirit and apéritif from France. DO treat yourself to the Pastis (if you’re a black licorice flavor kinda person) — it’s exceptional!
Ambiance and service was great. Will be back for future special occasions.

Nice Sunday brunch and they have Pastis. The prices are very reasonable for a small but well thought-​out menu. There were 3 of us and we all enjoyed our selections. And the fries, oh the fries, we ate them all while watching each other to see who would stop first. It was with great relief that we all ate to the bottoms of our fry cones.
Who can resist bread in a little burlap bag? Not me.
Our waitperson was polite and helpful and did not act like it was the umpteenth time she has done this.
We sat tucked into the window seat and watched the people without fries go by. As much as we loved the view of the world, the interior of the restaurant was also pleasing.
I can see why people who live in the area think of this place as their little gem.

Not sure why the rating is so high. This was certainly not my experience.
The Good:
— Loved the atmosphere
— No wait on a Friday night at 8
— Decent drinks; liked all the apéritif options. I had a Boulevardia that was quite good!
The Bad:
— My wife’s chicken was overcooked
— My Lamb Burger was fatty and full of tendons. Not great.
— Pricey especially when both of our entrees turning out not so great
— Bread was just Okay; I wish they had chosen something more artisan ike ACME Bread Co as opposed to the rather basic french bread we got served
Service was average. I would not go here again for the price we paid. My only thought is perhaps the kitchen just had an off night; we ate Friday at 8:30 and I think they close at 10pm.

PROS:
— Great place for a date night
— Very romantic setting
— Small but lots of seating
— Modern/​rustic setting which was great
— High ceilings which makes the place looks better than it really is.
— Really clean & organized
— Accepts reservations
— Great customer service & waiters are nice
— Delicious selection of wine & beer
— Bone marrow was fantastic
— Lamb burger medium well was amazing!
— Anything from the desert menu is excellent
— Even if you have never tried French food you will be blown away by the amazing tastes here.
— Definitely come here if you haven’t checked this place out.
— Will be coming back here for a special occasion if it arises.
CONS:
— Parking may be tricky to find but not impossible
— They are only open for dinner from 5pm to 9pm during the week (open later during the week).

Honey and I came here to celebrate my birthday dinner again as he was gone for work during my birthday week.
I made reservations for 7:45 pm but since we were running late, I called and informed them that we will be there more around 8 pm and they graciously listened and noted the info.
When we arrived at the restaurant, we already had a table reserved for us at the side, however the honey wanted a more intimate table, so we waited patiently on the bar, for about 10 minutes and finally we got seated.
We started off with some cocktails and they were both good. The honey and I were starving so we ordered the following:
1) soup of the evening– cream of Celery
2) Bone Marrow with grilled bread
3) Bison Tartar with some toasted bread
4) Marinated Olives
5) Arugula salad with crème and olives
6) Mussels with thick cuts of bacon and crispy fries
7) Crème brulee
Everything we ordered was very good and super tasty. The price was very reasonable too for all the food we ordered.. We were opting to order the red snapper too but thank goodness our server advised that we already have a lot of food coming. I guess our eyes was hungrier than our tummies. The server also gave us free wines while waiting for our mussels which was super nice.
Truly enjoyed our experience here. Would come back here again.

So I was looking for to grab dinner without venturing too far away from Oakland and after a bit of Unilocaling, I was able to come across this joint so I made a reservation and made my way over for a Saturday evening. Parking on the street itself is a bit challenging so you may have to circle the block or there is a parking lot next to the grocery store which has a few hours as their limit. Made our way into the joint and I was automatically impressed by the décor and setup. It’s a very clean and cozy atmosphere with old black and white movies being shown on one wall. The servers greeted us promptly and they immediately sat us at our table. Our server was extremely friendly and was attentive throughout the entire meal.
They handed us menus inclusive of a wine list. Ordered a glass of vino to class it up and perused the menu. After taking a look through the menu, decided on the bison tartar, the lamb burger, and the mussels. While we were waiting for our order to come out, they provided a small burlap sack of bread which was a nice touch. The bison tartar was first to come out which had a nice simple presentation to it. The flavors were strong and all the ingredients were mixed in well to make a solid dish. The portion was fairly large as well so this was a solid start. The mussels were delicious with the broth being absolutely perfect to dip into with the bread. The sauce was a bit tangy and the mussels were fairly well cooked. The lamb burger was the star of the show which was really delicious as mentioned. The burger was super juicy and extra flavorful without being gamey which was my biggest concern. The caramelized onions were perfect along with the white cheddar cheese. We killed this burger till there was nothing left.
All in all, a solid dining experience and somewhere I would be back. It is an awesome atmosphere and perfect for a date night or an intimate gathering of friends.

