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Categories: Southern, Breakfast & Brunch [Edit]
Neighborhood: Pacific Heights
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As Zack and I were walking down Fillmore, he mentioned that because of Yelp he can't pass restaurants without wondering what their star rating is. Me? I just look at a menu and if anything looks remotely interesting then I want it, because I like bright, shiny objects .
The moment we saw cornbread and deviled eggs on the menu, we knew we had to stop in.
Even though I wasn't all that hungry, we ordered deviled eggs, cornbread, and a half dozen west-coast oysters, served with freshly grated horseradish.
Absolutely amazing. The cornbread was a little crumbly, but the butter paired perfectly, and the oysters were fresh and savory, and the deviled eggs rivaled my grandmothers (please don't tell her I said that, she used to be a Drill Sergeant in the Army).
For dinner we split the kobe brisket and goat cheese (AMG!!lulz) mashed potatoes with asparagus, cherry tomatoes, and I could not have had a better dinner. Apparently my mind was somewhere else because when I brought it to work the next day for lunch, I totally forgot it was in there until like, 5 days later.
The Makers Mark Manhattan was good, but that's when I realised I didn't really like Manhattans. That didn't matter though, because it just gave me a reason to continually press the call button until I got bored and started doodling on the table with the pen I found at work that day.
5 stars for indulging in ADD child-like behaviour at a fancy restaurant. I can do what I want now, Mom and Dad! I'm paying for my own damn dinner!
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Came here for brunch. Service was really shitty (understaffed maybe but it took over 15 mins for our drinks. Uhhh). But the mac and cheese was sooo freakin good! Oh and the gumbo was all right. But the bisquits are the bomb!!!!! xoxo
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I had a craving for corned beef hash and thanks to the recos of Yelpers Darin E and Douggers M, I go myself over to the Elite Cafe. While it was "big enough to share", I ate it all as some things are too good to share.
The corned beef hash was listed as coming with eggs and bechamel sauce so I asked them to hold both and I would just munch on the cb hash, served on biscuits. The corned beef was obviously hand chopped and was mixed with diced carrots and celery and had some spice to it - excellent flavor and bonus points for adding a little of that Southern spice. Unusually (in my experience) the potato component of the hash was served alongside the corned beef, not intermixed. The potatoes were fried wedges of potatoes, not little cubes. An interesting take on the classic. The biscuits absorbed the juices and were good but not as good as the biscuits at the Pork Store, however, I think Elite Cafe has the edge when it comes to the hash itself. So yes, Elite Cafe gets my vote so far, when it comes to corned beef hash.
Also had some good homemade lemonade. Only drawback was the cost. CB hash, lemonade, tax and tip was something like $22 or so, way over my typical brunch budget. Much more reasonable if you share...
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They make excellent eggs Benedict and excellent French toast here. The corned beef hash is pretty good too, along with the potatoes. If crowds and slightly spotty service and potentially long waits on a Sunday morning don't bother you too much it's worth checking out.
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The first couple of places we tried on Fillmore were PACKED at 1:30 on a Saturday and we were trying to figure out our best option for getting lunch into my tiny-yet-always-starving sister-in-law and figured we would at least go across the street to see what that there Elite Cafe was all about. They seated us immediately and we got one of those hard-to-get-in-and-out-of-but-cool-because-they're-so-private booths and we had a delicious lunch.
Pros:
++ spicy fries
++ veggie burger
++ jambalaya
++ beignets
++ New Orleans style shrimp
Cons:
-- The shrimp were good, but the small portion isn't really a meal's worth.
-- No fountain soda.
I can't figure out why it wasn't as packed as the places across the street but it worked out well for us. Overall, very pleasant.
Okay, okay....so I went back again for dinner and this time it was absolutely splendid. We started off with wine (mmm, bubbly rose!) and then went to appetizers: the famous biscuits (flaky and buttery), California Seafood gumbo (I added lots of Tabasco and it was really good), and the Field Greens with Sliced Peaches (I need to make this salad myself, it's so delicious).
The waitress was really nice and kept checking on us as our courses arrived seamlessly. My main course was the small portion of Jambalaya - heavy on the seafood, light on the rice - a little unbalanced, but for the money, totally worth it.
They've redeemed themselves to four stars.
