I would like to make you aware of an unpleasant encounter experienced by my daughter and I while I visited Berkeley during the third week of July this year. I came to the Bay Area to visit my daughter and see my new granddaughter. These are the facts: At 4:45 PM on Monday, July 23rd I came upstairs from shopping at T-Shirt Orgy on Telegraph Avenue and discovered that my severely visually handicapped daughter had been prevented from breast feeding her baby in the store. While discretely breast feeding her five month old daughter, under a "feeding shield" in a deserted corner of the store she had been told by the store manager that she could not "lie down on the floor" in the store. She would have to stop feeding the baby and stand up. My daughter did as she was told by the store manager without argument. I insisted on speaking to the manager who told me that it was "store policy" that people could not "lie down" in the store. My daughter repeated that she had been sitting down with her back propped against the wall. The manager repeated the "store policy." I asked to see the owner and was informed that she was not there. I asked for her employer's name and was told it was "Mrs. Brown." When I asked for "Mrs. Brown's first name she refused to give it to me at first, relenting only when I made it clear that I wasn't going anywhere until I had the owner's full name. No voices were raised, but I was insistent. When we left the store a street vender informed me that the store was owned by a man named Ken Sarazen (sp?) who also owns Rasputin Records down the street and Blondie's Pizza as well. I went to Rasputin Records and calmly asked one of the employees if I might see Mr. Sarazen concerning a complaint. After a few minutes in the back of the store the clerk returned and I was told that Mr. Sarazen was not in the store, but that I could leave a phone number. I left my name, both my own and my wife's cell numbers, and the word "complaint" in writing. We have not been called by anyone associated with either store. This is my opinion: My daughter is a gentle, soft-spoken, visually handicapped young mother who works with a faith-based organization at U.C. Berkeley. She is not a ragged street urchin or a panhandler (not that it should matter) and she is most definitely not a liar. My granddaughter is five months old and pretty much determines her feeding schedule. Here in Massachusetts, Berkeley has a reputation as being a progressive, enlightened place, not unlike Cambridge. To think that in this day and age a t-shirt store, and presumably a record store and a pizza store as well, in a town with a reputation like Berkeley's could have a "policy" which results in the events described above is astonishing. I am not aware of local city ordinances related to the treatment of nursing mothers in public places or private stores. Maybe the harassment of discrete breast feeding mothers is commonplace in Berkeley. Maybe stores are permitted to have policies to that effect. Maybe Bay Area nursing mothers are expected to stay home until their children are old enough to dine exclusively on solid food. I don't know. This much I do know. This is the second decade of the twenty-first century. If a quiet, gentle nursing mother and child can be harassed by a completely unsympathetic, robotic and doggedly adamant store manager intent first on enforcing such a policy and then stonewalling complaints in a store in Berkeley, California then somebody out there has definitely "dropped the ball." This uncaring, cash-mad outfit is reprehensible. These guys ARE "the 1%." There is nothing "hip" about them or their policies. If you don't believe me then ask the store manager about their "policies." She'll tell you. Her programming has taken well. Better do it soon, though. Her "customer service" rotation in Berkeley may end soon and then she'll be back to her old job at Guantanamo. read more

Great Place if you are looking for Cal gear, Seasonal Clothing, Fun T-Shirts, Band Tees, Bay Area Tees, or any Berkeley appropriate clothes! I love the style of everything, and they have certain one-of-a-kind Bay Area shirts you cannot pass up. The quality of the fabric is soft, and durable. You pay for what you get, people complain about the price, but it's not used or pre-worn people! This stuff is fresh out of the oven! You can find cozy hats, gloves, and scarves for the winter, and sick sunglasses in the summer! I am a Berkeley resident, and I still appreciate this place as much as a tourist does! This place has the best quality T-shirts in Berkeley by far! I know some people are freaking out about the bag policy, I do not like it either, but whenever they ask for my bag, (which is not always) I get it returned in exactly the same condition it was in! There are normally at least a handful of people in that store, and if any of those employees were to take anything, I am pretty sure someone would see! I am not saying I like this rule that much, but I completely understand. After all there is three floors, and employees tend to only be on the middle floor. I would expect they have had a ton of punks steal their shirts. Cameras are not going to do crap if no one can see that person stealing! What are they gonna do, try and catch the kid hours after they steal it when they're reviewing the footage? I don't think so! On the other hand, if the store got complaints about missing items from handbags, (which I don't think they have) don't you think their boss would review the cameras and fire their employees? So why would anyone want to loose their job over a 200 dollar iPod, when they are depending on an income? Go to this place if you like to buy clothes, because I promise you will not want to leave without getting at least one thing! read more

I want express my dissatisfaction with the service I received at your store during my recent visit. Having visited your store a couple of years ago, I had a good experience before when I visited a couple of years ago which made my recent visit all the more disappointing. Upon entering the store, I noticed that although staff members saw me, no one welcomed or acknowledged me. This lack of acknowledgment was surprising and unfortunate. Additionally, when checking out, the cashier placed my change on the counter rather than handing it to me directly, despite my hand being outstretched. This behavior struck me as both rude and disrespectful. Given this experience, I regret to inform you that I will not be returning to your store in the future. I will be seeking alternatives during my future visits to California. read more

I recently visited Bears Basic in Berkeley, and it was a mixed experience. I was excited to find some school swag, and they definitely have a decent selection of Cal gear. You can find everything from hoodies to hats, which is great for showing school spirit! However, I was a bit disappointed with the quality of some items. The prices weren't exactly cheap, and for what I paid, I expected a bit more durability and better materials. Some of the Bay Area gear also felt like it was lacking in uniqueness, making it hard to justify the cost. The store itself is nice and well-organized, and the staff were friendly and helpful. read more

A lot of the shirts at futura/t-shirt orgy are funny, but they also have some really offensives ones. Just because something is controversial it doesn't make it funny or edgy. The worst was a shirt depicting a mass lynching from a tree (bodies hanging from ropes) and there were a few others where the targets were: blacks, jews, latinos. Way over the line and around the corner. I'll never shop there again and there are many people that feel the same way. read more

Cheaper than ASUC and a little more variety, but you often get what you pay for. Nice place if you have family/friends visiting and they just want to buy a cheap sweatshirt or something. read more

The owner of Bear Basics, Ken, is a total scumbag. Ask any of his employees. He leers at people and is openly abusive. Boycott bear basics. Signed a former employee read more

If you need to find a funky t-shirt or Cal gear, T-shirt orgy is the store to go to. They have a fabulous selection of t-shirts.

Huge selection of tee shirts and most of them are good prices. There is room for customer service. I definitely go back.

Ridiculous over-priced shirts for wannabe sissie poseur gangbangers. Newsflash: People in gangs laugh at these shirts.

Over whelming but you can find any t-shirt you could ever want.

Every item is overpriced and the asian bitch needs to go.

Great place to get your Cal needs.