Coffee and a bar Genius!! While staying at El Capitan Hotel this business is attached and my go to place for coffee, snacks, mimosas and a margarita. Beautiful plants make for a calm comforting environment. Staff super friendly and helpful. Enough room to meet friends before going to events or to meet up later. Perfect!! read more

Native Son - Sign - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

A wonder gem in the e Central Valley, there are many things to treasure the service impeccable, feta and spinach pastry, pellegrino and a cup of joe. Native Sun is not only my favorite Richard Wright novel but my favorite cafe in Mercr read more

Native Son - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Cute little bar serving up to breakfast and picnic faire. Great place for a craft cocktail too! We enjoyed the banana matcha- creamy banana goodness. The Carmel latte tasted like fall! And a crisp glass of cava. Great service too! read more

Native Son - Drinks - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Omg...do not come to this place if you need something quick. ONE person working on the Sunday morning of UC Merced commencement weekend. So imagine this...she had to take the order and then make each drink (unless a plain black coffee then it takes longer). You'd think they would staff up for this weekend. I ordered 2 large peppermint mochas and she gave me 2 regulars. Honestly felt a little bad asking for her to correct the mistake because she was clearly overwhelmed but I paid for large right? But then she gives me the corrected drinks and says the only difference is that in the large, they add more milk. NOTE: THAT MEANS NO DIFFERENCE IN COFFEE CONTENT between the regular and large?! read more

We had a lovely nightcap here. The staff was friendly. The bar is quite perfect for a date. The drinks were good. read more

Native Son - Espresso martini and a cupids something - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Sweet Potato inside of a chorizo breakfast burrito is not it. Intense sweetness takes away from the flavor of chorizo, egg, and bits of avocado. You can't taste anything but sweetness from the burrito. Also 85% of the burrito was just sweet potato. Very little amounts of egg and chorizo. The old burrito recipe was better. read more

Native Son - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

We had a wonderful time having a brunch in Merced with a friend. Adriana genuinely welcomed us in the space and prepared delicious food we enjoyed, and one of the best cold brews I ever had. Thank you, Adriana, for your hospitality (we think highly of Merced now) and a pleasant and tasty experience. We hope to be back next time around. read more

I asked our server what he would suggest and I ordered that. It was a wonderful choice. The chicken was moist. I was surprised to have one odd tasting tomato? I think it was a tomato... in my meal. Other then that it was delicious. My husband had a wrap? He was vey please with his meal. The best part honestly was the service. It was slow so we did get a lot of attention, but we have been there's in-the past and I am always impressed with the service. I think our host/ server was Gregg? Long curly hair? I just so appreciate him and his professionalism. Thank you for making our evening enjoyable. read more

Native Son - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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Kelsey is that perfect sassy bartender that makes going there a fun experience. Has a lot of recommendations too!

Just walked in for breakfast with hubby there's only one other couple inside. The two girls don't say hi or offer menus. You can directly go up to the counter or have them approach you. They weren't hospitable at a simple Welcome or Hello. I grabbed the menu myself took a glance, & decided to go next to Rainbird, super helpful and attentive direct eye contact and offered coffee immediately. Go to Rainbird! They're open for breakfast everyday, Google has not adjusted the schedule. read more

Native Son - Our amazing coffees from RAINBIRD - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

This place is amazing! Adriana made my experience even better. My favorite bartender and drink maker. She's so friendly and went above and beyond to help me pick a drink! Will forever love this place. read more

I had a nice meal here with colleagues. The pork chop was done well - cooked just right and not dry; it was delicious. We got the charcuterie board to share, and everything was pretty standard and good. read more

Native Son - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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Adriana is a great bartender that is well versed in drinks and friendly . We enjoy coming to native son for drinks and recommend for alll wanting a good drink and friendly conversation. Cheers atmosphere. Enjoy !! read more

