Eats By E — Local services in Emeryville

Chef Eric and his wife Danielle catered my recent milestone birthday dinner party in our home, and I'm ecstatic with how it all turned out! From the beginning, we worked together to craft a menu reminiscent of meals my mom would cook me for my childhood birthdays and included cultural twists from his time in Hawaii.

When they arrived, they quickly set up shop in our kitchen and got right to work prepping and cooking in anticipation of our guests. We had 12 diners in total, all arriving at different times, and they both made sure there were hot and fresh lumpia and mochiko chicken bites ready to greet them. What a great party trick! It's making me wish I had a deep fryer of our own!

One of the best parts of the dinner was hearing his story of how Eric became a chef and where he gets inspiration. Danielle kept the food coming, refilling when needed and ensuring we were all having a delicious time. The food, of course, was excellent, and there was more than enough even after seconds and thirds. They also cleaned up the kitchen, even the dishes, which was above and beyond what we expected.

Overall, it was a truly incredible evening. Several of my guests reached out afterward to share what a wonderful time they had, and we're already thinking about when we can do this again! Hiring a private chef for a dinner party is a luxury that was absolutely worth the investment. We love hosting and could really focus on the time spent with guests, decor, really enjoying the celebration. I'm extremely grateful to Eric and Danielle for helping me host a delicious birthday dinner to enjoy with my...

Amazing experience working with Chef Eric. I hosted a pop up dinner event at my home and had the most wonderful experience planning, preparing, and executing the event. He was easy to work with. The dinner followed a theme of all the dishes and history that brought those foods to Hawaii. The food was well designed combined with the creative, carefully curated menu. The menu consisted of pleasing textures, visual stimulation, and layers of flavor: Ahi Poke (sashimi-grade tuna, shoyo, ginger, hawaiian sea salt, toasted, sesame oil, and onions), Shrimp Lumpia (butterflied shrimp, garlic, scallion, chive crema, sweet savory chili sauce), Cold Ginger Noodles (thin noodles, ginger/scallion, truffle oil, served w/ slow cooked and glazed char siu pork belly), Mochiko Chicken Katsu (chicken thighs marinated in shoyu, mochiki rice flour, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and honey, then coated in panko break crumbs and fried to a crisp, shredded cabbage salad), Beef Ribeye Bibimbap (thinly sliced marinated beef ribeye, steamed rice, gochujang, banchan of pickled dailon/radish, cucumbers, carrots, and kim chee), and Pineapple & Lychee Upside Down Bibingka (haupia whipped cream, toasted coconut, pineapple/lychee puree. Chef Eric excels in creating foods that excites all of your senses in a refreshingly creative interpretation of his own heritage and the Asian/Pacific influence he has thoughtfully integrated in all his dishes. Everything was melt in your mouth consistency. Chef Eric and his team clearly created a night of pure indulgence. ...

Update 6.14.25: I've hired Chef Eric to cater two kamayans, one in 2021 and, most recently in 2025. Both times were great experiences with incredible food. Eric is super warm, personable, professional, and punctual. The planning part was easy and he left the kitchen spotless (and a tupperware of extra food in the refrigerator to boot!). I always recommend Eric to anyone looking for delicious food and reasonable pricing! I am looking forward to checking out his new food business, Da Good Vibes, in Union City next! Also, I'm always on the lookout for his pop ups (I've been to 3!).

Previous review: Eric catered a kamayan dinner for my bachelorette in 2021 and I've attended two of his pop up dinners in the last two months. I recommend not passing up on any opportunity to enjoy his cooking. My family has a Filipino catering business and for the first 30 years of my life I said I've never had better Filipino food. But alas, I found Eric and he's right up there with the cooks in my family, which is a blessing because Eric is in the Bay and my family is two plane flights away! Thank you, Eric, for your sharing your gift of food, storytelling, and creating spaces for building community. I selfishly hope he does more East Bay events and I look forward to hiring him again to cater an event someday...