Best of the East Bay - Fun & Nightlife

From margaritas to man caves, check out all the ways to have a great time in the East Bay.

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Man Cave

Editor Pick

+ Attention, men of Diablo. A flat-screen in the basement just doesn’t cut it anymore. For the next big game, head to the ultimate man cave: Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar. The first Bay Area location of the chain, known for its chicken, beer, and 14 signature sauces, recently opened in Dublin. The restaurant boasts 36 televisions—including eight 119-inch projection screens and monitors over the urinals. During commercials, play digital poker or take the Blazin' Challenge: Down 12 wings with the hottest sauce in less than six minutes. Rawr!
3712 Dublin Blvd., Dublin, (925) 361-0447, buffalowildwings.com.  —LeeAnne Jones

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Summer Festival

Editor Pick

+ It’s like Burning Man, without the sand and with much better public transit. This year’s Fire Arts Festival, July 15–18, will be the biggest ever—the Crucible arts foundry has secured space on the old Oakland Army base that’s three times larger than past years. Hundreds of Bay Area artists and performers will play with fire—and show off massive sculptures, exotic dance, and powerful music. A highlight will be the world premiere of Dan Cantrell’s The Rootabaga Opera, inspired by the children’s stories of poet Carl Sandburg.
See diablomag.com for more photos; (510) 444-0919, thecrucible.org.  —Peter Crooks

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Dance Troupe

Reader Pick

+ First-time winner Axis Dance Company is no stranger to East Bay arts fans. Founded in 1987 and earning

seven Isadora Duncan Dance Awards, Axis has been dazzling audiences with its unique mission of integrating dancers with disabilities. The artistry is stunning: a woman twirling, stretched horizontally on a tipped-over wheelchair; a man in a handstand on the back of an upright wheelchair; and lines and imagery that push the boundaries of contemporary dance. Axis is working with New York choreographer David Dorfman on a world-premiere piece to open in November.
1428 Alice St., Oakland, (510) 625-0110, axisdance.org.  —L.J.

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Time-Warping Night Out

Editor Pick

+ One is an old-school Italian restaurant featuring live music at the piano bar Thursdays through Sundays. The other is a hip, DJ-spinning lounge, with a fireplace and trippy blown-glass light fixtures over the bar. The twist? They’re located on the same lot in Danville. Luckily, Marcello’s Restaurant & Piano Bar and Easy 925 also share a fun, unpretentious vibe that makes for a cool night out—no matter what your age.
515 San Ramon Valley Blvd., Danville, (925) 838-8144, marcellosofdanville.com; 519 San Ramon Valley Blvd., Danville, easy925.com.  —Ethan Fletcher

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New Art Gallery

Editor Pick

+ Jessica Cox and Cameron Jackson, cofounders of Berkeley’s Alphonse Berber Gallery, are the kind of overachievers who can make you feel like a slacker. The Piedmont couple are in their early twenties, yet this February, they opened a contemporary art space near the UC Berkeley campus—after convincing well-connected art collector Alphonse Berber to lend his name and expertise to the project. If you think that’s impressive, consider this: The duo accomplished all that while maintaining a full undergrad course load at Cal, where they are earning degrees in English literature. Pretty heady stuff for two students barely old enough to drink, yet neither is crowing about early success.

“Picasso was 22 when he painted his first masterpiece,” says Cox, a Walnut Creek native. “It’s been extremely difficult, but it’s not like either of us watches television—we don’t waste a lot of time.”
2546 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, (510) 649-9492, alphonseberber.com.  —E.F.