Wonderful. The devils ginger drink was a wonderful start to lunch. The fettuccini steak pasta was rich and creamy and delicious. Definitely ask for bread. Fresh garlic with oil and vinegar a treat. Cruz club was filling and tasty. Service was great and atmosphere nice read more

Cafe Cruz - Devils ginger - Seafood Near Me - Soquel, California

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Rotisserie chicken is so good! Beet salad I ordered was great- served with a big chunk of goat cheese! It's super delish! Heads up- call for reservation! This place fills up quick or you'll be sitted along the aisle :)) Great food. Good service. Just call ahead for reservations! read more

Great food. Fresh and locally sourced. The wine list has many unique choices. The service staff is professional and very knowledgeable about the menu, and how the food is prepared. The waitstaff can also pair a wine with your food like nobody's business. If you order the salad, you'll be in for a treat. Fresh, bountiful and flavorful. It can easily be a meal in itself. The ambiance is warm and inviting. During the Winter months, you can enjoy your dinner inside, with the warm glow of the roaster keeping you toasty while you enjoy a drink special and yummy appetizers. In the Summertime, their outdoor patio beckons you to sit by the lovely fireplace and enjoy some happy hour drinks with friends. Cafe Cruz is by far, one of my favorite restaurants. Consistently, fresh and delicious. The value for your money spent is very good. read more

An interesting and varied menu, sustainable seafood, and wonderful outdoor seating, with heat lamps for anyone who wants one. The wait staff was friendly, and tables are spaced far apart enough. read more

Food and drinks are pretty good here. I finally came back years later after the first experience being a fiasco haha. Owner did apologize. Apology accepted. It's in the past now. Moving on. Anyway keep up the good work with food and drinks. I'll be back again. read more

More upscale and sophisticated menu than the name suggests. Good wine list. Nice atmosphere. Very good food. Nice back patio too. Definitely on my go to list. read more

Above average but too much food. My family and I were staying one night in Santa Cruz and had dinner here. We had reservations and were seated in the garden room. They have 3 seating areas. The main room and the outdoor area have tablecloths but the garden room does not. The tables are wood with slats. This detracts from the dining experience for me. Anyway we sat down and ordered some drinks. A Maker's Manhattan ($8) for me and a pomegranate martini ($8) for my wife. I have to warn you that the dishes are huge. I am not as fan of this trend. If you know in advance and are a regular you would know this and split things but if you don't, like us, you end up throwing an obscene amount of food away. We are staying in a hotel and can't take leftovers. We literally left enough food to feed another family of four. I even thought about it the next morning. That said the food was pretty good. I started with a roasted artichoke ($9.50) which came with three halves and a chipolte aoli. I prefer lemon and olive oil. The artichoke could have been cooked more. I had the seared ahi salad ($18) which could have fed two people. The huge mound of greens/noodles was a little bland but very fresh (didn't like the orange sections). The ahi was cooked perfectly. The day before I had the ahi soba salad at the Monterey Bay Aquarium restaurant which was phenomenal so that was the benchmark. My wife had the bacon wrapped ahi steak special ($22). It also was gigantic. Probably 8 ounces. My son ordered a pesto bruschetta appetizer ($8) which was a little greasy buy tasty. There were 8 pieces! After having half of it he could barely eat his half of a roasted chicken ($17). Overall I would say it's probably one of the better places to eat in the area but please share appetizers and entrees. Unless you are just a total glutton and like stuffing your body then you'll love it. FYI I uploaded picks so you can see the portion sizes. read more

My husband and I stopped here for dinner on our way home from the Santa Cruz Blues Festival. The minute we got out of the car we were over come with the wonderful aroma coming from the restaurant. I've been here a few times but this was my husbands first. He ordered the garlic roasted chicken with corn mashed potatoes and slaw. The chicken lacked flavor, the potatoes were over whipped and I don't think he even tried the slaw. - Hubby was not impressed I got the salmon with polenta and asparagus. AWESOME! I had a few bones in my salmon but it was cooked perfectly as was the asparagus. But the shining star for me was the polenta. OMG I could of licked my plate clean. Creamy, cheesy, buttery goodness. I can't wait to go back and try the fillet and if it doesn't come with the polenta ... I'll be asking for it. YUM! read more

