The Dutchess is a unique Burmese meets Central California spot in Ojai that is part bakery and part…read morerestaurant. Reservations are highly recommended as tables do tend to fill up fast. Wifey and I stopped by for brunch with a reservation and were seated right away. I got the Spicy Chicken & Scallion Waffles, she got the Chicken Congee, and we shared a Cinnamon Bun. We thoroughly enjoyed our dining experience here and all the staff were very friendly and welcoming.

We drove from Los Angeles to Ojai and decided to have breakfast at The Duchess -- and it honestly…read moremade our trip even better. The restaurant is absolutely charming, with a beautiful interior, a cozy atmosphere, and a very welcoming vibe. The staff was friendly from the moment we walked in, and our server Mia was simply amazing. She was so sweet, kind, attentive, and made us feel truly taken care of. The food was delicious, fresh, and beautifully presented. Everything felt thoughtful and special. We had such a wonderful experience and would definitely come back next time we're in Ojai. Highly recommend!

The food here is exceptional and the service is superb. Attentive without hovering and everyone…read morewho works here is so welcoming and friendly - always with smiles on their faces. The ambience is clean and quaint with assorted pictures of local favorite Johnny Cash on the walls. I honestly question the 2 disatisfied reviews regarding customer service or the food being bland but, as you'll see from the overwhelming majority of reviews, this simply isn't the case :) Prices are beyond reasonable (especially for this area). My personal favorite are the Lemon Ricotta pancakes - so delicious!

I had a ride to take some hschool kids up to "the camp". I do this every year and I've seen this…read morecafe place but as time would have it I didn't stop for a neal. Today was different...and on the way home I stopped. Now it was later in the morning but I had breakfast on my mind. Once inside I saw the counter and there I sat. Coffee arrived a moment later and I was reading the menu. Simple and to the point, the carne asada omelet that sounds good, no potatoes fresh fruit please. It wasn't long and my breakfast arrived. Nothing fancy here Omelet and a bowl of fruit. The Omelet looked small at first but once I realized the amount of carne asada and I was sold. This bad boy was full of it asada that is and the best mix of different fruit I've seen in a long time My choice of bread was a biscuit with a dab of gravy. Gravy tasted like dry mix with a little help from the cook, good but not to memorable on parker house roll size and was "with" so..no complaint. I gobbled the breakfast and swore I'd stop in on my run to pick up the kids. We'll see. Needless to say this is a no nonsense cafe. This is a no fluff diner, the interior is quite stark, blank but I wasn't here for frills or the romance. The delicious carne asada Omelet made my stop worthwhile and certainly worthy of four star Later Foodguy-Martin

If you're looking for comfort food with a side of nostalgia, Bonnie Lu's Country Café is basically…read morea time machine disguised as a diner. Walking in feels like somebody hit play on a 1978 jukebox and never stopped in the best way possible. Between the down home atmosphere, the classic comfort food, and the steady soundtrack of 70s and 80s hits, I half expected to see my aunt serving meatloaf while debating disco vs. Fleetwood Mac. The service top notch! The vibe is pure small-town Americana. No fake trendy farmhouse aesthetic. No $22 avocado toast. Just good people, solid food, endless coffee refills, and music that makes you want to stay for "one more cup." If you grew up anywhere near a family diner, this place feels familiar the second you walk through the door.

This is not your typical classic diner! The food is all made from scratch. Our waitress said…read moreshe's been working at Bonnir Lu's for 10 years and still eats there. I ordered the Elvis Pancake breakfast and asked for their homemade strawberry jam! And the sausages were soooo good! My friend ordered Harmony's turkey sandwich with potatoe salad and they bake the turkey!!! And by the way our waitress was Harmony :-) Can't wait to come back and try some of the other items on menu.

The Farmer and the Cook -- Fresh Finds Off the Main Road…read more I'll be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect walking in for the first time, but The Farmer and the Cook won me over pretty quickly. It's bright, clean, and has this easy organic warmth to it... the kind of place that feels like it was put together by people who actually care. Right off the main road, easy to find, and the family vibes are real. It's the kind of spot you want to linger in. If you're navigating dietary restrictions, this place is a quiet goldmine. Strong gluten free options, a genuinely vegan friendly menu, and plenty of vegetarian choices too... so everyone at the table actually gets to eat something they're excited about. That's rarer than it should be. The food? Solid. I went with the raw tacos, sopes, and huarache; all filling, all fairly priced for the area. The raw tacos especially surprised me... fresh, flavorful, and not in a "I wish this was a real taco" kind of way. These hold their own. Service was quick and most of the staff had a warm, genuine energy about them. The one small snag; the cashier seemed to be having a rough one. A little gruff, made me feel like my first visit was mildly inconvenient for them. It happens, we all have bad days, but first impressions do stick a little. Overall though, I'm absolutely coming back. There's more on that menu calling my name and an atmosphere that makes it easy to slow down for a bit. Whether you're vegan, gluten free, or just looking for something fresh and honest... this one's worth the stop.

