Shadowbrook Restaurant CapitolaAll-time favoriteLove, love, love Shadowbrooks in Capitola (CA). It sounds so much better with an echo! Found this treasure 30+ years ago and visit whenever we are here. Living in NJ now makes these visits few, and far between but we are never disappointed. Special occasion or just a dinner out with friends...it is my all-time favorite place. When I have to pick my last meal, it will be at Shadowbrooks.5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMBirthday Dinner was Fantastic!!Absolutely LOVED this restaurant. Service was top-notch and the food was amazing!! It was the PERFECT birthday dinner celebration. Will DEFINITELY come back. There are so many items on the menu that I want to try. Shadowbrook is an absolute MUST!!5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMThe food was delicious, theThe food was delicious, the ambiance was lovely and the wait staff was great!. What a lovely place to celebrate special occasions.5/11/2013 12:00:00 AMLived up to its hypeIf you've never been, you should go at least once. Meandering gardens, quaint cable car, multiple dining areas on a variety of levels make it an interesting place to explore. It runs like a well oiled machine very accustomed to large numbers of guests. Friendly wait staff take care of your every need. The food is good, large portions, heavy and variety to suite most palates. If you want something light, this is not the place unless to stick to the appetizer & salad menu. We enjoyed the experience but don't feel the need to go back.5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat place to take specialGreat place to take special or out-of-town guests.5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMSuccessful 65th B'DayMy wife and I went to the Shadow Brook restaurant for a 65th birthday celebration. We started on the walk down with a professional photographer as we were dressed in an evening gown and tuxedo. We then spent about 45 minutes in the bar with a very tasty flight of martinis. We were seated about 45 minutes before our reservation in a lovely room overlooking the river. When the couple next to the window left we asked to be reseated at the window and were immediately accommodated. We had a lobster and a filet mignon which were equally tasty. A small ice cream dessert with a candle was presented at the end and this had not been requested. This was a lovely evening!!5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMAlways a DelightThe Shadowbrook restaurant is always a delight and a great place to celebrate special occasions.5/10/2013 12:00:00 AMDeliciously richThe service was friendly and warm. We had mentioned that it was our anniversary before the meal to the hostess and she told out waiter before he even brought our menu's to us. they even gave us each a complimentary truffle for the occasion with a candle for us to blow out.
The atmosphere is warm and rustic here and the history of the place is obvious.
The one thing that was mildly annoying was the screaming baby near by. I didn't think this was really a place people brought babies to but then again I guess babies go where the parents do.
The meal took longer than we anticipated, but most of that was because we were enjoying the food and drink so much that we savored every bite.5/9/2013 12:00:00 AMLoved it!We were celebrating our Dad's 87th birthday. We had a 96 year old in our party and the restaurant accommodated us by putting us in a room by ourselves on same level we entered. Service was great, food was fantastic! My scallops were superb, prime rib was cooked to perfection...no complaints from our group! We will definitely be back to this beautiful place!!5/8/2013 12:00:00 AMWe have been coming to ShadowbrookWe have been coming to Shadowbrook for over 30 years. It amazes me that they can keep such high standardsyear in and year out. The food and service is always top notch.5/7/2013 12:00:00 AMSpecial Birthday at ShadowbrookMy daughter is a freshman at UC Santa Cruz and this was her first birthday away from home. My husband and flew up from L.A. for the day and took her to dinner at Shadowbrook before catching a flight home out of San Jose. We were seated inside next to a window overlooking Soquel Creek and had the most relaxing dinner--even though we were on a schedule. The service was EXCELLENT--with many different waiters taking care of us. All the food was delicious, from appetizers, soup, salads, to the entrees. We were too stuffed to order dessert, but the waiter brought a a complimentary ice cream sundae with a candle on it for my daughter. I think our dining experience couldn't have been better. It was very memorable for all of us.5/7/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat for a romantic night!I took my girlfriend there on her birthday and she loved the atmosphere and the food plus the service was excellent!5/6/2013 12:00:00 AMAmazing DinnerButcher Fillet was best cut of meat I have ever eaten. Nuff said.5/6/2013 12:00:00 AMAnniversaryThis was our first time at Shadow Brook and we loved it and will be back! Everything was great :the setting ,the food ,the service....
Our only little dilemma was to find our way to the resturant. We got direction from GOOGLE and they were NOT good - actually totally miss leading ...5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMWorth the RideWe drove from Vallejo for a special evening to celebrate our 39th Wedding Anniversary, well worth the ride!!!5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMDining at its bestI took my boyfriend here for his birthday and he described it as "I went to paradise for dinner".