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07/07/2008
I'm not a huge fan of the food (see previous review) however, I will give them three stars for… Read more »
so...I'm sure you've all had that "parent dinner" where they come to visit you and harass you and shower you and your room mates with delicious food...if you haven't, you should be half grateful and half jealous. Its a chance for them to feel like they're being nice to their starving post graduate children and their peers, while also giving them the opportunity to weasel into your lives for at least an hour or two to get some bit of gossip that they can lecture you on. Come on, they live for it, you know they do. And we the children live to argue back.
Aaaaanyways, here I am, per usual, with no reservations on the day of dinner (not telling THEM that of course) even though I've had weeks to ponder location and times. Call several tapas places, all of course booked up for a party of 6. My room mate suggested Elite Cafe, which I had never been to. I call, they said they could fit an early dinner for a party of 6. GREAT!
My parents are blackberrying me (because they think they're hip and with it) because of course they are there 5 minutes early, while we're trying to hail a cab, and end up taking the bus and being 15 minutes late. I get there and realize what an idiot I am, that I miscounted and there were 8 of us, not 6. I could see the look on the hostesses face...it read "you fucking asshole...you think you can weasel 2 more people into this tiny ass restaurant with your late reservation and now you're screwing me over" when in reality she spoke "thats alright its my job I'll just do a little rearranging, no problem"...felt HORRIBLE about it though, I wanted to slip her a tip later when we left but she was gone. Anyways, blond hostess, love her for being so polite.
Wine was delicious...there was a mixture of red and whites at the table...and several people at the table had the quail with the cornbread stuffing...my friend had goat cheese mashed potatoes, I had the sirloin with au gratin potatoes. Portions were perfect, everything was well-seasoned. It was all in all a great meal. Even though we weren't really needy customers, I really appreciated our servers knowledge on the dishes and recommendations.
The noise started to pick up as our meal went on, but it was totally tolerable. The noise was partially our fault too, as my mom and I continued to drink and started humming along the tune to old school mario brothers. yea, it was that kinda dinner.
Dessert was what really sucked us in. We all wanted different things, so we all got our own. I ordered the pecan pie, which to my surprise was served with CINNAMON ice cream...WHOA. the pie was warm, delicious, etc. My room mate got the shortcake, which was equally good. The chocolate mud slides were taking awhile and so as a courtesy they brought out extra sorbets and bananas foster on the house. In total, for 8 people we had 10 desserts. It sent me into a food coma, but I had a damn good time getting there!
So there's my praise...here's my criticism...
At the end, my dad overtipped (sort of without realizing, sort of because he's a really generous tipper) but the manager came out to confirm it, which I thought was kinda tacky and odd, but I assume they've probably had problems with it before.
Also, at the bottom of the menu it says that a percentage is added to each bill for employee's health care. Also not that cool. On the customer end of things, I would be much more satisfied paying a percentage higher for each of the dishes. The percentage added on at the end is like that fee you pay for buying glass beer bottles. You know its there, but each time it comes around, it hurts. Just add on to the prices...
...which, might I add...are a bit expensive. Don't go here expecting a cheap date! Expect some awesome food and service though. Will definitely consider for the next occasion...woo hoo!
This place was very cool. Had the choice of sitting outside, on inside. The hostess was sweet, bartender was cool and waiter on parr. We sat in one of the tall booths. My wife and i was wondering about what the booths were used before in the past. On the onside of booth on the wall was a doorbell buzzer. When I pressed it, nothing happened. The place was classy, open space, the booths on one side and open bar on the other side. The bar, looked as though it had some classic SF regulars who would just sit at the bar and chill while enjoying a cold drink and people watching.
The wait staff were knowledgeable about the food, and menu.
We ordered some pancakes (ok), scrambled eggs and chix sausage,biscuits and deviled eggs (tasty). I also tried the homemade gingerale (verygood)
We did order a extra biscuit, but it never made it to the table. But it did make it on to the bill. When I mentioned it, the waiter looked at me like, are you going to quibble over a 2 bucks.. So I let it slide.
The place was cool, had the SF charm, very clean, knowledge/friendly wait staff, and okay food.
Spent approx $50 for two.
I loved this place. I love the taste of everything in this place. But got a big 'ole red-ish pube (definitely was not a hair from anyone's head) on my BBQ shrimp tonight.
We are the epitome of nice clients, and are never even close to being assholes to the employees of an establishment, myself being a server. By being a server, also know not to send things back, so I just pushed the offending dish away.
