Emil’s Burger & Breakfast

Located in Fruitvale Village, Emil’s Burger & Breakfast prides itself on the freshest ingredients, hand-selected by the owner daily and cooked fresh to order. They had been serving their customers on disposable paper and plastics. Now, people are noshing on their delicious burgers with reusable foodware and enjoying an elevated dining experience.

Five local Fruitvale restaurants — Emil’s Burger & Breakfast, Hogar Latino Panaderia Y Restaurant, La Torta Loca, Parra’s, and Powderface — teamed up to reduce single-use disposable waste by over 187,600 individual pieces and over 3,240 pounds annually. After an average payback period of 2.74 months, this group of restaurants will collectively be saving over $10,000 every year by purchasing fewer disposables — dramatically reducing plastic pollution in their operations, and providing real-time examples of businesses that are both eco-friendly and economical in the Fruitvale community. Read the full Fruitvale Community Restaurants Case Study here.

Packaging practices prior to ReThink Disposable:

Dine-in disposable foodware items included:

34 oz. Plastic bowls
7.75 In. Plastic straws
2 oz. Plastic sauce cups
20 oz. Paper cold cups
12 oz. plastic deli bowls
8 oz. Plastic deli bowl
Small paper food boats
Large paper food boats

Recommendations Implemented:

34 oz. Tempered glass bowls
8.5’’ Stainless steel straws
2 oz. Stainless steel sauce cups
22 oz. SAN reusable drink cups
16 oz. Stoneware bowls
8 oz. Porcelain bowls
Porcelain plates

Before & After

Packaging Before at Emil's Burger and Breakfast

Packaging After at Emil's Burger and Breakfast

Jake Lee, Chef and Owner Emil's Burger & Breakfast

CS_Fruitvale_09.26.24.pdf (4.41 MB)

Business Information:

Fruitvale Village
3301 E 12th St, #121
Oakland, CA 94601
United States

Website

The Bottom Line

Emil’s Burger & Breakfast switched 100% of their dine-in disposables to reusable for their on-site guests, with a 2.6 month payback period.

$2,433

net annual savings

34,380

disposable items reduced per year

702 lbs

annual waste reduction

Thank you so much. We love everything. We have already started using everything, and it is all so nice. So much better than what we were using!

-
Ana, Cashier at Emil’s

ReThink Disposable - Stop waste before it starts

Reducing Single-Use Food Packaging

ReThink Disposable works with local governments, businesses and institutions, and consumers of single use food packaging to inspire a cultural shift away from single-use "throwaway" lifestyle.

Learn More

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