Darla Cafe
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Quaint, cute spot in downtown Saratoga! Indoor & outdoor seating available. I saw photos and preferred the spacious inside. No need for a reservation Sunday during brunch but it's good to make one just in case. I arrived at 12:30pm and outdoor seating was full with two parties seated inside. By 1:30pm, the place was 3/4 full. Eats: Orange Juice Rose-Berry Lemonade Corn Ribs Chicken noodle tomyum soup Darla French Toast Ricotta Pancakes Tofu Scramble *The Great: Ricotta Yuzu Pancakes!! AMAZING! So fluffy and hot-- everything you'd want in a pancake. I don't like ricotta much, especially on pizza, but they make it so smooth like a liquid icing but creamy yellow with yuzu essence. They're known for these for a reason. Corn ribs were DELICIOUS! Buttery and savory with a creamy aioli dip. I ate three pieces and could've eaten more. *Could've Been Better: Chicken noodle tomyum soup barely had any shredded chicken. Maybe some chopped chicken cubes would've worked out. It had typical noodles for chicken soup. It was also not sour or spicy like typical tomyum. All sweet and tomatoey. Tofu Scramble needed more seasoning? Potatoes were good. I should've tried the house marmalade on the bread. They keep some in the little jar on the table. Darla French Toast was excellently executed. Picturesque. It tasted more like bread pudding, slightly undercooked in the middle and would've been great with a crisp exterior for texture contrast. Service was fine with polite smiles. They leave you alone for the most part. Little vase of flowers is an adorable touch. There is parking in the back but good luck on weekends. Great place to walk around and explore local shops.
Found this lovely place on Yelp when I was searching for a breakfast place near Hakone Gardens. We were welcomed in as the first customers of the morning, server was very friendly and accommodating. The menu is American Asian fusion, and their duck confit and waffle breakfast was absolutely delicious! For a group of eight, we ordered all different breakfast plates, and we finished them without anything leftover. Food was so flavorful and I loved the unique fusion of menu items. Inside the cafe, it was very clean, and had a nice, cozy feel to it. Parking was easy to find across the street as we arrived right when the cafe opened. I would love to go back another time and try their lunch items as well. Wonderful place to have breakfast!
I was going to complain about the long wait time but now that I've got my food and drinks I have zero complaints. It did take 40 minutes just to get drinks but the staff hustled and were very genuine and sweet. The drinks were amazing! Espresso martini and nebula. We loved our food too. Totally worth the wait and then some. The corn ribs were the best corn I've had in awhile. Also loved the mango salad; the flavor was amazing. Come here if you don't mind relaxing and waiting. I also loved the early 2000s R&B playing.
Food taste and quantity was good! The wait for the food was a little longer than expected, but understandable given they were pretty busy for lunch on a Saturday. My tofu scramble was very good, would gladly get again.
A darling Asian-American fusion cafe in downtown Saratoga! This neighborhood gives Stars Hollow vibes. With so many interesting options on the menu, our party shared a couple plates: Loco Moco 1: Wagyu beef patty was nice and tender Loco Moco 2: I preferred this version with the Karaage Ricotta Pancakes: initially drawn to this because of the Yuzu glaze! However, I found the sauce to be bitter and the batter too cakey to my liking. Overall, great presentation of food, but the taste fell a bit short of expectations. Service was slow, possibly since we were sitting outside, but the staff were very nice and welcoming. There was plenty of parking in the back lot. If you're not in a rush and looking for a solid brunch spot, Darla would still be a great option!
i LOVEE the cutesy aesthetic decor and food of this place!! been wanting to try this place forever!!! we were so excited!! the menu has so much yummy options. the service was friendly however we waited around 30-40 minutes for our food to finally come. i'm not exaggerating like i have the time stamps are in my pictures. like understand they wanted to make our food delicious and pretty but we haven't waited this long for food especially brunch in a while. my friend was slowly losing it. the wait was so long our sweet waiter noticed and gave us free potatoes to munch on while we waited. also my friend's food was cold when it came out yes the food was yummy!!! i got the florence benedict which came with CRISPY kale. a fun surprise. texture giving crispy seaweed!! (doesn't taste like seaweed dw) wasn't expecting it when i put my fork through, the sauce over the eggs SO GOOD AND BUTTERY love the touch of pomograte with the kale yuzu pancake - got one cake on the side, sweet but also with yuzu light sour taste, hot fluffy iced jasmine with lychee - light taste of lychee very light subtle - jasmine watered down, lychee syrup we want to come back to try more food...but idk if we can wait that long for food
Cute brunch spot in Saratoga with friendly service, but not really special in terms of the dishes. Met up with a friend for a late weekday lunch and staff kindly accommodated my dog. I got the garden scramble ($21) which came with a piece of toast and a serving of potatoes/sweet potatoes. It wasn't really anything mind-blowing but felt fairly healthy and I had a good portion to take home for a second serving. I also got the yok lor coffee ($6.50) which is basically Thai iced coffee with milk. They said it was similar to Vietnamese iced coffee and I immediately followed up by asking whether it would be very sweet. Our server said he would be able to make it less sweet, and he absolutely delivered!
