Piedmont Grocery Co - Oakland, California

Ta2uage

Well, i am trying to be fair here. However the past few visits have tested my loyalty and the overall value I find Piedmont Gricery to offer.

I've been going here since I was a young boy, having grown up and lived in the area my whole life. The employees were always amazing, coupled with the great quality of the products they offered.

Lately, The personnel are extremely rude and appear to be more interested in socializing with one another than offering customer service and engaging those of us on the other side of the register.

The meat department is a shell of what it used to be qualitatively speaking. As well as the professionalism and communication skills that the butchers exhibit severely lacking.

While the quality of their produce, wine, cheeses etc. are good, the prices, as they are with all their products are unreasonably high.

They have always been on the expensive side, but the customer service and friendliness of their personnel made the overall value worth it.

Not anymore. The recent ownership has clearly lost touch with the how to and why of being a community grocery firm.

Shame to see, but they won't be getting my business any longer.

debbie S.

Been going to Piedmont Grocers ever since we moved to the Bay Area. Back then (20+ yrs), the prices were high but the quality was there. Lately, I’ve noticed that the quality is lacking a bit. The produce tends to be a bit soft (carrots, parsnips) and berries are sometimes moldy on the bottom. $14.99 for a dozen eggs is a bit extreme, don’t you think Thank goodness the meat department is excellent as is the cheese selection.

Ava M.

Wonderful store! Excellent produce. Delicious avocados and the watermelon was tasty. Nice reception and everyone was very helpful. Reasonably priced! High quality products. I was in and out quickly because I got exactly what I wanted! I will chose to shop here instead of Whole Foods, Lucky’s or Safeway!

Delores F.

High-end grocery. High prices. But! Buy fresh pies. Salad bar. Ready-made meals. Many items that aren't available in Safeway. Check-out cashiers range from 5 star to -- lately one being sullen. After the usual 5 star people experience here customers are spoiled and easy to be disappointed when services falter.

Sabrina C.

A few days ago, I stopped by to get lunch for myself and my parents from here. Multiple employees passed me/saw me and only said ‘oh so cute!’ ‘Omg a little sweater on him!’ as I had my mom’s dog with me on a walk. Before I entered I looked at the windows to see if there was any signage about dogs - which either it’s not there or it’s far too small. Regardless, as I stepped in line over the whole store an announcement is made about this is a grocery store not a pet store. Clearly whoever made the announcement was having a bad day, wanted to make someone else’s day bad too and felt to do it in the most passive aggressive way they could find. I took a minute to process the announcement and decided to set the basket down and leave instead. I’ve worked at 2 chain and 1 family owned grocery store(s) through the last 6-7 yrs and one thing we were always taught (especially in management positions) was to approach the customer/guest - not single them out. However, this morning I went on a walk to get some coffee and saw 2 people with dogs exiting the store (with bags) and a person entering the store with a dog. Of course, one of those dogs surely could’ve been a service dog but all 3? Who knows.
Maybe there needs to be a sign on the door on the type of shoppers this long standing grocery store wishes to see inside too. Anyway, good luck continuing such interesting business operating tactics. Thank you so much. It was a very illuminating experience.

Ronald S.

Thank you, Piedmont Grocery and your Meat Department, for the surprise hit of our 2024 Christmas Eve dinner. Your “Beeler’s Uncured Ham” (Beeler’s Motto: “Raising the Perfect Pig Since Iowa Became a State”) was everyone’s favorite. None of us could remember a ham as good. [Beeler’s not only tasted better but was also less expensive than what we’d been getting. Maybe I’m being impolite mentioning their name, but the initials of the inferior tasting (and more expensive) ham are “Honey Baked”.]

O M.

I was drawn here, despite it being a bit far from me, because of the focus on organic, local, and specialty (e.g. vegan) items… but honestly I am disappointed by the quality of certain products. For example, the nuts and some other dry-goods taste rancid, as if certain products are not purchased often enough and they are not rotated on the shelves appropriately. I did not check the expiration dates, but this rancid flavor is unmistakable (I shop at a lot of small co-ops which unfortunately do not get enough traffic to keep everything fresh) and can be due to improper storage even if within the best-by range. Not to mention the extreme price gouging for the same brands I can purchase elsewhere. Sometimes the extra cost is worth it to buy everything in one stop, but that is not the case when purchasing poor quality foods (or even good quality—if items are not stored and shelved properly). Lastly, I was surprised at the limited selection of natural wines. With so much space in the store dedicated to alcohol, I expected to find at least a couple of good skin-contact natural wines. Instead, I recommend going to the wine shop across the street.

Kılıçhan D.

I used to shop at this store all the time. I went there today to get some alcohol. Even though I showed my ID, they didn't accept it because it was a non-American ID card. It was an English version card and the information they wanted was written on that card. Poor old man who runs this store. What did you achieve by being a racist ? Shame on you . Never come back