Embarc Dispensary — Local services in Alameda

I've been meaning to make time for this review, as it is very well deserved! There is a budtender named Jordan, who turned a bad experience into a great experience and made us decide to keep coming back. Long story short, we've been shopping here for a while and nothing but fantastic experiences. One day, we came in and caught an employee in a not so great mood and it really showed in the way she way helping us. It made me literally not want to come back again, sadly...after numerous awesome experiences. Well...Jordan saved the day with his positivity and Uber helpful attitude. His customer service was stellar and made us almost forget about the not so great experience we'd experienced w/his unhappy coworker. Every time we've come in, since this experience - Jordan has made us feel so welcome and happy to have chosen to shop with Embark, again & always helps us find just what we're looking for. He always has great options for us even if what we want is not there. Bottom line, had it not been for Jordan, we would have decided to take our future business, elsewhere. Jordan's great attitude, work ethic and positivity, makes shopping here, a TRUE pleasure and we always look forward to being helped by him! People like Jordan, keep small businesses alive, with their ability to maintain/retain repeat customers - with the level of attention and respect he brings to work, every day. Thanks!

Edit/Addendum: 7/9/25 - We had the pleasure of interacting with Mateo during our recent visit to Embark. Mateo was very pleasant and Uber helpful in guiding us to the featured bag of the month, based on the items we spoke of purchasing. He is a newer addition to the staff, we learned. His enthusiasm, knowledge of product/featured items, and his willingness to offer assistance - was greatly appreciated. Mateo is a wonderful addition to the team at Embark, and yet, one more reason- we continue to choose Embark as our "home" dispensary. Thanks always - to Andres, Collin, Mateo and the rest of the team! Edit 8/11/25: Was assisted by Juliet today. Wonderful customer service, as is on par for Embarc, at this point. She was very knowledgeable and seemed super happy to help with what I was searching for. I'm ALWAYS pleased and satisfied with my experiences at Embarc ...and they just keep adding Wonderful new staff, as time goes on. Whoever is doing the hiring, there ...is...

I came by on a whim because I wanted to see why it was 5 stars for a cannabis store, which is extremely rare for cannabis clubs as many have crummy customer service and semi-ok selection due to stress, bad management, or unqualified cannabis budtenders that recommend products that they don’t know about. But the second I entered the door, I was greeted with a very welcoming vibe by the front desk. I forgot the guy’s name but he was really cool and super helpful at answering all my annoying questions (annoying for any regular stressed out staff employee) about the place and how it works, from enrollment to specials (I also worked in customer retail service.) But the vibes were really chill. I can pick up tense vibes pretty easily and stressed out vibes were not detected. Once I got signed up, a very easy process, I walked around looking at all the products. I noticed that this store didn’t have the cheap products as the majority of the products were of high quality brands in this store, a distinction among the other dispensaries. (You get what you pay.) Hector, very knowledgeable and helpful, asked me if I was looking for anything specific and I responded with a yes. I told him my situation and the type of high I was specifically seeking. He recommended me a product and informed me about the differences between the other products I was used to purchasing at other dispenseries. I could tell he knew his stuff which made it an easier choice for me than my normal hesitantance. I also picked up another vape pen battery while I was there. When I got home, I tried out Hector’s recommendation and it was the perfect product that I was searching for. I’ve never been to a dispensary where a bud tender knew right away with how to solve my problem. It always took a couple times with other places. But not here. This place deserves 7 stars, for having the cleanest store, the best service, most knowledgeable staff, no stressed out vibes, affordable prices, best top tier selection, and fantastic specials. (You also get a veteran discount here which doesn’t exist at most dispensaries.) A++ dispensary! Please don’t change or move away! I love it here and it’s worth the 40...

I had a terrible delivery experience with this place. I called this place an hour after my delivery window had ended because no one had shown up. I called back the number that had called me and it somehow redirected me to the Martinez location. I then called this locations actual number and they first told me they couldn't find my order, so they put me on for like a minute or two until they found it. The delivery person said that they didn't show up because they couldn't get ahold of me by phone and told me that they couldn't fulfill the delivery until the next day because I called them after 8:30. This experience has soured me enough to the point where I'm not sure I want to order from this place again. Next time I want delivery I think I will order from one of the other places in the East Bay that has a more functional delivery service. This place seems to be too overwhelmed with in-store customers to handle delivery...