Mahershala Ali talks BART, his favorite Bay Area restaurant and new Oakland film

Actor and executive producer Mahershala Ali speaks onstage before the premiere of "We Are The Dream" on February 11, 2020 in Oakland, California. (Photo by FilmMagic/FilmMagic for HBO) Actor and executive producer Mahershala Ali speaks onstage before the premiere of "We Are The Dream" on February 11, 2020 in Oakland, California. (Photo by FilmMagic/FilmMagic for HBO) Photo: FilmMagic/FilmMagic For HBO Photo: FilmMagic/FilmMagic For HBO Image 1 of / 23 Caption Close Mahershala Ali talks BART, his favorite Bay Area restaurant and new Oakland film 1 / 23 Back to Gallery

Mahershala Ali is no stranger to the Bay Area.

The two-time Oscar winning star of “Moonlight” and “Green Book” was born in Oakland, grew up in Hayward, played college basketball at Saint Mary’s in Moraga, and even released a hip-hop album under the moniker Prince Ali on iconic Oakland label, Hieroglyphics Imperium.

The actor returned to the Bay Area this week for the Fox Theater premiere of his latest project, “We Are The Dream: The Kids of the Oakland MLK Oratorical Fest.” Alongside his wife Amatus Sami-Karim, Mahershala executive produced the HBO documentary, which follows a group of children training in public speaking as they prepare to deliver on-stage performances of personal poems and iconic speeches like Martin Luther King Jr.’s "I’ve Been to the Mountaintop."

We chatted with him about his his new film, his favorite Bay Area restaurant and the last time he rode BART.

:::

SFGATE: Is there a place you always have to visit when you come back to the Bay Area?

Mahershala Ali: My grandmother’s house. And I definitely hit Lake Merritt when I’m coming out this way. Just being in the Bay Area in general is something that always feeds me and grounds me. I can’t stay away too long, because it’s just changing so rapidly. If I’m gone for more than a year and I come back, sometimes it’s a little bit jarring to see some of the physical changes to the city. But I always make sure I hit up Lake Merritt.

SFGATE: What’s something you always eat while you’re here?

Ali: I love Burma Superstar in the Temescal area. Unfortunately, they don’t take reservations.

SFGATE: Do you remember the last time you rode BART?

Ali: I do remember, because I got off BART, and the Berkeley police pulled me over. They said I fit the description of a pimp. I was walking with a friend, and they took my license while I was talking with my grandmother in my earbuds. That would’ve been probably 2012.

SFGATE: You released a rap album early in your career, do you have a favorite Bay Area rapper?

Ali: Well, I love Hieroglyphics in general. They were so inspiring to so many of us. Lyrically and with their production, they were on par with anybody in New York at the time.

SFGATE: You executive produced "We Are The Dream" about the MLK Oratorical competition, would you have participated in this type of event as a kid?

Ali: If I was aware of it, I would have. And if I had the type of teachers that these young people have. The community here is so ready to support them and uplift them. Which is in part why I wanted to be involved in the project, because it’s definitely worthy of attention.

SFGATE: Would you write your own speech or perform a famous one?

Ali: I’m not sure. Maybe I would’ve tried to write something, but I love the courage of Gregory Payton in taking on the Martin Luther King Jr. "Mountaintop" speech.

Dan Gentile is a digital editor at SFGATE. Email: Dan.Gentile@sfgate.com | Twitter: @Dannosphere