201 was excellent! We had my husband's Celebration of Life reception and considering the circumstance, this was such a positive experience. Aleida was wonderful in helping us coordinate this special day in memory of my husband. She was very professional, courteous and had such a great attention to detail! Great communication and the staff working our event was wonderful as well. I highly recommend this venue for your next event. Thank you for the bottom of my heart. read more

Enjoy the shopping day with my daughter it was very affordable found staff that we are going to use for a family event

Everyone was very friendly and upon arriving, they mentioned all the music at each dance floor. The drinks were delish and the temperature inside was perfect! read more

201 Main Event Venue - The Photo Booth - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

I truly love coming to the 201 to hang goodvibes great drinks always a great time !! #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

201 Main Event Venue - My favorite drink - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

Always a great experience !! Awesome bartenders and best DJ RANDALL !! Great music great vibes

We walked in and nobody was at the hostess table, but you had to wait to be seated. I went in and used the bathroom and still nobody showed up. It wasn't until I asked a man standing in the back in a suit if there was a hostess and then a man from the kitchen showed up and seated us. Then... the wait. There was what looked like ONE server for all the tables. The bartender was too busy serving drinks to help. The man in the suit just stood there and talked to another female employee. They could see that the server was struggling and they did nothing. Finally, when I went to the kitchen to check on what we ordered that the server came back to our table. I asked him who the man with the suit was and he said he was the owner of the bar. I asked why the girl wasn't helping him. He said she works upstairs. I could not believe it. Seriously?! The owner is not helping when there are struggles. It turns out that someone called in sick and left the server without help. Guess what, that owner could have taken off his jacket and helped or called for someone else to come in and help. Nothing is more discouraging that when you see the boss watching what is going on and chooses to talk to the pretty girl and look at his phone than help. We ate adequate food and watered down margaritas. Yep, this was the first and last time we will go to this establishment, unless there is an ownership change. We left and not even a thank you for coming in. Please, someone who cares about this business offer the owner a dollar and take over the establishment. This was probably the worse experience I have ever had in Salinas. And the restaurant was cute. It was themed James Dean. They could have done so much more. After our show we walked by the restaurant about 11PM and saw a long line waiting to go into this place. I guess it pretends to be a nightclub after hours. You are body searched before going in. Interesting... I would love someone to take this place over and make it a proud place to eat and drink. Right now it is not worth going, unless you have a ton of patience and don't mind mediocre food. read more

The mezcal drink was fantastic. Thank you. The rest of the food and drinks were garbage. The house margaritas and pitcher literally were the worst margaritas I've ever had in my life. The food was mediocre. First time there and won't be back. The waitress was nice, but service was super slow. I don't think it was our waitresses fault our first round of drinks took forever in an empty restaurant. Loved the band!! We won't miss be back. read more

Seated and took 20 minutes to attend, got the food and drinks still weren't ready? Food was cold and meat was dry. Dropped a drink tried cleaning it and not enough paper towels, waiter did not come to help toll after 30 minutes, we just asked for the bill to leave and they did not come with the bill till i got up to complain to a manager, there was no managers available and no back up manager, place was slow service and terrible food. read more

Staff is slow, food is cold, all around a horrible business that fell off years ago. The hostesses are more interested in their phones and flirting with people at the bar than actually taking care of customers. Never coming back the food nearly made me throw up. read more

Rude and terrible food and service. You'll get better food and service at Taco Bell. Avoid this place.

Went for dinner after the Italian Festival tonight (6/28/25). The music was so incredibly loud during the dinner hour. Servers and kitchen staff were even shouting to communicate with each other. Impossible to carry on a conversation with the people at our table. Several members of our group approached staff and asked if the music could be turned down a bit and we were all told NO, it's live music. Walked out. We were a good sized party. The restaurant lost several hundred dollars in revenue, and we will not be back. This was during the dinner hour (6-8pm), not night club hours. Plenty of families trying to enjoy dinner. My ears are still ringing. read more

Had such a great time! Live band was fabulous and food was good! Great atmosphere and loved looking at the old architecture.

Great experience listening to The Streggs and Kristy Parker of Ridin' Shotgun Ent. Awesome drinks and a great atmosphere.

This place is awesome! Great music! Great drinks! Great people! Great vibes! Will be coming here more often now! #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

It's an awsome place to spend with family and friends love the brunch. The service is much better

We were a party of five. Enjoyed the live music listening & dancing to Chicano Allstars!