The stars are slowly getting retracted, since my last two visits. Two visits ago, I made reservations and we weren't seated until 20 minutes after our reservation. Then, my last visit it took 10 minutes before we saw a waitress. After we found her, the service was good. I am still leaving them at a 4. Since, the food is always consistent. We will see what the progress is on our next visit. But, with my last two experiences we have been enticed by different choices. i.e. trying Oswald's (and loving it!) read more

The place was packed! I'm not sure if having reservations sped our seating process up or not. We were a little early and waited about 20 minutes to be seated. The food: Fried artichoke hearts-ok Swordfish with shaved brussel sprouts and polenta-ok Tuscan salad-I didn't try but my date said it was good. The service: Super friendly but I felt rushed to order. Even after slowing her down by waiting to order, our entrees came out while we were still eating our appetizer. Parking is difficult. I'd go back again if in the area. read more

Found out about Cafe Cruz because we won a $50 gift card through a raffle at one of the local schools. Yelp reviews are generally really good so I was looking forward to it. Had tried to make last minute reservations several times before without luck - they seem to get really busy. We actually showed up about an hour before our reservation because we didn't spend as much time at The Boardwalk as we thought we would. After a short wait we got seated outside. We were a little concerned about being outside because I was getting over a cold but those outdoor heaters are great. In fact I had to take off my jacket to avoid over heating! Nothing really to complain about the service. It was really good, just shy of great. I asked my server about the swordfish and (apparently she's been there a while) she said they do a great job with fish so I went ahead and ordered it. I think it was the best swordfish I've ever had in my life! It was cooked and seasoned perfectly. It sat atop a polenta-cake and was accompanied by braised brussel sprouts and bacon. It was a divine dish. Oh, I had a dinner salad to start with and it was dressed perfectly - it was bigger than I was expecting. Everybody else's dishes were also very well executed and came out piping hot. What's a good meal without dessert? They didn't disappoint there either. The mud pie and the creme brulee were delicious. Would honestly give them 4.5 stars - will definitely be back again. read more

Cafe Cruz used to be my 'go-to' restaurant but sadly no more. Ordered a well-done burger and this is what I received (online order picked up at 5:30 so before the dinner rush). It wasn't even cooked in the middle. Previous visit my friend ordered the chicken sandwich and spent the night in the bathroom. read more

Me calling today to see if there was a certain time dine in started because of Covid. Yelp page says call to see what updates there are so I did. "Hi, are there any dine-in time restrictions?" I asked "Ummm, noooo." said the older woman with an attitude. "Okay, was just checking if dine in was okay all day or at a certain time." "Well I assume that doesn't mean you're gunna sit here all day?" "Obviously not" And so on and so forth with an unhelpful attitude Like no shit, so bitchy and uncalled for. Think I know exactly who it is and she always seems a little off putting. Maybe have someone else who doesn't hate their life answer the phone. Food review though is positive, good food, nice atmosphere. I came here a lot before Covid and was excited to get back in there but this made me avoid it today. read more

Friend made reservations for New Year's Eve knowing almost nothing about this place. What an amazing decision he made! The food was awesome! And the server was so attentive and friendly even on a busy holiday night. I had the portabella piccata with polenta which is a must try! One of the best plates of food I've ever had. He had the mushroom ravioli which I tried a bit of and it was so fresh and full of mushroom flavor. No complaints about anything. Perfect dinner at an extremely reasonable price. read more

Scrumptious! Brought two friends visiting from out of town - we wanted a lovely outdoor patio with delicious, fresh food and Cafe Cruz delivered! The calamari appetizer was perfectly seasoned with two homemade sauces. One of us got a really good cocktail, and we all devoured the bread served at every table with the side of fresh minced garlic, olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Entrees were fantastic- chicken, the nicoise salad (so much thought into the high quality and super fresh ingredients) and another entree-sized salad. Can't wait to go back and get dessert too next time! Only downside that I can think of...not many options for vegetarians... that said, service and the overall ambiance was excellent. read more

This was a favorite when my kids were teenagers, and is still a favorite today. This visit I had the fried calamari appetizer, and my companion had a cup of the clam chowder. She liked the chowder so much she ordered a second cup! The calamari was still tender and soft with a light crunch in the batter. I had the chop salad which was lovely. She had the black and blue ahi tuna sandwich. I've had that sandwich before and she liked it too, a good choice if you like tuna at the sushi bar. The restaurant itself can be a little loud, but it remains a favorite when I'm on this side of town. read more

Yikes, this place use to be 5 star....not so much on Thursday afternoon. The server had such a snottie attitude! No smile & not patient with our party of 4. I had a very well done burger [ordered med. well] beyond dry! The cole slaw seemed to be missing a dressing. If it was there, it was tasteless. Sorry to say that I will not be back. read more

