Taste Cafe & Bistro

Food was great, people pleasant but couldn't understand why there was no heat and space heaters were placed around. Had to wear coat to warm up. Otherwise, a wonderful experience.

This neighborhood gem consistently delivers good value. The menu has a wide range, and the wine list is modestly priced. We have become regulars.

We had a fantastic experience. The food was exceptional, the best we've had for a long time, and the service was first-rate. Very creative items on the menu, executed perfectly.

Visited Taste Cafe for Valentine's Day. Food was great, nice bottle of wine, overall a very good experience. It was crowded, but that's to be expected dining out on Feb. 14!

Amazing food and service

Great food and able to provide pretty much anything gluten free. Very, very pleasant experience. Even though it was packed, noise level was great and conversations could be easily heard!! Love this place!

Great food! Wish there was more choice on wines. Friendly service.

Taste has become a favorite destination for my wife and me whenever we visit the Monterey Peninsula. It is a family run restaurant and the owners take special care of all their customers, remembering what they enjoyed from prior visits, and making any adjustments to the entrees to accommodate food allergies or preferences. Nice wine list and excellent French Bistro-style menu featuring local fresh ingredients. Always a pleasure and a great value.

As always the food is delicious and the service warm and friendly!

We always feel so welcome at this restaurant, and we always enjoy a meal we talk about for days afterwards. Everything is really good, and the Chicken Dijonaise is amazing! Although they are a bit out of the mainstream above Pacific Grove's village, they are worth finding and making returning to many times to try their many delicious offerings.

AN EXCELLEN MENU AND GRET SERVICE. WE HVE NEVER HAD A BAD MEAL HERE. I WOULD RECOMMEND TASTE TO ANYONE.

Excellent service, delicious food and wonderful ambiance!!!

Excellent dinner. The paper-wrapped Salmon was exceptional. Simple grilled Shrimp as appetizer/entree just right. Desert (apple galette) was also exceptional. (light flaky crust).

We have been going to The Taste Cafe on our trips to the coast for over 20 years. The food has always been exceptional, the service outstanding, and the friendly, comfortable atmosphere perfect for a relaxing night out.

We were a family of 4 and had 4 different entrees. Everyone was very pleased with their selections. Friendly service and comfortable atmosphere.

One of our favorites when we are in Pebble Beach from January til may!

A great little place that we went to on a lark... and glad we did.

The house cured salmon carpaccio was very good, as were the "Red Oak Leaf" salads we ordered.

Then, there were the marinated lamb filets... absolutely sublime! We are still talking about that dish, and will definitely have to return to Taste Cafe (from North Carolina) for it.

My local relatives recommended this restaurant to us. We went to dinner on a weeknight. It was outstanding. The food was superior - it would get a thumbs up from any foodie. The service was casually impeccable - relaxed but very attentive. Super nice. I cannot over emphasize the value: Foodie quality at a very, very good price. If this restaurant was located in a prime downtown Monterey spot, it would be the preeminent restaurant and probably clean your wallet. But it is a neighborhood restaurant located on Forest Hill in PG, so it is more relaxed with good prices.

Parking in front is barely adequate, but you can park across the street in the Safeway lot (shsh) and safely cross the street with the light.

I really liked the ambiance. Excellent decorating taste. I liked how they snazzed up the lights.

My wife had the salmon in parchment paper. I had the roasted half chicken. Both were great. My chicken came with mashed potatoes and small portions of three different veggies - grilled eggplant, grilled zucchini and sautéed spinach.

BTW, the bread was great, too.

My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed our dinner. He had lamb and I had pork medallions. Food was delicious, and service was outstanding. We will be back.

Food was good , some breakdown in service...We ordered multiple small plates which the waitress wanted ordered all at once & some came at once ...Waitress seemed annoyed with us taking our time....More than once we did not receive new plates and/or utensils ...Shrimp skewers with some bean ....Shrimp was very good,beans under cooked(hard)

Delicious fresh food with a fabulous wine list!

We were horribly disappointed in this place! We were seated right in front of the door & we were freezing. Even though the food was great, we were way too cold to enjoy it. It was also so loud we couldn't really talk, so we pretty much just sitting there shivering waiting to get our food. It was a miserable way to spend Christmas Eve!

We love this place! We come here any time we are in the Pacific Grove area. The food is consistently delicious and the owner and wait staff go out of their way to make your dining experience wonderful. I had mentioned it was my husband's 64th birthday on Open Table, and Taste surprised us with a special Happy Birthday ! Loved it!!