We stopped in for a late Sunday lunch. We sat outside on the back deck. There's a huge tree in the center of the patio. The menu was excellent and very creative. From the menu, I already knew that we'd be returning. My waistline won't let me order everything on one visit!
The ambiance is cozy, w/ plenty of seating. There is a parking lot behind the restaurant. Service was slow and food took too long to come out but they are understaffed that day. The bathrooms were not clean. The food was alright. I like how unique the menu items are. I would not be back, but it was a good try!
I'm surprised Darla Café was so chill on the weekend. Places that offer Bottomless Mimosas can get wild and ratchet (anyone remember Lime in The Castro?). I can't do mimosas anymore but it's fun to watch the drunken shenanigans. "Dis iz meeeee after 10 miiiimooooosaaaas" *Faceplants on table* Darla Café opened two years ago and has been on my list to try after reading the owners are three friends from SF. And, with a menu that looks to be inspired by popular SF brunch spots like Sweet Maple, Blackwood, and Son & Garden. Unlike other hot brunch spots, Darla Café accepts rezzies which is a big plus! We visited on a Saturday around 11 am and was shocked that there was no line or wait, and there were only a couple of tables eating. M E N U AZN fusion brunch fare and Modern Thai dinner fare. Beer, wine, and low abv cocktails (sake and soju). Bottomless mimosas for $25 pp (90 minute limit). F O O D * Chef's Special: "Thai-Green Fusion" Beef Rib w/ turmeric rice, salad, tzatziki ($35): https://tinyurl.com/yc6t56k7 Staff said, this was a Thai and Greek fusion dish. Seemed interesting enough to try but when it arrived, it was just two different cuisines plated together. It felt disjointed and the flavor combo didn't work. My fav part of the dish was the biryani-like rice, fragrant and served hot. The beef rib was meaty and tender but didn't have much flavor and could have been warmer. The undressed greens w/ cucumbers+ pickled onions and tzatziki was fine but seemed like random plate fillers. I wish they didn't water down the nam jim (thai chili dipping) so much but understandable for the area. I asked if they had thai chilies, thai chili powder, or sriracha (basically any AZN hot sauce) but was told they only had tabasco or cholula. * Breakfast Plate: Eggs, bacon, rainbow potatoes ($19) The scrambled eggs were more like a thin omelet with browning. Served with two thin slices of bacon, and a mound of crispy breakfast potatoes seasoned with an earthy truffle oil (best thing on the plate!) * Sides: https://tinyurl.com/4u8ajzbb - Avocado ($4) - Chicken Sausage ($8) - Fries ($5) Only tried the diner style fries which were hot and crunchy. S E R V I C E Staff is polite but service is unusually slow for brunch service and for not being busy (less than 25% capacity). It took nearly 30 minutes for the sides to come out with entrees arriving 10 minutes later. No check-ins and you have to flag staff down for things. A M B I A N C E Modern rustic charm. Cozy patio with a huge oak tree in the middle. P A R K I N G Private lot in back. Overall, our brunch at Darla Cafe was underwhelming for the steep price points ($100+ for two after tip with no alkie). Maybe we ordered wrong or the food was better when they first opened? However, with few Asian food options in Big Basin, Darla Café is def worth trying esp if you're looking for photogenic AZN fusiony brunch food with no wait.
Relaxing, beautiful ambience with friendly, attentive service and fantastic food! The menu options are varied and unique, with an obvious eye toward detail and quality. We came for brunch on our anniversary and we loved it. We are definitely going back!
The menu was extensive and very unique. They have both indoor and outdoor seating. The decor inside was sleek and I loved the ambiance. We ended up sitting outside which was not as fancy but still nice and was able to seat a large party. They have a parking lot in the back. The service was ok. I think my favorite was the soft shell crab. I thought the food taste wise was just ok, but the presentation and the variety made eating here enjoyable.
