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BUSINESS CONNECTIONS

Ruby*s Cafe Brings Neighborhood Feel to Emeryville

Roger Brigham
The Emeryville Connection Staff
June 2007

It’s one of those places you take at your own pace: drop in to linger over pastries for conversation with a friend, or blitz through for a quick breather and a sandwich to go before scurrying back to your cubicle. Either way, the coffee’s always brewing at Ruby*s Café.

“I grew up in an Italian household in Brooklyn and Long Island,” Albert Repola, owner of Ruby*s Café at 6233 Hollis, said. “There was always a pot of coffee brewing and you always had pastries. Neighbors and friends and family would drop in any time to talk about anything. It’s the same thing here.

“I opened Ruby*s in 2001 on Sept. 27 – right after 9/11. I had studied at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park in New York and worked in country clubs for 14 years. I had lived in Emeryville for 23 years by then and I really liked it.”

He found a location on Hollis Street and decided to name it after his mother. “All my friends helped,” Repola said. “We built it on a shoestring. And it just took off.

“Rich Robbins, the developer, is so super with small businesses. He’s a mentor. He could not have been more helpful to me.”

Repola said networking to find the best staff he could was crucial. “We have great employees. It’s like a family here. Jessica and Tomas have been here 5 years. I’ve been open 5 and a half years and the key people have been with me almost since Day One.”

The biggest bonus about running a restaurant in Emeryville, Repola said, is Emeryville itself. “I’ve always liked Emeryville,” he said. “The businesses are supportive. The city council is cooperative and always happy to work with you on something. And the Chamber is always helpful.”

Originally Ruby*s only opened on Mondays through Fridays, but about half a year ago Repola responded to customer requests to give them another place for Saturday breakfast and lunch. That’s when he really noticed the support from other community leaders he knew from the Chamber.

“Saturdays, there’s nothing going on around here,” Repola said, “so that was really taking a leap. But they all rallied around it: they got together and called friends and emails people to tell them Ruby*s was open on Saturday.”

The menu doesn’t aim high, but it aims solid: “We use fresh ingredients,” he said. “The breads is baked locally by Metropolitan Baking Company. We try to be polite and happy. And we try to make it so that you can get in and out quickly.

“During the week, people have been sitting indoors in their offices with no windows and no fresh air. When they come out, they need to get something quickly. They don’t want to have to stand a long time. We try to be fast and accurate.”

Repola also tries to give back to the community as a support of police, fire department, educational and art programs. Local artists use his walls to display their stuff free of charge. “I always think you should give back to the community,” he said.

Repola says he credits his core values to his family upbringing. “My mother and my father, I have so much respect for them,” he said. “When we moved from Bensonhurst to Long Island, my father built a house he probably could not really afford and he built and apartment in it for my grand-parents. You don’t get that kind of unity today; I think that time is gone. But a lot of the values I have I learned from my grandparents.

“People come in here and they see people of all different backgrounds, and they see we do not judge each other. They see people talking. It’s a welcome place to be.”

Which is why the coffee is always on. No matter the pace, there’s always a little time to say hello.

Roger Brigham is a writer for The Emeryville Connection. If you have a question or comment, please contact him at ecocnews@gmail.com