Mixt – Downtown Berkeley

Rating: Role Player

On our trip to Berkeley to watch the Cal Women’s volleyball team, we stopped at Mixt for lunch. The salads hit the spot — healthy and fresh, just what my wife and I needed. Our daughter went for the Little Orchard, which comes with grilled chicken, almonds, apples, and avocado. For a kids’ meal, it’s actually a very solid, healthy option — and she liked it. Our son was lukewarm on his, so I played family garbage disposal and finished it off. Honestly, the chicken was better than I expected.

I would have given them an All-Star rating, but two things held it back. First, when we went to get water, every single cup was wet. The cashier admitted some guy had just dumped his water back on top of all the cups. Maybe he should have cleaned that up, but instead he just seemed really apathetic. Not exactly reassuring. Second, when we first walked in, there was a typical Berkeley weirdo sitting right outside the door giving my family the side-eye. It’s unsettling not to feel safe walking into lunch.

Overall: solid food, healthy choices, but the experience around it knocks it down a peg.