Pete's Hardware

This place is great for all those little things that come up when I am working in Castro Valley. Some of their staff members really know their stuff. Many of their items are on the pricey side, but when you factor in what your time is worth and customer service, it is worth it.

I needed smoker chips for my Luhr-Jensen Little Chief smoker. Walmart and Home Depot were listed as distributors but they were out. ACE was also listed. I called the Hayward ACE because it's closer to me but they didn't have this brand. They recommended Pete's in Castro Valley which is about 5 miles from my home. I called and asked an employee if they had chips for the Little Chief smoker. He said yes. I said "these are made specifically for the Little Chief smoker right?". I got a very exasperated "YES" from him. I thought "oh well, at least they have them" but I was a little irritated at the guy's tone. So i go to the store and my spirits rose because I saw aisles and aisles of great stuff. I went to the barbecue section and found regular smoking chips but not the kind I needed. I asked a cashier if she knew where iI could find them and she told me to go to the aisle and somebody would help me. Nobody came. I went back to her after some time and asked again. She seemed surprised that nobody came. She called this guy over and told him to help me. He was not smiling or happy. He came with me and showed me the wood chips they had. I told him they weren't what I needed and that I called ahead and was told they had them. He said "that's all we have". His whole demeanor showed he didn't care. I didn't even want to deal with him anymore. I bought a bag of regular chips because i was desparate. I told the cashier my tale of woe but she was equally unmoved. I'll never go back or recommend that place to anybody.