First off: The atmosphere here is amazing! It was great to go on a rainy day. We were seated at the bar as we waited for a table, and the bar tender gave us a free double shot espresso she accidentally made.
The wait after we ordered was a little long, but the food was great! We had the bison tar tar, trotter benedict, and lamb burger. I would definitely recommend the lamb burger. The trotter Benedict has a little too much bread but the poached eggs and greens were cooked to perfection with the flavors complimenting each other. Also, the tar tar was a wonderful starter for someone who has never tried bison before.
I would love to go back sometime to try the happy hour dinner special.

2÷28÷15: First thing first – despite what Unilocal is telling you, this place IS NOT 2 $‘s. It is easily $$$ or even $$$$ depending on how expensive your tastes are. I wouldn’t expect to pay any less than $ ⁸⁰⁄₂ people for any decent meal here (ours was more than $ 120.)
Now, as for the food itself, … there’s lots of potential but unfortunately we experienced many failures of execution. There was dried out meat, overwhelmed expensive ingredients, and cold food, etc. We had some decent stuff today, but also some real crap. But I did like some of the unique ideas, and perhaps we caught them on a really bad night? Well, all I can base my review on is what we had, so…
1. Draft Kombucha $ 5.50 «Gt enlightened kombucha, bay area»: Pretty standard as far as kombucha goes. Not overly sour. Pretty balanced. ⁵⁄₁₀.
2. Foie-​Wich $ 17 «brioche, kumquat, pinenuts & chocolate butter, Espelette»: Certainly one of the biggest failures of the night. The kumquat preserves was far too strong. It’s really all I can taste. The foie gras itself was not whole pieces but sliced torchon. I asked the waiter if this was a sandwich of foie gras and he said yes – I wish he told me it wasn’t actual pieces though. I’ve had tons of torchons in France and I was really looking forward to getting a nice whole piece here. Oh well. Anyway, as far as torchon goes, this one is pretty weak – though still tasty, it didn’t come close to the intense flavors of the ones I’ve had in France. Also, the torchon was sliced very thin… far too thin to be tasted inside a sandwich. Even after I scraped off and threw aside the kumquat, I still couldn’t taste the foie gras. Pretty sad «sandwich.» ¹⁄₁₀
3. Table Bread: They forgot to give us ours. We reminded them after getting the Foie-​Wich. We did feel it was weird we got no bread initially. In France it was like the first thing ANY restaurant put on the table. Bread’s pretty much the very most important dish in France, so any restaurant claiming to be French cannot possibly not serve bread. Anyway, glad we asked for it cause their bread’s really good! Decent crust, but the flesh was soft and very tasty. Also comes with an olive tapenade that’s really delicious. ⁷⁄₁₀
4. Pork Shoulder Confit $ 28 «asparagus, green garlic, black rice, pine nuts, sour cherry jus»: So, I like some duck confit. This though does not work for me. The pork was really really really dry. Needs lots more fat to pull this off. Very lean and just tasted like dried out, over-​baked pork. The rice was interesting – it was mixed with some kind of white cream or cheese, but it was cooked extremely al dente. I’m not sure if it was the chef’s intent for it to have the texture of nuts, to compliment the pine nuts, but well, it was that way – yes, that hard. Personally, I’ll just say it’s under cooked. Yeah, pretty bad pork. Oh, and to top it off, it was served luke-​warm. ²⁄₁₀
5. Whole Roasted Dorade $ 37 «pork belly cassoulet, spring onion, carrots»: Well, very glad to finally have something edible. Actually, it was pretty good in fact. The fish was quite flavorful, and the texture was very good. Light, soft, juicy. Now, the title says «roasted» and I really doubt it was – more like fried. But, I suppose it might be possible? – I dunno. Maybe if it was basted very often in oil, or perhaps combo’d with a dip in the fryer, maybe. But anyway, whatever, it tasted good. The cassoulet was pretty awesome too – lovely beans and pork belly. Unfortunately, it was served lukewarm too, like the pork. Really hurt the enjoyment cause it just tasted cold. ⁷⁄₁₀
6. Coffee $ 2.50
7. Sauternes Château Villefranche 2012 $ 13: I haven’t had many French liqueurs or sweet wines, but I was intrigued after seeing a vintage Sauternes sell for $ 10k… and I had an amazing Chartreuse from a frozen frosted magnum!!! sized bottle, so another French sweet wine sounded awesome to me. And indeed it was! Like your favorite late harvest kicked up 10 notches! Intensely flavorful and of course quite sweet. Loved it. I’m gonna have to get a bottle next time I’m at K&L! ⁸⁄₁₀
8. Chocolate Beignet $ 10 «truffled white chocolate ganache»: Somewhat okay-​ish beignet, but combined with one spectacular flavor… the beignet was alright. Tasted just a tad stale to me, but still was soft inside and nicely fried outside. Well, I should also give them credit that the crust is a bit special – tastes and feels almost like baked bread crust, though it was probably fried. Did add a bit of maturity and complexity to what otherwise are fancy doughnuts. BUT, the amazing part… truffle flavor! It actually works! It’s very subtly, but definitely there. I think if it were any stronger this dessert would just taste weird. But the tiny amount they used made it taste curiously special. Great touch! ⁷⁄₁₀
So, we got 2 crappy dishes and 2 okay ones, two of those unintentionally served cold. Sigh…
³⁄₅
#french #frenchfusion