Walked in on a Saturday evening after 6:30 pm & noticed that besides 1 large party, the restaurant wasn't heavily occupied at all. I figured the service at a minimum would be a typical experience & decided we would proceed & have dinner there. Went up to the host station (which was unoccupied) to be seated & stood there for about 5 min before anyone even noticed us. A young gentleman seated us with menu's, he was kind & apologetic. He told us he'd be back in a bit. I'm an observant gal & scanned the restaurant & noticed that besides the people at the bar (they had the attention of the bar tender) & the large party of folks in the center of the restaurant there were maybe about 9 other guests including the two of us. I see a gentleman (I think he was dressed in a blazer, possibly even a suit) he was just standing around joking, laughing & talking. I figured he was just a guest as well UNTIL I see him walk into the kitchen area, talk to employees, give them direction etc. the suit guy was definitely giving manager or owner energy. He kept looking our way so this led me to believe he did know we were sitting there waiting & waiting but yet he decided to go back to laughing, joking , talking & not caring. Meanwhile, the server that sat us seemed to be running around doing everything, I do not blame him at all, in fact I felt bad for him. Seems like he is overworked & not under guidance of good or productive leadership. Finally at 15 minutes since we were sat down & having no communication, no acknowledgment of our presence, not even a cup of water... naturally, we left. If your idea of going out to dinner includes basic customer service & actually eating food, I would not recommend 201 Main or any of its restaurant/ bar affiliates. read more

It was an awesome experience for Father's Day brunch with the family #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

Great food and mariachi for brunch Sunday morning/evening. Bartender (Lily) was super attentive and on the go with the drinks. She kept drinks coming all night on Super Bowl Sunday. read more

201 Main Event Venue - Paleta shots at James Dean Bar - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

great food nice place. would recommend a little more room for larger groups. other than that the friendly service and great food was awesome. read more

Great find! Yummy eats & great atmosphere. Downtown location makes it easy to find lots of shops and fun spots to check out after dinner. Will definitely return. #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

Upon arrival we were greeted and asked for a booth for two we were seated in less than five minutes we were greeted by a very sweet, charming young lady. She gave us our menu and asked if we would like to start with any drink. We ordered a picture of margarita and also our dinner. I am particular ordered shrimp tacos, and my spouse ordered the ribeye. We were told that the ribeye would take around 25 minutes. Our orders came back around 25 minutes later and unfortunately, the ribeye was well done and the mashed potatoes were polenta. We were very discouraged because it was a very special day and what we had requested didn't come back ordered I was satisfied with the shrimp tacos. We did relay our disappointment with the server in which she did speak to her manager around two or three minutes later, we were greeted again and asked if we would like shrimp tacos as a replacement and free charge unfortunately, we declined my spouse that came exactly for the ribeye and it was not as expected. We wrote a note to our server D Stephanie B and expressed how grateful we were with her and her service and it wasn't her. It was the food service just to pay attention in particular to what the customer is ordering we left her $50 tip because she was awesome. read more

201 Main Event Venue - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

Commemorating friendship with Buzzy Booth pics, delicious Baja fish tacos, mariachi AND Great options for MOCKtails! #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

Was there for my god sister's quince and it's not a good place if you're black or have a baby face. Two friends got accused of stealing liquor when they didn't touch a thing when all we had was two different lemonade. I was looked at all night, followed INTO the bathroom and she didn't leave till I left, then once they got me alone accused me of being too drunk to be there and that I'm underaged. The quinces brother and my parents had to vouch that not only was I sober but I am of age and that I'm special needs. I know never to go there again read more

I literally live walking distance here...friendly bartenders & great service... good drinks & food Love the live music, great time :)) read more

If I could give them zero stars I would! Security guards are on a power trip! First off, Security guards cannot legally pat you down. They had people waiting for like half an hour - and before it even got to our group no one even made it in - they were following the stupid long list of rules and they still got turned away . This is where you go if you want bad service, bad drinks, and if you want to be groped! Know your rights people. read more

