LEVEECAFE in Isleton, CA is a small restaurant located just off the dyke road. LEVEECAFE is the first thing you see when entering the town, and it beckons the tourist to pause and stop in town for an hour. The café features traditional home style cooking. And so, you should not expect to find any of the weird concoctions that sometimes pass as «California Cuisine,» such as Korean burritos, vegan/organic/gluten-free soy-based lamb shank, or cilantro frankfurters. No, no, no! In addition to providing conventional and traditional home-style cooking, such as omlettes, Levee Café is distinguished by the large windows on three sides, which provide a «sense of place» to the hungry guest. The décor on the walls takes the form of retro artifacts from the 1950s. My FIVESTAR rating is a reflection of the magical qualities of the general location, that is, the dike road, the sleepy bayous of the Sacramento Delta, the assortment of photogenic bridges, and the groves of walnut trees, and of how well Levee Café fits into the ambiance of this lovely region of northern California. In case my message is not totally clear, Levee Café fits into the ambiance of this area, because of its traditional décor and cuisine, and because of the absence of any fricken flat screen TVs, and absence of video game machines.
Cory W.
Place rating: 1 Studio City, CA
So very bad. We were having a great day and then we went to the Levee Café and it made us sad. Very, very sad. I hope no unfortunate sole ever finds themselves here. You will leave sad as well. By the way, if you feel that you still must go here despite this very legitimate review… Don’t get the country fried steak. It comes with hair cooked into it. Hair. Sad day. Go somewhere else. If I could give negative stars I would.
Tawni J.
Place rating: 2 Oakhurst, CA
Where to start? Well, the service was beyond underwhelming. Most of the time our«waiter» was more interested in his phone than us. My bf and I ordered a linguisa and cheese sandwich with homemade potatoe salad and a pattie melt with a green salad. Even though we were the only people put of four tables in the restaurant who had no food and were ordering, it took a solid 15 minutes at least to cook our food. When the waiter brought our food, he didn’t bring us forks to eat our sides with nor napkins. He then proceeded to go clean a dirty table that had been sitting there for at least 7 minutes while he played on the phone. After waiting a moment, I asked for forks and napkins. He said«Oh yeah one moment» and then continued cleaning the table for a few more minutes before actually getting us our forks and napkins. About the only thing he did right was Refill my iced tea before I ran out. While doing so however, he took the time to mention that if I used the pink packets of sweet and low I could use fewer packets to sweeten my tea than I was using of regular sugar. Now I understand that I do tend to use quite a bit of sugar in my iced tea, however, you should never ever make a comment like that to a random patron let alone a woman patron. The food ended up being ok. Nothing special at all and certainly not anything I would consider seeking out again, but it was edible and tasted alright. Don’t order the salad as it’s just a mess of iceberg lettuce with a smidgen of carrots and tomatoes.
Smudge T.
Place rating: 2 Felton, CA
There’s not much open whenever I pass through Isleton, so it’s usually the Levee Café for me. Standard fare and typical diner food. One cook and one server, so don’t expect super fast service. If you want your coffee refilled, sit at the counter.
Matt H.
Place rating: 3 Yountville, CA
I was riding my bike from San Francisco to Sacramento. Passed Levee Café in Isleton. It was a sight for sore eyes. I needed some coffee! The service, the food, and the coffee were good, but unremarkable. I had the huevos rancheros. Tasted Ok, but had a little too much melted cheese. Hash Browns on the side were tasty. Not worth a special trip, but if your passing by it’s a decent café.
Leslie C.
Place rating: 1 Emeryville, CA
We went in for breakfast. There was two customers at one table eating. The employees were in the kitchen. We selected a table and sat down. The employees ducked behind the wall and snuck glances at us but remained in hiding. We waited for about 10 minutes and left. What was that all about???
Carol W.