Dined here for Oakland Restaurant week. My husband and I ended up not ordering from their RW menu as I felt it didn’t showcase the highlights I read from this place.
So instead, we ordered the following:
— Bison Tartar: It was good. Good flavors. Tasted fresh. I would order this again.
— Bone Marrow: It was good, but not great. Didn’t particularly stand out for me. The highlight was the roasted garlic that accompanied this dish.
— Lamb Burger: juicy. Great flavors. I really enjoyed this dish. I finished the whole thing.
— Roast Pork Chop: It was cooked fine. But once again it didn’t stand out that much for my husband or me.
I would say our eating experience was closer to a 3.5 but the good service and ambiance I’m ok with rounding up to a 4.

What a cute French place :) I came here for a late brunch with my family to celebrate my grandma’s birthday. The ambiance here is super French, I loved it!
Their complimentary bread came in cute burlap sacks and was pretty addicting! I ordered a mimosa to start off my morning and it was pretty good! As for the food, I tried the Croque Madame, Lamb Burger, and Bison Tartare. Everything was delicious!
Most of my family got the lamb burger and everyone loved it. It was cooked perfectly and was thick and juicy. You can choose a salad or fries as your side and we all chose the fries. They gave us two dipping sauces, one was like ketchup and the other was some sort of aioli. We all loved the aioli: D
The Croque Madame was also great. It was my first time getting it so I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I liked it :) The bread was really good and fluffy! This is actually a pretty big portion. I couldn’t finish it D:
The Bison Tartare was interesting! I love tartare but I’ve never tried bison. The texture was thicker than others I’ve had but it still tasted good! They actually gave a lot of it too!
Overall, I really enjoyed my experience here. The service and food were great and the ambiance really made me feel like I was in a legit French restaurant!

Michel is on the expensive side when it comes to brunch but the croque monsieur is a great choice. For $ 12 you get a super gooey ham and cheese with Mornay sauce in between two slices of brioche bread. Plus you get a side of thinly sliced, super crispy fries. It all taste so good, especially with a glass of mimosa.
Now that’s brunch!

Perfection.
If there’s one restaurant in the East Bay I must recommend, it’s this one. Perfect for date nights and perfect for girls nights out.
The olive tapenade came with the fresh French bread, which we had two servings of. Every detail down to the bag the bread came in was well thought out.
The bone marrow came with bread that was too thick, so we used our appetizer bread. The bone marrow was roasted and came with a citrus flavor and a grilled garlic spread. We thought the bone marrow was a little bland, but when mixed with the citrus it was perfect. They should add more citrus.
The lamb burger was perfect. If it came with a beef option, this place would blow most other burger joints out of the water. The flavor combinations were well melded together and the fries were cooked to perfection. Crispy, but not overly greasy.
The service was great. Every restaurant should hire and train a waitstaff that mimics this place. Everyone was efficient and VERY attentive. We didn’t even have to ask for water. Our waitress, girl with the tattoo on her neck, was super nice and genuine. I wouldn’t mind having her at every restaurant I patronize.
This is probably a top two restaurant in the East Bay in my book. Well done, Michel Bistro!

