Cafe California Restaurant

On Sunday May ²²⁄₂₀₁₆ @9pm. I and my friend were dine at Café California restaurant. We both were seated on patio for 15mins, no menu and drink on the table. Manage and waiter keep ignoring us. Gay Asians unfriendly restaurant. I will not recommend to dine at Café California. Then we left the restaurant. We went to Byzantium-​Toronto. The best Lamb Burger and the waiter, great and friendly.

Came here for Winterlicious 2016 with 2 of my friends and we enjoyed our food. I had the artichoke dip with bread, steak and veggies, and the crème caramel for dessert. It was good!!! My friends also enjoyed their food as well. The restaurant gets packed fairly quickly as it is a small space, and it was the last few days of winterlicious at the time. The only reason I’m giving it a 4 star instead of a 5 is because the service was a little slow and our table was next to the door so it got a bit cold, but other than that it was great!

Stopped in for a Sunday lunch, decent place. Food is good and service staff are friendly. Simple but pleasant.

Hit this place for January’s Winterlicious. Twice. This was Lobster Mac and Cheese, Striploin Steak, and a Chocolate Brownie (with a bottle of wine, of course!). Delicious as always. Got in without a reservation. Tons of lobster in the Lobster Mac and Cheese: it was so good I forgot to take a photo until halfway through. Striploin was done nicely, even ate all my vegetables which never happens. So much food, we took dessert home for later.
Place got packed very quickly and there were only 2 servers plus a runner/​busser, but I found them polite, attentive and willing to help each other out. Liked the ambiance (casual but grown up), and even when a large group of 10 showed up, the noise volume was never overwhelming. Clean, professional, tasty.

I went to this place for Winterlicious 2016 with 5 friends.
I ordered the bruschetta with goat cheese and apple. The others got lobster Mac and cheese, and calamari. The calamari was pretty good. Bruschetta was decent. The lobster Mac and cheese was a bit cold. One bite was warm but the next bite was cold.
Long wait time between food most likely due to Winterlicious. The filet mignon was alright, it wasn’t the best filet mignon I’ve ever eaten. The chocolate brownie was not too moist or crunchy but a little bit in between. I think I like it.
Overall, if it wasn’t for Winterlicious, I probably wouldn’t come. The price was a bit hefty and I’ve gone to better.

Booked a table at this restaurant for winterlicious after reading all the positive things about it on redflagdeal. Kind of disappointed with the whole experience.
Food:Took 30 minutes plus to arrive, food is just ok. Portions are very uneven (a lot of mash potato but very little beef?). My boyfriend and I ordered a beef veil and butter chicken. Acceptable meal but for $ 30, I have been to a lot of other better restaurants.
Ambiance: the worst– the way they put their tables and chairs is unacceptable. I was right at the door and it was so cold… People keep bumping into me every five minutes while I’m eating. I’ll not come back again. Ever.
Servers are nice though.

Decent place right in the heart of Church and Wellesley. Although the fact the Lobster Mac & Cheese looked a bit like Kraft Dinner, it was amazing and packed with lobster meat! The Pulled Pork Sandwich wasn’t as good as I had hoped, because it barely had any meat; instead, it was filled with a ton of big onion and pepper chunks.

Was heading down Church street seeking Saturday late brunch. Wanted to try a place that I had had on my list which was serving brunch until 4 PM. Went in at 3:40 and was told too late for brunch. So I kept going and found this place just south of Wellesley. It too had a sign out front saying brunch till four. Poked my head in the door and asked if I was too late and the friendly waiter welcomed me in. Had eggs Benedict with salmon and spinach and a Mimosa. Benedict was served on half a croissant and normally I would’ve preferred English muffin but in fact this does the trick better because there is no chance that there is a hard base caused by an overlooked or cold muffin. With just the right amount of home fries and a tasty small salad this was a great tasty brunch for all in just $ 19. Fate served me well.

Food is good. Dessert not so much! We had the butter chicken which tasted very authentic! Would definetly come here again.

I had lunch at Café California for the summerlicious menu, and it was delicious; I had the spinach dip, steak and chocolate mousse. The spinach dip was very creamy and flavourful; the fries that was a side of the steak was crunchy and cooked perfectly; lastly — the chocolate mousse was very rich. Overall, the meal was delicious and the price was good — I will definitely go again in the future!