Place rating: 5 Elk Grove, CA
We come here for both breakfast and lunch often. Food tastes homemade and there’s always a lot of it. The place is a little sparse on decoration but what’s there is eclectic and interesting. The bathrooms are clean, Just a little cold. Staff is always friendly. Prices are good for the amount of food you get. There’s a reason we keep coming back here.
Scott H.
Place rating: 5 Isleton, CA
First time in the Levee Café. It is clean, friendly, food is good, prices are comparable to any«mom & pop» café. I had a good breakfast. I will go back.
Richard C.
Place rating: 2 Livermore, CA
Decent food, won’t make you sick, but won’t make you say«hurray» either. Stopped off in the middle of a motorcycle trip hoping for a decent lunch. They have some unusual mexican food on their menu which I did not eat. Had a green chili omelette and a pancake and some hash browns. Each of the three was about a 4.5 out of 10 in terms of flavor. Even the ketchup was slightly below average. The atmosphere is nice, the people working here are friendly. They just have kind of not-good food. I won’t be back. My two travel companions agreed.
Michelle A.
Place rating: 4 San Mateo, CA
We were cruising the delta on a Sunday afternoon and planned to stop in Levee for lunch. This town is a ghost town on Sundays. The group of 16 of us walked in and completely overwhelmed the poor waitresses. We sat at 4 separate small tables in the quaint dining room. The food is mainly sandwiches, salads, and Mexican options. I got the tuna melt with homemade potato salad. It was great, but the potato salad had a bit too much mayo for the bf and I. The bf got a patty melt that he gobbled up. My friend Colin R. was the only one in our group to get a Mexican option and everyone was jealous when his food came. So if you are stopping by this small town Levee Café is a great place to stop and slow down.
ErUta N.
Place rating: 3 Santa Cruz, CA
I haven’t been here for brunch, but the lunch I had was solid yet unremarkable. The deli w/cat & ice cream(not to be consumed at the same time) was closed when I biked through so I stopped here.
Bruce C.
Place rating: 4 Walnut Grove, CA
This little spot with a pink building in Isleton is not too much to look at and the interior decorations are dated and funky, but the breakfast is probably the best in the Delta. The business is family owned and they make their own toritillas, salsa and other mexican sides. Both the traditional and mexican food breakfasts were excellent and nice portions. Not too much left in Isleton these days, but this is a spot worth having breakfast at and you can use the Isleton dock boat in and walk to the café. The locals love the lunches and say the mexican food is very good for lunch as well
Stewart B.
Place rating: 3 East Bay, CA
We really like the Huevos Ranchero’s here. I am also a fan of the Chorizo and Eggs.
Lori S.
Place rating: 5 San Ramon, CA
Had the breakfast burrito. Both times. So yummy. Coffee and a nice breakfast just s a nice stop off. Refreshing. Always go back for more…
J D.
Place rating: 4 Mountain View, CA
we had a late lunch here on 8⁄7. I ordered the BLT with fries. It was good and they were generous with the B, L and T. My husband got the Chile Colorado and LOVED it. He kept saying over and over how good it was. He thought the tortillas were homemade. He was estatic and we will defintily be back. The place definitely had a «locals» vibe but they were friendly enough. With sodas the tab was $ 20 and the food was good. Can’t complain!
Daniel U.
Place rating: 4 Los Angeles, CA
Well, I was up in the Delta for my friends wedding at the Grand Island Mansion and found myself at this little café that is really just locals. We had the option of paying 29.99 for the brunch at the Ryde Hotel down the street or go to Isleton. So we went to Isleton. Our first choice had stopped serving breakfast and that was all we wanted. Now it’s not super fancy, but they have a great selection of omelettes, good hash brown and yummy pancakes. I ordered the eggs with chicken fried steak that was covered in gravy. We were greedy and me and two friends each had eggs and then ordered a stack of pacakes that were like homemade. Not too thick but fresh and delicious. For the price of what we would’ve paid for a fancy brunch, we ate for four. You can’t beat that.