Arizmendi Bakery & Pizzeria — Restaurant in Emeryville

Sigh. As the saying goes, "all skin folk aint kinfolk." And all community spaces aren't communal. Accountability doesn't exist here and let me explain why:

I don't live in the neighborhood, but every other weekend, my partner and I come here to grab a LOT of pastries for members of our small business. And while the pastries are good, their customer service is trash. They do a lot of shuckin' and jivin' for the white folk here, but we always get the side-eye, which we are used to (unless Kat is there). I don't know if it's because we're black/brown or because we're queer or because we're not presented in a certain way, but we've tolerated this long enough, so I'm going to keep it a buck with y'all:

If you decide to come here, buy one or two items. Not 10 or 20. They can't count and you will surely be overcharged. We almost always get overcharged, sometimes by one item, sometimes by two or three because we buy so much at once. And while we've been letting it go because we want to believe that these are mistakes, it's starting to feel very intentional.

Today, my partner looked at our receipt and they added things we've never vocalized at the register (like two oatmeal cookies we NEVER said we had) and ultimately, we were overcharged by one item. Yes, $3.25 is significant in this economy. When my partner came back to show the difference, the dude at the register lightweight went in on her. He made sure to do a thorough, forensic investigation of our items and still somehow couldn't count. So she had to count the items for him. He didn't utter one apology; in fact, no one did as they stared at the back and forth unfolding before them. Then he proceeded to ask "do you want to come back here?" as if that was some sort of threat. We won't be coming back and you can kick rocks. Mind you, we're regulars. FOR YEARS, we've been coming here despite several awkward and weird interactions/overcharges (which we're going to just call "theft," because I think that's what they're doing -- I can no longer believe these are just honest mistakes especially after the interaction today.)

If you're a person of color, I hate to break it to you, but you're likely going to be profiled right away...even by your own people. As a black woman myself, I can say that the handful of black people working here can be dismissive, combative and rude but they always perk up for the whites. It's pretty obvious and it's very sad. Low racial self-esteem is what I'd call it. On a few occasions, my bouts at the register felt interrogative at times and I always get strange stares from the staff as I'm picking my pastries. All the socio-cultural and political posters and signs on their walls feel performative when the members of the cooperative don't reflect that in their actions. I suppose saying "Free Gaza" or "Black Lives Matter" absolves people from being unkind and microaggressing. No one's even asking for kindness but rather common courtesy. If you make a mistake, apologize. Handle us with care; we've been supporting you all this time. We feel absolutely sick that thousands of our dollars have been poured into a space that's masquerading like they're really "down for the cause."

I'm rambling at this point, but these are my experiences. If you want to support a place that is clearly performative and really aint about nothing, then feel free to do so. As for us, we'll...

The pizza great-grandpartent of most of the good California style pizza places in the East bay, Arizmendi DNA, can be found in the pizza sold at Nabalom, (my favorite), Cheese Board, Sliver and others, since the delicious crust recipe, trickled down, from employees of Arizmendi and Cheese Board, who after years working the old school establishments went on to open their own Pizza and Bakery spots. A little different from the other Pizza/Bakery spots, Arizmendi has three choices daily, the daily special, the vegan, and a more traditional cheese and marinara pizza. Sold as "quarters" (2 slices) for under $8 with a tip, this is a fairly priced spot for the neighborhood. Also they have a very respectable bakery, in which lovers of Cheese Board, will see the same kind of baked selections, presented the same way, in a wood case with transparent swinging doors. The cheese slice, a cross between the thin crispy pizza of a New York slice as served at places like Arinelles, and the puffier pizza sold at most pizza places, had a nice chewy texture and the sauce was great. The daily special, (mushrooms and red onions), is the most Berkeley type slice here, and was like a slice from the Cheese Board, only slightly puffier. I recommend this place if you find yourself on the waterfront in Emeryville, for delicious pizza. They also make a respectable Cafe Latte, and have a nice outdoor...

The corn cherry scone is awesome, and the bread remains big and reasonably priced compared to a lot of other bakeries nearby. However! The pizza, while nice, is so boring! Despite the change up of ingredients, it always hits the same dull note. Never with tomato sauce or meat. Good to check in with a few times a year, but not much of a daily go-to.

The real problem with this place is that there’s a permanent homeless encampment in the outdoor eating area, and it has become so foul and disgusting that you can’t actually sit there and eat. In fact, going and coming through the side door is very unpleasant, with pools of urine, feces, horrible smells, and unwashed humans dozing in sleeping bags or occupying the chairs meant for customers. The windows are filthy, and the place looks like it hasn’t really been cleaned in years. The owners would do well to hose down the outside and scrub it with bleach, at least weekly, and ensure that it remains in inviting space for patrons.

And wouldn’t it seem that the worker-owners, who come and go every day, might look at the windows and surroundings and think “maybe we should clean this place once in a while and have some pride in our business”? Do collectives...