Here' s the recipe I use now - from Mark Bittman. Really nice and flaky, and rich, I cut them with a pastry wheel and serve them in a tall cup. Makes a ton. Enjoy --

Cheese Straws
Time: 20 minutes
½ pound Cheddar or other hard, flavorful cheese
1/3 pound Parmesan cheese
2 cups (about 9 ounces) all-purpose flour
Pinch cayenne
8 tablespoons (1 stick) chilled butter, cut into chunks, plus a little more for greasing the baking sheet
Few drops ice water, if necessary
Coarse salt (optional).
1. Heat oven to 450 degrees. Grate cheese by hand or in food processor and place in bowl. Pulse flour and cayenne in processor. Add butter and process until butter and flour are combined. Pulse in cheese.
2. Turn out onto counter or cutting board and knead by hand, adding a few drops of ice water if necessary. (You may wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 2 days, taking it out for about a half hour before proceeding.)
3. Roll out into a rectangle about ¼-inch thick, on a lightly floured surface or between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, then cut into ½-inch-wide strips as long as you like. Place on a lightly greased baking sheet and sprinkle with salt, if using. Bake until golden brown, 5 to 8 minutes. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.
Yield: At least 10 servings.

Try Haig's, worth visiting for so many other international foods also... and near you (Clement/8th). One of the SF places I miss most since moving to Oakland.
(Sidenote: Have you ever tried frying Kasseri? So delicious... and not "squeaky" like Halloumi).

I just scanned the boards here and couldn't find info on either of the two sushi places near Piedmont Springs, on Piedmont. I was just there and did I write down their names? Duh. One is just a few doors down, same side, and the other one is smack across the street. I like Ichiro in downtown Oakland (where I live) so that's kind of my yardstick for good E. Bay sushi. I like good fresh fish as opposed to mostly hunky fancy mayo-laden rolls (nice in v. small doses, I admit). Thnx in advance....

For Chinese, Ching Hua in the Park Street market place. I've only tried it once; it's pretty popular. Andy's Chicken was the winner out of everything ordered - delicious.

http://chinghuaonpark.com/menu.htm

Thanks all! Great ideas - it's so cool to be wondering something, then have several responses in a few hours. (Can you tell I'm new to Chowhound?)

What I'm really looking to replicate are the yummy little pork wonders I had at a party catered by Living Room Events (in SF). Maybe I should just ask them for their recipe... or I wonder if they're a Panorama client.... hmmmm.

I'm making tiny pulled pork sandwiches for a party... Oakland, Berkeley or even SF would work. I'm looking for a nice soft sort of egg-y type bun. (If anyone has this sort of recipe, I'd appreciate that as well). Thanks!

Just stumbled into di Bartolo while on the way to my favorite bargain sushi on Grand.... seduced by exposed brick, brown tables, white linens and plates.

We walked in around 7-ish on Saturday and breezed to a cozy corner table at the back bar, all brick and dark wood, which made me feel like I was in Brooklyn. Which is very cozy and good, on a Fall night. Because it's pretty standard Cal/Med food (though one of the more enticing menu's in Oakland, for sure), it all hangs on perfect execution. We went for the most pedestrian of starters (which is usually a decent way to see what's going on in the kitchen). I found the tuna tartar fine to eat, a bit too spiky with vinegar, but the crispy strands of fried onion gave a nice crunchy contrast. If you're feeling junky, the garlic fries went well with our citrusy 209 gin and Hangar One vodka cocktails. But the Caesar salad crashed and burned, so much so that I longed to tell the chef so that no other innocent diner would fall victim to the gloopy, flat dressing and house-made croutons with the acrid must of oxidized olive oil. My date went to the bar and procured lemon wedges for me, in a vain attempt to liven it up. (Great bar service, by the way!) Hopefully the salad was an isolated incident.

We erased the taste memory of the salad with lovely desserts, a heavenly autumnal walnut-y bread pudding, and a silken, just-tart-enough panna cotta, shared with a glass of port. Cozy, nice. Superb desserts.

Definitely will go back -- I really want places like this to make it in Oakland -- but I sure hope they're taking in all the feedback and working out the kinks, so they can hit their mark.