Mägo is Oakland’s most exciting fine dining restaurant

When it comes to fine dining, Oakland really only has two options: Commis and Mägo, which are just a stone’s throw from each other. No offense to James Syhabout’s two-Michelin-starred restaurant, but I’m team Mägo, which I think is one of the best tasting menu offerings in the entire Bay Area—plus, the food feels more personal.

The fingerprints of its Colombian and predominantly Latin American influence can be seen in the bite-sized arepas, the crispy yuca with pureed black beans and the dense cheese bread.

Recently, in an unexpected move, Mägo introduced a dynamic pricing model for its 10-course tasting menu. On weekdays, it costs $82 and on weekends, $110 for the same amount of food. The result makes a previously inaccessible (i.e. expensive and sometimes stuffy) format more accessible. The move is similar to others like Azalina’s in San Francisco and the Michelin-starred 7 Adams, which are also trying to make fine dining more affordable.

However, if we compare prices, Mägo’s weekday price is higher than the rest because it offers more courses than its contemporaries. And more importantly, Mägo is the only fine dining restaurant in the East Bay that honors Latin American cuisine, with an emphasis on Colombian food, this side of Californios.

Chef Mark Liberman has a pedigree in haute cuisine. He cut his teeth in the kitchens of Daniel Boulud and Joel Robuchon before becoming chef and partner at AQ in San Francisco, which closed in 2017. Two years later, Liberman struck out on his own, opening Mägo in Oakland—initially an a la carte menu of Northern California cuisine. The pandemic necessitated several adjustments. Starting in 2021, Liberman’s cooking became more personal. Mägo introduced a tasting menu with a sharpened focal point, informed by the chef’s Colombian heritage. That inspiration is fused with seasonality, so the menu changes frequently.

A trio of opening snacks immediately impressed. The highlights of my summer visits were a soup that beautifully showcased the subtle sweetness of red peppers, a bite-sized tostada bursting with fishiness in XO sauce, and an impossibly crispy coconut rice cake garnished with a juicy fig.

Those appetizers give way to more snacks. Arepas are a staple on the menu here, blank canvases that are perfectly crisp and about the size of a half dollar. These pale white cornmeal disks aren’t stuffed but topped with toppings like a slice of tomato and jalapeno relish—or, better yet, mashed carrots and fried oysters dipped in a vinegary buffalo sauce, creating a sweet-spicy contrast. You might encounter seasonal fruits, like melon marinated in oil and sprinkled with chili flakes, or particularly smooth pickled anchovies on focaccia slathered with sweet, slightly musky papaya jam.

The raw fish course, only minimally marinated seafood, produced inconsistent results. I found the pink tuna in strawberry marinade unconvincing. Salvation came on the next visit with melting scallop pieces with smoky roasted cucumbers and sweet pineapple tomatillos.

During corn season, I came across a stunning side dish, an Arepa Choclo ($15), a cheese-stuffed corn pancake with brown butter sauce and lobster mushrooms. It was salty-sweet and almost better than anything IHOP could have ever imagined.

My favorite dish of all my visits, however, was a fried yuca with sea bass head torchon—a half medallion of pressed meat. Similar to cochinita pibil, the fish dome was prepared with achiote and citrus, roasted in banana leaves, deboned, and pressed. It exuded savory richness, the fried tuber providing structure while a little black bean glaze added creaminess.

Cooking over an open fire is one of Mägo’s many strengths. The fish skewers grilled over an open fire, from tender sea bass to swordfish, were delightful and enchanting – each with a tail of lavender flowers sticking out like feathers on an arrow. Main courses consisted of fine fish dishes paired with pumpkin, sliced ​​or pureed, followed by grilled meat, lamb or steak paired with roasted peppers. The latter tasted of wood smoke and was accompanied by pan de bolo, a spicy cheese-infused bread roll the size and proportions of a small stone, ideal for stone skipping across a lake.

To finish, there are good desserts. I liked the traditional alfajor, a shortbread sandwich filled with dulce de leche, better than the arroz con leche tart, but neither was particularly memorable.

Far more interesting was the drinks pairing ($70), an extensive selection of wines – many from South American producers – as well as cocktails and sake. The former was unpasteurized and had fruity and zesty notes, while a dry Madeira wine gave the aforementioned corn pancake a hint of maple syrup.

This combination really showed me how much the restaurant values ​​itself. Liberman is well aware that a tasting menu, even at a reduced price, is a big investment for most guests. The boundaries encourage creativity and allow you to look beyond the expensive ingredients and wines.

“It definitely forces you to not always just look at the center cut because it’s Wagyu beef,” Liberman told me.

Tasting menus are often considered personal and informed by the chef’s biography. And if a menu is a mirror of its creator, then Mägo is a good example of one that reflects Liberman, whose cooking has entered a different phase of his life. His AQ days are behind him. His team has shrunk and his interest has shifted to exploring his own heritage on the plate, just with a looser approach—a theme that’s palpable in the restaurant’s atmosphere. Inside, Latin pop hits fill the air. The playlist, by the way, is personally selected by Liberman with considerable excitement before he goes to bed each night. The interior color scheme is based on the colors of the Colombian flag: blue ceilings with yellow and red walls. A counter surrounds the open kitchen, where your eye is drawn to the glowing Santa Maria wood-fired grill with grates operated by a steering wheel.

When AQ closed in 2017, Thrillist argued that it was a sign of an industry-wide collapse. That didn’t happen. (Isn’t pre-pandemic naivety just delicious?) Mägo has been around longer than AQ now, not without navigating its own difficulties, of course. The restaurant, and by extension Liberman and his crew, are survivors, evolving with the times and adapting when necessary. Today, his food is more personal and meaningful than ever.

3762 Piedmont Ave., Oakland.

Hours: 5-9pm Wednesday-Saturday

Accessibility: Everything on one floor. Wheelchair-accessible tables. Outdoor dining is currently reserved for larger groups.

Meal for two, without drinks: $164 to $220

What you should order: Tasting Menu (weekdays $82, weekends $110)

Meatless alternatives: Vegetarian, gluten-free or lactose-free dishes can be prepared.

Transport: Parking on the street. Close to bus lines 12 and 57.

Proven methods: Sit at the bar, consider ordering a drink ($70), and stare at the charcoal grill.

Reach Cesar Hernandez: [email protected]; Twitter: @cesarischafa