Excellent food and beer plus extremely pleasant and friendly staff who held our table and made us feel very welcome. Tried two new dishes which were so tasty I'm considering going back tomorrow! read more

Amazing meal, amazing staff, amazing atmosphere! Traveling through California from New York and this was one of the BEST meals we have had all week. Staff was top notch, food was superb, atmosphere phenomenal!! read more

Cafe cruz is always a good choice for lunch or dinner! The food is great! The service is great, the drinks are great, everything. The outdoor patios are my favorite places to sit, during Covid, they do an amazing job with keeping distance and sanitation! Keep it up! read more

Valentine's Day is around the corner, so everyone is searching for that special place to take their special someone. Sit outside in the patio garden. The lushness of the terrace tickles your fantasies and the lights strung above whisper romantically in the moonlight. Heat lamps burn ferociously strong enough to keep even the wimpiest warm. Yes, you could call this place romantic. The service was on the slower side. It was busy for a Thursday? I ordered a glass of over-priced local wine and enjoyed the complementary bread. For dinner, I ordered the Black and Blue Ahi Tuna Club LOUDLY WITHOUT bacon (Jewish Pescatarian!) with roasted veggies instead of french fries(who puts bacon on an ahi sandwich?) My man ordered the fettuccine with skirt steak. A leisurely amount of time passed before our entrees arrived. I munch on my veggies happily. On a whim, I open my sandwich and low and behold there is more bacon than ahi! It takes a little while to get a hold of the waitress. Once we explain the predicament, she takes the dish back without so much as an apology. Once the sandwich was returned to its rightful owner, she was happy. The fish was excellent quality, but the sandwich was a touch dry. Nothing mustard can't fix. Kyle seemed to like his steak and fettuccine. It's a heavy dish that most people can't finish in one sitting. Following dinner, the waitress brought out a complementary dessert as it was Kyle's birthday. I think Ice cream? The food was good, and location is charming. However, I was not enthralled by my experience at Cafe Cruz. Considering the hefty price tag, and service, I personally don't plan to return here. In hindsight, I am not sure I would recommend it either! This is a nice place to take someone you want to impress. Review is 2.75 out of 5. read more

Don't judge a book by it's cover. You would never expect to see such a charming and enchanting restaurant behind the small exterior grounds. The food was absolutely delicious and creative! So exciting to have a great eatery so close to home. Every single dish that was brought to the surrounding tables looked oh so mouth watering. We sat in view of the open kitchen and we could see every dish come out! We couldn't help but drool about our next visit and what we might eat! read more

Cafe Cruz - Almond encrusted mahi mahi with a strawberry beurre blanc sauce!! - Seafood Near Me - Soquel, California

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I absolutely love this spot for a date. The food is exquisite and the servers are fun and friendly. Everything from the appetizers to the desserts are so wonderful and the restaurant is beautiful. I can't wait to come back here soon! read more

Cafe Cruz - dessert for two! - Seafood Near Me - Soquel, California

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I came here around 830pm, saturday of memorial day weekend. They sat me right away. I ordered the four cheese ravioli with blackend prawns and a glass of wine. It both had a lot of flavor. My waitress was super friendly and her recommendations were awesome. As I had a nice dinner by myself, I looked around, the ambiance was "romantic" type feel. They had an outside patio with a nice fireplace. Saw lots of couples eating. read more

Cafe Cruz - Four cheese ravioli and blackened prawns - Seafood Near Me - Soquel, California

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Called to make a reservation for 2. Very large area with seating inside and outside. We parked in the back of the restaurant and the hostess stand is all the way on the other side. For waited for a few good minutes until someone sat us. The first lady was on her way out, the second girl said she would be right back (but didn't come back), then the third lady showed us some options of where we could sit. She also helped the bus staff clean up glass while taking us to our table. (Also, there were at least three other staff members around that glass who didn't help with the clean up, which could have expedited our seating) Once we sat, service was pretty good. Server was very friendly and accommodating with the menu. She checked on us in a timely manner. The food seemed to come out kind of slow. We ordered the Calamari to start, Linguine with Prawns and Scallops and the Grilled Skirt Steak Fettucine. read more