To pube planter--Why, oh why did we get the pube, who were you angry at? Will probably never go back to your establishment--(is that what you want--to drive people away?), even though my previous experiences were great. Eating out is a risk anyway as I am well aware, but geez, we were nice people at least...
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Few things impress me these days and I was really hoping Elite Cafe was going to be one of those lovely anticipatory meals, that everyone raves about and once you break down and try it, you totally realize why. My experience warrants an average meal at best cafe.
The menu is single paged and categorized into appetizers and entrees. The entrees are comprised of mostly meat and fish, no veggie option unless you just want biscuits and salad (which is exactly what I ended up having). The house biscuits hold up to their reputation of amazingness. They are sweet, flaky, and light. My heirloom tomato salad was good, but pretty small and not spectacular for the $11 price tag it came with. Our table had to ask for more cocktails and I wish our server could have suggested better fruity martinis instead of staring at me like I was the prissiest thing alive (maybe I am, but I just wanted a really rockin martini).
Elite Cafe has pretty good service and there food is good. Not great, good. If you are craving some Cajun and want a really good biscuit head on over.
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this place is very charming. I love how the booths are semi-enclosed and they have some outdoor seating as well! When I went here, I didn't know much about it (and unfortunately this particular morning my stomach was feeling fragile). Many of the brunch offerings were a bit too spicy or rich sounding for me that day (i.e. Cajun beef hash, seafood benedict), but the biscuits w/ strawberry butter were divine. I also tried the apple sausage (very greasy but good), the fresh fruit and the deviled eggs. And all except for the eggshell in my deviled egg, I had a great experience here.
This is my boring review because nothing happened.
Everything was great.
it was a beautiful day for Saturday brunch.
we had no plan, just walking on Fillmore St, talking about which movie we like to see and looking for a restaurant for brunch.
I said, "Hey, we haven't been there before."
my GF, "OK, let's go."
Just walking by and went into the cafe.
No line.
I had crab and egg benedict and home made ginger ale.
perfect poached egg.
I really enjoyed the ginger ale, not too sweet.
My GF had bacon, lettuce, heirloom tomato, salad with garlic bread.
Our waitress was very nice.
we had such a wonderful nice brunch.
I was having a great time, and I looked around and.....
I was here before.
There was an oyster bar facing to the street.
I remember I had 11 oyster shooters with dozen of raw oysters at once in here about 24 years ago.
I was so drunk like son of a bitch.
the next morning, I woke up late, I got a hangover + stomachache like son of a bitch.
so I had one bloody mary to fix them, but I vomited like son of a bitch.
I think I was in my bathroom for a while........about an hour.
Sonofabitch!
My room mate told me later that I looked like a dog licking inside of the stool.
What a waste.
I have heard the owner has changed but I am happy to see that same Elite cafe still on Fillmore.
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There's just something off-kilter about the Elite Cafe lately. I liked it a lot when it was primarily a sharp-flavored Cajun-Creole restaurant, its identity for the greater part of two decades. But things changed when the owners decided to de-emphasize the N'awlins part and become a more standard American bistro a couple of years back. My friend Maggie and I returned here for lunch on Saturday after our respective massages since we wanted something a bit hearty.
First off, we were not impressed with the service. We were seated in the back near the restroom entrance and with a gurgling baby squealing at us from his carriage parked outside his parents' exclusive booth. We had to keep adjusting our table since the chairs were squeezed uncomfortably against the backs of customers who have already seized control of the real estate. Our waiter - when he finally came - was particularly tall and didn't want to bend over to hear our orders.
Maggie went for the $16 Chesapeake Bay Soft Shell Crab Po-Boy on Sourdough, which looked pretty good. I went for the standby, the $12.50 All-Natural Beef Burger which came with bacon, cheese and chipotle mayonnaise. What kind of bugged me is that the waiter didn't ask me what kind of cheese I wanted, at which point he looked like he was making up a shopping list. I have to say that the fries were good and the burger was awfully tasty nonetheless.
Oh, and one other piece of joy - a place that actually serves deviled eggs can't be dismissed entirely. Maggie and I shared the $3.95 three-fer of Dona Luisa's Infamous Deviled Eggs (see my photo), and they were delish in that Kraft Country Kitchen-Miracle Whip kind of way. They had Martha Stewart-level piping and were sprinkled generously with paprika.