Excellent service, great food, romantic and a memorable place to celebrate something especial.
The only negative comments about this place : the girls that greets the customers are not friendly at all; they should have somebody there that are more experienced. They looked and acted like they don't like their jobs.5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMPerfect for Date Night!This place is uber quaint. The staff was friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive. The food was GREAT. My lamb was incredibly tender and flavorful. The best meal I've had in months.
Looking forward to coming here again the next time I'm in the area.5/4/2013 12:00:00 AMMust go!Great food. Great menu. Beautiful surroundings. Great service.5/3/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat atmosphere & view; so-so foodThe salmon was over-cooked and basking in a "wasabi" sauce that overpowered the dish; the sides were bland, boring and poorly presented. Prime rib was good. The Scampi was swimming in sauce. We should have sent both seafood dishes back, but it was our daughter's 18th birthday and did not feel like pulling a Gordon Ramsay. Second time at Shadowbrook in as many months and sorely disappointed in the food. The wait-service was excellent.5/2/2013 12:00:00 AMDon's & Patty's CelebrationEverything was excellent! We had a quiet corner table at a large window
with a fabulous view of the trees and river below. The menu offered
a wide variety of scrumptious-sounding entrees, and what we selected
was superb. Our waiter was incredibly knowledgeable and charming.
I've been patronizing this restaurant for over 40 years, and they're
consistently the best I've ever experienced. They knock themselves out,
to please the patrons.5/2/2013 12:00:00 AMThe service was very goodThe service was very good except for not clearing used dishes quickly enough. Can be noisey if located near a large table of people. Food choices and taste outstanding.5/2/2013 12:00:00 AMShadowbrook - A must go: do gondolaIf ever you are in the Santa Cruz/Capitola area, Shadowbrook is a must. The restaurant itself is worth the visit with it's 5 levels and 7 dining rooms. We were seated in the lowest dining room of the restaurant with a beautiful view of the river/lagoon in front of us and lush greenery to the right side of us, viewable through large windows. I had the Filet mignon which came with wonderful smoked gouda au gratin potatoes and a mushroom & onion ragout that complimented my perfectly cooked steak. My wife was also pleased with her prime rib. Amy, our server, was friendly and attentive The only negative was that a large party of noisy older locals were seated behind us during the last part of our meal, however it did not ruin our experience5/2/2013 12:00:00 AMThe setting is beautiful.The setting is beautiful. We went there to celibrate a birthday. The servcie was good although it took a long time to get served. The meal itself was okay but nothing special. I feel like we paid for the setting but not for the quality of food. I think for the amount of money we spent, the food should have been a lot tastier.5/1/2013 12:00:00 AMWas told about this restaurantWas told about this restaurant from a colleague and as we were on our honeymoon decided to visit. Wonderful experience, food fantastic and service exceptional. During our trip we have found that a lot of places think that good service is fast service and on numerous occasions our main courses were brought to the table before we had finished our starters. Luckily this was not the case at shadowbrook, we had time to digest each course before the next came out and take in the restaurant and view which we greatly appreciated.
We would highly recommend this restaurant to anyone who will be visiting the area.4/29/2013 12:00:00 AMShadowbrook lives up to it'sShadowbrook lives up to it's reputation as a excellent restaurant in a superb setting. The service is impeccable and quite flexible. This is THE place to take your spouse, significant other, or perhaps just friends as they will not easily forget the experience. Probably one of the top ten restaurants in California.4/28/2013 12:00:00 AMAs usual, this is a greatAs usual, this is a great place to go for a special occasion and/or just a great meal.4/27/2013 12:00:00 AMGreat food, excellent service.Great food, excellent service. Get there early to walk down and enjoy the garden, take the cable car up when you leave.4/27/2013 12:00:00 AMWe had a wonderful meal whichWe had a wonderful meal which made celebrating a birthday even better.4/25/2013 12:00:00 AMFabulous setting for a specialFabulous setting for a special occasion with excellent food and service. The surroundings and view were gorgeous!4/24/2013 12:00:00 AMPlace was very nice and fancyPlace was very nice and fancy it was the first time I took my girlfriend out to a fancy dinner and this place was awesome great food and service and I can't wait to come back.4/22/2013 12:00:00 AMWonderful environment, greatWonderful environment, great service and food. If you love gardens and going someplace different for great food. Go here and take the tram up after your great meal.4/20/2013 12:00:00 AMPleasedThe food was great. I had the scallops with garlic spinach an lobster infused mash potatoes it was winderfull.
Service was superb. Ambiance was relaxing.