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Wife and I came to Capitola for a getaway from the Central Valley heat. We found this gem reviewing yelp. My wife order the filet and I had the swordfish. Both were absolutely phenomenal. The filet just melted in my wife's mouth. I tried it and I have to say it was the best I ever had. Swordfish was so well prepared too. Service was just as great as the food. Our waitress was so attentive. We give this restaurant our highest recommendation and will be back! read more

First time I came here I was blown away, making it one of my favorite spots! Decided to come back with friends: Ordered exact same thing as previous visit: food was not the same plate in taste & presentation. I was left disappointed, we agreed this would be our last visit. What was the final straw for me was our waitress was rude, short in her answers, & couldn't time any of our dishes. Apps + main course + drinks all came out same time. When we asked if she can take a picture of our table, she rolled her eyes. I didn't have the heart to take away her tip (looking back I probably should had), instead our business wont be coming back. HORRIBLE WAITRESS! Wish I would had gotten her name. read more

Totally awesome. I had the Calamari and Shrimp appetizer with the Spinach Salad. All the ingredients were super fresh; the seafood was fried perfectly with just the right amount of seasoning and crunch. My sister had the Potato Gnocchi with Grilled Chicken Breast. It was her first time eating gnocchi and she loved it! Next time I plan on trying the Grilled Artichoke, it seemed like everyone was ordering it; I also want to try the Mud Pie. Even though we didn't have reservations we were seated rather quickly. The place was pretty busy though--so I recommend reservations just to be safe. Great atmosphere, friendly staff, and delicious food well worth the money. read more

Cafe Cruz - mmm good, baby - Seafood Near Me - Soquel, California

2.5-3 stars, but rounding down due to the slow service. Cafe Cruz was surprisingly packed on a Monday night around 6:30/7pm. This restaurant actually has a fair amount of tables both indoor and outdoors, and they also have a private room you can book. We came in for a big group dinner, and they had a prix fixe menu for our group. We tried: -Cheese Plate: Very boring, and at first they only gave us three slices of toasted bread with the cheese plate. The cheeses were a smoked gouda and a white cheese, scoop of gorgonzola, apple slices, candied walnuts, dates, and I believe a homemade mustard in the middle. All the items were very basic, and I wouldn't order this again. -Fried Calamari: Solid, and I liked that they had the tentacles and rings. The pieces were crispy, and I liked the tartar and marinara dipping sauces- Recommended! -Prime Rib (Served w/Mashed Potatoes, Steamed Broccoli/Cauliflower): Ok, but my piece was overcooked (medium versus medium rare). This isn't the best or worst prime rib I've had, but I probably wouldn't order it again. The mashed potatoes were smooth and garlicky, but could have used more salt. -Smoked Chicken: They give you a giant portion of chicken (half of a chicken), but there was too much smoky flavor for me. However, the chicken was cooked well, and the skin had a good roast to it. -Vanilla & Chocolate Ice Cream: The vanilla was way too sweet and fake tasting- skip! The chocolate was solid, and I liked the dark chocolate pieces in it. I understand we were a large party, but the service was incredibly, incredibly slow. We had to remind our server a few times about drinks, and our entrees also took a really long time to arrive. If they know a large party will be dining at their restaurant, they need to adequately staff their servers. Based on this experience, I won't be back. At least parking was easy since there was plenty of parking in their lot in the back. read more

Great Grass-Fed Burgers, good homemade fries, good service. Would be good if they added gluten free buns/rolls option for burgers!

Unfortunately the service of Cafe Cruz has gone downhill. We ordered a bottle of wine and appetizers to start. The waiter asked for two of the three of our IDs which was odd but okay. Me 27 female asked to show ID, man 28 NOT asked to show ID and other girl 31 also asked to show ID. The 31 year old didn't have her ID but had a photo which is fine to not serve without an ID present but then when the manager Ken came to pour our wine he did not follow any normal restaurant protocol of asking how the wine is or who would like to even taste it before he poured our glasses. All he said was he can't serve someone without an ID present which would have been fine if they continued to treat us as respectable customers but they didn't. The server then brought out the wrong appetizer.. as he didn't write them down in the first place. Ken the manager then went inside to clearly tell all staff to watch our table and stared at us making us feel very uncomfortable and judged. It was a very embarrassing and horrible experience. I'm not sure if they treat male customers differently but that was clearly targeted towards the women of the table as two men came and got after us. It is 2021 it seems people should be more considerate of female as well as male customers and not be so sexist but unfortunately it is clear this is still a problem. Lost my business. Go elsewhere if you want good service and good food. (Especially if you are female). read more