Alas, the service never did improve over the course of our meal. He never asked us if we wanted dessert and simply dropped our check the moment Maggie dropped her last fry. The crowds never subsided either as people were milling about and grazing our table with abandon. Don't they know who I am? I'm Yelp Elite, and this is the Elite Cafe. I should be the most important diner in here, dammit!
FOOD - 4 stars...if I were basing my rating simply on the food, I think it would rest securely in the four-star range, BUT...
SERVICE - 2 stars...indifferent service brings the rating down
AMBIANCE - 2.5 stars...maybe a booth would have been nice, but I didn't care for the side table near to the restroom
TOTAL - 3 stars...you're lucky that I left it at three stars, Elite Cafe ...I deserve more respect!
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I've become a bit of a brunch junkie. You know what I'm thinking about now and then when we're out having drinks, dancing and painting the town red? How brunch is going to taste the next morning. And it's truly no insult. I'm just obsessed!
So you'll have to forgive me for giving a "meh" review for Elite Cafe. It's just with all of the great places to go in the city, I can't imagine why a person would come here. My huevos rancheros weren't authentic enough to be Mexican and not experimental enough to be exciting.
I have to admit, I did pass up their homemade biscuits, which have a cult following. Maybe if I had indulged this would be a 4 star meal? Dunno. The brunch parade marches on!
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We got a gift card from here about 18 months ago and have since moved out of the city, so we hadn't gotten the chance to use it. But used it we did on Saturday night. We ordered biscuits, that insanely good salad with peaches and almonds, and the kobe beef sirloin entree, oh and peach and blackberry cobbler for me. The food was amazing. Minus one star for the seating situ; I asked for a romantic table and got a run of the mill one with waiters knocking my purse off my chair a few times. There are some cozy booths along the wall that would have been perfect.
But I digress. The food = freaking outstanding. I'm still trying to figure out how to replicate the salad at home, and the entree was amazing. You can't go wrong with Kobe beef. The cobbler was indeed a cobbler with a biscuit topping and cinnamon ice cream. The service was OUTSTANDING. The waitress was super nice and friendly and sweet and attentive. She ruled. Dinner was freaking awesome. We'll be back (sadly without a gift card next time).
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Great spot. Really good drinks, especially the bloody mary (garnished with the usual olive, onion, celery, but also a cube of pepper jack cheese).
We rolled in, out-of-the-blue and sat outside. It's a lovely street for people-watching. But, I can't say anything as to the ambiance because we were outside. Anyway....The deviled eggs are AMAZING. Order them! The garlic mashed potatoes were great. Fried Okra was great. Tomato salad was very yummy. Service was good. I had a very nice, pleasant, fulfilling experience and would recommend this place to anyone who is in the neighborhood and wants a delicious, low-stress meal.
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*** 3.5 stars, rounded up ***
I love Southern food. When I say "I love Southern food," I mean the good, deep-fried, fatty food (grits, biscuits 'n' gravy, cornbread, pork chops, etc), and NOT the disgusting, green, good-for-you garbage (okra, collard greens, etc). But, one can never have the good without the bad.
Somehow, the name Elite Cafe kept coming up in conversations, and I knew I had to go there. The place did not disappoint: interesting, 1920s art deco decor with booths alongside the wall. The booths were reminiscent of an old train station, but they looked surprisingly inviting. (Disclaimer: I have to say that I love walking around Grand Central Station in New York and Union Station in Washington, DC. If it's not your thing, you might end up hating it). Unfortunately, we didn't get a booth: they were occupied, mostly by parties of 3 or more. Instead, the hostess showed us to a small two-person table in the back. The place has very high ceilings, which can only mean one thing: NOISE. Elite Cafe is loud, and carrying on a conversation can be difficult at times.
We started by ordering some cornbread. They brought it out right away, and it was delicious. However, for $4.50, I was hoping for more than two small pieces of cornbread. Two! Farmerbrown offers free cornbread, by the way.
I ordered the heirloom tomato soup for an appetizer, and my sister had the shrimp and scallop johnnycakes. She loved the johnnycakes, and I enjoyed my tomato soup, although it was a bit too sour for my taste. I definitely could see what the chef was going for, but I am not a fan of sour things.
While searching for an entree, I scanned the one-page menu for the word "grits." Only one dish, the pulled pork, was served with garlic grits, so my choice was easy. The pulled pork came with grits and collard greens (yuck), but the waiter gladly substituted the collard greens for the green beans. Crisis averted! The grits were really good: garlicky, cheesy and creamy. The pulled pork itself was a bit dry, but still tender and flavorful. My sister had a very tender braised Kobe beef brisket, although the sauce was a little overwhelming for my taste.