Love love love Michel Bistro! I no longer have to drive all the way to SF to enjoy quality French fare! This is the perfect spot in Oakland for a relaxing Sunday brunch with the family!
Location
It’s in quaint Piedmont Street, near a residential area and a small park. Love the clean and cozy décor. Grab a table near the windows for some people-​watching while enjoying a delicious Sunday brunch.
Service
Amazing staff — everyone was so genuinely friendly and accommodating. Just the kind of warm service you’d expect from your favorite neighborhood restaurant.
Food
I came for the lamb burger, and was not disappointed. Even the kids enjoyed it! Juicy, tasty, meaty — I’m hungry now!
We also ordered the steamed mussels — the sauce was so delish that my husband had to order more bread to swipe all that goodness off the bowl! The kids enjoyed their grilled cheese sandwich and mini burger with a side of fruit. We also got the merguez hash — a perfectly spiced lamb sausage mixed with potato and kale — YUM!
Overall
This was an excellent French brunch in a location oozing charm and warmth — without breaking the bank! Definitely a keeper — we’re coming back for dinner to try out their tartare and bone marrow!

Who wants to cook in the middle of a heat wave? We certainly didn’t and as we have had this place on our bookmarks for a while now, we decided to eat here. On a Tuesday night, the place wasn’t terribly crowded and noisy which was fine with us. We were given seats just to the left of the entrance in an alcove where you can watch people outside from the window and have more privacy.
I was happy to see that they offer 3 different levels of wine – VDP (country wine), AOC, and Cru (least to most expensive). And as in France, they offer different sizes for your drinking pleasure and budget (glass, 375 ml, 500 ml or bottle). We opted for a 500 ml carafe of an AOC white. It was a dry white from the Côtes du Rhôné region and it was perfect for a really warm evening and a great deal at $ 25!
They served us warm bread in a little sac before serving our starter and I have to tell you that the bread is fabulous! I really had to hold myself back and not eat too much of as I didn’t want to make myself too full before our actual meal. I was so happy when our cheese starter came coz that meant I could eat more bread. Loved the blue and the Brillat Savarin cheeses out of the three. The Comté was just okay.
My husband ordered the Lamb Burger which he loved and I just ordered the Bone Marrow starter which we shared. The bone marrow was great on the bread! So sinful but so good! If you’re a fan of bone marrow, I would get that here!
I almost didn’t order dessert, but you really must if you’re dining in a French restaurant. We chose the Chocolate Torte with Raspberries and Orange Caramel. It was just enough for the two of us and I liked that it wasn’t terribly sweet. It was a nice finish to our meal.
Service was great all throughout our meal. We’d definitely return, but maybe on a special occasion. It’s a little pricey for an «I’m feeling lazy» weeknight dinner.

I love love love this place! I can get my french food fix without breaking the bank.
I had the pleasure of eating the bone marrow here, and it is one of the best things on the menu. If i had to pick one dish, it’d be this one. The marrow is served on a wooden board with baked garlic that can be used as spread on the bread it comes with (I suggest eating as much of that garlic as possible)! I think I got pretty full off of this appetizer although I shared with a friend.
I also enjoyed the lamb burger a lot. I asked for medium and that’s exactly what I got. The burger was juicy and super flavorful. I was happy that the lamb was really fresh but not too gamey. Sadly, I couldn’t finish the burger due to the amazing appetizer that preceded this entrée. Luckily for my bf, he got the leftovers and was more than pleased.
The best part about this place is that they serve authentic French food. I can’t stress enough how hard it is to find this kind of food for a decent price. Bonus (for me anyways): some the employees are french/​speak french; I finally got to use whatever French I retained after not speaking it for 4 years.

Jusqu’à ce que je visité ce restaurant que je né pouvais pas parler français. Pourtant, après avoir vécu ce bijou d’un Bistro à Oakland Lakeshore District, je peux parler français, même avec les francophiles les plus tenaces! Back to English… This place is wonderful. We split thé Charcuterie plate, thé Spring Salad, and thé Lambburger and all were wonderful. We agreed that it might be the best burger we’ve ever had. Great service, an abbreviated yet wonderful wine list, a welcoming owner (Thank you Jean Miche!), and our new «Go-​To» restaurant on the avenue! Check it out