Calabash

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1. BA

   BrendaA

   Los Angeles

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined 6 days ago

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   Great food that comes out fast too! Chill vibe. Have been here like 5 times since they opened and it’s my go to when people come visit us from out of town.

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2. RS

   RobertS

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on March 19, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   The menu is short and all the items are delicious. The servings are ample. The service is attentive. I have only been there on Sundays but both times with other people so I've experienced several of the dishes.

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3. J

   Julia

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on March 19, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience3

   This is a great addition to Oakland's food scene with interesting takes on offerings that you think may be familiar. Highly recommend for business day lunch or weekend brunch (I've had both)!

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4. EJ

   ElaineJ

   San Francisco

   6 reviews

   5.0

   6 reviews

   Dined on March 19, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   Our first time having Sunday brunch at Calabash and it was fabulous in every way. Honestly, order the duck on grits with sun-dried tomatoes and capers. My mouth is watering just writing about it. My daughter thoroughly enjoyed the BBQ pulled beef sandwich, and we shared a Persian starter of honey and cream with crackers. Our drinks of Irish coffee and a greyhound were delicious. Service was so warm, friendly, and attentive, and the ambience beautiful and smart. Value was excellent, making it such a find for the outstanding quality of food and service. Would we recommend Calabash to a friend? You bet. And we're looking forward to returning.

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5. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   San Francisco

   12 reviews

   5.0

   12 reviews

   Dined on March 16, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   A work friend and I enjoyed a Thursday lunch here. The food was delicious (noodles with shrimp, roast leg of lamb salad), the service was friendly, quick, and attentive, and the atmosphere was good - people were talking/etc but it wasn’t loud so you could enjoy your own conversation. Will go again to try more of the food!

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6. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   San Francisco

   3 reviews

   5.0

   3 reviews

   Dined on February 26, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   Food was excellent and the company and conversation was still manageable withe music playing.

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7. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   San Francisco

   2 reviews

   4.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on February 26, 2023

   overall4food5service4ambience5

   Food was amazing! A great neighborhood spot. Can’t wait to try more of the menu! Make sure to order the mezze platter.

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8. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   San Francisco

   2 reviews

   vip
   3.0

   2 reviews

   Dined on February 15, 2023

   overall3food1service4ambience4

   Sadly the food was subpar. Great service and ambience but bland, unseasoned and forgettable meal.

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9. OT

   OpenTable Diner

   1 review

   5.0

   1 review

   Dined on February 11, 2023

   overall5food5service5ambience5

   Amazing food! The staff was soooo friendly and the food was BOMB (the whole fish, jerk wings and my favorite is the spicy shredded beef with plantains)! I will be back 😋

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10. OT

    OpenTable Diner

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on February 9, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience4

    Food and service were outstanding! DJ was great. Ambience is very cool and the lounge section is super comfy. The only thing I hope changes is the lighting; it needs to be warmer, less fluorescent. Other than that, I look forward to going back soon!

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11. p

    putney1974

    San Francisco

    8 reviews

    4.0

    8 reviews

    Dined on February 8, 2023

    overall4food4service5ambience5

    Goodt food and great service, had the roasted lamb salad, the chimchurri took added to the the lamb, roasted Brussel sprouts and cauliflower were also very good. My daughter enjoyed the chicken, roasted carrots and jasmine rice dish. I will go back to see what else the have to offer in the very near future.

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12. OT

    OpenTable Diner

    San Francisco

    5 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    5 reviews

    Dined on February 5, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    The food was outstanding— I had the French toast with a side of sausage, would definitely recommend going there for brunch. The ambiance was amazing and the DJ was playing hit after hit. Would go back!

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13. P

    Peter

    San Francisco

    5 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    5 reviews

    Dined on February 5, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    Too loud. Hard to have a casual conversation

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14. d

    didi

    San Francisco

    24 reviews

    4.0

    24 reviews

    Dined on February 2, 2023

    overall4food4service5ambience3

    Lovely for lunch. The food options are creative and tasty. Nice to have plates from both sides of the menu. Looking forward to returning.