Was getting brunch with some friends and one of them recommend this place as they had seen on Tiktok. The restaurant is very clean and relaxing atmosphere. It definitely gives brunch vibes. We got a reservation for 12:30 but it did not seem like it was particularly needed. Even though it was not packed, service was a little lacking. We got our drink orders in and we got our drinks and had to wait before the waiter took our order for our food. And even after that, the food came out randomly. We got our first order, 5 minutes for our other 2 items, and a whopping 10 minutes after for our final item. DRINKS Blueberry matcha latte: This was on the special menu at the time. The blueberry syrup was good but the matcha itself was lacking. Definitely tasted grassier than matcha usually is and bitter. Upon mixing everything, the drink was overall better but nothing amazing. 2/5 Thai Tea Tini: This was their take on an espresso martini but using thai tea? The drink was very light and fragrant. I personally would have preferred if it was a little more thai tea forward but not bad. Also no garnishes. 3.5/5 Espresso Martini: Very simple and a classic. All the components mixed together very well and the coffee and vodka tastes did not overpower one another. 5/5 MAINS Duck and Waffle: A take on chicken and waffles x duck l'orange. While the duck was tender, the waffles were extremely dry. The orange sauce was a bit heavy and too thick that it didn't really soften the waffles. 3/5 French Toast: My favorite of everything, the french toast was moist yet remained slightly toasted. Fruits were fresh. A classic but nothing too different. 4.5/5 Lobster Benedict: The lobster was overcooked and a little too rubbery. It also took them over 10 minutes to get this to us after we got everything else so I am not sure what happened and if it was sitting out there and got overcooked while it sat. 1/5 Overall, a bit disappointed. There were a couple items left on the menu that piqued my interested but unsure on whether I would return.
2 years ago
This review is long overdue, but I wanted to write one since I still remember it clearly. I went here with some friends on a Saturday near the holidays, but the place was surprisingly mostly empty. They still had their Christmas decorations, which were simply adorable. It gave us a very cozy winter vibe. We were seated immediately and our servers were incredibly nice and attentive. We ordered: 1) Karaage & waffle ($25): The presentation was nice and the taste was standard, but I'm unsure how I feel about paying $25 for a few pieces of chicken and one waffle. I had to remind myself I was paying for more than the food because the restaurant was in a beautiful location and the vibes were very nice. Would I go here for a casual lunch with friends? No, but for a more special occasion with someone I have not seen in a while or on a special date--yes! 2) Thai Tea Pancake: this was a special's so I actually don't see it on the menu anymore. I can't recall much it cost either. I remember it being fluffy and soft when we first dug into it, but eventually realized it was too sweet for our tastebuds. It's a good dish to share though, but too sweet for one individual. Overall, I think it's really an adorable restaurant with beautiful food presentation. If you prioritize a warm, cozy ambiance then I recommend this place. It has great lighting for pictures too (your Instagram would love this). However, if you're a foodie who prioritizes food quantity, flavor, and price, then maybe skip on this. read more
My partner took me here for dinner to celebrate my birthday. The restaurant is located on a charming downtown Saratoga street surrounded by several other nice eateries/cafes. Parking was fairly easy, too. When we arrived, we practically had the place to ourselves. It seems this spot is more popular for brunch. The restaurant had a pleasant, calm ambiance, and they even offer jazz shows on certain weekends. We chose to sit in the back area, which had a big oak tree in the middle towering over the patio. Here's what we ordered: Rose-berry Lemonade ($5.5) - It tasted like strawberry lemonade. While it didn't particularly stand out, I enjoyed it. Corn Ribs ($14) - This dish caught my eye while browsing the menu. The way the corn is cut allows the kernels to open up and curl when cooked, enhancing the flavor and making it easy to eat. Both my partner and I loved it! Hella Crab Spaghetti ($40) - I was initially hesitant to order this, but it turned out to be the best dish of the night! There was indeed "hella" crab pile on top. The presentation as always, was op notch. The crab soooo sweet and tender, almost left like we're biting into cod. It was unlike anything I've ever had. The al dente noodles had a delightful garlic flavor as well! Bibimbom ($28) - Another beautifully presented dish. The veggies are tucked inside a crispy fried rice ball that you break up and mix with the sauce. I liked the ball shape as it provided more of the scorched rice, which is arguably the best part! However, for the price, it felt more like a novelty experience since it was essentially rice and veggies. Mango Sticky Rice - My partner secretly ordered this, and they brought it out with a candle for my birthday. While the presentation was lovely, it was fairly standard and I'd probably skip it next time. Overall, it was a delightful dinner. The server was friendly and very attentive. I appreciated that all the food came out simultaneously. It was a memorable birthday dinner! read more
2 years ago
