Berkeley isn’t poor in great music venues – from the Alternative Music Foundation to the celebratory vibe of the Ashkenaz, from the highbrow of UC Berkeley’s several performance spaces to the somehow old-school Greek Theatre, the town has musical heritage in its bloodstream, and Cornerstone, with a music venue on Durant Ave and a restaurant with its frontage on Shattuck Ave, is an exciting addition to the scene.
Cornerstone’s positioned itself to bridge a gap in services in a way which could feel a bit contrived (not only craft beer, but a high-end sound system! Also ping-pong!); but it’s no pretender in any of the things it wants to be known for. Cornerstone is the rare example of the great venue done well.
Spread out over 13,000 square feet, Cornerstone is a treat. Start with the hardware for the audiophiles: the central room has a three-way subcompact line array system which is paired with 12000 HD amplifiers and a state-of-the-art soundboard. TL;DR: the speakers are dope. This is no small thing when you’ve got reggae newcomer HIRIE, Ozomatli and Jurassic 5 legend Cut Chemist, and so-hot-right-now Wolf Alice on the upcoming shows list. The hardware is equal to the artists.
The space is also something special. For a great music venue, Cornerstone is surprisingly accessible and friendly: an intimately designed space offers everyone in the 500-person audience space a place to belong with the artists and their peers, with early entry and ADA accessible certification. Shows are usually all-ages (with a fair minimum age of 6 years old), and when dining in the Shattuck restaurant, designated drivers get free soda and coffee.
The restaurant is a great option before the show: the food is great, with generous portions of food that brings some thought and inventiveness to the great global tradition of food with beer: cheese and cured meats, soft pretzels for a central European vibe, and only-in-America beauties including BBQ pork belly nachos and mozzarella-stuffed meatballs.
But the deal with Cornerstone is that while the music is great and the food delicious, the beer is world-beating. There’s no doubting the thought that goes into the beer here: two full bars, forty-two beer taps, and a constantly-changing roster of beers drawn from 100 breweries. This is – and it’s no idle boast – the biggest selection of beer in Berkeley.
Cornerstone sits in a sweet-spot you may not have realized you wanted until you see it: it’s laid-back without being scuzzy, exciting without being overbearing, well-crafted without drowning in smugness. The venue makes you feel welcome almost immediately, the ambiance is warm and homely, and there’s a genuine home-spun feel to the place which isn’t contrived. Any place that can turn a music venue into a games room (not only ping pong, but corn-hole and giant Jenga too) outside showtimes, and make it feel like its all part of the vibe, is a treasure.
The shows are great, the food is tasty, the vibe is laid-back, and the beer is world-beating. Cornerstone is well worth your time.
Photos courtesy of Cornerstone (Photo: Kelly J. Owen | kjophoto.com)