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15. AW

    AndreaW

    San Francisco

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on February 2, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    We had a fabulous birthday dinner. Lamb salad was excellent as were the appetizers. Service also excellent and so warm. And I loved the dj. Not loud just lively. Thank you Calabash!

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16. S

    Sadia

    San Francisco

    1 review

    2.0

    1 review

    Dined on January 22, 2023

    overall2food1service3ambience3

    The noodles might singularly be the most disgusting food I have been offered at a restaurant. Overall, the ingredients were not fresh and the food tasted horrible. The ambience was nice and the servers friendly.

    Report
17. JO

    JamOakFolx

    San Francisco

    15 reviews

    vip
    2.0

    15 reviews

    Dined on January 21, 2023

    overall2food1service4ambience3

    I wanted to love this place. The name caught my attention and I'd read about it in the Oaklandside, so held out high hopes. However, the food was disappointing. My friend and I ordered the shrimp with noodles and the whole fish. Both were under-seasoned and flavorless. Mediterranean flavors typically offer a delicious balance of salt, acid, and spice. All three were largely missing. This restaurant could have something special on their hands, if they re-group and work on getting their flavors right.

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18. OT

    OpenTable Diner

    San Francisco

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on January 19, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    The food was amazing. I ordered the short rib sandwich and fries. The meat was marinated to perfection and juicy. The fries were A1. I also tried the salad and goat cheese appetizer which were also delicious. Excellent customer service and the DJ was also amazing. The music was just the right volume.

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19. L

    Lisa

    San Francisco

    9 reviews

    vip
    3.0

    9 reviews

    Dined on January 18, 2023

    overall3food2service5ambience5

    Loved the ambience and the service was great. Nice menu, but the food did not live up to expectations. It seemed like it was re-heated in a microwave and the flavors described did not stand out at all. Many items tasted exactly the same and they used too much sour molasses or maybe pomegranate molasses. Maybe we just ordered the wrong items. But I would not go back.

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20. JT

    JTOakland

    1 review

    5.0

    1 review

    Dined on January 8, 2023

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    Congratulations and thank you Nigel for creating a space for those of us looking for a safe, grown and sexy neighborhood spot! Great service, interesting food and Sunday’s DJ created the brunch vibe sorely needed in downtown Oakland. We will be back!

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21. HN

    HowardN

    Central Coast

    1 review

    4.0

    1 review

    Dined on January 8, 2023

    overall4food5service4ambience4

    We were excited to try this new Oakland restaurant and to celebrate our friend's birthday. She and my wife thoroughly enjoyed their Sol Verde cocktails with salted rims, while I started with a "Be Smooth." We wanted to try one of the appetizers and opted for the Sumac Lebneh, a smooth dip served with toasted wheat crackers. When we ran out of crackers, our server Davion was more than happy to supply additional crackers. For entrees, we each tried a different dish: my wife enjoyed the curry crab with vegetables, our guest ordered the roasted lamb leg salad with mixed greens and I had the noodles with shrimp, chicken and eggplant. Each of us enjoyed our choices. I was impressed with the amount of shrimp included in my dish. We were too stuffed to order any dessert. My only hesitation in giving Calabash more than 4 stars was the slower-than-expected service, and the fact that my friend's birthday was ignored, even though we had noted the birthday celebration when we made the reservation.