Located inside the El Capitan Hotel, Native Son is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a full bar. Pastries are made in house. Portions are generous so bring your appetite. Prices are very reasonable for a restaurant based on a hotel. Order at the counter and they'll bring your food to you. Or sit and they'll take your order. Food is available for takeout. I had dinner and breakfast here during my short one night stay. I totally get why locals have been coming in to ear here and at the Courtyard. You can read the reviews under the El Capitan Hotel. Dinner: Caesar Salad - loved the addition of endive, really made the dish colorful. Perfectly dressed with great flavor and two white anchovies. Croutons were massive but soft and airy. Would have loved fresh Parmesan and black pepper. But would happily order again as is. Burrata - don't let the look fool you, this is one tasty dish. The burrata was fresh and stringy. To really enjoy the full flavor of this dish, spread honey on a bite of the sourdough then top with the burrata and pesto sauce. Chocolate martini - not on the menu but they have a full bar and was able to make one. A must if you like chocolate martinis. And a great price, only $9! Breakfast: Breakfast sandwich - lightly toasted brioche roll with fried egg, bacon, cheddar cheese, and avocado (I opted out on the avo). A hearty protein packed way to start the day. Great for grabbing and going. Yogurt parfait - nontraditional parfait. Tasty layers of granola and yogurt topped with a giant sliced fresh juicy strawberry and strawberry sauce in a very large bowl. Yogurt was light and fluffy similar to whipped cream. Granola included pepitas, pecans, dried pieces of pineapple and apricot or mango. A nice combination of sweet without being overbearing. Service; Dinner service: Different service for visitors vs locals. Only 3 of us in the restaurant during dinner. I arrived about 15 minutes before a local couple who've eaten here three times. Once the server found out that they were locals I was ignored. She literally turned her back to me. I had to ask for my order to be taken. However he replacement server was awesome and continually checked to see if I needed anything. Breakfast service was fantastic. Both servers were extremely friendly, helpful,and attentive. Not docking any stars because the other servers made up for the one "bad" server. I'd definitely eat here again. read more

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The Tomato Soup is very good, service was very nice and it was fast I recommend this place they also give kids stick read more

Native Son - Very good tomato soup - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Came in recently, Kelsi helped me and let me tell you.... SHE IS PROBABLY THE RUDEST PERSON I HAVE ENCOUNTERED AT EL CAP. which definitely ruined my experience. She constantly had a nasty look on her face, along with a nasty attitude. I would have expected her appearance to be a little neater since this is a very nice hotel. Her drinks also SUCKED. Not worth my money. Joystiq has better drinks and better hospitality. read more

This restaurant is located in the hotel but there is a separate entrance, so you don't need to go into the lobby. You can simply enter through the street entrance. The vibe is chill, very modern and clean. I ordered the BLT wish I would of added chicken. The bacon was perfectly crispy. My brother ordered the Turkey panini and that was packed with meat and cheese. I had a bite and it was bomb! I almost felt like switching plates. The service was quick. It's fairly small but there is outdoor seating as well. Perfect for the summer. We did notice the table next to us drinking and the cocktails looked goodz read more

Native Son - Blt and Turkey panini - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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Cute cafe for quick stop for lunch. I have tried the Cobb salad and grain wrap. Very attentive staff.

Service was pretty good. This place opens at 6:00 a.m. but I was the only one in the place. I got the gravlox plate. Not bad. The salmon is a little thick but still good. The lox, capers and the pickled onions come on the side and you assemble it yourself. Not a fan of pickled red onion so I removed them. The lox were good, not the best I've ever had but good. The meal cost $13 which isn't a bad price. First meal I've had here so not a bad start. read more

Native Son - This is their bagel and gravlox plate. - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Sweet, quick service. Clean/chill environment! Very relaxing space. Will be returning!

Awful Awful Awful Never Again !! Highly Priced for Microwave Food I had the Highly Oily Chicken Breast with Prune Dried Old Potatoe Fingers. read more

Our family ate here for breakfast before heading out to Yosemite for the day. You order at the counter and then they bring the food out. Overall for the four of us it was $100 which was quite high for what we received (luckily the hotel covered $80 of it being globalists). They did a really cool job with the lattes as you can see in the photos and the food was good. read more

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Came here while staying at El Capitan hotel. Was so thrilled to find such a cute cafe! The decor set the tone of a fun place to hang out and stay a while. Unfortunately, I had to get my things to-go so I could start my journey home. I got a hot matcha and a salmon bagel. I was even more thrilled to find out that they had an unsweetened matcha. Nothing worse than trying to get a healthy drink that ends up being filled with sugar! Bagel came with pickled onion, lox, and capers! This was my first time finding a salmon bagel with pickled onions instead of fresh and I loved it! Definitely a must-go if you are in the downtown Merced area. read more

Absolutely 5 starts for them: Very clean Cafe/ Bar Host had us with a big smile on his face Explained the menu very well and help us to make a great choice I'll give A+ to the Steak sandwich, juice and amazing flavor- organic tomato does wonders A to the Cubano Sandwich Definitely coming back again read more

