Cafe Gratitude - San Diego

Excellent service but a vegan/vegetarian restaurant that was out of gluten free bread is a cardinal sin; not am I a big fan of trying to kick the food up a notch by using a cayenne powder on every dish like this restaurant does. Lastly, and not insignificant, parking at nearby lot is pricey unless you can find a vacant spot with a parking meter adding to a pricey lunch.

Service was unattentive, we were sat immediately and waited a good amount of time for our server to come greet us, understandable - given they were moderately busy.

Server was nice, acknowledged and apologized about the wait - usually a sign that things would get better from then on, well - not really.

Twenty minutes in and still had no water and alcoholic beverages served. Appetizers were served and no acknowledgement to the fact we yet had no liquids on our table.

Food was great, but the process to get everything in a timely manner was just too painful for us to recommend Cafe Gratitude to our friends.

Food was good, we had the restaurant week special lunch & really enjoyed it. The only issue wasn’t the restaurant’s fault per say but they sat us next to a table that had a ton of people join them. There must have been at least 10 people join this group and since we were in a small 2 top next to their booth it was kind of awkward trying to eat as they all kept getting up to hug/greet their extra guests.

Special occasion, so prebooked for our 30th wedding anniversary, arrived to find only available seats for 2 were tables in the middle corridor of the restaurant next to where drinks were prepared or stuck up a corner. There were comfy seats for 4 people but we weren’t offered one though later in the night other couples were! We waited 30 mins for our drinks. We had to wait almost 50 mins for our starters to arrive, when we’d finished them our waitress asked us if we wanted desserts, I explained we hadn’t received our mains yet, she apologised and brought them out immediately. Lukewarm. We visited the Venice beach branch a few evenings before and the service was amazing, they need to train up the San Diego staff. I would suggest they need to employ more staff as our waitress was run off her feet and that’s probably why we were forgotten. She didn’t explain the positive affirmations of Cafe gratitude either. Possibly wasn’t feeling very positive herself. The food was amazing though.

Food was delicious, as always. Coconut “calamari” is amazing. Emily was very nicely server, she was in point and helpful with questions on the menu. I like this place.

Wonderful!

This is one of our favorite cafes anywhere ! The food is vegan gourmet and always fabulous. Love the "consciousness" theme and general vibe. Super well-located for walking around Little Italy area of San Diego too.

The server and the food were amazing. The hostess seemed to have her own agenda. She was absent when we arrived, so another team member was showing us to a table. The hostess intercepted us, wordlessly stole the menus from the other person, and then went back to the front where she stared at us until we went back up the back up to the front. It was so strange. After the meal, we could see her through the window pointing and talking about us. We still had an amazing meal, but I don't think your culture of positive affirmation and gratitude are rubbing off on this employee.

Went to celebrate my best friend’s birthday and have some good food. She was so happy and everything was delicious and our server was very courteous. She even brought out some yummy birthday ice cream for her.

Sat for awhile before anyone came over to take our order. No drink refills. Food good, service needs improvement!

Always such flavorful food that is vegan. We especially liked the falafel with s sweet sauce, hummus and olives. The buffalo Cauliflower appetizer is the best I have had. The question of the day is a good conversation starter and the complimentary post cards.

Best place to bring your vegetarian friends.

Our first time and we enjoyed it. Food is good and portions are large. Corn soup was superb. Staff was extremely friendly and nice. Valet parking is very convenient. We will return and not order so much food since the portions are large.

Awesome love the meal
magic super fresh every time

Food was okay my Kale salad was a little dry, my friend butter lettuce was not cut too large leafy pieces, she had hard time eating it... we continued to have to beacon for service and server to take our order.. Nachos were good.. choices of wine and beer weren’t good.. won’t go again..

Really delicious plant based menu. Service was wonderful. Prices a bit steep.

We appreciated the quality of the food and the caring service from start to finish.

Service was terrible. Food was mediocre. Very disappointing

Absolutely amazing vegan food ! The service is nothing less than excellent! Great value !! Love it!

Grateful for the entire meal and experience !

We were welcomed and led to a great table. Once we got the food, it was good. The menu had lots of options. The nachos were the best.. the smoothies not so much.
The service was wayyyy too slow. We got there at 7:15 and didn't get the check until 8:45.

Great place. If you have never had vegan and want to try something different. I highly recommend

My boyfriend and I are from NYC and this was hands down the best vegan restaurant we’ve ever been to. Better than anything in NYC. Dinner and breakfast were both incredible. Please please PLEASE come to NYC!!!

We each had an I am Expansive salad. It was really almost my only choice as I am allergic to cilantro. Why do all restaurants insist on adding cilantro to everything? It was even in the hummus, so a scoop of that with my salad was a no go. Maybe they should rethink some of their recipes and do the cilantro as an add on after. The menu was really limited for me which was disappointing because I am vegan.

Food was incredible and the wait staff was very friendly. Amazing place!

Food is excellent. Friendly service. Carnitas mushroom nachos were delicious.

Wonderful - loved it! There is nothing but positive words to say about Cafe Gratitude. The service was impeccable, the food was amazing and the ambiance was perfect!

as always, an enjoyable experience in every way! we will be back for sure

It took 10 minutes for server to stop by to get drink order. It took 1 minute after we were done eating to get us out of our table. Definitely felt rushed to leave.

Great food & love the Golden Chai.

Very good food but I believe a little overpriced. Server forgot our cappuccino, but took it off the bill. Corny “thought or question” of the evening. But my kids are vegan so I have learned to like the place - my son’s choice for his birthday.

Excellent and innovative food.

The service was ridiculously slow! Possibly short staffed that day? Really disappointing.

Always delicious food!

Good selection of food drinks and awesome deserts.

As always Cafe Grat is my number one for date night! I love the atmosphere and the food is amazing! Do yourself a favor and get the buffalo cauliflower:)

We were a party of 5 for lunch on Thursday. We enjoyed the pressed juices, bowls/burgers and desserts. All delicious..and none of us are vegans.

We loved it! My boyfriend and I were there for our anniversary, and they were so kind and generous. We got a free dessert with a candle on top (so sweet!). I love the theme of positivity and will definitely be back.

Love it here

We drove into San Diego from Vista to celebrate our 16 year anniversary. Since we’re vegan now, we wanted to try a new restaurant and we had just seen an interview with the owners. We were delighted with the food options, the quality of food, the kind and attentive servers, the ambience, and the ease in driving there from Vista on a Saturday evening!
We liked the music that they played, as most of it seems to be from the 60s and 70s, our era, but it was a bit loud and not a real quiet environment for talking, even though we still had a wonderful time. Will be back!

Consistently good. This is one of the restaurants that I frequent. Eric was our server. I was with three of my dear friends celebrating our friendship of over 50 years. Eric knows how to provide excellent service to four gals celebrating life and friendship. Food was terrific too. All good.