The Terrace Cafe

Recommends

marinagirl78

Joined 8 years ago

You'll be surprised!. Food was quite good. Don't be thrown off by the strange butterflies all over the restaurant. The food and service are really good, excellent beachside dining.

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santafe3

Joined 6 years ago

Thank you for a fantastic Birthday!. I want to thank the owners and the staff of The Terrace for making my birthday party last weekend so special! Everything was just perfect! The private patio with heaters and nice music was lovely, decorated with balloons (I did mention my B-day, making reservation, but never expected any extra decor!). I had some of the best appetizers I've ever had : fried calamari, baked portabella mushrooms, steamed mussels, crab cakes, shrimp ceviche - fresh and light on sauces. Wine list was reasonably priced, decent choices, nothing pretentious. And last, our server and busboys, who made it all work throughout the evening - they deserve the most compliments. Overall - two thumbs up!

Recommends

ogden7

Joined 6 years ago

Amazing food and great location!. For years I've been eating at The Terrace and it remains one of my favorite spots on the Westside.

The perfect Sunday morning for me is a breakfast at The Terrace and a bike ride along the Venice Boardwalk - it's right around the corner. Their Eggs Benedicts are outstanding, sometimes I would go for a Stuffed French Toast - they make it with mascarpone cheese and strawberries - insanely delicious! When I bring friends, I ask to be seated on the Ocean Front Patio, you can't see it right away, but locals know - you get the best people watching there and an ocean breeze. Everyone is always impressed with the prompt seating (recently we had a family of nine for lunch and no reservation - the table was ready in five minutes! ).

After a day on the beach this place is perfect for a mellow dinner - Poached Salmon is light and pleasant, Lamb Shank is tender enough to fall from the bone, and every kind of drink is available at the bar.

My friends and I always enjoy coming here not only for a great food, but for a warm, friendly atmosphere at the unbeatable beachfront location.

Recommends

du7daniel

Joined 6 years ago

Fun Dining Experience. I had an enjoyable dining experience at Terrace Cafe. I found the staff very friendly. Service was wonderful.

Food was good as well. There was one person there that stood out especially I believe his name was Sergio. If you are ever there ask for him. He was wonderful!

Thank you for a wonderful dining experience.

Doesn't Recommend

andreea1113

Joined 6 years ago

Worst service!. First off I wanna say that I signed up on citysearch just now, just so I can leave a review for this place. My boyfriend and I went there later at night, just because everything else was closing at that time. Seating was prompt. Food was decent, a bit expensive. The server was a complete moron, him being the reason why I absolutely don't recommend this restaurant. He was practicaly ignoring our table, us having to ask him and the busboy for waters and napkins and whatever else we needed. When we got our tab we found out why he didn't give a damn about our table, reason being the included gratuity of 18% added after tax!!!!

Apparently they "reseve the right to add 18% gratuity to all tabs", even parties of 2. We're hoping that the bus boy gets most of that tip, because the server was incompetent and lazy (knowing full well his tip was guaranteed).

Worst experience ever!!!!!

Doesn't Recommend

markpicacho

Joined 7 years ago

WORST RESTAURANT SERVICE EVER. I took a few out of town friends to this restaurant because it has a great location right on the beach. However, it was DEFINITELY NOT WORTH IT! Even though I'm used to LA restaurants taking a while to seat and serve, the wait was rediculously long and our waitress later said that it took so long to even acknowledge us because no one had told her we had been seated there, even though there were 5 of us sitting at a big, obvious table right next to the entrance. She never apologized for our wait. She wouldn't take any special orders, and then after more waiting, when we finally got our food, one plate wasn't fully cooked. The food was mediocre. When we got the bill, the waitress included a 20% gratuity into the bill, because we had a "large party" and when I questioned her on what typically constitutes a large party (which is usually 8+ for most restaurants), she was really vague and said "about 5 people," which was her way of justifying forcing us to give her a tip for bad service. When we split our bill, we requested that she charge specific amounts to our credit cards so we would have the option to leave whatever tip we chose, and not only did she ring up the 20% gratuity that she forced us to give her, but added an additional "recommended tip" on the credit card receipt. SHE WANTED US TO TIP HER TWICE FOR BAD SERVICE. I have never been so tempted to run out of a restaurant without paying, just because we had such a horrible experience and felt like we had been taken advantage of. It was EMBARRASSING to take guests there and now they have a bad impression of LA.

Doesn't Recommend

fun101

Joined 7 years ago

DO NOT EAT HERE. First we started with a cocktail in a dirty glass. Then we moved onto bad tasting, uncooked wings. The manager claimed they come already cooked, that did make me feel any better, by the way. Next came the main course $15.00 for the Jambalaya, which consisted of Elbow Macaroni and 2 pieces of sausage and 2 pieces of shrimp. Also my "tri-tip" sandwich was horrible in both smell and taste!! I've personally never seem white tri-tip??? SAVE YOUR TIME AND MONEY !!

Recommends

tehn00bian

Joined 7 years ago

Pretty decent food, pretty silly prices.. This restaurant is a frequent locale for me on late nights when I am hungry but too lazy to cook and everything else has closed nearby. Foodwise, I've stuck to primarily the same dish each time, but it somehow comes out different each day I order it. Some days are better than others here, other days I regret paying that much for something that mediocre. But most of the late night staff are super cool and friendly and I always feel welcome, so I keep coming back for more.

Recommends

pwarrick

Joined 8 years ago

Fun place near MDR and Venice. The owner of this establishment is pure wild Russian. His personality is enough to make the trip to this restaurant that features alfresco dining and a pretty eclectic menu. My first trip, he offered complimentary Polish vodka shooters and dill pickles (that's how they do it in Russia, he said). Off-the-wall comments to diners, very funny and accommodating. The food is good, not great, but considering the options in that area, better than most. I've been there for breakfast, too, which is popular on pretty days. All in all, a fun and pleasant place to eat and do a little drinking too.