The César team is staging a comeback, with help from author Michael Lewis

César, the beloved North Shattuck tapas spot that sparked protests and petitions when its closure was announced in 2022, is back … sort of.

The new restaurant, opening in Westbrae, is named Mesón and will be modeled after César and led by many of the same core staff.

For the past few years, Cameron McVeigh, the former general manager of César for seven years, had been searching for a location to open a new restaurant after César closed in 2022. The idea for the new restaurant was always “patterning it after César, with a lot of the same people and some of the same employees,” McVeigh said.

Mesón’s menu will be led by head chef Juan Gomez, former sous chef at César. Another key member from the César team joining Mesón is Maggie Pond, who was the opening and head chef at César when it launched, and is now Mesón’s consulting chef. Pond co-authored the cookbook, “César: Recipes from a Tapas Bar.”

After a bumpy road, including finding a location on Solano Avenue at the Fonda location for a brief moment, but needing to let it go after an investor pulled the rug due to high renovation costs, McVeigh found this location in North Berkeley. McVeigh, a majority owner of the restaurant, solidified the rest of his investment group, including Berkeley resident and best-selling author Michael Lewis, who joined picket lines protesting César’s closure.

Lewis said he’s been encouraging McVeigh to open his own restaurant since César closed. “The people who ran it created this sort of community vibe that I just loved,” he told NOSH.

The former team from César is taking over the Three.one four pizzeria space on Gilman Street in Westbrae. Credit: Tovin Lapan/East Bay Nosh

The restaurant and bar will replace the shuttered Three One Four Pizzeria, located at 1329 Gilman St., as first reported by Berkeley Eats. The group has signed a lease for the property, but an opening date is to be determined. The space was also once home to the lauded Lalime’s Restaurant, which operated there for 35 years until the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Mesón” typically refers to a rustic restaurant or inn in Spanish.

“The space we’re in kind of feels like a home, having a backyard and patio,” McVeigh said. “I want people to know we’re welcoming, and a little on the rustic side.”

The menu will include familiar items to César fans, including small to medium plates of Spanish dishes and a full cocktail and bar menu. The menu may include patatas bravas, fried potatoes; montaditos, or small open-faced toasts; bocadillos, or small sandwiches; avocado and little gem salads; brussels sprouts with a parsley garlic sauce; and paellas. He said there are about 80 recipes they will draw from, but will make some updates and changes.

“We will have several dishes that people will recognize, and also new stuff,” McVeigh said.

The menu will still be seasonal, and there will be choices for patrons looking for a light bite or a full meal, according to McVeigh. The plan is to be very bar-focused, with McVeigh leading the bar menu.

“We hope to continue with the cocktail program that was very popular.” Also on board is bar manager Robert Bouldin, a longtime bartender at César, as well as other former staff.

Pond, who now resides in Spain, will share recipe ideas with Gomez and the rest of the team. Just last week, Pond popped into the kitchen on Gilman Street during a visit and tested some recipes with Gomez. Together, they’ll work on new ideas and creations, with Pond visiting at different times during the year.

Lewis, a former César patron and local author of hit non-fiction works that have been turned into movies, like Moneyball and The Big Short, was among the most outspoken during the 2022 protests organized to help save the restaurant.

“I have come up with six of my books at César,” Lewis told NOSH in 2022.

Lewis is an investor in Mesón, but is not involved with the planning. “I’ll be a regular in the new place. I’ll just be delighted – we’ll get our Cheers back,” he said.

Mesón will also be co-owned by Eric Wright, who also owns Humbowl in Berkeley and is also co-owner of Baker & Commons in Berkeley; he was Director of Operations at César.

Jim Mellgren, a longtime César server and host who served as a spokesperson for the shuttered restaurant during the protests, will likely be involved when the restaurant opens.

”All of our old customers are going to be really happy, and I hope we are going to attract new customers as well,” said Mellgren, who also co-authored the cookbook with Pond.

McVeigh is hoping Mesón will open as early as this summer, but the debut could possibly be delayed to later in the year. The former pizzeria space will get a facelift, a little bit of new construction, and will need to be approved for various permits from the city.

The space will have a variety of seating options, including a big dining room in the front with large windows facing Gilman Street, an outdoor side patio, a cozy bar area, and a backyard that he hopes to transform into a space for games.

César was a unique space, McVeigh noted, a casual place with fine dining sensibilities that’s “reasonable and yet polished.” One former staffer told NOSH that she was hired by both Chez Panisse and Cesar, but chose César for the “vibes.”

“It had a great following of people, and a lot of great people came out of it, with a collection of people who enjoy working in the industry,” McVeigh said about what made César so special.

Author Michael Lewis (center) joined picketers who protested the closure of César in March 2022, and is now an investor in Mesón, the forthcoming restaurant from several former César staff members. Credit: Kelly Sullivan for East Bay Nosh

César was forced to close over four years ago when its neighbor, Chez Panisse, wanted to use the space to open its own bar. Chez Panisse leased the space from a landlord, and was subleasing it to César at the time. (Bar Panisse just opened in the former César’s space this past December).

The move roiled the community, generating picket lines in front of Chez Panisse. People described César as a place where friends were made, where people gathered, a space where ideas and creativity flowed alongside the small plates of Spanish food and drinks.

Many protestors said they felt emotionally connected to the space and were torn, as they both enjoyed Chez Panisse and César. It was like an ugly divorce, with people publicly choosing sides. The fact that César was opened in 1998 by a team close to Chez Panisse’s founder, Alice Waters, including longtime Chez Panisse alum (and others – read about some of the backstory here), made it seem more emotionally heightened. Besides protests, there was a Change.org petition that gained more than 4,300 signatures and media attention.

Many of César’s alumni have gone on to open restaurants, including Jessica Maria of Hotsy Totsy Club in Albany and Scott Baird of Trick Dog in San Francisco.

“César always hit that right spot, of quality, but somewhat fine dining but in a comfortable, casual atmosphere,” McVeigh said, which attracts both diners and staff.

While McVeigh was planning for a new restaurant, he held pop-ups under the name Nomada, which were so popular at times that McVeigh knew there was still a strong following.

He plans to keep Mesón closed on Tuesdays, and wants to host pop-ups or other events.

McVeigh said the neighborhood feels like “the heart of Berkeley,” with the few blocks of restaurants, shops, and the Monterey Market nearby.

“[Mesón’s] going to be a comforting place, warm, and with options on how people want to dine and drink,” he said.

The César team is staging a comeback, with help from author Michael Lewis

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