Andronico's Market was founded in 1929 at this Solano Avenue location. Back then, this was a relatively new neighborhood and the owner, Frank Andronicos, was an immigrant from Greece. After the success of his first store, he dropped the "s" at the end of Andronicos. Today this family-owned and -operated business has 10 upscale grocery stores throughout the Bay Area. The store is especially known for its high-quality produce, bakery, deli and meat counters and its short check-out lines.
This local coffee shop offers a slew of pastries, varieties of tea and coffee drinks to nurse you through your work. Many tables and chairs are set up inside and outside the cafe, so that you can set up your laptop or just sit and read. The clerks here are very polite and soft-spoken.
A.G. Ferrari Foods is a grocery store that offers fine Italian foods and ingredients. The shelves are full of fresh pasta, mushrooms, chocolate, olives, crackers, jams and preserved fruit.
It also sells kitchenware, like truffle slicers and many different herbs and seasonings. The wine selection is quite large and includes red and white wines that come straight from Italy. A.G. Ferrari Foods also offers most of the store's inventory at wholesale amounts.
More than a neighborhood mini-mart, Sacramento Market provides small-scale grocery service to neighbors in South Berkeley. In a part of Berkeley where grocery stores within walking distance are scarce, Sacramento Market offers fresh produce, butcher service and frozen food, as well as standard convenience store fare like liquor and snack foods. Unique ethnic foods, spices and incense can also be found inside the market near the meat counter.
AZ Market is a quick convenience market that has many needed items. Aisles are stocked with chips, bread, soda, cleaning products and cigarettes. This location also makes fresh deli sandwiches.
Opened in 2009, this second Berkeley Bowl location is located one block north of Ashby. Berkeley Bowl is an independent supermarket specializing in produce. A wider selection of fresh produce at low prices cannot be found anywhere else in the Bay Area. Further offerings include organic and natural foods as well as everyday grocery items.
Though they admit not every item is just one dollar, the staff at Dollar Depot estimates that 99% of the stock costs only a buck. This is a good deal for items such as school supplies, batteries, candles, cooking utensils and seasonal items which change on a regular basis.
Monterey Fish Market is a fresh fish shop that has a wide selection of fish filets, live lobsters, oysters and clams. They specialize in fish that is in season, as well as keeping staples on hand like swordfish and salmon steaks. They also have prepared salads, such as seaweed sand crab salad, and they have gift certificates. The Hopkins Street location is a second location for this business: their other shop is in San Francisco, which ensures the freshest fish right off the boats. The website has news about fresh catches and recipes.