For dessert I ordered a peach and blackberry cobbler served a la mode. It wasn't your everyday cobbler! With just the right amount of spices and a flaky, sugary crust, it may have been the best cobbler I've ever had. It looked more like a tart with fresh fruit - delicious. My sister had a chocolate cake with more chocolate and some chocolate on top. It was very forgettable, and she didn't even finish it. We also had some coffee with our dessert, but the coffee was burnt to the point of being excessively bitter. Not great.
I also wanted to mention our waiter. Boy, was he, ummm . . . unusual. I think he may have been high when we came in, because he was aloof, forgetful and wandered aimlessly, looking right through us. However, towards the end of the meal, the high wore off, and he was much friendlier and more helpful. In fact, the cobbler was his recommendation.
Also, I found it funny that they dimmed the lights at exactly 8:05 pm. It was sudden and unexpected. Why 8:05? If you happen to know, could you please enlighten me?
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I appreciated the fact that, walking along Fillmore with no reservation with a rumbling tummy at 7:30 p.m. on a Friday night, I was able to walk into Elite Cafe with a party of 4 and get seated immediately.
The cafe had a nice atmosphere, and the service was prompt (if a little pretentious and over-enthusiastic. The waiter asked if we wanted an "effervescent elixir or otherwise creative concoction to begin," which left party members rather bemused. I'd rather creative and over-attentive than neglectful, but it started the meal on quite an odd note).
I ordered the mussels to start, which was served in a tasty saffron broth with pieces of sausage and tomato. It was pretty large for an appetizer, but very tasty. I was disappointed, however, with my braised flank steak. At the beginning of the meal, I had asked my waiter whether I should go for the flank or the ribeye, and he recommended the flank. It was underseasoned, and the grilled asparagus that accompanied it were pretty greasy.
Overall, I'd say that the service was prompt, and they had a good menu, but I was underwhelmed by the food. I did, however, appreciate the fact that (unlike SPQR, which had a 90-minute wait list when we walked in) we were seated immediately on a Friday night.
I take the word "Elite" very seriously. I'm guessing that has something to do with the fact that I work for Yelp and its meaning has definitely struck a chord with me. With that said, when a place calls itself "Elite Cafe," well, I certainly expect something that is a cut above the rest. Last night's meal, was anything but a cut above, it was more of a jab to the wallet.
Here's the thing, i have no problem justifying a hefty bill for a glorious meal. It's part of the reason my bank statement points and laughs at me every month, but when I spend the hefty cashola and get hit with mediocrity, well, it huuuuhrts.
Last night we tried the crab and artichoke fondue and while this joke is old, I will say, it was a definite fondon't. What the hell is in this thing? For starters the color is terrible. I am all for artichoke green, but this was like a pale, bland bowl of blah. Then there was the taste. Seriously, if I had made this at home while experimenting in my kitchen, it would have been trashed. Just not exciting, not tasty and really disappointing.
The blackened Kobe beef I ordered was good, however the sausage stuffed quail that my friend ordered came to the table raw. Like, really raw. The outside was a pretty rotisserie brown and the inside was bright pink. Yuck. Raw sausage and raw bird. No thanks. They did take it back and finished cooking it to an edible level, but even after that, it was just edible, at best. Kinda bland, kinda boring and definitely nothing I would order again.
I was just really disappointed. My first experience here was such a great one. I loved the meal, I loved the wine and I loved the decor, but last night was a true miss on way too many levels. Sadly, I don't think i will be returning again.
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10/08/2007
What a delightful surprise this place was!
My girl Audrey and I were in the mood for a nice din din…
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So, before writing my own review, I read a few others on it. Partly because I have the attention span of a goldfish, see reviews and immediately revert back to childhood, pull an "OOH SHINY" and forget my original intentions; And partly because saw one in particular that stuck out like 46 sore thumbs...one one hand. That's a LOT of thumbs. Nobody needs that many thumbs, especially of the sore variety.
So back to this review. It was a 1 star review, amidst the other more popular 4 and 5 star selections. The reviewer had one review, this one. I'm not going to copy paste it or anything, but just from reading that I could tell this bitch was on the peak of her monthly "girl time", and I have a feeling she may have been lighting her tampons on fire prior to insertion, for maximum "gives me reasons to be a bitch and say shit that has no base or merit, because I'm fucking clueless and just want to shit on everything, ever." So that about sums her up in that review.
