Address: | 535 7th Ave, Santa Cruz, CA 95062, USA |
Phone: | +1 831-475-4948 |
Site: | harborcafesantacruz.com |
Rating: | 4.6 |
Working: | 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM 8AM–2PM |
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Nathan Yang
Im giving this restaurant 2 reviews: 3-stars if parking is not a concern (e.g. youre local) 1-star if parking is a concern (e.g. youre a visitor) Im convinced this neighborhood hates tourists. There are "No parking" signs everywhere. Every street has a "No parking" sign. Every house has a "No parking" sign. I tried speaking with residents to ask where I can find parking. None of them were helpful and were more interested in shooing me away. One of them grudgingly mentioned there was paid public parking about a mile away from the restaurant. We checked that lot, and there were only ~20 spots. All the spots were taken except for the spots for the nearby school, which were sitting completely empty (it was a Saturday). The old man monitoring the lot told us we couldnt park there, and then shooed us away before we could finish our sentence. Basically, there was no public parking between the restaurant and the beach 2 miles away. I drove in the other direction and eventually found a spot a mile away on a side street. I concluded that if youre going to visit during busy hours, either find parking north of the restaurant, or bribe a homeowner for a parking spot. To the restaurant owners: Please make more parking spaces. Theres a lot next door. Buy it. Apologies ahead of time for having dedicated this review to the parking situation, but really, I spent the same amount of time looking for parking as I did eating. As for the restaurant itself: the food was average and the service was good considering how busy it was. But its not somewhere Id care to visit again regardless of the parking situation.
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Kristin C.
There is a looooong wait to get a table here. Make sure you hang around the area since you might get bumped up on the list if a disgruntled party decides to leave for another brunch place. We waited about 45 minutes on a Sunday morning for a table to seat 5. Harbor Cafe does have a great selection for brunch -- make sure you check out the specials on the board in the patio. They have plenty of outdoor seating, an indoor and outdoor bar, and on top of that they are dog-friendly! We have three Egg Benedict lovers in our group so we definitely came to the right place. The Cali Bene (2x), Veggie Bene, and Traditional were all delicious. I loved the Cali Bene. Since I am not the hugest fan of english muffins, the combo of croissant, eggs, bacon and avocado was perfect for me! My boyfriend went with the Seafood Omelet which had a generous portion of shrimp. They definitely dont skimp here. After reading all of the reviews, I had to try the polenta fries. Im not really sure how to describe them... they were large chunks of crispy polenta? They were not my favorite but not bad. Worth a try but I think Ill stick to the more traditional polenta dishes. For drinks, we enjoyed some their famous bloody marys, mimosas, and fresh squeezed grapefruit juice. There is parking in a small lot and nearby street parking.
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Brent Zemel
Favorite breakfast spot in Santa Cruz. Sure its just steps away from my house but I do love the food and the drinks will cure any issues form over indulging the night before. I am a big fan of all the Benedicts and the Frittata with bacon is more than you can eat in one sitting. The bar is hard to beat if you need a little hair of the dog or you are starting your Sunday Funday with a spicy Bloody Mary or my favorite a fresh squeezed greyhound. If you are looking for something different you must try a round of Bacon Bombs for your table. Good food, great drinks, and a great crew of servers over the years keeps me coming back.
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J B
Plenty of good vibes at this joint. Nice people, cool beach town atmosphere; youll think youre situated right next to the ocean. Food is great and drink selection is very good too from local beers to iced/mixed drinks on a hot summer day. Im always good with one of their awesome burgers and a cold beer. Skip the overcrowded, less-than-great food at restaurants downtown in downtown SC/Capitola or nearby (Crows Nest - for breakfast/lunch food specifically) and check this place out. Never had a bad experience. Sometimes a short wait but once youre there hanging out on the patio it aint no thing.
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Sal Del Castillo
My wife, daughter and myself were there a year ago in August 2011 on our way home to L.A. Some one in Santa Cruz recommended this place to us. It was in the morning and the workers were wearing these wild outfits. They were great and the food was great. I just loved the ambiance. So kick back. I think that we want to live in Santa Cruz and have breakfast at the Harbor Cafe every morning. The workers there were so wonderful that they let us take a couple of pictures of them in their outfits in front of the cafe. We will never forget you guys and our experience there. Thanks, Sal
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Nicole Pollard
One of our favorite spots... often described as a bar that serves food, I feel like this is a disservice to the fantastic kitchen. Yes the bar is killer - pint glass mimosas in a variety of flavors and awesome bloody marys are their signature drinks. But the food is also always very good, whether youre getting breakfast or lunch. The polenta fries are perfect (try with a side of hollandaise, you wont regret it) and the rotating specials keep things fresh and exciting. Be prepared for a wait (usually 30-45) but with a drink in your hand on the patio, it flies by.
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Chad Maz
The food was outstanding! Between the two of us we had the Cali Beni and the seafood benedict; both served with homemade hash browns. The bacon was top quality and cooked perfectly and the seafood benedict came topped with 9 or 10 large shrimp that where seasoned wonderfully and so delicious. Looking at the plates being served around the restaurant, you know this is the place youll go back to until youve tried everything on the menu. The nautical theme was fun, great patio and wonderful service (even the busers were awesome).
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Sean Mikawa
Unimpressive. I tried the traditional eggs benedict here expecting better fare given some of the buzz I hear. Unfortunately I was disappointed with basically one of the blander, more uninteresting benedicts Ive had in the area. The potatoes left something to be desired as well, being underseasoned and undercooked. My friend ordered a more traditional breakfast with bacon and eggs, which again was just painfully plain. I could have eaten better at one of the other larger local diners like Jefferys or Zacharys.
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Maggie Rye
Cali Benedict: awesome to have Benedict choices with varying breads (English muffin, croissant, polenta). The bacon( mostly grizzle / fat certainly worth skipping). The side of fruit was great (except the waitress made it seem like an included option then charged $1). Coffee (whatever normal. Had to ask for refills even though coffee dude was offering to other tables.) Hot Coco (eww tastes like a dispenser machine with can whip). Overall the food keeps this place in business.
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Lu Silverstein
The breakfast here is excellent and atmosphere is great between the food, cool funk music and very nice attentive staff. The hot tea served in a beer glass with a coffee sleeve is pretty creative and you get a nice big cup of whatever tea you want. They also have GF options too - I had a delicious eggs Benedict on a bed of fried polenta. Kids had eggs and bacon. Wife had French toast and they have a large array of other choices. Would recommend to friends and family.