Vintage ambiance, good food and great service (the waiters are actually so friendly here). Went for summerlicious. Quite an interesting menu.

I’ve been here twice. Recently I went for Summerlicious lunch and for $ 18, they had a pretty good variety to choose from. The atmosphere was cozy and food was great. Only complaint was the mimosas I ordered was not very good although the last time I ordered it was very good. So I guess it’s just based on the bartender. Staff was very pleasant and I would recommend this place to friends.

Visited end of April 2015
The sidewalk sign caught our attention «Dinner for two for $ 69» which consisted of two appetizers, two mains, two desserts and a bottle of wine. What a bargain!
Also, the fact we were both hungry and thought it’ll be nice to try a restaurant that we haven’t tried before since we hardly venture on Church Street. Seeing that there were still people in the restaurant around 8:30ish was a good sign.
We were greeted warmly upon entering and seated rather quickly. Service was very casual and friendly which was fitting for the casual place where the server was dressed in shorts, buttoned shirt and running shoes. Our server seemed to arrive at the right times and was quite attentive, but not overbearing.
The wine selection was limited, but we managed to choose a decent bottle of red which wasn’t bad tasting at all. I like to think one cannot go wrong with a shiraz because it’s medium to full-​bodied wine.
The food on the other hand was a little underwhelming, but what did we expect when the price was that low? I guess we were expecting a good bargain with good food. That sidewalk sign was definitely good advertising.
We shared the bruschetta plus kale and quinoa falafel salad which weren’t that bad, since flavours blended nicely and was quite tasty that we finished both appetizers. Perhaps fact that we were both hungry contributed to the results.
For the mains, we both ordered the steak dish which was not quite the nice cut of steak. That probably explained why it was drenched in a mushroom sauce to mask the meat. The steak was tough and chewy, but since we were both hungry, we just ate the steaks and cut around all the fatty parts. The mains did come with a somewhat healthy portion of vegetables and mashed potatoes which was cooked nicely.
For desserts, we both had the crème brûlée which was tasty as the top crackled and the custard was nice and smooth.
Our server had to check out since the restaurant was closing at 10:30pm on a Thursday night, but indicated that we can stay and take our time while we finish our desserts and remainder of the wine.
Overall, it was a decent dining experience and perhaps I’ll return to try their regular menu, but I won’t be rushing back anytime soon.

Visited for a dinner Winterlicious after seeing the decent reviews. In short: pretty good service, pretty good food, could work on their décor. 3.5−4 stars
I ordered the Calamari Diablo, the 8oz Veal Chop and the Apple Crumble Tart. I had plenty of pieces of calamari, it was quite tasty but I didn’t like how the sauteed cherry tomatoes made it soggy as I was eating it. Sauce was alright, it wasn’t spicy but it was a nice sort of yogurt sauce if anything. The veal chop was tender and I really enjoyed the roasted red potatoes. The pink peppercorn sauce was a nice addition. The apple crumble was alright, it could’ve been more special honestly. It was just a pie crust with some apples and unbaked crumble on top. Tasted alright, wasn’t spectacular.
My partner ordered the Lobster Mac & Cheese, the 8oz Filet Mignon and the Amarula Liqueur Cheesecake. There were a few chunks of lobster so that was good, it wasn’t just «lobster-​flavoured», but it was a bit too cheesy. if that’s possible haha. The crostini had a nice garlicky crunch to it. My partner claimed that the filet mignon was one of the top steaks they’ve ever had as it was super tender even for a well-​done piece and it was very flavourful. It was more tender than my veal chop somehow. The mashed potatoes were pretty good and I feel like. restaurants in general could do better with their vegetables than boil and salt/​pepper so it’s not just here. We weren’t sure what amarula liqueur tasted like so we expected it to be a coffee liqueur, but much to our surprise it wasn’t and it wasn’t too bad! I just felt like it was a bit heavy even for a cheesecake.
I honestly didn’t care for how it was decorated, it looked really old and there was a discoball hanging over the grand piano in the tightest corner of the front of the restaurant. It totally needs an update.
Looking back I did have a lot of complaints but overall it was ok. We looked at the menu outside of their restaurant when we left and saw that it was a little expensive normally so I’m glad I came for Winterlicious.

