Kensington
Kensington... a town which reminds me of back east!

Wallen Maybeck House - Purdue Avenue

Kensington reminds me a lot of an East Coast town; perhaps that's why Carol and I would live there if we ever decided to move from Thousand Oaks.

I once read that Kensington had the highest education level of all communities in the Bay Area, and the highest number of Nobel Laureates. I wouldn't be surprised if that were so. J. Robert Oppenheimer, father of the Atomic Bomb lived in Kensington when he was at UC Berkeley. I've been fascinated by him ever since seeing the public television series on him, starring Sam Waterston. Frank Oppenheimer, his brother, was a (the?) founder of San Francisco's wonderful Exploratorium.

Kensington is almost entirely in the hills, so many homes have bay views. Upslope lots tend to have terraced yards which are great for kids, and the downslope lots often have decks and views unobstructed by wires or light poles. Kensington has several distinct areas. I call one of them "Old England" because the street names are Stratford, Avon (yes, there is a Stratford at Avon), Coventry, Kingston, etc. This neighborhood is between Colusa Avenue (Kensington Circle) and The Arlington (Kensington Village). The homes tend to be older and more distinguished.

The streets between The Arlington and Grizzly Peak are named after colleges - Stanford, Purdue, Beloit, Columbia... so I describe it as the "College District". These homes generally were built in the 30's and 40's.

Kensington is bounded on the east by Tilden Park. Canon Road takes you right down to the pony rides, merry go round, and Little Farm.

It's convenient to both the El Cerrito Del Norte BART station (go north on Colusa) and North Berkeley BART (take Arlington down to Central Berkeley)

The First Unitarian Church of Berkeley is actually in Kensington... but the initials weren't appropriate for mixed company!

Kensington has two shopping districts:
Kensington Village: with a great market (superb barbeque ribs and chicken), a general market (once a pharmac) with mini-post office, a bank, and a hardware store. Inn Kensington is our favorite breakfast place - great biscuits, and the fastest service in the East Bay!

Colusa Circle: with Kensington Circus Pub, Semifreddi's Bakery (their flagship store), Benchmark Pizza, and our favorite Farmers' Market - the Sunday Kensington Farmers' Market on Oak View Avenue.

A special treat awaits architecture buffs. Drive up Kenyon, and turn left on Purdue. On your right (as you go down the private road) is a handsome house designed by Bernard Maybeck. This is the 2nd Wallen Maybeck house, built for Maybeck's sone Wallen and daughter-in-law Jacomena. We saw the home on an architectural tour, and it had a simple elegance to it.

Photo Portfolios - Click the image to view the photo portfolios

Kensington Farmers' Market

Kensington Village Car Meet

A Walk Around Kensington Circle The Four Corners Of Berkeley, Albany, Kensington & El Cerrito