Taste is a hidden gem in Pacific Grove, a town known for a lot of great restaurants. This is one of the very best: warm, inviting, family-owned with terrific food and attentive service.

The last time I ate her (many years ago) was when a previous owner ran the place. Since then, it has been expanded in a good way. There is now a full-bar and more room to move. I drive by here every day, and why I've skipped eating here is something I need to remedy. We were warmly greeted. The Red Oak Salad with fresh pears and candied pecans with a balsamic vinaigrette got us off to a great start! I had the Fillet mignon, cooked to perfection. My husband got the Salmon in Papillote, that he loved. For dessert we split the brioche bread pudding with a vanilla sauce and apricot coulis sauce. It was exquisite! The prices here are less than eating in Carmel, but certainly are as good as any place in Carmel. We will be back very soon. Excellent place!

Our new favorite in the Monterey area, Taste Cafe and Bistro!

The meals are always delightfully served and delicious. This restaurant is one of my absolute favorites.

We were traveling in the Monterey/Pacific Grove area and decided to dine here. It was like walking into a different country when we entered the restaurant, which sits in a modern smallish strip mall. We were immediately greeted and asked where we wanted to sit. It was early, so we were the first to arrive, but it didn't take long for many parties to follow. I liked that the proprietors seemed to know everyone that entered. It told me that the locals know a good place when they find one. After a perfect Lemon Drop Martini, I enjoyed the Red Leaf Lettuce salad followed by a Carrot-Ginger soup and the Crab Cake appetizer. Boyfriend enjoyed the wonderful bread, a mixed greens salad, and the daily pasta special: angel hair pasta with chicken and artichokes in a light tomato sauce. Everything was very tasty and well done. My only comment is that I didn't detect much ginger in the soup, and it seemed to need some acid to brighten it up. The lemon that came with the crab cake came in handy. We will visit here again the next time we are in Pacific Grove.

This was my second trip to Taste in 8 days! Yes, it's that good and the owners, Bill and Sue, make you feel like family.

We ate at this restaurant for the first time and found it to be a good find. The Italian food was good, and they were flexible about creating a vegetarian meal to our satisfaction. The service was impeccable, and generally we had a lovely meal and will certainly return.

Bill and Sue and daughters do a fantastic job of preparing and serving to create a great dining experience...

We always enjoy dining at Taste Cafe & Bistro. The food is excellent and the owners always make us feel like we are valued customers. We think that the food is always prepared to order and with creativity. We highly recommend this restaurant to our friends and family and they have never been disappointed.

We loved the food! Creative and yet not too daring. We each found something we could enjoy and the chef made special modifications for our friend's special diet requirements. Only slight hindrance was that the noice level was a little energetic. It helped when particularly loud birthday celebrants finished and left - then we could again enjoy conversation across the table.
We would definitely go back!

Taste Bistro is our go-to restaurant in Pacific Grove. The owners are delightful & remember you. Sand Dabs and salmon are our favorites.

We were disappointed. Service was lovely but food was mediocre. I had the filet mignon. The meat was not very good. The Caesar salad was nothing special. My husband had the roast chicke, which he liked. It just wasn't worth $80 all in all. Waitress was extremely nice.

We had a large (11) group and were treated exceptionally well. The service was excellent, the neighborhood ambience attractive, and mom and pop feel permeated a happy crowd.

This wonderful restaurant never disappoints. There are always a number of delicious menu choices. The food is beautifully prepared and elegantly served. The owners, Bill and Sue Karaki, make all the guests feel welcomed, giving personalized service. From appetizers to delicious house made desserts, this restaurant is a jewel.

From Entry to Departure, every guest is treated as SPECIAL. The atmosphere is inviting, the hosts are exceptional & the food ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS. The owners, Bill & Sue, are amazingly gracious. We manage to travel to Pacific Grove at least three times a year to relax and dine at Taste Bistro.

Yummy escargot!
Great dinner with my folks.
I had rabbit as well.
Definitely for foodies.

Love every visit to this local family owned and run Bistro. The food is always prepared perfectly, specials are well explained and the service attentive without being overbearing. All soups are made without cream or chicken broth so the flavor of the ingredients are pure. The menu is varied from is varied from organic salads and Grilled Eggplant Napoleon starters to fresh fish, chicken, steak, and rabbit. But don't forget to save room for one of the delicious deserts.