Don't waste your time, money, and patience on this place. Terrible. Everything. Food, service, table. Ok, for starters, our table was kind of sticky. Nbd stuff happens. But everything else just exacerbated this point. We finally got to order after we were seated for a long time and it took well over fourty minutes to get our food. This wouldn't be an issue but there were only three other tables seated. This again, wouldn't be the most unforgivable thing in the world but 1 of our dishes was warm and the other was actually just cold and the other two seems freshly made. But like cold potatoes. No one wants to eat that. I was so taken aback that I forgot to even take a pic of the dish but you can kind of see it in the corner of one of my pics. It seemed like our food was done much earlier and our server forgot to get the dishes and that they're terrible at making the food so it arrives all at the same time for a table. All of these blips might be ok but this restaurant charges to $25+ dollars to give you cold potatoes. But even the food that was prepared here was basal. The flavors were fairly flat and under seasoned. The portions are small for the quality and price. And honestly, I found the comparable to iHOP. That's not a compliment. read more
1 year ago
2 years ago
FLAVOR (4/5): Got the Darla french toast which seems to be a popular dish here! The toast was super soft and the caramel sauce tied it together. I appreciated how much fruit they gave on the plate. Definitely unless you have a sweet tooth you might not be able to finish it all in one seating. INSTAGRAM WORTHY (5/5): The cafe itself is super clean and cute! Lots of indoor and outdoor seating. The plates and drinks came out very aesthetically plated. SERVICE (4/5): Came in at 10AM on a Sunday and there was barely anyone in there, maybe only 3 tables! But when we left around 12PM there was a bit of a waiting for a table. Service is definitely on the slower side for them to come around to your table. They do refill waters often which was nice! TAKEAWAYS: I would come back to try their dinner / lunch menu. Cute spot to go on a date for or with the girls! Plenty of street parking available in downtown Saratoga. read more
2 months ago
Darla Cafe is one of the best Asian-Fusion brunch spots I've been to in the Bay Area. My favorite was Aina in SF if the OG foodies remember it. Darla may be my new favorite for Asian-fusion brunch. Their loco moco is a good find and one that I like outside of Hawaii. The matcha pancakes and French toast were made perfectly. Plating is impressive here. The drinks are solid-- the yok lor coffee woke me up for the day. I can tell they took care and gave high attention to detail in crafting their menu and flavors here. The inside has a clean aesthetic look and there is outdoor patio seating perfect for the spring time. There is a family feel from the staff. Darla Cafe is near Hakone Gardens. Highly recommend a visit! Ordered: Loco Moco #1 Darla's French Toast Rose berry lemonade Yok Lor coffee Matcha pancakes read more
Situated at the corner along Big Basin Way in Saratoga downtown, Darla Cafe is rather big and roomy. It's dining room is one big room, straight forward looking without any hidden corners. On a Sunday night it was rather empty. We came for dinner, and there were plenty of reservation time slots on Yelp (not available to book on OpenTable). We were greeted warmly and the entire service was friendly and courteous. The menu has entree and small tapas plates, but we were rather disappointed at the tapas selections, but entrees have a few interesting items. I went with the Duck Confit Fruity Curry and it was good! The curry was not spicy but rather sweet, as elevated by the lychee and pienapples in the sauce. The plate came with one whole duck leg and roti bread was placed on the side of another plate. The bread was cut into small wedges, easier to eat without the mess. I cleaned up the whole plate! The other 2 items we tried were less impressive. The Fish Tacos were rather small in portion for $18. The Spaghetti Napolentana was basically a vegetarian spaghetti in tomato and mushroom sauce, but the tomato sauce did not taste fresh. For dessert, the most interesting Thai Tea Crepe Cake was out, so we had to go with Chocolate Lava Cake. It was just ok, there was no lava oozing out. So they earned 4 stars from me with the service and the duck curry. read more
3 months ago
Darla Cafe exceeded my expectations! We visited for brunch on a Sunday, and were seated right away. The interior was spacious, with lots of natural light and a simple, modern aesthetic. For drinks, I got the Yok Lor Coffee, which I'd never tried before. It was "sweet and creamy", as the menu had described, but not very caffeinated. I also couldn't resist trying the Thai Tea Tini. This drink was super unique (and quite strong), but I liked my friend's Espresso Martini slightly more. For food, my friend and I shared the Karaage Benedict and Karaage & Waffle, and our other friend chose the Garden Scramble. The Karaage Benedict was very tasty - perfectly poached eggs and nicely cooked chicken. The only thing I would've changed was the choice of bread. It was just a piece of sliced bread, which was unusual for a benedict. We also added the Truffle Rainbow Potatoes to this (+$2), and those were tasty. I couldn't really taste the truffle, but the texture was great. The Karaage & Waffle was also very good - no complaints! My friend's Garden Scramble was pretty standard, with slightly more spice than she had expected. For dessert, we shared the Chinese Donut, which was a good size to split between three people. It was basically just fluffy pastry dough, which we dipped into condensed milk. Service was friendly and reasonably quick, and the ambiance was pleasant. Would return to try more items! read more
1 year ago
A local favorite of ours -- they have really flavorful food and sweet service. We love how they took care of our kids with providing a kids menu, plates/cups, and coloring! read more