Needless to say, I have no idea where she got any of the things she complained about, because there was not a HINT of anything negative whilst we were there.
I had just gotten off of work, and Jaime had been kind enough to sit in the break room and wait for me to be done, even though I told her she didn't have to. She may have been more inclined to leave had I not given her so much chocolate that she was on the brink of explosion, but we will just pretend, for the sake of posterity, that she is a good friend. (Which she is.)
So, as I had not yet eaten all day, and she was hungry and waiting in town for a call from a friend anyway, we decided to get some food. We're walking, we're walking, we're walking.."Oh hey this place looks good!"
So we went inside. Pay no attention to the fact that WE didn't pay any attention to what the place was called. We just walked in the door after having seen deviled eggs on the menu. I can not begin to express how stoked I was at seeing deviled eggs. I love them, and had never been to a restaurant that served them. Sold.
So we walk in and the nice (and fairly attractive hostess) sat us immediately in a cute little booth that was more fit for a fancy date then two kids walking in off the street. I seriously felt under dressed in my t-shirt and jeans.
So, I had no idea what to order, as I had no particular cravings and am the most indecisive son of a bitch on the planet when it comes to ordering from a menu. Turned out that was a-ok, however, because a few moments after having been sat I heard Jaime say, "OH! Ok, this is what we're getting." Cool, problem solved.
So our waitress arrived, took our order (Deviled eggs FUCK YES) and about 5-6 minutes later we were served the eggs, and a plate of oysters. They didn't waste any time at all. Nice, quick service. I dig.
Less about service though. More about those deviled eggs.
O. M. MUTHERF*CKING. G. I after I write this review, I am changing my last meal section in my about me from Lucky Charms to Deviled Eggs from Elite Cafe. I am NOT kidding. They could have brought me a tray of those, and I would have inhaled every last one in a single breath, you know, cause I'm a huge fucking fatass and stuff. Really though. When I say best evar, I use the awkward A in evar with the utmost affection and lust. You are correct, I am lusting for those deviled eggs.
Next order of business. HOMESTYLE CORN BREAD WTF???? DUDE, this is rapidly approaching my places to go a lot and order the same thing every time list/ That stuff was omgnomnom. It had a crispy outside, and it was sweet, and it came with some kind of butter concoction that was also sweet, "What are you? I don't know but I am using you for DIPPING. OH! Butter! amgamg." Welcome to the land of being a small child in a toy factory, only the child is me, and it isn't really a toy factory, it's cornbread, and you want to jump into a swimming pool full of it. Gimme.
Jaime made me eat an oyster. I had no idea what the fuck I was doing.
"Ok, pick up the oyster, get your little fork thing. Ok now put some of this on it.."
"What's that?"
"Shut up and put it on the oyster. Ok good, now take two bites and swallow."
"Wait, two bites? It's not very big...do I need two?"
"No! Put the whole thing in your mouth dammit! Ok, now chew twice and swallow."
"Oh! It was cocktail sauce."
"Now put the shell down. NO! Upside down!"
Who knew eating oysters was such an ordeal! O_O
While waiting for our entree playing with the call button at the table. Yes, our table came complete with doorbell. Have I mentioned how cool having a doorbell at your table was? Probably not the best thing to arm out particular table with, seeing as though we started acting like bastard teenagers playing ding dong ditch, only we didn't run, we just sat there looking innocent and saying nothing every time someone came to the table to see what we needed.
Jaime had to go soon after, but I will be back. Eggs. Nom...
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Sunday Brunch in SF is always nice. I'm rating Elite 3.5 stars.
I'm one of those weird customers that likes to customize meals.
for example,
I had the Alabama Scramble that comes scrambled eggs, bacon, papas AND biscuits and gravy. I opted for NO gravy. Waiter looked at me like I was INSANE! (hmmmph! I don't like gravy for brekkie!) It was yummy. Only a tad plain..because of ME. hehe.
My bloody mary was super spicy. Yummy, but not a fan of horse-radish. Should have had a mimosa.
Anyway, my lovely companion had an interesting time with her breakfast too. She was missing CHEESE on her mexican huevos ranchero's. Instead, she got quesadillas at the bottom of the plate.
