ORINDA, CALIFORNIA – When you think of downtown Orinda, your first thought is almost certainly about the Orinda Theatre.
This art deco gem unequivocally anchors the town. You’d have a hard time missing its gigantic, stunning, neon tower and marquee.
But around the theatre itself, Theatre Square has struggled a bit lately. Many storefronts had been empty, and some remain so.
That’s starting to change though. And we just learned that one of the most prominent storefronts–the one housing the former Starbucks–is about to get an “interesting” new tenant.
Sorso Bar and Bites is opening soon at Theatre Square (2 Orinda Theatre Square.)
I stopped by to check it out. The windows of the future bar and restaurant are covered in matt black, with the Sorso logo and “Coming Soon” text.
A liquor license application is pasted on the front window, confirming that–as it says on the tin–this is going to be a bar.
Beyond this, we initially knew precious little about what exactly Soro will be. On the restaurant’s social media, Sorso identifies the concept as being in Orinda, says it is “coming soon.”
A teaser post from Feb. 24 (and updated last week) adds a little more color. In that post, Sorso says, “Orinda’s about to get a little more interesting,” and says “We’re building a place for great drinks, beautiful plates, and a community of people who love gathering around both.”
We did a bit of digging, though, and learned tons of details about the new spot.
What Sorso Will Be
Sorso’s liquor license is registered to a company called Dicapa Inc. The proprietor of that company is listed as Daniele Carsano. So I called Carsano, who told me all about his vision for Sorso.
Carsano shared that Sorso will be a cocktail bar and wine lounge with small plates, focused on Italian food.
He described it to me as “An Italian tapas bar, with classic great cocktails and a great selection of wines by the bottle or glass.”
For the food specifically, Carsano said the guiding concept is: “Delicious things you can have while sipping a cocktail or a glass of wine.”
That will include seafood crudos, “really yummy” pressed sandwiches, Italian finger foods, and other “comforting things,” in Carsano’s words.
Carsano was previously associated with 54 Mint in Walnut Creek, which became Montesacro, and Casa Barotti in Berkeley. Now, though, he told me that Sorso is his “baby” and his main culinary focus.
Why Orinda? Carsano shared that he’d lived in the city for over a decade. While developing restaurants in Berkeley and downtown, he always wanted to start something locally, but people discouraged him, saying that Orinda was too quiet for a lively, hopping, upscale bar.
Finally, Carsano decided: “I’m going to do something in Orinda and prove people wrong.” Thus, Sorso was born.
Carsano hopes it will provide an exciting new spot in Orinda, ideally one that’s open late enough for people to linger after a movie at the Orinda Theatre.
He also hopes to “pull people from Lafayette, Walnut Creek, Oakland or Berkeley.”
Overall, Carsano wants Sorso to “give residents an excuse to stay in Orinda” instead of venturing elsewhere for nightlife. He told me that he hopes the community will support him and help to make this new, local venture a success.
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From where we stand, it would be fantastic to have a classy Italian bar next to Orinda Theatre, to complement more casual spots like the theatre’s Tiki-themed Boo Boo lounge and Fourth Bore.
It’s also nice to see local chefs with successful restaurants open new places close to home.
That’s what happened with The French spot in Concord. Owner Vincent Attali lives in the 925 but had a popular spot in the City. He decided to open a branch near his home, and it’s thriving.
Sorso is also a big deal for Theatre Square. A new, highly visible anchor restaurant is just what the Square needs to start bringing in more foot traffic and filling out some of its vacancies.
No word yet on a firm opening date, but Carsano said he would be sure to keep us in the loop. You can bet we’ll be following this one closely. Make sure to join our free 925 News newsletter so I can let you know as soon as we have an opening timeline–and when we get to try Sorso out!
