I attended a memorial service here last Saturday for my son's grandfather and my former…read morefather-in-law. Tom was always kind and generous to me, and I was honoured to be able to attend this very heartfelt and classy event for a really great guy. He was a Renaissance Man of sorts, whose 87+ years spanned a distinguished University career and a love for competitive sailing and tennis, skiing, wood working, music (oboe), gardening, language, and family. His impressive obituary also appeared in the New York Times and it's entirely possible that his path crossed with that of Gayle's Dad at around the time of 3 Mile Island. And a short while ago, Gayle and I were invited to his home for dinner, as he was curious about her and how I was doing. My favourite memory of Tom was a family conversation when he calmly and politely asked me a logical sequence of questions based on some "factual" statement that I had made. I answered then in turn and was initially quite sure of my position. By the 3rd or 4th question, I realized that I was logically trapped and by my own rope! He kindly let me off the hook, but I left that conversation impressed and humbled. I previously knew of the Town and Gown Club and had walked past it on the corner of Dana and Dwight many a time without recognizing it as such. It was founded by Emmanuel Marie Paget in 1898 as a club house for Berkeley women. It is a striking, yet simple redwood structure, of which the tall core is the work of Bernard Maybeck. The first floor features a common area with dark woods and angled ceiling beams, plus a library, kitchen, cloakroom and a small, but elegant outdoor garden. Upstairs is a meeting hall and auditorium, which is where Tom's service took place under the watchful eyes of his family, friends, and his beloved bonsai and flowering cherry plants. I was also grateful to be welcomed into the family again for this brief period by Tom's wife and my sister-in-law's family. There were kind words and hugs all around. And as each person stood up to celebrate Tom's life and accomplishments, I felt proud and grateful that I had the privilege of knowing him too.

Beautiful historic club. Wonderful events and lovely members.read more

I came here for a high school reunion and it's a nice club. It's big and spacious inside and it has…read moretwo rooms. There's a stage in front and it reminds me of the type of gymnasium that my elementary school had where you had a place on the floor with people to sit at tables and eat and a stage where people could Act, scene, do presentations and so on. I was going to get a drink there and I'm glad I didn't! They had a full bar and you could get drinks there and I don't know what the prices were because as I was going, we were being called to dinner. The dinner was in another building and a roller door was lifted to let us in. We are allowed to sit at a table, and that was good. We saw salads that looked lame, but tasted much better than expected. Being that I hadn't eaten any veggies, I decided to go with the salad and eat some. yes I knew I couldn't eat the pasta. So, it was a nice spot. Unfortunately two of my friends had to go home because they had an appletini and got really sick. One almost went to the hostpital. The other, a nurse, was up all night and took care of herself at home. They said that the person put something, a cherry maybe in the drink and used their hands, no gloves. They thought that the alcohol would kill any germs. Apparently they did not. Lucky me, because I was going to order something when we were called to sit down for our meal. So, the food was clunky, the food was OK, and they had wine on the table. I didn't get sick which is why they have three stars. It's a building, it's standing, so it has the basics.

we had such a great time and a very good dinner there. What a fun group of people very welcoming…read moreand friendly. This club has been going on for decades as I found out and I only just went last month.

The food and atmosphere along with the Italian heritage is fantastic…read more This was a men's birthday dinner and later this month will be a co-ed dinner so bring a female friend or spouse,daughter niece your choice or all are invited

Great club for family . Lots of different options. Wonderful to place to socialize with friendsread more

I had the honor of being asked to present a FEMTalk and had a great experience. Jessica's staff was…read moreorganized and supportive, the audience was receptive and responsive and we all enjoyed our experience a lot. I have also had a great time and learned tons as an audience participant at FEMTalks. Highly recommended! Note: I just found this old review that I meant to post in 2012 and somehow never pushed the button. It's still true, so I'm putting it out now, 4 years later.

As a FEM Talks audience member, I've had the pleasure of attending and watching this amazing event…read moregrow from the very beginning. If you are an open-hearted woman in the Bay Area, there is something here for you! Jessica books speakers on relevant topics, the events themselves are engaging, thought-provoking and fun (where else are you going to find an evening of awesome that starts with a "WARM-UP DIVA"?), and you'll leave with new ideas and new connections. Tickets are very reasonably priced for the value & experience (and compared to other similar events), and if you're low on cash, you can volunteer in exchange for your ticket or take advantage of the Bring A Friend or Maiden/Matron discounts. As a FEM Talks speaker (August 2013), I found Jessica an absolute delight to work with. She's organized, knowledgeable, warm and effortlessly connects the speakers to each other and the audience. As a feminist, I am a fan of cooperation and sisterhood, not the "women have to be in competition with each other for scarce resources" b.s. that we've all been fed in this culture. If you want a taste of feminine cooperation, come to FEM Talks. You'll be glad you did!

What a hidden gem of a place. Looks like a great facility with solid trainers. Not sure there's…read moreanything like it in the area. Lena is a stud athlete and can help train runners as well as multiple sports. PLUS, this is a great place to hold private gatherings with friends - there's fun activities including ping pong and just bring your own (BYOB) refreshments. Lastly, they have many adult teams that members can join so get involved and PLAY!

Lena and Brian have created a really great community space for working out. They accommodate…read moredifferent ages, athleticism, and sizes. They push me to work harder without judgment.

Thanks for responding to my request but your services are no longer needed at this timeread more

I went to the Bayview Eagles performance space, adjacent to the bar for a fabulous Cajun/Zydeco…read moreperformance by a new friend of mine, Andrew Carriere and his group of extremely talented musicians. He comes from a storied Louisiana family of Cajun and Zydeco musicians. He is versatile, sings, plays the triangle, the harmonica and the washboard. and in my little experience of watching him play with various groups, he lets everyone shine. His band's music was made for dancing and I have two left or right feet. The regular fans know what they are coming for - to dance. One of these days I'll earn without upsetting a partner. But then someone has to pay the price for teaching a newbie. A great place to visit for affordable beer and some wine. If Andre performs there, I'll be prepped to dance :)

Please visit the club's website for location information, as location is occasionally subject to…read morechange: http://downtownberkeley.toastmastersclubs.org/ I joined Downtown Berkeley Toastmasters in January and have found it to be a highly valuable experience. I joined to strengthen my confidence and communication in the workplace, and have experienced three recent situations, where I realized I had accomplished just that. I was impressed to see such impact so quickly--not only from having the experience of getting comfortable being up in front other others to give speeches, but in learning how to think faster on my feet during Table Topics (Impromptu speaking), and in assuming other roles that require evaluation, feedback, and presentation skills. Additionally, Downtown Berkeley Toastmasters is an hour I look forward to each week. It is a very warm welcoming group that manages to balance structure and efficiency with a down-to-earth tone. And, I have heard about fascinating topics I would otherwise know nothing about through hearing the speeches of others. All in all a great way to learn, grow, and spend one lunch hour a week!

Starting my third year with this club means I like it! We are so grateful to Berkeley Repertory…read moreTheater for providing us meeting space at 2071 Addison St., the Bakery Room. It's a perfect spot for us: in an historic building in the heart of downtown Berkeley. So much better than the old spot at Berkeley City College where we were at the mercy of confusing schedule changes and surrounded by the chaos of student life. Our Toastmasters club continues to attract new members and many visitors. I so enjoy acting as the club's VP of Education and scheduling program. And,after a long summer of itinerant meetings - during which we stayed on track to meet our membership and speaking goals- our club has a new home! Current membership ranges in age from 30s to 70s and includes students, professionals and retirees as well as members from France, China, Israel and Iran.