I took my mom there for Mothers day. As we walked up I saw there was outdoor seating and live music and since the weather was nice I was excited to enjoy a nice brunch with my mom When we entered the restaurant we were greeted right away and we were advised that they were only seating people who had reservations but they did offer us seats at the bar. No problem we sat at the bar. Mothers day brunch was 34$ and an extra 7$ for bottomless mimosas. My mom went with the brunch, I did not order any food because my mom said that there was hardly any food left. I was waiting to see someone refill the buffet but no one did. My mom kept on having to ask the bartender for refills, she asked for a spoon for her pozole no one ever brought it so she had to go get one herself. When we got the check, we were charged for 2 brunch buffet in error, I had to tell the bartender to remove one buffet charge since I did not eat. The bathrooms needed attention, there was toilet paper every where and the sinks were wet. read more

201 Main Event Venue - Bottomless mimosa and buffet - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

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0 stars if I could. The securities kicked us out for using the bathroom. Terrible service, the employees do not have any idea how to run the establishment. read more

Great customer service and a great place to have dinner/lunch with family and friends with live music.

This place has potential but there is a lot to improve. First of all the location is great. I was able to visit Salinas for the first time the weekend of 10/21/2023 and the area where is located is very charming. However, they need to improve a lot from the menu and general cleaning in front of the house. My table had a black cloth which was not clean, and that was odd. I don't think the cloths are a good idea, so please trash them inmediately. The brunch buffet needs to improve as well. Everything was basic in terms of taste. Nothing extraordinary. The service was good though, and the Mariachi music was a good surprise. Again, with more attention to details, there is potential there. read more

It was the perfect place to celebrate our Anniversary! #onlyatjamesdeanat201main @201socialnights @201main @jamesdeanrestaurant&bar #mariachi #livemusic #livedjs #besties #drinks #food #burgers #wings #tacos #nightlife #vip #bottle service #buzzballbiggies #modelo #pacifico #buzzybooth read more

Good food and good atmosphere! The staff all seemed to be really nice and our server was attentive. Will be back!

We took the Dads in our family out for a Father's Day meal on Sunday. The price for their Father's Day meal was $35.00 a person. Where do I start? Some of the food was cold, such as the potatoes. I ordered an omelette as those were prepared by an order slip. It took about 45 minutes for me to get my omelette and then they messed up on the order, and 2 others' orders. The coffee was cold. I ordered a waffle and that took about 45 minutes as well. They were greatly understaffed, with 2 - 3 people behind the line and managing the buffet at a time, with only 1 of those people handling all of the buffet food (about a dozen food containers in total). They were very slow to replenish the dessert, and seemed to run out of tiramisu, lemon cake, and jello about an hour into our time there. Our daughter, who has multiple years of experience in serving, banquets and events suspects they didn't order enough for the number of reserved people in order to save money. The cheesecake had a filler in it, which tasted like some kind of vanilla pudding- another money saver. Perhaps worst of all, multiple staff were on their phones in view of the customers; one of whom - who appeared to have a supervising position in the cooking area - was repeatedly texting, on the phone talking for several minutes, and then proceeded to make a plate for himself and go back into the kitchen and was not seen again. Our server worked very hard and was very attentive to our needs and questions, and did everything he could for us with what the situation allowed. We do not believe that management cared enough to have the proper amount of staff to adequately meet the needs and wants of numerous people on such a day, and the management of their team and their behavior was severely lacking. For what we paid, and for having to abide by the many specifics and rules of our reservation lest it be cancelled, this experience was not worth the cost. read more

