Oakland’s Magic Kitchen

Acre's Executive Chef and Owner Dirk Tolsma delivers an unpretentious experience inspired by seasonal ingredients, cooked well and eaten leisurely. Special, not because it's fancy, but because of its cherished guests and its remarkably simple appreciation of the present.

Dirk's career reflects his eclectic interests. Starting at Auberge du Soleil under famed chef Robert Curry, Dirk's journey was led by passionate curiosity. He honed his craft in the North Bay at Barrelhouse Tavern and Eloise Restaurant, and in San Francisco at Baker and Banker, Grand Cafe, and EPIC Steak. His love of working with live fire and unique local ingredients shines through his joyful embrace of traditional techniques that honor the past and elevate the present. 

A long-time Bay Area resident, Dirk was born and raised in the Great Central Valley–a vast agricultural area where community and commerce are led by the seasons. Childhood memories of playing in cottonseed at Uncle Bill's dairy on Easter, Christmas Carols and fresh pistachios from the Wylie family, apricot picking at the Hadley's in the summer, all grew Dirk's gratitude for ingredients as gifts, a core value present in the local, ingredient-driven menu at Acre. 

Dirk is excited to work with and within the Rockridge community, engaging guests and staff to build together a place where we all belong. 

About ACRE:

Thoughtful Cooking & Cheerful Dining.

ACRE is the place for life to slow down so you can relax, breathe, and enjoy the spirit of our hospitality.  Centered in the Market Hall, our all day café downstairs is weaved within the hustle and bustle of the market. Upstairs you’ll discover our fully stocked bar and lively dining room perched above College Ave. No matter what seat you choose, you can expect local ingredients cooked with love and sincere service that will make you feel right at home.

Chef Tamearra Dyson was a single mother with zero capital when she opened her first restaurant in 2009 with about $20 something dollars in the cash register and built it from there. This 2,700 ft location now serves as the flag ship location. Since Covid 2020, Chef Dyson has opened three Souley Vegan ghost kitchens in Las Vegas, San Francisco and Los Angeles.  In addition, Tamearra has recently opened a sister location that sits right behind the original Souley Vegan location in Oakland. The new restaurant is called “The Back Porch, which a Cajun bar with upscale bites and serves as a “little sister” to Souley Vegan.

Recently beating Bobby Flay on the January 20, 2022 episode A Deal to Beat Bobby was the culmination of her years of hard work and her passion and creativity of vegan cooking. Having been on The Food Network a few times before, but appearing on Beat Bobby Flay was something that chef Dyson is terribly excited about. Chef Dyson holds so much respect for Chef Flay, not only for what he’s accomplished but how far he has come with his work and dedication.  

Chef Dyson having come from an extremely underprivileged background enjoys motivational speaking, mentoring others, and of course the obvious…creating new recipes.  Public speaking is her passion, and she wishes to one day have more time to dive into this area as she feels that she has a lot to share. Her wish is to inspire and motivate others, 

Chef Dyson has accumulated many accolades from best vegan restaurant to best soul food restaurant to being voted one of the top 10 soul food restaurants in the country by USA Today. She was also voted entrepreneur of the week by Black Enterprise.  She has served celebrities such as Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, and Eric Benét. Additionally, her okra gumbo was voted a Weight Watchers favorite for Oprah Winfrey‘s “2020 Vision: Your Life in Focus” tour. 

Chef Dyson has been invited to speak at Tesla, several colleges, and the list goes on. Her goal is to have a future cooking show and speaking engagements, allowing her to share her story with others. 

