The Annex is OPEN for modified business daily 10am to 6pm!

We are offering selected items for “take-away” like drip coffee, muffins, scones, rotisserie chicken, packed salads, Coconut Curry Lentil soup, beer, wine and flowers!

Our Beer & Wine Department is taking phone and email orders for pick-up!

https://naturalgrocery.com/order/

Enter through the doors from the parking lot. There is a sink in the Floral Department for you to wash your hands. Please wear a face covering (mandatory by order of Contra Costa County beginning April 22, 2020).

Be well!

The Natural Grocery Company

Bulk Shopping at the El Cerrito Natural Grocery is now “self service”. We are packaging all bulk items in biodegradable bags in our food service facilities. Store staff are available to grind nut butters or coffee by request, just ask.

Bulk Shopping with The Natural Grocery Company

It is with heavy hearts that we announce that we will be shutting down the food preparations including deli, rotisserie, pizza, soup, sandwiches; Café service and Bakery Department in The El Cerrito Prepared Food Annex effective Monday, April 6, 2020 until further notice.

Our Wine & Beer Department will continue to operate seven days a week, 10am to 6pm. If you would like to shop for Wine/Beer please enter from the rear parking lot and follow the directions of the staff. Please do not bring your own bags as Contra Costa County has prohibited this in the new Shelter-in-Place Order issued March 31, 2020.

We appreciate the support of the community and to better serve you and fulfill our obligation to you, we are shifting our staff and resources to our two stores, Berkeley Natural Grocery and El Cerrito Natural Grocery. Annex employees are a vital part of our family and want to assure you that it is our goal to make sure that anyone who wants to work may do so in another aspect of our operations.

Thank you – The Natural Grocery Company

Thanks to everyone who has been coping with all of the changes and following the directions of our store personnel! Together we will get through this!

You may have already noticed some more changes in the last few days but here is a summary of what is going on El Cerrito Natural Grocery.

On March 31, 2020 the Contra Costa County Department of Public Health instituted certain standards and instructed essential businesses to document their protocols for keeping employees and customers safe while providing essential services.

• Do not come to the store if you are sick.
• We are conducting health checks of employees daily.
• We are limiting the number of people allowed in the store at any one time.
• Please practice social distancing and stay six feet away from other customers and staff both inside and outside the store, whenever possible.
• We are sanitizing carts and baskets between every use.
• Plexiglass shields have been installed at the cashier stations.
• Pinpads are sanitized between every use but please use a touchless payment option if it is available to you.
• Bulk department is no longer self-service. It is still open and now full service!              An employee will be in the isle to fill bags for purchase. Please wait in line for next available employee.  Only one side of isle is open to control number of people in isle at a time.
• Customers may no longer bring their own bags/containers into the store.
• Customers should bag their own groceries using our paper bags if they are physically able to do so.
• Until hand sanitizer is available for our customers we will be providing you with clean single use gloves while you shop in our store.
• Please do not touch anything you do not intend to purchase.
• Please do not mix produce items in bags (unless they are the same price per pound or sold by the each).
• We cannot accept returns or exchanges of items previously purchased.
• Please bring back your deposit bottles! The dairies need them. Bottles will be collected and logged at the door so that they do not enter the retail area but you get your credits back from the cashier.

Thanks to everyone who has been coping with all of the changes and following the directions of our store personnel! Together we will get through this!

You may have already noticed some more changes in the last few days but here is a summary of what is going on Berkeley Natural Grocery.

On March 31, 2020 the City of Berkeley Department of Public Health instituted certain standards and instructed essential businesses to document their protocols for keeping employees and customers safe while providing essential services.

• Do not come to the store if you are sick.
• We are conducting health checks of employees daily.
• We are limiting the number of people allowed in the store at any one time.
• Please practice social distancing and stay six feet away from other customers and staff both inside and outside the store, whenever possible.
• We are sanitizing carts and baskets between every use.
• Plexiglass shields have been installed at the cashier stations.
• Pinpads are sanitized between every use but please use a touchless payment option if it is available to you.
• The bulk foods department has been shut down for self service.
• Customers may no longer bring their own bags/containers into the store.
• Customers should bag their own groceries using our paper bags if they are physically able to do so.
• Until hand sanitizer is available for our customers we will be providing you with clean single use gloves while you shop in our store.
• Please do not touch anything you do not intend to purchase.
• Please do not mix produce items in bags (unless they are the same price per pound or sold by the each).
• We cannot accept returns or exchanges of items previously purchased.
• Please bring back your deposit bottles! The dairies need them. Bottles will be collected and logged at the door so that they do not enter the retail area but you get your credits back from the cashier.

