Peet's Coffee

Bruno Estigarribia

I had a delicious maple walnut scone and the really tasty cold brew black tie (or something like that, I can't remember the name :-) ), sat outside, enjoyed the food, drink, and weather... What's not to like? Will be back!

James K

The original Peet’s. Ethical rating: 3.5 Green Stars (better than SBUX). Peet’s is now fully open, as far as indoor seating goes. Staff members still …

Manning Sutton

Great people serving good, hot coffee drinks and a nice variety of beans. The little museum by the bathrooms is fun to look at. Sit outside and enjoy people watching while sipping your drink.Manning, we love hearing you enjoyed our selection of premium coffee roasts and that our team took good care of you. We can't wait to serve you again soon.☕☕

James K

The original Peet’s. Ethical rating: 3.5 Green Stars (better than SBUX). Peet’s is now fully open, as far as indoor seating goes. Staff members still wear masks but they are optional for customers. I know that this is the original Peet’s but I’ve only been inside a couple of times, despite having lived in Berkeley for two decades. That may change now (“going forward,” as people say, unintentionally or not, to annoy me) mainly because of the following three things: 1. I found a secret room! Okay, it’s not secret – in fact anyone who visited the bathroom or has a reasonably high level of curiosity will have found this back room. But I actually didn’t know that it existed until my visit last Sunday! It’s a very peaceful area (in contrast to the front, which sounds like a fish market on a Sunday morning) with about five tables and many bookcases filled with precious Peet’s artifacts and photos. Sit and soak in the energy of 1960’s Berkeley and find something to rebel against. 2. Peet’s now sells a vegan sandwich - the “Everything Plant-Based Sandwich” – and it’s pretty good. It’s a sausage patty from Beyond Meat, combined with JUST vegan egg and vegan cheddar, all on a thin everything bagel. 3. We can now use our own mugs again at Peet’s, avoiding coffee cup waste and the 25 cent charge that Berkeley folk now pay for disposable cups. The baristas make darn good drinks – a simple latte induced a double take (or double sip) from my friend. Their Yosemite coffee is good (if you don’t mind dark roasts) and sports a Smithsonian “songbird friendly” certification – actually one of the best certifications for coffee (more on the ethical side below). Overall, it’s a fun (and historical) place to sit outside in the sun, or in the surprisingly serene “secret” back room. I’m also giving the Peet’s 3.5 out of 5 “Green Stars” for social and environmental impact, based on this: • Reasonable selection of vegetarian items and now one good vegan sandwich and a vegan brownie. • Beyond Meat (who makes the Everything Plant-Based sandwich patty) rates highly in my book (4.5 Green Stars) • Peet’s now allows customers to bring their own coffee mugs again & gives a 25 cent discount for using one. • Peet’s disposable cups and lids are now both compostable. This helps quite a bit in terms of waste sorting, because everything can go into the compost bin. Let’s face it, at many coffee places (hello, Starbucks!) customers’ trash pretty much ends up in random bins. But bring your own mug, for goodness sake! • Peet’s main coffee roastery in Alameda is certified LEED Gold– the first in the US. (LEED = Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) • Peet’s have been a bit better than other US chains (Starbucks, Philz) at introducing coffee that’s organic, songbird friendly, or processed by the natural method, etc. • Las Hermanas blend is “100% women-produced, Fair Trade certified.” Burundi Turashobora is also women-produced. In 2019, Peet’s helped establish the Women's Center for Entrepreneurship for women coffee famers in Columbia. • Peet’s has now merged with Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE) and the joint venture had its IPO in 2020 on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange. JDE scores poorly for ethics, for example on Ethical Consumer. • Peet’s sells coffee pods (and JDE sells two machines that use pods), encouraging plastic waste. • Peet’s doesn’t reports enough on social and environmental impact (e.g., coffee pricing) for a company of this size. So a mixed bag from Peet’s: Better than Starbucks or Philz but not as good as some other local spots. Interested in writing green star reviews? If so, please check out the Green Stars Project.