Native Son - Steak Sandwich - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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First time here. A very quaint and clean place. The coffee was hot and tasty, as the muffin was warm and yummy. Lily is an amazing server! I will be back ! read more

I stopped by Native Son for a quick morning iced latte. Of all the lattes that I've had, this was easily one of the best ones - and I didn't even ask for sugar! The barista who helped me was quick, and I was surprised it only came out to $4! I also liked that it was connected to the hotel but also visible from the street. Excellent location and excellent latte! read more

My friends and I came in for a drink, they were amazing. Shaun was our server he was amazing! The atmosphere was so welcoming and clean. definitely recommend! read more

Best burger I've ever had!!! WAGYU burger!! Avocado toast is also on point! Kao and Ariana are the real MVPs read more

Great bartending service from Ariana who makes great long island iced tea, margarita and a dirty martini. She made an extra strong long island iced tea for me since I asked for it. The charcuterie board was a lot of food and I couldn't finish it. She is a barista, so I finished my visit with a cappuccino. She asked if I was going to come back, well with the great atmosphere and great service, I definitely will come back for drinks. Thank you, Native Son cafe & bar. read more

Came here for a drink on a Sunday. Little overpriced for Merced. Got two drinks and charcuterie board Connected to the hotel, it's cute. Needs to be a little dim. Music? Don't even remember if it was on. Great service though! read more

Native Son - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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Lily is the shit, the whole shit, and nothing but the shit. We've been here a couple times and finally reviewing. The Palomas were on pointe. And the sass was extra entertainment! Love the experience! Thank you Lily! read more

The hotel and staff are absolutely lovely. The resturant and cafe/cocktail lounge are top notch! Some of the most thoughtful food we've had in California! read more

Old fashioned was on point. Food was good but a few more options would be nice. Seating was definitely lounge and not dining set up. Not a deal breaker. read more

Great service. Definitely sit at the bar. If you order a simple drink you won't be disappointed and the charcuterie board was awesome as well. Great place for an appetizer and drink to relax at the bar. read more

Native Son - cheese board - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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We are Hyatt members and come here every Sunday evening and stay in the hotel. The very first time we came here the service was stellar -- and though the menu is quite limited, the food was very good. But only the first time. We are here late in the day on a Sunday so there are not many options. We continue to give this place a try. Tonight we are hoping to wind down and watch the 49ers game after driving three hours to get here but they have club music blasting. It's not conducive to the atmosphere at all. It's really passé and annoying. This place has so much potential to have a little touch of class in downtown Merced but the club music pounding ruins that hope. The Hyatt has a beautiful hotel, El Capitan, here but the dining experience is limited. Apparently, they are opening another restaurant in October. Hopefully the atmosphere and ambiance will be greatly improved. read more

Native Son - This is the salmon toast. - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Went for an early dinner. I opted for the Marchini Caesar Salad and hubby ordered the Cubano Sandwich with side salad. Items had a nice, fresh flavor and were ample for an early meal. Cubano could have used a little more meat imo, but no complaints all around. Would definitely return to try other times either for breakfast or lunch. Atmosphere was nice and seating offered multiple options for varied number of patrons. read more

Native Son - Cubano sandwich and side salad - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

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Server Alisa was so Very Rude! She is incompetent with her job and definitely not an asset to this kind of business,does not have good customer service skills,so uneducated. We came from San Diego at10:30 pm, ordered gin martini but there was no olive with it. My husband asked if he could at least get one. She replied impatiently " No! we are about to close!"When she saw we were not happy, she yelled " you guys can leave!"and called security on us. There were 5 of us all registered nurses from Kaiser & UCSD and we don't even treat our homeless or jail patients like that.She is uneducated and has bad grumpy attitude. We were going to order more but left, dissappointed with bad customer service! read more

I had a few drinks with friends and Emma took great care of us. She was so quick with our drinks and they were so delicious. She gave us great recommendations on drinks to try and she was so right they were really good. Definitely going back in the near future. read more

Tried the Cubano with a side salad. Great flavor and quality sandwich. Nice Cafe with casual upscale atmosphere. Great place for a date night. read more

Native Son - I tried the Cubano for dinner. It came with a really good side salad with fresh ingredients. I love the atmosphere and vibe of this Cafe. - Cafes Near Me - Merced, California

Absolutely disgusting! Everything tasted microwaved. Was told the flatbread had arugula, feta, red onion but came with carne asada, pineapple and olives. Was so gross. Crust was so hard I couldn't even eat it. Cuban sandwich was the same. Meat tasted rancid. Left everything uneaten and went to In and Out down the street. read more