Overall, service was great. We were seated in less than 10 minutes and given a quirky SF compliement from our waiter.
ECW: Are you guys dating?
L&C: No! why do you say that?
ECW: Oh sorry! I thought I overheard you guys say that you just started dating! I was going to say, WOW two pretty lesbians together!!!
heheh...I LOVE SAN FRANCISCO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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How can I top Zach H's review? By not even trying to 'cause it's so damned true and so on the money.
I went this past week for my birthday, on a Monday, on a very cold, very wet, very windy San Francisco summer night (how's that for f'ing with your head, it's summer for crying out loud!) and this place was a nice, bright, welcoming sanctuary.
Unlike most Friday & Saturday nights when the restaurant is literally bursting out at the seams with weekenders (aka B&T crowds), Monday night was relatively quiet. We were seated immediately in one of those booths everyone raves about and with that doorbell thingy Zach talks about - though to be honest I couldn't figure out just what it was and in my house growing up you never rang a bell where you didn't know what would show up after ringing it.
Anywho, my wife and I had studied the Cafe's menu slavishly at work (as we did with Spruce and Anchor & Hope the previous week) and gloated out loud to everyone within sitting distance of our desks for hours and hours....So we knew right off the bat to order the deviled eggs, the biscuits, and of course, those heavenly Kumomotos. Which arrived - ringing bell or not - within minutes of ordering.
And just like Zach I found pure white-trash nirvana with those eggs, I mean they are amazing! Even better than my grandma's. The biscuits are light and flaky but very flavorful. And if you like oysters, I don't even have to tell you about how good Kumomotos are.
Then we stepped it up and ordered the shrimp & scallion johnnycakes. The wife didn't like 'em so much but maybe because I was lightheaded from imbibing my first-ever Sazerac, they were all good to me.
For last courses I ordered the Maker's Mark Manhattan (talk about lightheaded!) and the Kobe beef sirloin, she had the pot pie. Using adjectives at this point would be repetitive and dull but I will say this: the Kobe was like buttah! Outtasight good.
At this point in our dinner the restaurant had filled up but rather than loud and obnoxious, it was cozy and comforting. The place was filled up with locals: one guy sat at one table reading his newspaper with his dinner; in another corner a woman basically did the same. And everywhere you looked the diversity of the city was reflected in the guests, although to be fair, it's a pretty swanky diverse crowd.
I could go on and on but it boils down to what you're looking for and expecting: through my job I get to eat in some of the most expensive restaurants in the city but it's very rare that you get the same quality of food & service (our waitress was just the most intuitive mind-reader of a person I have ever met, she only ever came when most needed) in a setting that's so welcoming and down to earth. There are lots more pretentious places in this city to see and be seen, but if you want to take a night off from stalking Paris Hilton this is the place you have to go.
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A friend and I ate lunch here recently and it was delicious. We wanted a booth so we ended up waiting for about 20 minutes. The hostess lady checked in with us a few times and even offered us a table, but we held out and got a booth.
We ordered the cinnamon donut hole appetizer and I am really glad we did. The holes were hot and sugary and delicious. We both had the oyster poor boy and many, many glasses of Meyer lemonade.
My oyster poor boy also had Cajun fries and delicious aioli dip. We ended up spending about $25 per person, including tip. It would probably be a lot less without all the Meyer lemonade. From what I understand, "normal" people usually only drink one glass of lemonade with their meal. Regardless, a little pricey, so one less star.
I would eat here every day but then I would end up gigantic and homebound, which is not necessarily a bad thing, once you weigh the pros and cons.
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Wandered in to Elite cafe for a late meal and a drink before going to see an incredibly confusing french film down the street. Although this isn't the right forum to voice this particular gripe of mine I'm going to anyhow. Why don't they use a contrasting color for the subtitles? When the text of the damn subtitles is the same color as the f'ing background of the movie is you can't read a god damn thing! The movie probably wouldn't have been nearly as confusing had I actually been able to read most of the subtitles, or if I spoke french...
Oh well, on to the review of Elite cafe. Yeah, the name sucks but who cares. I got a table without waiting, my service was better than I typically expect, my drinks were tasty, and my food was quite good actually. Stay away from the biscuits they upsell to the table though- They're dry and taste like Crisco. Seems as though some other people are complaining about the prices. I didn't think they were really that out of line. We paid $56 bux for dinner for two which is pretty standard in this city.