To find Tamearra on social media:

IG @IamTamearraDyson

IG @SouleyVegan

Twitter TamearraDyson

Linkedin Tamearra Dyson

Website TamearraDyson.com

Website Souleyvegan.com

To book Tamearra, contact:
Jackie Lewis, Jackie Lewis Media

Email: jcjackiel@yahoo.com

Restaurant: Roasted and Raw 

Website: www.roastedraw.com

Imani Greer, originally from Madison, Wisconsin, has been cooking since the age of 8 yrs old. From HIgh school classes, onto to completing culinary school, Imani has been blessed and fortunate to have traveled and lived in several cities along the chef journey. From the midwest like Chicago, to the east coast in Boston/NY, and to the south with Atlanta, and even sushi in the Virgin Islands, these different cultures have now come together as a melting pot of global flavors.

After 21 yrs in other restaurants, from fine dining, to farm to table, to hotels/resorts, and private chef and catering services, Greer has now reduced it all onto a concentrated, quick service bowl shop menu. It first started as a meal prep service for a plant based gym in Oakland, CA in the prime of Covid-19 in 2020. After much success and raving reviews from clients, they suggested he turn these meals into a full restaurant, serving them “a la minute” fresh to order. The rest is history. Once his first pop up shop went better than expected in 2021, he now has purchased his first brick and mortar space in downtown Oakland. Greer truly believes a healthy bowl shop, partnered with a juice/smoothie bar in the heart of a city that is desperately searching for fresh, healthy concepts, Roasted and Raw is going to revive that need and satisfy it.

About the restaurant: 

Roasted and Raw is a 100% plant based rice bowl shop. Besides bowls, the diverse menu includes such classics as black bean burgers & Mac n Chz, to Bay Area staples such as empanadas and burritos. It’s fast casual, offering sit down, take out & 3rd party deliveries. 

Mica Talmor grew up in northern Israel in a family where, like many other Jewish families, feeding people was a way of showing love and affection. She attended culinary school in Israel and worked in high-end Tel Aviv restaurants before coming to San Francisco in 1998 to attend pastry school at the California Culinary Academy. After graduating, she worked as a pastry chef at Eos in San Francisco and Grasshopper in Oakland. From 2005 to 2018, Talmor and her then-husband, Robert Gott, operated Savoy Events, a high-end catering company. In 2015, they opened Ba-Bite, a successful fast casual Israeli restaurant on Piedmont Avenue in Oakland that was featured in Food & Wine, Sunset and on KQED’s “Check, Please!” before it closed in 2018 due to a rental dispute. In March 2020, with funding through a Kickstarter campaign, Talmor opened Pomella, an Israeli deli and eatery on Piedmont Avenue. Pomella's approachable menu combines impeccably sourced California produce with the traditional flavors of the Middle East, North Africa, the Mediterranean, and eastern Europe.

Our Fairyland Family is Growing!

Meet Quercus – our brand new puppet mascot!

Once upon an oak tree, there perched a mythical creature of the most curious kind. With its ears and tail mimicking the shape of oak leaves, it camouflages among the trees and casts a silhouette and shadow unlike any other ever seen before. Its wings are curiously sized and while they aren’t large enough for flight, they are just the right size for gliding gracefully between branches and trees.  

This curious creature has a curious name: Quercus! And Quercus is curious in every way. 

Quercus is observant, inquisitive, playful, and incredibly alert! Their ability to camouflage in the oak trees allows them to see, hear, and feel the world around and below them very easily. Quercus is always learning from their surroundings because they’re always listening. They know so much because they ask so much! They ask so much because they see so much! They see so much because they’re present with all of their senses! Quercus is always learning by watching, listening, feeling, smelling, touching, tasting, and being one with the world around them. 

Fun Facts: 

Quercus is an omnivore living in a symbiotic, harmonious relationship with the grove in which they dwell feasting on invasive plants, fungi, and insects harmful to the trees. Bark beetles and termites are their favorites! 

Quercus can be quite the rodenty little rascal, never missing an opportunity to chase a squirrel–it’s great exercise! If Quercus ever catches up to a squirrel, they’ll likely ask for a hug! Quercus loves a cuddle. 

There’s only one thing Quercus loves more than a cuddle, and that’s a question! Quercus loves to learn new things so they’re always asking questions and sharing what they’ve learned!