"Jaynelle St. Jean’s Raspberry in Chocolate Crust is genius pie. The pastry straddles the line between shortcrust and a corner brownie’s crisp edges, and the filling, a red slush of tart, seeded berries, is almost shockingly luscious. The shop is minimal. You can have your pie and coffee at the table out front, in the odd little car-fringed plaza (really more of a bulbed-out gutter), gazing onto the tattoo shop or across at the chaos of stomped seafood boxes heaped at the curb before Rockin’ Crawfish. Better yet, carry your slice to nearby Pine Knoll Park at Lake Merritt. [$]" - John Birdsall