Been trying to come here for awhile. Me and my wife come here one a Friday morning. Not busy but have heard it can on the weekends. Great menu and lots of things to try. Thought it was only open for breakfast/brunch but they have lunch and dinner menu. Service was great and I like the indoor/outdoor of the restaurant. Just a little cold, we had to wear out jackets the whole time. Will definitely come back and bring the family. read more
3 years ago
I came here for brunch with my friend, and overall the food was underwhelming. First of all, they kept bringing us the wrong order. My friend ordered a Thai iced tea and they brought out some other drink. They also brought out food that we didn't order. We ordered: 1) Thai Iced Tea - My friend really liked her drink. 2) Yok lot coffee - This was nice & refreshing and not too strong which was perfect. 3) Loco Moco - We had ordered a medium rare patty but when it came out, it was overcooked. AND... THERE WAS A PIECE OF HAIR IN THE FOOD!! :( I took out the piece & ended up not telling them. Maybe I should have but I was already hangry. I still ate some of it but not the parts the hair touched... 4) Karaage Benedict - The chicken was so dry & needed more flavor. 5) Lobster Benedict - The eggs were not bad, perfectly runny but the lobster was so dry and lacked flavor. They should have added butter & lemon or something else to it. My friend & I only ate a couple of bites of this. 6) Darla's French Toast - This was actually tasty & the only dish I truly liked. The service could be better. I think they're understaffed but not once did anyone check up on us. Since we barely touched our lobster benedict, our waitress was kind enough to take it out from our check. We were honest & told her it wasn't good. Anyways, I will not go out of my way to come here again. Don't let pretty food fool you. read more
Looked better than it tasted. Sadly for us the food was underwhelming and not memorable at all. Overpriced and seriously lacking in flavor. The only thing I liked was the Thai iced tea and decor. My friend and I made online reservation for 2 people at 10:30am on Saturday. We were quickly seated by the window. It didn't start getting busier until later. We ordered the lobster benedict, karaage benedict, loco moco no.1 with sunny side up egg & medium rare beef patty, Darla's French toast, yok lor coffee, and Thai ice tea. They kept bringing out the wrong order to us.. it was obvious that they were short staff. The wait time for the food to come out was long (30+ minutes) The loco moco beef patty was overcooked and not medium rare like we ordered. It was very dry and overcooked. It needs a bit more salt. I suggest making garlic fried rice instead of the basic white rice. Speaking of overcooked, so was the lobster from the lobster benedict. I only had 1 bite and my friend took 2 bites and we didn't like it. At the end of the meal, it was evident that we didn't enjoy our meal and had lots of food leftover. Server asked if we wanted a box and I politely said no. I gave her some feedback on the dishes, especially the lobster benedict. The server apologized and was kind enough to not charge us for the lobster benedict! THANK YOU! We appreciate that. The karaage benedict was below average. I feel like it could have used some paprika or some type of spice. I suggest offering aioli or dipping sauce with it? At least the poached eggs were cooked correctly. I hate to say this but my friend found a hair in her loco moco too. Overall, our experience was not the best. I hope the business can take these criticism and improve in the future. + at least the staff were nice though. read more
2 years ago
What an amazing evening at Darla Cafe! We purchased tickets in advance for the live jazz music dinner show. From start to finish, the food, ambiance, and service were lovely. I got the braised lamb shank, and it was an absolute flavor bomb. Perfectly cooked with a gorgeous peanut sauce. The band was fantastic, and I love that they lowered the lighting to provide an intimate feel. The service was attentive and super nice. Sadly the mango sticky rice was a miss. There wasn't enough sauce/soak and it ended up being kinda dry. Plus the mango-to-rice ratio was off. Definitely needed more mango. I would skip it next time. But overall, a phenomenal evening of music, service and entree at Darla! read more
I made reservations for dinner for to celebrate valentines with my gf. Our first time walking down Saratoga downtown and was able to find parking close by. We got there right at our reservation time and got seated right away. We decided to sit at the patio since my girlfriend thought it was cute. We got two appetizers and an entree to share. Lobster Pad Thai was delicious! Corn ribs was prettt good with the spicy aioli Bulgogi fries were good but it's pretty expensive and not as much meat as I would like. Overall I would come back for lunch! read more
Saw this place on IG reels, so my boyfriend booked this spot for our two year anniversary. Interior was pretty cozy, but dead on a Saturday night. Service was pretty solid. We ordered the chicken karaage to share, the breading was good and the yuzu mayo dip was really tasty. My boyfriend ordered the duck confit fruity curry, and I ordered the seafood paella. It was honestly more like a risotto, there was no guoba/scorched rice at the bottom and it was creamy. I didn't like it but the seafood was pretty good quality, and my boyfriend was alright with his order though. The curry had a sweet yet savory flavor that was really tasty with the duck. I ordered the roseberry lemonade which had a nice herbal flavor to it. Highkey overpriced, but I feel like that's everything in downtown Saratoga. The brunch menu looks a lot more promising than the dinner menu. read more