Will defenetlly book again if in the area.4/19/2013 12:00:00 AMOur dinner at ShadowbrookOur dinner at Shadowbrook was a wonderful experience. We had a beautiful view of the creek, superior service, and fabulous food. We will definitely be back!4/19/2013 12:00:00 AMA VERY memorable experience!Without a doubt one of my most enjoyable dining experiences! Your staff went out of the way to celebrate a special occasion. Ambience, food and service were superb! And all at a reasonable cost. Thank you!4/18/2013 12:00:00 AMHad filet mignonette, wasHad filet mignonette, was very tasty and juicy. Also had a Caesar Salad, which was not to be recommended. The dressing was not what we are used to for Caesar Salad, it was boring and lacked the ingredients what are needed, such as a twist of lemon etc...it was a boring dressing. The rolls were also not particular interesting nor appealing, too pale and not crispy enough!
Mu husband had the Prime rib, very good.4/16/2013 12:00:00 AMI love the beautiful settingI love the beautiful setting of this place. I definitely would return to try more dishes; the only way I could pick just one was to promise myself I would come back again to try some of the others. The BLT salad was everything I wanted it to be and the prime rib was perfect. Service was well-timed and friendly.4/15/2013 12:00:00 AMAmazing place for a special nightThe Shadowbrook is a gem of a place, hidden down the side of a huge hill with its own cable car to take you down. The food is stunning, the ambiance fantastic and the prices surprisingly reasonable.4/14/2013 12:00:00 AMWe had a wonderful evening.We had a wonderful evening. The food and wine was outstanding. The service was excellent, we'll be back.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMI have always reserved ShadowbrookI have always reserved Shadowbrook for special occasions. Yes, there are other great restaurants in the area, but Shadowbrook's unique character and great food and service always makes it a memorable event.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMI have always reserved ShadowbrookI have always reserved Shadowbrook for special occasions. Yes, there are other great restaurants in the area, but Shadowbrook's unique character and great food and service always makes it a memorable event.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMWhat can you say but fabulous!A great place for a special occasion. We have been coming here for years. There is nothing bad on the menu. Great service and great ambiance. Prime Rib either pork or beef is excellent. Great view and the elevator is a fun experience or if you can handle the walk, the garden area is a great view.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMWe had out of town guestsWe had out of town guests that were celebrating thier Anniversary and so were we. They were amazed and impressed by the charm of history and exceptional dining experience. The food was beyond outstanding. Waiter was so pleasant and warm and my guests want to go back and try every level of Shadowbrook !! I think they want to move to Ca.
Beyond a shadow of a doubt this is a Go to Place on a regular basis.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMLoved it!Overall we enjoyed every piece of our meal along with great cuatomer service! Fresh warm biscuts were perfect! We will be back with more friends and family soon! Kids menu was also great btw!4/13/2013 12:00:00 AM17th Anniversary celebrationThe food was amazing and our server, Cassidy, was impeccable!4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMWonderful 21st. Anniversary!!!We were celebrating our Twenty First Anniversary, we completely enjoyed our dinner. Our service was outstanding. We live a little over two hours away but make it at least once a year. We would happily recommend Shadowbrook to any of our friends. Thanks for a great night!4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMFood was very good. Our serverFood was very good. Our server knew his stuff. Still the same wonderful place that I remember from the last time we came.4/13/2013 12:00:00 AMOh What a Night!What a wonderful restaurant! We have been three times now on our trips to Santa Cruz. We enjoy the Rock Lounge/Bar area best. You are greeted with sweetest and the night never stops giving. We saw Joe Ferrara on Friday night singing and playing his guitar and we never wanted to leave. He was fabulous. The cucumber martini was delicious but the Pork Prime Rib is a whole other experience. With luck we will return. Thank you for the experience.4/12/2013 12:00:00 AMWe've been going to ShadowbrookWe've been going to Shadowbrook since 1979. It's one of our favorite places for a special occasion. There have been some ups and downs in the food over the past 33 years, but it's up now. The service as always been friendly but unobtrusive. On this visit (for my wife's birthday) our waiter, Matt, and the backup staaf whose names I didn't get were excellent.4/11/2013 12:00:00 AMVery accommodating staff.Very accommodating staff. Busy place that honors its reservations on time. Unique riverside setting. Good food. Fun bar. Wonderful service.4/9/2013 12:00:00 AMOur dining experience wasOur dining experience was very enjoyable and the food was exceptional. Service was high quality for the evening. The restaurant is to be commended for providing its customers a great dining experience. Excellent!4/8/2013 12:00:00 AM