California Street Delicatessen & Cafe

Company Information: This is not your average west-coast sandwich joint. The California Street Delicatessen & Cafe is a strong-willed recreation of an authentic New York deli, complete with attitude and hustle 'n' bustle. Come in and enjoy heartwarming matzo-ball soups, rich smoked-fish platters, hearty brisket sandwiches and a real egg cream to wash it all down. You can even order from a list of full-size dinner plates. Stuffed cabbage or homemade meatloaf anyone? And, okay, since this is the west coast, it should be noted that all the meats and produce here come from the finest local purveyors. See website for menu, by-the-pound menu, photos and more.

Hours of Operation: Lunch & Dinner daily

Categories: Cafes, Delicatessens, Restaurants, Kosher Restaurants

1. 
   User Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

   a Yahoo! Local User

   12/22/2006

   Oy Gavault! Another Fake Jewish Deli in SF.: This restaurant should be ashamed to compare themselves with the East Coast Deli's. My wife and I ate there today around 1:30pm looking forward to good Jewish food. There were only 3 other tables with customers. My wife had the corned beef and I the brisket sandwiches. We both had the cream sodas. The pickles came right away and after that, it all went downhill. The waitress Kristen B. spilled our sodas on the table and floor. While she apologized, she never came back to clean it up. When the server, not our waitress, brought our food, we asked him to get her to clean up the mess. She did and that was the last time she came to check on our table except to bring the bill. The sodas were terrible, too much soda and not enough cream. My wife had the chocolate and I the vanilla and both not good. The corned beef sandwich had a lot of grissle in it. The sandwiches come in 3 sizes. I ordered the medium and my wife the large sandwich. Both sandwiches were not very large for the price. After this, its a good thing we didn't order any dessert. The desserts are displayed on top of the pay counter and were left uncovered the whole time we were there. My only hope is that the owner sells this business to someone who knows what they are doing. Based on the only other review here, it is understandable why the food quality and service is in the toilet when you don't watch over your own deli on more frequently.

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2. 
   User Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

   by Rad

   04/20/2006

   Service -- what service?: We were excited to hear that Joyce Goldstein had taken over this space. She was the founder of the late, lamented Square One in San Francisco and a former chef at Cafe Chez Panisse. We stopped in today for some take out. The service was inattentive and slow. We asked if Ms. Goldstein was an active participant in the restaurant and were told that she drops in "occasionally." We were told that our order would take about 10 minutes. It was a salad. We asked for the dressing on the side since we would not be eating the salad for several hours. The 10-minute order took 20. The salad came back dressed. We asked to have our money refunded. They wouldn't do that and, oh, yes it would take another 20 minutes for a new salad. Obviously Ms. Goldstein needs to drop in more frequently. We certainly won't.

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