2 years ago
Who doesn't love a good mash-up menu. American cuisine meets East Asian flavors.....do that over brunch and you've completed a winning equation! Was in the area wine tasting and needed some food in the morning. Plentiful reservations for our group and staff filled with Eastern charm. Moco loco with curry and an easy over egg served with Karage fried chicken. Come on!!!!! A hearty salmon Benedict on chonky home bread and a salads worth of asparagus! Fluffy and amazing pancakes. Just everything hit! Don't walk....run! read more
3 years ago
Valentine's day prix fixe menu dinner!!!!!! As you can see in the photos, Darla cafe did a special valentine's day event for dinner, $65/person: one starter, one entree, and one dessert. It seems like not too many people knew about this special since there weren't too many couples who came in and there were some people who were looking to order from their regular menu and brought kids. Overall the ambiance was nice, the volume was good, and the service was great considering there were only two people switching between bartender/host/waiter. FOOD: Salmon tartar: fresh salmon and nice flavors with the mango salsa and avocado. The wonton chips were a tad oily though and I wish there was more of a pop of acid in the tartar: either red onion or lemon juice Garlic shrimp: hard to mess up garlic shrimp, but it was good! Not overcooked and came out still sizzling. Plating looked a little sad though since only 4 shrimp. Lobster pad thai: good cook on the shrimp and lobster. The noodles had good flavor, but were a little saucier than I prefer. overall good dish. Duck confit fruity curry: the cook on the duck was probably the highlight of the entrees for me. Slightly crispy exterior and juicy on the inside. The curry was a little too rich, but the rice did help balance it out. Lava cake: very yummy! my boyfriend prefers the center to be slightly more melted as the one served was more like fudgy cake, but i thought it was great! Panna cotta: very yummy and very light! the fruit compote on it was delish and we both enjoyed it. Espresso martini: one of the best espresso martinis we've had. Super light and not too bitter. Nebula: very funny cotton candy aspect! I ate half of my cotton and candy and melted the other half in my drink, which in retrospect might've been better without the additional sweetness. Galaxy: very fruity! my boyfriend enjoyed this drink a lot and we would order again! Overall great event, especially considering Darla is normally a brunch spot! We can't wait to come back to try their brunch! read more
2 years ago
Lovely Spot for a Quiet Morning My boyfriend and I visited this place around 11:30 AM on a Tuesday, and it was peaceful with only a few people around. The atmosphere was nice and relaxing. Our server was fantastic -- super friendly, polite, and knowledgeable about the entire menu. She answered all our questions with ease, which we really appreciated! We started with coffee and sangria. The sangria was so good -- I absolutely loved it! For food, I got the Karaage & Waffle, and my BF ordered the Loco Moco #1. My dish was tasty and satisfying. The Loco Moco was decent, not amazing, but still good. Overall, it was a really nice experience. Would definitely recommend stopping by for a relaxing meal! read more
We decided to grab breakfast after playing pickleball nearby. Found this little gem on Yelp and decided to check it out. When we walked in at 10:30am on a Sunday the restaurant was about 3/4 full. We were quickly seated and offered beverages as it was rainy and cold out. The space is quaint and looked like a cozy place to enjoy breakfast and catch up with my friend. I ordered the loco moco #1 which was recommended by our server and my buddy ordered the karaage Benedict. My friends food came out first which looked like a lot of food for brunch. He said it was good, but preferred the Benedict without the tomato slice in it. My loco moco was good, temperature was not quite hot enough as the gravy was gelatinous by the time it arrived. The taste of the food was good, slight tweaks in execution will make this a home run! If anyone is reading this, I would have plated in the following order to maintain the temperature to avoid the gravy turning gelatinous: plate, rice, beef pattie, gravy, egg, hold the thick large pieces of peeled cheese. Overall the service and experience was great and we'll come back again when we are nearby. read more
1 year ago
We had been looking to visit this restaurant for some time. This morning we stopped, it wasn't busy, only one family of 6 and another table of two. We thought it is a good start. The restaurant appeared clean and organized. We waited a few minutes for menus and then coffee. It was okay We looked at the menu and we started to think twice about coming. Let me explain. A nice egg breakfast ONLY came with Truffle flavoured potatoes. Truffle oil is artificial and there were no seasoned or herbed potatoes only w/truffle flavours. We enquired about substituting the potatoes with toast or fruit and they said sure but will be an additional $4 - no consideration that they are removing the potatoes. The menu also offers Egg Benedict - but does NOT offer any eggs Benedict - ONLY VARIATIONS of eggs Benedict. Wait it gets better (sarcasm) . We were two. The other person ordered a small simple breakfast and I had ordered Brioche French Toast with "real maple syrup " (more on that in a minute). My partner's breakfast came out followed by breakfast 14 minutes later. Crazy. But wait there is more. My partner looked for butter for the toast as it was not applied in the kitchen.... That's fine. But check out the butter dish in the photos. It was rancid and all over the place - disgusting. My partner also ordered bacon.... It was a thin as prosciutto and cold as room temperature and having NO flavour. And last (14 minutes later) my "brioche" French toast came out - it did LOOK AMAZING and tasted quite nice. Unfortunately, the bread was NOT brioche and the maple syrup ( paid extra for "real") tasted like it was watered down.... Grosse. Will we return - very unlikely. Fingers crossed we don't get sick. read more
