Situated just outside downtown Oakland, Piedmont Avenue (not to be confused with the city of Piedmont) is home of some of Oakland’s hippest restaurants and shops. Here you’ll find food for every taste bud, from Vietnamese to pub grub, plus plenty of entertainment.
Here, a taste of everything the avenue has to offer.
1. Break for breakfast at Mama’s Royal Café, located halfway between MacArthur station and Piedmont Avenue. Breakfast after your BART ride might be just what Mama ordered, and this funky diner has been serving healthy breakfast and lunch seven days a week since 1974. (4012 Broadway, mamasroyalcafeoakland.com)
2. Walk off breakfast with some shopping on the avenue. Get one of a kind vintage frocks at Mercy Vintage Now clothing store, or rifle through well-organized indie wares at Rare Bird. (4188 Piedmont Avenue, mercyvintage.com, 3883 Piedmont Avenue, therarebird.com)
3. Grab a beer (or maybe some pub trivia) at Cato’s Ale House. (3891 Piedmont Avenue, catosalehouse.com)
4. Get your fiesta on at Bar César. (4039 Piedmont Avenue, barcesar.com)
5. Check out what’s playing at Piedmont Theatre. You can rely on this old independent theater’s stellar pick of flicks, from the latest film festival winners to obscure foreign flicks. (4186 Piedmont Avenue, landmarktheatres.com)
6. Indulge in a tasty frozen treat at the historic Fentons Creamery. (4226 Piedmont Avenue, fentonscreamery.com)
Directions
Take BART to Oakland’s MacArthur station.
