Fried Food and Beer at The Half Orange in Oakland

I met my friend Brenda from Bites & Bourbon for dinner at The Half Orange a couple weeks ago and we had a great meal.  The restaurant is unique in several ways and brings something new to the Fruitvale.  It opened last summer in the former Taco Grill space and there were so many interesting dishes on the menu.  They have vegetables and healthy stuff, but we were in the mood for fried things so that’s what we ordered.

photo: Christina Mitchell

The Beer-Battered Cheese Curds ($5.95) weren’t really memorable, but I could never forget the Salchipapas ($8.95). It’s basically a pile of fries, topped with sausage, chorizo, THO sauce and tons of kimchi.

photo: Christina Mitchell

It was tasty, but the Corn Dog Tots ($7.95) were my favorite.  Sausage was enveloped in this fluffy cornmeal batter and the persimmon ketchup and mustard seeds brightened the flavor.  By the way, all draft beers are $2.98 on Mondays, so that’s a perfect excuse to check it out.

photo: Christina Mitchell

Slightly overcooked, but still pretty tender and juicy, the Half Orange Burger (quarter pound of Marin Sun Farms 100% grass-fed beef, lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, THO sauce, $6.95) didn’t beat my favorite burger in the East Bay, but it was legit.

photo: Christina Mitchell

Oh, and shoutout to the cook who sent over a half order of the gooey KFB for us to try (batter-fried Mary’s Farm chicken necks in chile-garlic glaze, $5.95).  Aren’t they gorgeous?

The menu was interesting, the food was tasty and the prices were affordable.  I’ll definitely be back.

3340 East 12th St #11, Oakland

510-500-3338

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Christina Mitchell

Christina is the founder of East Bay Dish. Her writing has also been featured in East Bay Express, Berkeleyside, Oakland Magazine and Edible East Bay.

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