Visiting California & had to spend day in Santa Cruz on the Boardwalk. Just had to eat at Cafe Cruz. Small quaint place with beautiful interior. Waitstaff & hostess were very pleasant. Food was delicious & watching the chef's at work was fun. Get there early. Although we didn't know the dress attire we fit in. Lots of families & friends. read more

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This place is amazing! I'm still craving for the Linguini Cruz with prawns. Food excellent and service is superb. Anyone going in Santa Cruz should experience dining in this place. Note: Make a reservation ahead to avoid waiting in line but they are very efficient. Highly recommended and one of the best dining experience. read more

If you don't wish to read let me summarize it for you: Bad Service, Rushed to eat and horrible food that is why Cafe Cruz gets 1 star. Detailed: I wanted to eat at The kitchen at Discretion but they were hosting party and it was so busy therefore we found another place which happened to be Cafe Cruz. Welcome to a bad experience! We get greeted by the hosted at 5:52pm (events take place on Oct 14) and she says party of 3? Ok we can sit you as longest we have the table back by 7:00pm. We all looked at each other ummm ok (will they kick us if the food wasn't there?) as much I want to understand the reservations we are also paying customers why rush us? Ok we forget that and get seated 5:55pm. We ordered: One Caesar salad, one burger and the fish tacos. No one asked us what we wanted to drink so I guess you just drink water. Food is served at 6:19pm (impressive and scary) super fast turnaround. I had the fish tacos and oh boy its been years since I sent something back but today I pilled that card! The fish taste like tuna out of a bag. No seasoning and it was very blend extremely blend. The fish was so tasteless I cringe. I had the other two people taste it and everyone was shocked. At this point it took them 15 more minutes to comeback and ask how was the food 6:34pm. Yes, sir the foos is really bad I just cant eat it. 6:40 brings back menu yet, remember I have to give my table by 7? Yeah its ok I will not eat forget it. The burger the person eating it said it was ok and seriously how can you messed a Caesar salad? Will I ever come back? Absolutely not I have a work event coming up in UC Santa Cruz and thought oh this might be a good place to bring the team. Wow was I wrong. Never again! read more

This is one of my favorite restaurants. I bring people here all the time, but yesterday I had the worst fettucine alfredo with gorgonzola sauce ever. It was way too al dente, the sauce was very very thin, there was no flavor of gorgonzola. I asked for more cheese and the wait person, sort of surly, asked, Parmesan? Yeah, sure. I got a bowl of soft cheese but it wasn't parmesan or anything like it. It took the whole bowl to thicken it up. I also ordered bread and butter and the butter was flavored with something. The Bloody Mary wasn't great, either. Cook's day off? read more

The servers and host were absolutely wonderful... aside from that... the food is edible, nothing special, nothing memorable, and it's fine... just fine. I have a ton of questions about presentations and preparations that aren't exactly mentioned on the menu. Ex, why is there red sauce all over the polenta? And the shaved Brussels sprouts with bacon should be listed as a small salad not an app. We ordered the pork chop and fillet, both pretty unremarkable and overcooked. We also ordered two cocktails, the watermelon margarita (TERRIBLE, rimmed with table salt), and the babbitz (just okay)... I really wanted to like this place, the atmosphere is wonderful, the food is just really a let down. read more

The salad was really fresh and the courtyard setting was nice! Even though the wings were a little salty, the good service made it up!

Overrated food,expensive drinks ,atmosphere nothing special,don't know why people recommend it unless they never leave the area

Great service. Amazing food. Wonderful vibe. Don't let the outside fool you, this place is super charming on the inside. We met up with some friends for a late night dinner and had a great time. We shared a few appetizers. The highlights included the Calamari and the 3 Beet Salad. Then my Husband and I shared the Fish Special which was fabulous. I also really enjoyed the Gold N' Stormy cocktail. Sidebar: the back patio looks wonderful. Can't wait to go back and go be it a try read more

Ordered the steak salad for lunch $19 Probably 3 ounces or less and the steak tasted like sad leftovers. Totally dry, no flavor. Tasted like it was made days earlier, cut in pieces and left in the refrigerator. Even had that refrigerator smell. I got a bread plate with no bread ?? Why the plate?? Also I was grateful for the vinegar on the table because although the greens were saturated and wilted, there was zero flavor. The cheese was waxy and non flavorful as well. I got 2 cocktails which were good. Hence, 2 stars, not 1. Very disappointing for. $50 lunch read more