My husband and I tried this restaurant during Winterlicious. The staff was very friendly and attentive, even though they were super busy as the place was packed. Our lunch included Lobster Mac & Cheese, Pulled Pork Sandwich, Beer Battered Onion Rings, Mediterranean Bruschetta, Chocolate Mousse Cake & Cheesecake. The hot food was really good, made me wanna try their regular menu someday.

4.5 stars
Was here not once, but TWICE for Winterlicious. Came with the gals on the weekend and was so impressed that I booked another reservation three days later for my fiancé’s birthday. I ordered the exact same courses each time too. Calamari, Filet Mignon and the Cheesecake. Honestly the best steak I’ve ever had. Having a Homer Simpson moment right now just thinking about it: «mmmmm that was so good, I wish I was eating it right now.»
I will admit– Meena’s pasta dish was quite blasé, and it was a packed house that night so the service suffered a bit. But the food I ordered was SO good, I couldn’t resist going back, especially at three courses for $ 25. And the service we received the second time around was excellent.
I understand some folks don’t think Winterlicious paints an accurate description of what the restaurant is really like, but I really enjoyed myself and if those two visits come even a little close to what Café California is like the rest of the year, I’ll definitely be back.

SO pretty sure my dining companions had a much lovelier experience than I (see Elle R and Mon F’s reviews). But Café California does NOT have their veg shit or service down.
The salad was hella boring and had no dressing. The fusilli had no seasoning, no pasta sauce, was not al dente, the veggies were overdone — I had to add tablespoons of salt and pepper to make the thing edible. Was expecting the apple crumble to be a la mode — which it was not.
We were not asked once how we liked any of our courses. Servers made obvious efforts to avoid eye contact with our table while offering GREAT service to other tables.
Ageism. ‘Tis not dead.

Did lunch here with 6. Each entrée was enjoyed by all. Service was excellent and prompt and reasonably priced for the quantity and quality of food. The entrée I had was unique and like to stray from the ordinary. Warmed beet salad with a salmon topper was just perfect for lunch. As I’m not a huge lunch eater. Atmosphere was bright at noon and like how well spaced the tables were. Service was prompt and most courteous.

I came here for lunch. Got the Caesar salad (large) with chicken. It literally was lettuce, some dressing, four croutons and some chicken. For $ 18 I expected something a bit more memorable. I also got a beer, which was warm, quite an achievement in the current temperature. Left $ 30 later hungry and unhappy.
Server was nice though. And prompt!

My friend and I were going to a concert and we wanted to eat a «hearty» meal before the concert. My friend had once been to this establishment and really enjoyed it, so I was curious to try it. We arrived at around 2pm for Summerlicious. The restaurant was pretty dead, but it was 2pm after all. There was a family on the other side of the room with a whaling baby. Perfect.
I ordered the Caprese salad for the appetizer, the chicken souvlaki for my main and the crème caramel for dessert. My friend ordered the bruschetta for her appetizer, the stir fry for her main and the chocolate cake for dessert.
We got our food really quickly which was nice. I got my salad and was annoyed with myself from not letting them know to omit the onions. Though nowhere in the description did it say that the salad contained onions. My friend was nice enough to switch with me. The bruschetta was pretty tasty, although the bread was a little soggy. The salad was just a salad. Nothing special about it. It did not have a lot of flavor.
I got my main and again it was swimming in red onions (I removed them and took the picture after so you can’t see the onions in the picture). Argh, again! Why did I not tell them no onions. I spent 5 minutes removing the onions. The rice needed salt, the chicken was nice and moist but not enough of it. And then there was the salad that I ultimately did not touch. My friend liked her stir fry, but there was nothing special about it.
I love crème caramel and it’s pretty hard to mess it up. We were both satisfied with our desserts. Nothing mind blowing, but not bad either.
So why only 3 stars? The restaurant felt a little depressing. But I am sure the time we chose to have lunch had a lot to do with it. The whaling baby did not help either. But no one could help that I guess. But the food.; it was just okay, and after we left the restaurant I stopped off at a convenience store to buy chips because I was hungry! I don’t remember the last time I left a Summerlicious meal feeling hungry.