Thursday, March 26, 2020

Operations Update

New Hours of Operation:

El Cerrito Natural Grocery: 10am – 6pm Daily
(Seniors are welcome to shop at our El Cerrito location at 9:30am Daily)

The Natural Grocery Prepared Foods Annex: 10am – 6pm Daily
(Take Out Only via the Parking Lot Entrance)

Grocery Shopping Tips

1. Even if you can afford to buy two months worth of food, please don’t.
Stockpiling creates disruptions to the food distribution chain. At this point it is a good idea to have a few of weeks worth on hand but please exercise restraint and balance what is “individually optimal” with what is “socially optimal” for everyone.

2. Make a list but be prepared to make substitutions.
It is good to have a plan so you can spend as little time shopping as possible but you’ll need to be flexible if some items are not available.

3. Please don’t touch items unless you intend to buy them. We know you’ll need to read labels if you are unfamiliar with a product but please limit touching products whenever you can.

4. Please pay attention to Social Distancing (six feet) between yourself, staff and other patrons while in our stores or waiting in line. We are sorry to have to ask you to wait but it is the only way we can continue to operate in a safe manner. When we have gloves available we will give them to you when you enter.

Be kind. Remember that grocery store employees are probably working extended shifts — and they’re risking their health to be there.

Keep your distance. It’s extremely difficult to restock the shelves during store hours. Do not swarm an employee who is trying to fill empty shelves.

If you want to help, please bag your own groceries.

Safety

Plexiglass guards are being installed at the check stands to protect our cashiers.

We are sanitizing all hand baskets and carts in between use with CDC Approved Food Service Sanitizer.

Common surfaces like freezer door handles, pin pads, cashier stations, water machine start/stop switch, bulk handles etc are being sanitized on a regular basis throughout the day.

Until we get hand sanitizer back for customer use we will issue gloves at the door as we are able.

Acme bread is being individually bagged by our staff each morning to avoid contamination.

Lastly, wipe down your groceries with sanitizer when you bring them home as an extra precaution.

Friday, March 20, 2020

Operations Update

New Hours of Operation:

El Cerrito Natural Grocery: 10am – 6pm Daily
(Seniors are welcome at 9:30am)
Berkeley Natural Grocery: 10am-6pm Daily
The Natural Grocery Prepared Foods Annex: 10am – 6pm Daily
(Take Out Only)

During these unprecedented times we are taking care of ourselves so we can better serve you.

If you are sick, stay home.

Please pay attention to Social Distancing (six feet) between yourself, staff and other patrons while in our stores or waiting in line. We are sorry to have to ask you to wait but it is the only way we can continue to operate in a safe manner. We have gloves available when you enter and are sanitizing carts between every use. Please don’t touch items unless you intend to buy them.

Come prepared! Make a list of what you want. We are experiencing gaps in availability because of increased demand but as we settle into this new routine shelves are fuller and we anticipate being able to catch up. Please be patient and know your favorite items will return.

Did you know that The Natural Grocery Company is an employee owned company? Our workers are dedicated to continuing to provide you with the Organic products you want despite this monumental disruption to our lives.

Major Vendor Deliveries

El Cerrito Natural Grocery:

• Dry goods/frozen/wellness Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays & Saturdays
• Beef – Mondays & Wednesdays
• Chicken – Tuesdays,Thursdays & Saturdays
• Clover/Straus – Tuesdays & Fridays
• Claravale – Fridays
• Organic Pastures – mid-week
• Vital Vittles Bread – Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays
• Bread Seriously – Mondays
• Grindstone – Tuesdays & Fridays
• Acme Bread – daily

Berkeley Natural Grocery

• Dry goods/frozen/wellness – Tuesdays, Thursdays & Fridays
• Meat – daily from El Cerrito Natural Grocery
• Chicken – Tuesdays,Thursdays & Saturdays
• Clover/Straus – Tuesdays & Fridays
• Claravale – Fridays
• Organic Pastures – mid-week
• Vital Vittles Bread – Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays
• Bread Seriously – Mondays
• Grindstone – Tuesdays & Fridays
• Bicycle Coffee – Wednesdays
• Acme Bread – Daily

This is not an exhaustive list but we wanted you to have an idea of when different products are expected. We receive deliveries from many other small vendors throughout the week at both locations.

Be Well!