Splash Café Pismo Beach

Reviews 5

GE

George Demestihas

Splash Cafe is, through and through, a very delicious place to eat. From their turkey sandwiches to their bread bowl clam chowder, it is all great. But be ready to dish out some cash because it is slightly overpriced. Eating at the actual cafe is great, and the doodles of various clams and their misadventures on the walls are very entertaining, the whole place has a very relaxed and surf inspired vibe. However, restaurant space is somewhat limited and finding seating can prove to be a hassle. Furthermore, last time I went to Splash I ordered the bread bowl clam chowder and the grilled cheese. But they forgot to serve it me, so I was forced to go up and ask where it was only for them to tell me, "Oh, were sorry, well bring it out right now." I ended up getting it... It was well worth the wait. I ate it all within 10 minutes. I left the fine place and went to the beach. But then, as I was relaxing on the beach, I felt my stomach start to grumble and turn. I got up, turned around and ran off my cozy spot on the beach (where I was tanning) and sprinted to the bathroom whilst forcing my sphincter to hold back the attack of my bowels. The public beach bathroom was the closest. I waited my turn in line and when I got to the stall I had to turn around and take my business elsewhere because the stall had no door and the metal toilet was covered in urine and fecal matter. I made a mad dash to a surf shop where I asked if they had a bathroom, meanwhile my large intestine was waging war on my sphincter. The kind lady replied with, "No, we have no bathroom. The closest is the public beach bathroom. The cleanest is at Splash Cafe." I thanked her and begin running up the hill towards Splash (At this point I dont think Im going to make it because the bathroom at Splash Cafe undoubtedly has a long wait. So I begin thinking about where I will dispose of my soiled underwear and what I will tell my friends). I run to Splash and peek at the bathroom, it had a long line...(probably because everyone was experiencing exactly what I was). I begin to panic. The load is beginning to be too much to bear. When suddenly I look to my left and see the Cool Cat Cafe (the seemingly losing rival of Splash Cafe, but their food is actually fantastic) and I begin a Usain Bolt inspired sprint to the far less busy establishment (with a head full I doubt that this place even has a bathroom). I look at the waitress at the front who is seating those people who didnt have the cajones to wait and eat at Splash. I interrupt the waitress and ask where the bathroom is and if I may use it. To my relief, they do! She giggles, (obviously seeing the fear in my eyes of soiling myself at Pismo Beach) and points me in the direction of the bathroom. I power walk in that direction while I madly clench my butt cheeks to give my sphincter the support it desperately needs. I open the bathroom door, find a stall, and rid myself of this affliction just in the knick of time. Was Splash Cafe worth it? Yes. 100%. Eat at Splash Cafe next time you find yourself in Pismo Beach. Cheers.

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CH

Chicka Chica

My family and I ate here after an unsuccessful trip to the beach. Thinking we would play in the water and make sandcastles, we arrived to find the beach a cool 69 degrees in the May. Being from Texas but transplanted in California, we are still getting used to the weather in California so we decided to walk the pier area and came upon this little gem. We packed up our beach stuff, went to the car and made our way to the Splash Café and found a little bit of a line. It was nice to just stand there and people-watch and the weather made it tolerable. My husband had the Fish and Chips, my son had the Chicken strips and chips, a cup of clam chowder, and I had the Fish Sandwich and Chips. The food was good and the chowder was so flavorful. After being used to our favorite go-to place The Spot in Galveston, we found a great replacement in the Splash Café in Pismo. This little beach town is charming, the people are nice, the food was good, and the service was fast and efficient. This is a great place to eat when you make a day trip to Pismo Beach. Do not pass up the Clam Chowder. My family and I shared the cup of chowder as an "appetizer" and it was amazing. The best we have had since we have been here in California and we have tried a lot of it. Nice little place to visit in Pismo.

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AA

Aaron Oertel

In my opinion, this place is a bit overrated. The food isnt bad, but overpriced. The restaurant is also way too small for all the people. You see so many standing around the restaurant, waiting to find a seat, as did my family, and it wasnt even the peak time. It becomes almost an inconvenience to go there because of that. There was also a long line for the bathroom, since they only had one stall. We waited at least 25 minutes for our meal for 4 of us, and as I mentioned, we came in during an odd, not busy hour. The staff we dealt with was much less friendly than I would expect, too; the cashier shortly answered my fiancées question about an option and took our order with a sour annoyed look on her face the whole time, and the waitress who brought the food to our table did so without as much as a word beyond "its hot," or a smile. However, the waitress who helped the table next to us was very lively and friendly, so maybe you just get lucky. I really wouldnt go there again, since you can get better food for the same price at Mos for instance, or if youre set on seafood, there are several other good options along the boardwalk. Overall, I cant really recommend coming here.

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JO

John Lee

Gross!!! They claim on their web site that they make the chowder from scratch using fresh high quality ingredients. Unfortunately, this is not true. In the chowder, they use soybean oil which is absolute crap. Soybean oil is the cheapest, lowest quality oil. Its used by fast food restaurants, not high quality, made from scratch foods. High quality restaurants are insulted when asked if they use soybean oil, because every good chef knows it is the worst tasting and is only used to save money, because its even cheaper than cotton seed oil, which used to be the lowest quality oil, until soy flooded the market. Even if one didnt care about the phytoestrogens or GMO... its known to be the worst tasting oil. Yuck! Good chowder is made with butter, not veg. oil anyway. Do you have to go to San Francisco for good chowder, I guess none here in Pismo?

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JA

James Watts

Took my family to try it out because we read so many good reviews. Saying disappointed doesnt nearly express my disappointment. We ordered Fish & Chips and the fish wasnt even fully cooked and it was tough. Fries died on its way to our table, Onion rings felt like a rock it was so dry and too much breading. My wife ordered Shrimp and chips and the shrimp was the size of a quarter and too much breading. I ordered chili, and it tasted like it was made days ago. My son ordered chowder and he said it was "decent" but not great as everyone advertised. Would I recommend this place? If you want just clam chowder, myabe. Otherwise I recommend of plenty of places that offers better food at a less price. I spent $85 for the four of us and it was my sons birthday. Way too pricey for what they serve.

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