With that said I wouldn't return here as a destination. It was good but it wasn't quite that good. It is however a decent place and like I said I enjoyed my meal and my drinks so if I was in the hood again and there was a table available I'd probably dine there again.
I can't vouch for dinner or most of the menu but the corned beef hash I had was THE finest most perfectly balanced and downright sexy corned beef hash I've ever had the good fortune to consume..I wanted to smear it all over my body..the server was good too..
though I'm a little annoyed at the Healthy SF tax they add on.. not sure why we the customer has to pay for the employees insurance..the owner should do that and this place is mobbed other than that small gripe this was amazing.. I'l be back.
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The Elite Cafe is a classy San Francisco joint in the tradition of the city. That in itself is high praise. The outstanding thing about The Elite Cafe is the food and the service. Plus I suppose the valet parking which is really needed up there on Fillmore Street during busy times. The service is superior because it is genuinely friendly, I mean everyone including the busboys are friendly to you. The food is more than picky San Fran-acceptable, it is superior and many selections are in the vein of New Orleans if you like that. If you don't there are other options. Plenty of oysters by the way. The bartender mixes a fantastic Manhattan. They have a few tables outside and you can bring your dog there and enjoy the sidewalk scene. The vibe is casual but quality, and it's not too expensive. I am happy to recommend this place -- if you are going to a show at Yoshi's this is a good choice for dinner before or after.
We've only been here for brunch but it's fantastic. Interesting and varied selections and the curtained booths are really cool. Staff is somewhat pretentious (even in the morning....) but we just don't care.
omg!!! amazing! that should say it all.. i have been here three times and its always perfect! i am a very picky eater, i only like the best and will say this is one of my top 3 choices in the bay area... they make a perfect bowl of gumbo. if you want some amazing american food with a creole/cajan flavor don't look any where else,the place is perfect... want to impress your date, go here!!! and its forsure a classy spot!! if you want to be seated in there semi-private booths(my favorite spot to sit) then its best if you are with a party of 4. any of the reviews that have poor things to say about this place are folks with no taste...
Great food and fun ambience for dinner. We had a party of 7 in our group and the waitstaff were friendly, responsive and attentive. Even though our table wasn't quite ready they were super nice about it and the service was so good that I forgot about the wait. We had the deviled eggs, and they were yummy, not too creamy and just a bit spicy. We also had fresh oysters and they were very, very good. I ordered the crawfish and white shrimp ravioli, which was delicious. I sampled someone's buttered grits and it was unbelieveably good. All in all, wonderful experience despite the somewhat high cost.
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Updated from 2 stars up to 4 stars thanks to Paul who is a terrific waiter. The food tasted pretty authentic and I enjoyed a menu with more character from a lot of restaurants in that class. Dining out on the curb on an hot evening was terrific. I will keep going as long as I get Paul as my waiter ( or at least as long as I don't get blondie who gave us such a bad experience last time).
01/01/2008
What a shame!!!
I used to love indulging on oysters at the bar in the window and now it's gone.
The…
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I've been there so many times, I never really thought about reviewing the Elite.
My best place for a first date: you can hang out at the bar with a good glass of wine and if there is chemistry you wait for a table or - even better - one of the booths on the side.
For someone like me - lactose intolerant, allergic to shellfish... - the menu is a bit limited but I do think the best of their Cajun fries.
The 4 stars are mostly for the service and the ambiance.
Great brunch. Really great brunch. I would give the brunch 5 stars. But because of the other meals. I have to take away a star. I would rank the other meals as 3 stars. Other meals are good. Not great. So, the weighted average is 3 stars. One meal-service doesnt a 4-stars make.
Service is usually okay. However they always seem to screw up my girl friends order, which is never that complicated. For instance, can I get corn bread. No cornbread ever comes. Things like that always seem to happen for her at Elite.
It's a decent place. Go for brunch; take the canolis.
Truth be told, don't believe the hype. Sure it's called the "Elite Cafe" and there's a line out the door on the weekends. But while the facade and decor of this establishment are what really draw you in. The food, for the most part is mediocre.
I always tend to crave brunch on the weekends, especially after long workouts. So I decided to try Elite. Looking at the menu and seeing the rows of Bloody Marys being made I thought that this place looked great. They have collard greens and grits on the menu and that usually peaks my interest as I am a sucker for comfort food. I ended up ordering some bisc
