Was attending a A Film Festival at La Peña Cultural center. We saw "We Love here" and "Black Joy"…read moreand several other short films. The venue was sold out.

What a cool place! I've been to La Pena a couple of times for a few community shows…read more Parking: it's located somewhat in a neighborhood so it's all street parking. We were able to easily find one just a couple of blocks down. Just be prepared to walk a little bit to the center. The theater/main space is intimate but can hold a crowd. There's no bad seats in the house though. I've sat in the back and in the front and have always had a great view. They're connected to Los Cilantros restaurant (or maybe it's their restaurant) that offers delicious Mexican food and drinks. We were able to take anything we ordered into the main/theater space as well so we could enjoy it during the show. Love their lineup of shows and support for local community efforts. Looking forward to supporting more and more shows here to come!

Azita was very kind and helpful from when we first reached out to her! She is professional and…read moresupportive. Everyone we ran in to was welcoming and warm. Dr. Amiri was great to work with and we highly recommend this location for any of the services they provide.

Finally visited this center for a Ramadan lecture, prayers, and iftar tonight. I'd been wanting to…read morecome here for a few years. Then Covid, etc. Very friendly leadership and a huge turnout. Brought a friend/coworker non-Muslim and she had a great time, too. Took an Uber in, wouldn't want to park in there because you'll probably get boxed in. Beautiful center and decor. Much more spacious than it appears from the outside. It's huge! Basement, ground, and upstairs areas. Don't think I was supposed to be taking photos inside, sorry. It was just so beautiful and I wanted to keep some memories. ICCNC has a strong relationship with unsheltered at the encampments in Oakland, feeding them hot warm meals and spending time getting to know them. Very heartwarming. I hope I can make it for jumma prayer sometimes. I forgot how differently Sunni & Shia (here, mainly Persians) pray since coming from a different center. Slight differences but same meaning and purpose. Thank you for a very nice evening!

First Oktoberfest sauerkraut the Nature Friends since 2019…read more Fresh German beer, delicious German food --- roast pork, mushroom spätzle, red cabbage, sauerkraut, potato salad -- and tasty cakes: Bienenstich, apple strudel, poppyseed, etc. Music provided by the fabulous Internationals, for open dancing on their spacious deck. And more professional German dancing by the Nature Friends Schühplattler.

Oakland Nature Friends is a nature-loving hiking club and an excellent place for yearly German…read moredances and German festivals. I attended the Biergartenfest 2018 and it is such a beautiful location. I enjoyed the entertainment. The costumed NF Schuhplatter dancers were fun. The German beer and food is delicious. I can't wait for Octoberfest.

Loved my acrylic painting class with Mokhtar Paki! Highly recommend. It helped me develop my style…read moreand understand the medium.

It's hard to write a negative review of an art center because I really value any place that helps…read morepeople access their creativity. But I have had such a comically bad experience with this place that I feel I should warn others. In January I found a Spring Session class I wanted to register for that was set to begin 3/15. It was in their catalog as a "New Class". However, when I went to their registration portal the class was not listed. The first time I called them, the receptionist said he didn't have access to the registration system and to call back later. The second time I called, they told me that they had added the class and I could register online--but I soon discovered it still wasn't listed. The third time I called they said they added the class but that I wouldn't be able to register until March 10th (which is when registration opens for LATE spring session, whereas this class was set to begin on March 15th, the early spring session). Huh? Registration is open for only five days before the class begins? I asked them to check again, and they called be back later that day and said the early spring session had been added. ...Nope, it definitely was still not in the system. Exasperated by their incompetence, I finally tracked down an email address for the instructor and emailed her directly. I didn't hear back, but soon after that the class showed up and I could finally register. So I did, and made an online payment. Two weeks later, I received an email with a receipt for a refund, with no explanation I assumed this meant the class had been cancelled, but no one called or emailed me to tell me that, and the refund never posted to my bank account. I had also never received any information about the class (materials list, curriculum, etc.) so I still currently have no idea what's happening. When I try to call them, their extension is "unavailable", as is the "operator" AND the "backup operator" that the system auto-routed me to. I really want this place to improve because they're one of the few organizations offering adult art classes in Oakland. But as is, it seems to be a bit of a mess.

This epicenter of empowerment is a long time necessity of the queer community and otherwise. I've…read morefound family, nourishment, and creativity all here! You will find the same.

From the owner: Through resource sharing, and collaborative efforts, the Living Room Project 510 (LRP) provides…read moreopportunities for creative expression, collective healing, and community building. Ultimately the LRP hopes to inspire deeper relationship, interdependence, and care amongst QTPOC communities.

I was in the area during lunchtime today and found out the OACC had an exhibit of a local bay area…read morecontemporary mixed-media artist, Nimisha Doongarwal, on exhibit and display until the end of this month (November 1, 2025). So I stopped in to view the pieces. The venue is clean and spacious with a main lobby/foyer that leads into their main auditorium for their community music performances and tai chi classes. In addition, they have several small meeting conference rooms for other events. OACC seems like a great non-profit organization that provides lots of social/cultural/health-related activities for the local Asian community and diaspora. They had brochures of upcoming events on-site and the people I spoke with were informative, kind, and helpful. Since they offer many programs and classses for free or a reasonable price and are non-profit, please consider donating/suppporting them for the culture, service, and education they provide to the Oakland and surrounding area. OACC is in the Pacific Renaissance building, on the 2nd floor above the Oakland library. Note: underground parking in the building garage is $2 per every half hour. More expensive than metered street parking but safer and it is patrolled.

I've heard about the Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC) for at least over a decade+ and didn't…read moreattend an in-person event until a few weeks ago for a book signing/film screening event. The author and director of American Born Chinese spent their Friday evening with guests sharing their inspiration behind it all. The OACC is located upstairs above the public library. There is an exhibit going on right now with great pictures and historical facts that line up along the perimeter of the inside. There's a main auditorium inside as well, where many awesome events (such as the one I attended) takes place. They also offer various courses from art to health and various topics in between. In the past during the peak of COVID, I attended some of their virtual events, which were also excellent. Thank you OACC for all the cultural awareness you bring to the community and beyond. I'll be attending another in-person event soon. #35/2023

I rented a coworking space from Hidden Gem for two years and had the GREATEST experience! It was my…read morefirst time renting a professional space and Rafael and the whole team were always clear, communicative, and kind! Beyond just the physical space, they do amazing work for the community with their programming educating youth, and I couldn't be happier with my time; I'm only leaving my desk because I'm moving out of state-- highly recommend!

I rented out office space at the Hidden Gem. The location is spotless. Perfect creative space to…read moremake podcasts, films, art, and have meetings. It's quiet, which is fantastic to build your business! Highly recommend.