Coworking review: Berkeley Coworking

Posted by on Oct 30, 2010 in working | One Comment

My second coworking experience was Berkeley Coworking, on Shattuck near Ashby BART in Berkeley. I was hoping to find an East Bay option where I could drop in once a week or so, as I expect to spend most of my time in San Francisco. Berkeley Coworking had a garage startup feel–pretty plain decor, even a bit dingy, but a very friendly and collaborative feel. The owner was very welcoming and open about his experiment with coworking, and almost everyone introduced themselves and was interested in hearing what I was working on. Drop-ins are allowed to use the unused “anchor” desks, and there are several modular desks you can set up anywhere. The location isn’t spectacular, but there’s nearby street parking and some good lunch options, not to mention some of the best music stores in the East Bay. And the price is right–drop-ins free (donations welcomed), $200 for a key with 24/7 access, and $400 if you want a dedicated anchor desk.

Pros:

  • price
  • friendly vibe–good for engineers
  • has real office chairs, and chair-to-desk height worked well for me
  • good iPhone coverage
  • speedy wifi
  • good space for collaboration–whiteboards, no worries about voice level
  • modular desks

Cons:

  • bachelor-pad kitchen
  • location isn’t great–closer to downtown Berkeley would offer more lunch/banking options
  • downstairs is a bit dark

1 Comment

  1. Sio
    January 27, 2011

    Have you been back here recently? wondering if there have been any changes for better or worse.

    Reply

Leave a Reply