A really difficult review to write. On the one hand, decent food, and decent environment…read more On the other hand, very dramatic and poorly managed "community" space. I was poisoned there with food that I am allergic to by a spiteful employee. Management not only never apologized, they never did anything. The results were lab tested. I went over and above to give them a chance to be civil and professional, and they came up a complete blank. So sad

Five I'm not…read moresure how you could possibly improve!!! Innovative, fresh, consistent, superb staff, creative, and filled with plenty of the "please notice me" Ojai visiting (as well as local) Often overlooked are the fish tins inside... A superb selection and some really enjoyable "meals from a can" ........"if you know you know" Smiles

Rory's Other Place was such a cute stop! I loved the sauces and matcha tins inside the store, and…read morethe workers were so kind and welcoming. We sat outside and enjoyed our matcha affogato, though we had to eat it quickly because it was melting fast in the heat. It was almost too beautiful to eat haha. The matcha flavor at the end of the soft serve was good, and I appreciated that they had free water available at their station. Overall, it was the perfect little snack while walking around on a hot day!

The food was good overall, but fairly standard and not particularly memorable…read more What disappointed us most was the service. We chose to sit outside and I specifically went inside to ask a server if that was okay. She brought us menus, but after that it seemed like we were forgotten. I looked inside several times and made eye contact with staff, but no one came to take our order. Eventually, another employee came over and took our order. A little later, the original server came outside and asked if anyone had taken our order yet. We told her that another staff member already had. It was a confusing situation, especially since there were several servers working at the time. The prices also felt a bit high for what was served. The omelets, in particular, seemed overpriced compared to similar breakfast spots. There were also a few issues with the food. My toast arrived with a normal piece of toasted bread on top, but underneath was a burnt slice, which felt odd and careless. The croissant was very good, the eggs were fine, but the hash browns were undercooked and still somewhat raw in the middle. Overall, the experience was okay, but between the service issues, inconsistent food quality, and higher-than-average prices, it didn't quite meet our expectations.

A nice home cooked meal. Friendly service that was timely. I had their 2x2x2. Two pancakes, bacon…read moreand eggs. The bacon and pancakes were great but I really couldn't eat the eggs. Weird flavor. Good fruit cup too. Moderate pricing.

Little overpriced but makes up for it in a wonderful atmosphere and kind, attentive staff. I have…read morehad nothing but good experiences here both as a solo diner chatting with the staff, and with my family (it's a relief to go somewhere where it doesn't feel like kids are unwelcome). The food is quintessentially california, with a mashup of unexpected flavors and cuisines.

I actually really loved my lunch experience at Highly Likely, with the exception of a few flies…read morethat were around inside the building which I really dislike when eating inside. But aside from that, the food was delicious. I ordered their good turkey sando and it did not disappoint - the flavors were so tasty for a turkey sandwich and the pickles they came with were amazing! Also I got a chocolate chip cookie and it was not only enormous but so rich and chocolatey and salty but in the best way. I really liked it here and would love to come back!

I stopped on my way to my kids field trip after seeing on here they had matcha. There was a bit of…read morea line but it moved quickly. I was surprised they threw everything in a blender?? But it was very good, i would get it again.

I came to Ojai for a quick trip to pick up some hay and decided to see if there were any local…read morecoffee shops. This coffee shop is modern and clean. There is seating out front and out back. I was greeted when I walked. Ordering and my drink preparation was also quick. I ordered a hot dirty chai and it was perfect in chai flavor. Why am I giving them 4 stars?! Well, as I went to pick up my coffee from my cup holder the gentle squeeze of my hand to grasp the cup had the lid pop off and spill at least 1/3 out all over my car. I was so frustrated and upset. At $6.50 for a medium coffee, I lost about $2 worth all over my car. My entire drive home, I would have to recap (push down) on the lid each time because the lid continued to pop up every time I picked it up. I sure hope CC reads this and does something about their cup lids. They just aren't a good fit.