Really great addition to the Downtown Saratoga area! It's in a good spot in the downtown area where it's not overly crowded. Parking can be tricky sometimes, but so far, I've always found a spot relatively quickly! There's a lot behind the restaurant or street parking. I love that the menu is filled with a variety of Thai-inspired and fusion dishes. I've had the opportunity to come here for both brunch and dinner and enjoyed both menus! For brunch, I got the Koong Scramble with white shrimp, dill, nori, and cheddar, which was really tasty! I wish the scramble itself was a bit bigger, but it also came with rainbow potatoes and a piece of toast. I tried some of Darla's Benedict that has candied bacon, tomato, crispy kale, and yuzu hollandaise. Pretty good, but the yuzu flavor in the hollandaise sauce wasn't really noticeable. The bacon was good and nice and crispy though! I really wanted to try the Yuzu Ricotta Pancakes but didn't want to order a second entree, so thankfully, they let me order just one as a side item! It comes topped with fruit and a side of syrup. Dinner is a bit on the pricey side, but the presentation is beautiful, and you can tell a lot of thought goes into each dish! The Duck Confit Fruity Curry is stunning! They make their duck confit in-house in a Thai red curry with lychee, pineapple, cherry tomato, and Thai basil. You can get it served with jasmine rice or roti bread. The duck is tender and flavorful, and the sweet yet spiced curry is tasty and pairs well with the duck! The Hella Crab Spaghetti comes with a generous portion of jumbo lump crab and ikura. The pasta itself is made aglio e olio style. The Pumpkin Salad has a fun presentation! They give you a slice of kabocha with kale, cucumber, olive oil, mixed nuts, pomegranate, feta cheese, and a truffle glaze. Enjoyed this salad! They've added some new items to their menu recently, so I'm definitely going to have to go back to try them! read more
4 months ago
We were craving brunch on New Year's Eve and this place was still open! It wasn't that busy at all but it was a part of such a beautiful street. I was surprised that the place was not busy at all since it looked clean, beautiful, and delicious. What we ordered was the loco moco, thai tea pancakes, and the eggs Benedict. Loco moco: 7/10 this dish was nothing too special, just a simple loco moco from anywhere. The meet seemed a bit over cooked for my liking but it was alright overall. I'm not sure if I would get it again. Eggs Benedict: 8/10 This dish was pretty good. I liked their hollandaise sauce and the egg was perfectly poached. It gave a satisfying egg drip when I cut it in half. What made this dish so good was the fried kale. It was so addicting that I was tempted to ask for more! Thai tea pancakes: 100/10 this dish was the star of the show! I really liked the thai tea flavors from the sauce and it helped balance out the pancakes! It made it so flavorful and it was not too sweet! Sadly, this is a holiday special so I'm not sure if this will be around a year round. I would definitely return to this place maybe do their bottomless mimosas too for $25. I can see this place blowing up one day in the future! read more
Knockout Brunch Located at former home of The Basin (RiP)--which was here for nearly 20 years--Darla Café is looking to be the next DT Saratoga stalwart at this location. With a fusion of Asian cuisine to a host of other cultures, Darla Café has everything from tacos and bulgogi to burgers and tapas. Their menu was very intriguing, and so we decided to pop in one Sunday morning to check out their brunch service. The Good: *Fantastic outdoor seating/dining on their amazing patio that's built around a 200-year-old Oak tree. *I really like the location along DT Saratoga's main drag. *Reservations via Yelp & OpenTable™ *Yelp Waitlist©, which can come in very clutch. *Friendly and fast service *Espresso Martini was really quite good, as it had a nice punch of alcohol to go with the sweetness. *Soft-shell Crab Benedict (aka Softie Benedict) was delicious and had great texture and flavor from the crunchy crab and perfectly cooked egg. I also liked that they served it on a rustic sourdough bread instead of the traditional English muffin. *Their rendition of the Shakshuka was really good as the sauce was spicy and flavorful; eggs cooked perfectly; and it too was served with that rustic bread. Our only qualm was technically the eggs should be cooked *IN* the sauce, not separately then added on, but I'm a bit of purist in certain situations. The Meh: *Parking can be a little hit-or-miss on the street, but keep an eye out for some of the city's (free) lots located behind buildings. The Ugly: *Prices are a little on the absurd side--but you are in DT Saratoga--but since the food was fantastic, I won't gripe too much... TLDR: Fantastic brunch spot, and we can't come back to try more of their menu. read more
Very pleasant place to have brunch. Quiet, great service (very friendly, attentive, polite), and the food was very well prepared and tasted good. The place is fairly cozy, fairly traditional. We'd come here again, but it's honestly pretty pricey. Probably has to do with location and being in downtown Saratoga. While I don't have any issue with the portion size, it was fairly conservative for the price. When paying this much, it'd be ideal to leave really full or have leftovers. So if you're focused on having a pleasant experience and very good food, and aren't focused on price/value, this is easy to recommend. With drinks, tip, tax, etc, expect it to be in the $35/person ballpark for a typical entree. If you go toward the pricier selections, it'd be more like $50/head. read more
