Photo: Jen Fedrizzi / Special To The Chronicle 2016 Photo: Jen Fedrizzi / Special To The Chronicle 2016 Photo: Jen Fedrizzi / Special To The Chronicle 2016

In the center of Swan’s Market, chefs hawk crispy fish tacos, oyster po’ boys, Japanese beef curry and colorful cupcakes in a shared space that’s always booming with activity. More than 10 food businesses operate out of the same building, creating one of Oakland’s most popular dining destinations.

But with that tight configuration comes the capacity for tension between adjacent businesses. This summer, accusations of battery, sexual harassment and stalking have swirled through Swan’s Market, leaving two popular restaurants in a standoff. Now, the entire food hall is feeling the effects of one incident that has spiraled into something much bigger, with one restaurateur concerned about her safety, a neighboring staffer worried about jail time and other Swan’s workers wondering how they can all move forward.

At the center of the conflict are Dominica Rice-Cisneros, owner of the Mexican restaurant Cosecha, and Oscar Duran, a server at the neighboring Japanese restaurant B-Dama. Rice-Cisneros said Duran physically assaulted her during a lunch service in late June, but other workers at Swan’s Market say that’s untrue.

“This is just another instance of women in business not being taken seriously,” Rice-Cisneros said. After the incident, Rice-Cisneros pressed battery charges against Duran and filed for a restraining order. Duran disputes that anything resembling an assault happened as he awaits a court date.

Rice-Cisneros is among the most prominent food figures in Oakland, a former Chez Panisse chef often credited for sparking the revival of the historic food hall by opening her Mexican cafe there in 2011. She’s built her reputation on community activism, vocally supporting both women in restaurants and immigrants.

Yet several people at Swan’s Market say Rice-Cisneros exhibits aggressive behavior toward workers. When asked about such interactions, Rice-Cisneros pointed to the open floor plan of her restaurant.

“The market has no doors,” Rice-Cisneros said. “I’m not hiding from anybody.”

On July 22, both parties appeared at the Hayward Hall of Justice, where a judge recommended four months of mediation between the two restaurants and suspended the restraining order request until November. Duran will return to court on Aug. 30 for a hearing related to the misdemeanor battery charge.

What has now become known around Swan’s Market as “the incident” took place June 28 during a busy Friday lunch rush. Rice-Cisneros was clearing a table in a central dining area shared by the four businesses that surround it, and chatting with customers when Duran approached from behind, carrying two loaded trays to a party two tables past Rice-Cisneros.

Photo: Jen Fedrizzi / Special To The Chronicle 2016

That’s where the accounts begin to differ. Rice-Cisneros said Duran yelled at her to get out of the way and shoved her in the back.

Duran, however, said he lightly bumped her with a tray as he tried to get around her, and that all he said was “excuse me, behind” in Spanish.

On July 23, the Swan’s Market building owner released security footage to the police and the two restaurants. B-Dama owner Chikara Ono believes that the video shows that Duran never touched Rice-Cisneros.

Rice-Cisneros, however, chose not to watch it. “I don’t need to watch it. I was there,” she said.

Security video of the incident reviewed by The Chronicle doesn’t appear to show any pushing or shoving — the two barely seem to touch. DaMaris Sanagu, the head cook at the Cook and Her Farmer, said she could see the interaction and saw no contact between Rice-Cisneros and Duran.

“I didn’t see any aggression from either of them,” she said.

After the incident, Rice-Cisneros said she hoped B-Dama owner Ono would take disciplinary action — but Ono believed his employee’s word that he hadn’t done anything wrong.

Distraught, Rice-Cisneros called the police the following Monday. Officers arrived and cited Duran for battery, noting in their police report that he seemed hostile.

The next week, Rice-Cisneros filed a request for a restraining order. The court document details more accusations, including sexual harassment and stalking of a Cosecha cashier.

On Monday in court, the judge read aloud a letter from the cashier in which she said she doesn’t feel comfortable working in the same space as Duran. Since February, he’s been overly friendly, tried to hug her goodbye on multiple occasions, stared at her intensely and once insisted on giving her a piece of chocolate, according to her letter.

Duran denies sexually harassing or stalking the cashier, though he did indeed attempt to give her chocolate. Nonetheless, Rice-Cisneros told The Chronicle that Duran’s presence represents a safety concern for young women at Swan’s Market.

“I don’t feel safe taking out the trash or going to the bathroom because I have to pass B-Dama,” she said.

The tensions have extended to the entire staffs of the restaurants.

Photo: Jen Fedrizzi / Special To The Chronicle 2016

Rice-Cisneros said she wants all of B-Dama’s employees to receive sexual harassment training and for Ono to take the matter seriously.

Meanwhile, B-Dama employee Basilia Domingo said in a written statement shared with The Chronicle that Rice-Cisneros once pulled her by her shirt collar across the market to implore her to pick up a stray bottle.

“I felt very bad in front of the customers. It was a great shame for me,” Domingo wrote in Spanish.

Rice-Cisneros denies that happened but said she is well aware of her reputation as, in her words, “a mean boss-lady.”

As for Duran, an undocumented immigrant from Mexico, he said he’s extremely stressed and worries that someone will call immigration authorities. He’s concerned about his mom and sister, whom he helps support by working 50 to 60 hours a week, including at a second restaurant at night.

“I’m having a panic situation, because I think the police will come and take me to jail,” he said.

The conflict has spread to affect other Swan’s workers, who say the atmosphere feels strained.

“It’s not the same anymore. Everybody is quiet,” said Sanagu, the chef at the Cook and Her Farmer. “They’re scared.”

Janelle Bitker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: janelle.bitker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @janellebitker