First Church Of The Buzzard - Oakland

Alamar has been one of my favorite restaurants in Oakland but I haven 't been back for a while so I didn 't know about the change from seafood boil to Dominican. Love the new menu! My go to Happy Hour oysters is still on the menu (very good deal) and the swivel fries as well (excellent). We tried the fried goat appetizer and were blown away by how tender and juicy it was! The best part is that some of the pieces were a bit fatty too, which I love! The oxtail stew is amazing too. Our server was very attentive and came back twice to ask if we 'd want to order anything else from the Happy Hour menu before the time passed. Overall very pleasantly surprised by the new alamar! One thing to note is that the default tip is 25 (as opposed to 18 , 20 , 25 as you would see in other places). Of course, there 's the option to choose 20 if you want.

After reading the article in todays SF Chronicle about alaMar restaurant in Oakland being robbed in the middle of the night, with thieves taking high end spirits and other items, my wife and I wanted to show our support by dining at the restaurant this evening. We started off with a couple Mamajuana rum beverages and sharing an appetizer of Camarones Criolla. For our main courses we had the Encendido Braised Angus Oxtail and Pernil Slow roasted pork with Yellow Caribbean Rice. We ended our dinner sharing the Tres Leches cake for dessert. The restaurant had a fun vibe and friendly and attentive Wait Staff. Sorry, no photos, too busy enjoying the moment. Thank you!

My first time returning after the re opening/naming of Ala Mar. I was happy to hear that Chef Nelson returned to his roots and started cooking Dominican food again something that is greatly missed in the Bay Area. That being said, I will only eat here when Chef Nelson is cooking. I have always been a great admirer and fan of his food, but the last few times I've eaten here, he was not present, and the food served in his absence was substandard. The problems ranged from over cooked, dry chicken to under cooked shrimp two of the easiest things to cook. I completely understand the need to grow your business, but not having a competent chef in place on a weekend is not a good idea. I will continue to support Chef Nelson when I can, but plan to find out who's cooking that evening before eating here again. BB

I have been to Chef Nelson's other spot, sobre mesa, before so I had high expectations and I was not disappointed at all! The food was amazing my favorites of the night were the oxtail, the half chicken, and the shrimp. The chicken dish was by far one the best chicken dishes I've had at a restaurant. The flavor was outstanding and I love the way they executed the dish. The sauce that came with the shrimp was to die for. I made sure to eat it all up! The drinks were also delicious and very strong highly recommend the puerto claro. The service was great, they were super attentive and made sure that our water was always filled. We went on a friday night and loved the energy it was super packed and everyone looked like they were really enjoying themselves. Will def come back to try more soon!

The service was amazing and the location was a vibe, just a few min walk from lake merrit and we got a few quick bites before we headed hm from work and it was so delicious. I love maduros so I got 2 orders!! Cravings fixed fr fr