Bay Area restaurant news: Boba and chicken spot debuts in East Bay

Pinole native and Boba Birds owner Daniel Zhang started out pursuing a culinary career, before pivoting to a higher-paying office job. Now he’s left that cubicle life behind to start his own restaurant back in his hometown.

Boba Birds is still in its soft opening phase, but is already drawing customers from as far away as San Jose for its chicken wings and boba, Zhang says. As you might have guessed from the name, the restaurant offers boba drinks and a lineup of chicken dishes, including chicken wings, “bird bites” nuggets and popcorn chicken, with chicken sandwiches and salads on the way. The marinades, batters and sauces are all made fresh and in-house, he says.

The restaurant, which Zhang hopes will breathe fresh life into its sleepy shopping center location, is built around a “happy bellies” philosophy: “We want to make sure everyone leaves here happy with what they get.”

Details: Open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday and 11:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Mondays at 1569 Tara Hills Drive in Pinole.