OAKLAND -- Two gunman wearing ski masks and black hoodies burst into a popular Oakland Italian restaurant after it had closed for the evening late Monday night, holding employees at gunpoint before fleeing with about $150 cash.

While technically not a takeover robbery, the heist was the latest in a series of crimes targeting Oakland restaurants . There have been eight takeover-style robberies and a handful of other armed robberies at eateries in the last few months.

Authorities said the gunman targeted the Pasta Pomodoro in the upscale Rockridge neighborhood at about 11 p.m. Monday. While no one was injured in the robbery, the employees closing down the restaurant and local residents were clearly shaken.

“We felt we were pretty safe here,” Ruth McDonald told KTVU. “I don’t know if it will change my habits, but you have to be concerned.”

A half hour later, two gunmen with a similar description robbed a Quik Stop store just three miles away. Police would not speculate on whether the two robberies were related.

The robberies came less than a week after Oakland police announced they were deploying undercover cops and additional street patrols. Even the Guardian Angels have taken to the Oakland streets in an effort to stop the crime wave.

Oakland police have asked for the public's help in identifying suspects connected to the eight takeover robberies and are offering a $30,000 reward for information leading to their arrests and convictions.

The suspects in those robberies were described as three black males in their late teens or early 20s, wearing dark clothing and ranging in height from 5 feet 4 inches to 6 feet 2 inches. In each of the robberies, there appeared to be one suspect significantly taller than the shortest one, police said.

All of the robberies have occurred around closing time. In each incident the suspects have entered the business through the front door and one has been armed with a handgun.

The suspects have taken money from the register as well as from customers in the restaurant.

So far, no injuries have been reported but police are concerned that the violence could escalate, Officer Roland Holmgren said.