This place has a lot of charm. Very cute ambience and clean spacious decor. They also have a super cute outdoor courtyard built around a big tree in the center. Service was excellent - server was nice, attentive, and knew the menu. Presentation - superb. My latte was beautiful and so were the eggs Benedict. Food - good. Well prepared and seasoned, but wasn't as amazing as the rest of the experience. I will be coming back here to try some other items off their menu. read more
We came in on a Sunday afternoon, the outdoor space was closed so they allowed us to sit in a corner with our shiba, very kind of them. Cozy interior but chilly. We got the peppermint hot chocolate, coffee, kaarage and waffles with the loco moco 2 with kaarage. Service was swift but the food was really disappointing. Peppermint hot chocolate got really bitter at the end with the pieces so yuck. The karaage and waffles was LUKEWARM!! I had warm karaage and warm-ish waffles, the mayo and syrup was good. Then when his loco moco finally came out (when I'm almost done eating my karaage and waffles) his karaage was hot but his gravy and rice was luke warm lol. The kitchen has to figure out their time management? I rather wait to get HOT karaage then luke warm.. We wanted to come back for dinner for their spaghetti but we will not be returning. read more
Went to brunch with the wifey and baby boy. Very friendly staff and lots of seating. Nice background jazz music created a comfortable breakfast ambience - always a plus to me. Tried the candied bacon, smoked salmon, and yuzu ricotta pancake but what really stood out was the Gangnam Coffee! Got me out of my seat dancing side to side. Whoop whoop! The only downside was that everything took incredibly long to come out. It was all so delectable though! Would return! read more
The service was okay. We went in a really hot day (100 degrees) and thankfully it was really cool inside. The water had no ice but that's ok. The food was somewhat too spiced, especially for a burger. The fries was good and the restaurant was clean. I would not go again because I just don't have the taste buds for the food they were serving. read more
1 year ago
1 year ago
Darla Cafe is one of the newest restaurant additions to Downtown Saratoga and to the Asian fusion brunch scene. Overall the food is decent though pricey. It does have some interesting spins on brunch that contain some lavish ingredients from wagyu to lobster and softshell crab; which could push you to order one way or another. We came around 11/12p on a Sunday and there was no wait though decently bustling inside. We chose the patio which is set around a large shady tree giving the area a nice ambiance. Keep in mind though that there is no ramp so strollers and others requiring ramps may have some difficulty getting to the patio. The eats: 1. Chicken karage and waffle with yuzu mayo. Liked the just-crispy waffle and the karage was overall well-fried though the seasoning was okay. Yuzu mayo could've had been stronger in flavor in my opinion but a nice twist. 2. Loco moco - wagyu beef style. The meat was overall good and the gravy not bad. I don't know that I would've paid $33 for the dish again but it does scratch the loco moco itch. 3. Side of pancake - it was...a normal small pancake with a sprinkle of fruit. What more can I say about it? For $6 I would've desired double the pancakes or a much larger singular pancake. Service was fast. No one really checked on us, but it was brunch (thus casual), service was swift and food arrived fast. Plenty of parking available in sleepy downtown Saratoga. read more
Destination: Saratoga for the weekend with my girlfriends. We visited a couple of wineries and ate some of the best food I've had in soooo long. Restaurant of choice: Darlas Cafe, was an excellent choice for our BRUNCH. It is such a cute restaurant. We were seated right away and for the best because we were HuNgRy! The entrees are exceptional. Mouth-watering. Flavorful. Not a single one of us had food leftover. The service was better than great. The servers were attentive and kind. We even brought a small cake for my birthday and our server offered us a candle AND a lighter! Don't let this place pass you by. Check it out! read more
More info about Darla Cafe
14572 Big Basin Way
Saratoga, CA 95070
Directions
(408) 868-9822
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http://www.darlacafe.com
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Ask the Community - Darla Cafe
Are we allowed to bring cakes into the restaurant?
Yes, did it yesterday. They charge $1 per person extra.
Are they open for dinner on Valentine's Day?
Can you make reservations for brunch on weekend ? Or is walk-ins for brunch okay?
Walk-ins are okay
Is there coffee/espresso drinks available?
They list coffee/espresso, but I've not ordered as only had their delicious Italian soda and Thai ice tea😋
Do you need to make reservations for Sunday brunch?
We went for a Sunday brunch with a group of 6 and we were just able to walk in. They seemed to have plenty of space.
What are the hours?
Our hours for breakfast, brunch and lunch are going to be 8.30 am.-2.30 pm. everyday
Why does Yelp recommend reviews?
9 reviews that are not currently recommended
The reviews below are not factored into the business's overall star rating.
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Darla Cafe - asianfusion - Updated September 2026
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