I made reservations for 10 people for this past Sunday brunch for a family gathering. I was sadly disappointed with the seating area. It was 2 small tables with 5 chairs crammed on each side. It looked like a kid's table. I kindly asked for more space and was told there were no more tables available, they were all reserved and did not have any extras. Then I asked for an extra chair to put our personal stuff on, I was told there were NO extra chairs at all, all were being used. Fortunately, we are all on the small side, nevertheless, once we started eating, because the tables are so small, it creates limited space for your plates, drinks, condiments, water, any extras on the table, it created an uncomfortable awkwardness. It became a juggling act of moving plates around to fit and stacking plates, clean and dirty ones. There was just not enough space for all of us!! And 3 in our party were children, which did not eat much or take up much space, and WE STILL DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH ROOM!!! I don't understand how the establishment expects people to enjoy their meal with such cramped seating arrangements. The plates for food literally had water on them after being washed and kept running out. The food kept running out and you had to wait in line for more. I ordered an omelette from the kitchen and after waiting quite a long time, it was cold and I bit into a pretty good sized onion skin that is usually discarded and not used in food. Needless to say, I was upset and actually took the piece of food to the manager, she apologized and spoke to the kitchen staff. I could not eat it after that. I had to ask for refills on coffee and drinks because our waitress was super busy and not checking on us. I also could not believe that customers were made to form a line at the bar, in between the tables with guests on them to refill their own flutes of mimosas, REALLY??!!! Personally, I felt that was a bit degrading. A flute does not hold much, so there was always a pretty long line at the bar. As soon as you make the reservation you are told that there is an automatic 20% gratuity added for more than 6 people, as well as reminded once you check in at the restaurant. I have no problem paying that, however, I also expect the service. I paid an ADDITIONAL amount on top of the 20% because it is the holidays and it was obvious that there was not enough staff to meet the needs and demands of the customers. I do not blame the staff for the shortcomings but someone has to be held accountable for the lack of appropriate scheduling, to include the kitchen staff, not just the wait staff and not having enough tables/chairs to meet the needs of the establishment. It is hard to believe that there was not one extra chair or table available for use and not sure if the young man was being honest when he told me that, but he is an employee and represents 201, so he must have been telling the truth. I made reservations at 201 because it is one of the nicer restaurants in Salinas and wanted a memorable dining experience since it was a special occasion for our family. I EXPECTED quality food and excellent customer service. I will say the mariachi was excellent and the Grinch made us laugh so much, it was a great addition, but that was not the reason I chose to eat there. My family was very disappointed with their dining experience and hope 201 reads this and makes appropriate changes before it loses more customers. $30 dollars is not a lot to spend on a meal, however with our party I spent almost $300 that day, I don't make it a habit to pay that amount for unpleasant experiences. I will more than likely be going out of town for our next family gathering. I try to spend my money locally. read more

I hosted my engagement party at 201 main and it was hands down the most affordable and amazing service you can get in mid-northern Cali. Skip the pricey Monterey venues who will up charge you simply because of the area. My guests were all impressed! read more

NYE 2023: expected more of this venue and event. The staff (everyone from entrance security, ticket desk, to bartenders) was rude and could not be bothered. Gave this local spot a shot and expected much more. I won't be returning. read more

Every single time I come to their night time events, I've seen their security guards hitting their vapes, i understand they don't allow vaping inside. But there's no reason to take them away from people if they regulate properly indoors. It's not a good business practice to take away things from your customers, especially things that are being used by your security constantly. read more

Usually go for their Sunday Buffet. I think it's slightly overpriced for tasty but not delicious food. But then again.. it is a buffet. Service has not been the best each time I've gone. For Father's day.. pricing was absurd. They claimed they weren't taking reservations for Father's Day. So we thought, "alright.. thats fair. First come first serve." When we arrived, it was all reservations. So we had to argue with the rude front desk lady and she offered to sit us at the bar rather than a table KNOWING we have a handicapped family member but kindly accepted a walk in from another party who was of lighter skin color. Management came and she ended up sitting us in the back of the restaurant. No big deal. At least we got seated and got to eat. Service still sucked. I asked for more champagne about 4 times before I ended up getting up myself to open a new bottle and pour it for myself. Other than service, things were okay. My favorite thing is their bourbon syrup and the guys behind the kitchen counter. They have always been the most polite. read more

201 Main Event Venue - Bourbon syrup is the way to go - Venues & Event Spaces Near Me - Salinas, California

My review is for their Sunday Brunch Wife and I went there last Sunday and much was left to be desired. Food was cold, selection and quality of the food wasn't worth the $27 they charge. Only one person was making waffles and he was overwhelmed. The process for requesting an omelet is confusing and then when the cook finishes making it, he simply places it on a counter but doesn't notify the waitress so it could be sitting there for 20 minutes or more. It's a disappointment because I would go there when this service was first offered several years ago and it was awesome. They've taken a complete 360 Get your act together 201,the bottomless mimosas aren't enough for people to forget what the food tastes like read more

The drinks were pretty good but the bartender inside that tends the brunch was extremely rude and seemed to be unhappy working there. The food was constantly on dry and a lot of people were waiting to even get a waffle. Many of the servers were nice but honestly the reason that they are understaffed is because they need to raise their pay. Brunch used to be super good but they have definitely fallen off by a mile. The 27$ wasn't worth it for undercooked eggs and rude service. read more