The Center Cafe

Name: The Center Cafe
Address: 1027 Great Plain Ave, Needham, MA, United States, 02492
Telephone: (781) 455-8800
Price range: $30 and under
Rating: 4.3

4.3 (247)

$30 and under

American

1027 Great Plain Ave, Needham, MA 02492

About this restaurant

Neighborhood gem
Innovative
Romantic

A converted commuter rail stop with the friendly, down-to-earth atmosphere of a neighborhood hideaway serving terrific American Cuisine. This family run gem has a lot of cooking talent, a varied menu, good wine list and craft cocktails.

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Additional information

Dining style
Casual Dining
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
American, Seafood, Steak
Hours of operation
Dinner Only: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 5:00pm - 9:00pm Friday - Saturday: 5:00pm - 9:30pm Closed Mondays Summer Hours may vary.
Phone number
(781) 455-8800
Website
http://www.thecentercafe.com/
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Dress code
Casual Dress
Executive chef
Vanessa Cortesi

Location
1027 Great Plain Ave, Needham, MA 02492
Neighborhood
Needham
Cross street
Needham Bank/Eaton Square Pedestrian Walkway
Parking details
There are two, free parking lots adjacent to the restaurant: one across the train tracks from our front door and a municipal lot in in back of the restaurant.
Public transit
We are on the commuter rail line at Needham Center Station.
Entertainment
We offer musical entertainment for special events.
Additional
Beer, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine

What 247 people are saying

The Center Cafe reviews from people who’ve dined at this restaurant. Based on recent rating.

Overall ratings and reviews

4.3

4.3 based on all time ratings

4.3Food
4.2Service
3.9Ambience
1.3Value

Noise • Moderate

247 Reviews

JH
JimH
Greater Boston1 review
5.0
Dined on December 18, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 4
Food was excellent. Tuna and cod exceptional. Great experience.
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LB
LoisB VIP
Greater Boston13 reviews
5.0
Dined on December 15, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Center Cafe continually delivers excellent food. The lamb was perfectly prepared and the fish and chips arrived screamingly hot. Draft beer options include Allagash White (my favorite). Save room for the brownie sundae. Kudos to Chef Vanessa and to the welcoming atmosphere set by co-owner Steve. We'll be back!
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K
Karen VIP
Greater Boston41 reviews
5.0
Dined on December 10, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Dining at the Center Cafe is like being in your friends dining room. Steve and Karen and their staff make everyone feel relaxed and comfortable. Even with being short one server due to illness, the entire staff worked together to get everything for everyone. The bartender himself brought the bottle of wine to our table so I could taste it prior to ordering. We had the swordfish special and duck, each entree was prepared perfectly and brought to us as soon as the dish was ready in the kitchen. We never expect to eat and run when we choose to dine here. We plan to relax and enjoy the food and the ambiance, chatting with our neighbors at adjoining tables. No one is a stranger here.
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A
Antonio
Greater Boston55 reviews
4.0
Dined on December 10, 2016
1. Overall 4
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 3
Very good restaurant! All people in my party loved what they had. Clam chowder and split pea soup were just perfect. Main courses delicious! Duck with butternut squash and sprouts was amazing! Salmon very good as well. Loved the cape code red wine. Nice dessert! We will be back!
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MJ
MJBLP VIP
Cleveland / Akron / Canton23 reviews
5.0
Dined on December 10, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
When we want to have dinner at a local venue this is our first choice. There's usually a special that I haven't tried yet and Sandy knows what to recommend. Karen and Steve always make us feel welcome.
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SS
StuartS VIP
Greater Boston25 reviews
5.0
Dined on December 3, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Terrific! We love dining here.
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Y
Yumyum
Detroit / Eastern Michigan10 reviews
5.0
Dined on November 25, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 5
4. Ambience 5
Never disappointed!
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OT
OpenTable Diner
Greater Boston1 review
5.0
Dined on November 7, 2016
1. Overall 5
2. Food 5
3. Service 4
4. Ambience 4
Steve, the owner, is a terrific host and the food was sensational.
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W
Work4food VIP
Greater Boston8 reviews
2.0
Dined on October 29, 2016
1. Overall 2
2. Food 2
3. Service 2
4. Ambience 2
Based on the 4.6 star reviews my expectations were high. This restaurant is quite basic. A step up from a diner but definitely not a 4+ star experience. Additionally, one of the servers had a pretty animated conversation with a nearby table about the upcoming election and was quite vocal expressing opinions about their preferred candidate. We went to dinner to escape the election!
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e
easterlily1
Greater Boston6 reviews
4.0
Dined on October 13, 2016
1. Overall 4
2. Food 4
3. Service 3
4. Ambience 4
Generally good food. One diner did not get her meat done as specified and when she sent it back it came back rather quickly and appeared to have been "nuked". Restaurant denied that but she did not eat her meat.
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FAQs

The Center Cafe offers takeout which you can order by calling the restaurant at (781) 455-8800.

The Center Cafe is rated 4.3 stars by 247 OpenTable diners.

Not available on OpenTable

Unfortunately, this restaurant is not on the OpenTable booking network. To check availability, please contact them directly.

Is this your restaurant?

Claim this listing

1027 Great Plain Ave, Needham, MA 02492

Additional information

Cross street
Needham Bank/Eaton Square Pedestrian Walkway
Neighborhood
Needham
Hours of operation
Dinner Only: Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 5:00pm - 9:00pm Friday - Saturday: 5:00pm - 9:30pm Closed Mondays Summer Hours may vary.
Price
$30 and under
Cuisines
American, Seafood, Steak
Dining style
Casual Dining
Dress code
Casual Dress
Parking details
There are two, free parking lots adjacent to the restaurant: one across the train tracks from our front door and a municipal lot in in back of the restaurant.
Public transit
We are on the commuter rail line at Needham Center Station.
Payment options
AMEX, Discover, Mastercard, Visa
Executive chef
Vanessa Cortesi
Entertainment
We offer musical entertainment for special events.
Additional
Beer, Full Bar, Gluten-free Options, Non-Smoking, Takeout, Wheelchair Access, Wine

Website
http://www.thecentercafe.com/
Phone number
(781) 455-8800

The Center Cafe

About this restaurant

Not available on OpenTable

There’s more to explore

Additional information

Menu

What 247 people are saying

Overall ratings and reviews

FAQs

Does The Center Cafe offer delivery through OpenTable or takeout?

How is The Center Cafe restaurant rated?

Not available on OpenTable

Additional information