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22. KG

    KathleenG

    San Francisco

    12 reviews

    4.0

    12 reviews

    Dined on January 8, 2023

    overall4food3service2ambience4

    New restaurant. Wanted to try. We’ve eaten at Kingston II and have enjoyed the food. Pros/ Cons - Ambiance & decor nice open space, NPR Music on screen & comfy couches to lounge on if you want. Service started good ( welcoming, attentive, answered questions & made recommendations). Note- requested standard table in reservation but we were seated at High Top. Cocktail- Aloe Dreamin. Great Balanced. Small but good. Husband had Beer. Ordered- Marinated Olives - Flavorful, tart Pomegranate glaze. Yummy. Beef Patties- Right amount of spice. Really good. Wanted Pumpkin Soup- told not available. * So ordered the Caramelized Carrots & Butternut Squash- sauce was flavorful however, they were not cooked through. Unfortunate. I should have sent back. I did tell the wait staff. Sweet Plantains w/ Blk bean sauce - ok. Not real sweet. Seemed to be cooked ahead of time ( not hot) & kept in warmer or oven ( slight crunch, which I actually didn’t mind but hubby did). Chicken Soup - odd addition to menu I thought. Just ok. I wouldn’t order. Husband thought ok. Spicy Stir Fried Beef w/rice & plantains Good flavor to beef. Not really spicy. But… it seemed to need some type of sauce to pull the dish together. A little dry. Service - As stated started good. Then our Server took a break ( didn’t tell us of hand off to anyone that we knew of). No one checked on us. No one asked if we wanted Dessert. We had to flag someone down to get a to go box & check. Once check was brought over ( and we noticed our original Server return from break w/o checking on us), we were confused about whether they would pick up payment or if we needed to go to register ( where we noticed a couple of Servers standing). So I just went up & payed. Overall- We would go back and order different. Looking forward to trying Brunch. We realize it’s a new restaurant & there are growing pains. Better communication w/ customers. Check on customers. Be familiar w/ Menu.

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23. AS

    AlSa

    San Francisco

    2 reviews

    vip
    4.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on January 7, 2023

    overall4food4service3ambience4

    The servers were friendly but couldn’t answer questions about the food. Management needs to do a better job of ensuring they know about the various food and drink options.

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24. R

    Rebecca

    San Francisco

    10 reviews

    vip
    5.0

    10 reviews

    Dined on December 24, 2022

    overall5food5service5ambience5

    The food was delicious, with inventive combinations! I love the decor and vibe! The only thing I would change is not to have football games on the TVs. They did turn it down for me, but I really hate TVs on when dining.

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25. TC

    TinaC

    San Francisco

    16 reviews

    2.0

    16 reviews

    Dined on December 24, 2022

    overall2food2service3ambience2

    The three of us went there based on the recommendation of Eater. We ordered the beef stew, noodles with chicken and shrimp, roasted chicken and feta cheese as a starter. My lomein noodle dish was too sweet, and the chicken meat tasted like it came from a mediocre Chinese restaurant. The beef stew was pretty good, and the roasted chicken dish was fair. The flan dessert was the only outstanding dish for me. I think this restaurant tries too hard and wants to be too many things with its goal of blending flavors and cultures. We also had to sit at the bar and share the space facing the wall which diminished the ambiance for us. The bill came to $124, including tip.

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26. l

    lisam

    San Francisco

    2 reviews

    2.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on December 23, 2022

    overall2food3service2ambience3

    It was a few days before Christmas, my first time since they recently opened. The service was pretty good. We were approached by a server a few minutes after we walked in and sat down. However, most of the choices we made including drinks we were told they were out of one or more of the ingredients, so they made substitutions. :( We had the Lamb Salad with no substitutions. It was very good. I will wait a while before returning to this restaurant. Maybe give them a chance to get it together...

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27. KW

    KathleenW

    San Francisco

    2 reviews

    4.0

    2 reviews

    Dined on December 17, 2022

    overall4food5service1ambience4

    Food and space was lovely, and the staff was pleasant, but very disorganized. It took us nearly 30 minutes after being seated before we could finally flag someone down to even bring water or a cocktail menu. Same issue occurred when we tried to order food. The only time we had fast service was when we were ready for the bill, which almost felt like we were being rushed out. Hoping they work the kinks out of the their service model, because it could be a great neighborhood spot.

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