California Dreaming Restaurant and Bar

I’ve visited and ordered to go from this location several times over the last few years. As of late, it’s just an okay place. California Dreaming has never been my #1 place to go, though.
Today, I visited for lunch. The parking lot was halfway full but there was no wait. I ordered the she crap soup and shrimp poboy. The soup was amazing. Simply delicious and very filling. My poboy was really salty and the fries that came with it tasted old. My waitress was extremely pleasant, so that was nice. I asked to return my meal instead of ordering something else.
Usually when I come or order to go, I get a fried plate or the porkchops. The food has always been good. Nothing spectacular, just good.
A perk of this place is that it’s big, has huge booths and plenty of food to choose from. Don’t let this review deter you, just be aware that it’s just alright.

Four stars because I like the salad and salmon when it’s cooked correctly, the croissants are good too but the pasta was too dry #choose wisely

I didn’t go on during a busy time. It was during a Tuesday afternoon. The service was great! It was my first time there, so I didn’t know what to get. We ended up ordering the blackened chicken pasta, fried shrimp platter and BBQ burger. The burger too salty in my opinion, but the blackened chicken pasta was to die for!!! I’m definitely coming back!
I rarely eat salads, but the golden rolls they have with the heavenly honey topping helped me swallow down my salad lol.

I’ve been here with a party of 20… Made the reservation a week ago– we have been waiting for an hour for the table. Unacceptable.

The manager today was great. we came in after church on Sunday. Moderate busy, no long waits. Our server was taking care of too many tables. Big parties. I guess the kitchen was overwhelmed. it took so long to get our food. But, Our steak was overcooked, the tortilla chips were stale, an item ordered was missing, my soup was like dip, and it was «broken» the cream had coagulated and pools of oil were evident. the salad was mostly iceberg but the house dressing was tasty. The fried crab claws were good and the croissant served with my «soup» and salad was really yummy. The server got the manager who comped our meal. He was great. I tipped my server $ 20.00 because she cared and was frustrated as well. So maybe try them during off peak hours. I liked the décor and layout of the place. The food is Americana and I’d give them another shot.

My go-​to for that Saturday late lunch first date, or to catch up with an old girl friend. I’ve been here three times since 2009 and each time it was filling and interesting. I especially love all of the natural lighting, and having come from the West Coast, this is authentic Cali feel to me. Nothing like it – go here!

Love this place. The house salad is my fav. The staff is super the atmosphere is cozy.

Good wasn’t the best. Chicken tenders had a thick batter, fries to thick and not enough salt, wings for appetizer didnt have a lot of flavor.

I have to admit as many times as I’ve passed this place over the years, I just have not been in there but twice now. Once was several years ago and once was just a couple of weeks ago. Neither time was the best. Years ago I had a burger that was average at best. Recently, I decided to give their New York Strip a shot. Nope. I’d rather eat across the street at Jim and Nick’s or any number of other places in the area.
The service is pretty good and the place has a really nice atmosphere. People expect it to be like Applebee’s or something similar but it’s not. It’s nicer.
However, the food? Ehh. We did try the crab claw appetizer; and I have to say they were really good. Seemed everyone at our table liked them. Small but tasty and plenty of them.
Now let’s talk steak. I know it was a risk; but my buddy ordered one, so I decided to give the strip a try. Yeah, no. I love steak; but I didn’t eat more than half of this thing. I ordered it medium rare so it should have been cooked right to make it tender and juicy. Whatever that meat was, it was bizarre. I sent the half back when the waiter came around to ask if I was finished with my meal. It was odd he didn’t even comment on me sending half a steak back. No matter, this meat was just odd. It had a gelatin-​like sheen to it and the weirdest texture. The taste was bland as well. And to be honest even at medium rare, it wasn’t all that tender. Yeah, I know a strip is no filet; but that’s not what we are talking about here. I’m not sure what they are serving there but that’s the most bizarre cut of meat I’ve seen and tasted. I’ve eaten enough steak at enough different places to know a decent steak when I have one and this thing was not one of them.
Anyway, I went with a group of friends; but I have to say after twice and that many years apart, I doubt I ever go back. It’s just not good food.
If you wanted to meet off the beaten path in a decent atmosphere for a drink or two, this place might be alright. Aside from that, don’t bother turning down that side street…

This review is on the item I ordered & not on the establishment as a whole. Tori my waitress was excellent. The facility is nice & clean. I ordered the seafood nachos & I wasn’t pleased. The cheese sauce & lobster cream sauce did not compliment each other. The cheese sauce reminded me of cheese wiz. The slices shrimp were little to non existent and the salmon was plentiful and the flavor overtook the entire dish. I am going to visit again and update this review when I order another fish.

This restaurant was the best. Went sometime last month and the food and the waiters was just so profession, like they went all out, wasn’t that busy cause I went in the afternoon time. They had a full bar too, and the bathroom had mouth wash so don’t mistake for hand-​soup. Lolxxxx. I didn’t, someone else did, but stuff happens. But I would really go back cause the food was good and good customer service. Thank you.

Restaurant is very pretty and I’ve always had good service but finding a dead fly in my take home salad yesterday was a deal breaker. Needless to say, I won’t be back.

Let’s just say we used to be regulars at this place and will never be back after our most recent visit. This place has been slowly declining in terms of service and management. We used to get excellent service and bright smiles every time we walked in, and the last time we arrived there was no hostess; it took almost 5 minutes for someone to come greet us and there were 2 tables in the whole place. Our server was nice but seemed to be rushing us so she could go back to talking to fellow servers. Our drinks were never refilled, and we asked for extra dressing and napkins which were never brought. We tried to grab the attention of the manager but she was on her phone texting and flirting with the bartender. We want old management back. The 2 stars are for the amazing salads and soups. If we ever return we will be ordering to go.

The food is really good (borderline awesome) but the service is some of the worst I’ve ever seen. If I would have written this review two months ago, I would have easily given four stars, but service at this location as of late has become an issue.
I haven’t had anything on the menu that didn’t taste good. Some of my favorites are the steaks, ribs, and spinach dip. The marinade they use on their meat here is great.
The service used to be good until the last two times I’ve visited. These past two times its taken over 5 minutes to be greeted by a waitress/​waiter and another 5 to get drinks, and then add another 5 to place an order. When stopping by for lunch, this puts customers in a crunch for a short lunch hour. Between watching my waitress chat it up with other folks in the kitchen and the manager glued to her cell phone texting, I’m not sure who is supposed to serve the customers here.

So I tried the blackened salmon, creamed spinach, and the house salad (I snuck a bite of the herb salmon too.) The blackened didn’t really taste spicy, so I’d suggest the herb. Honestly you couldn’t really taste a difference lol. I think the herb has more flavor between the two though. Creamed spinach was great; extremely thick n creamy, so it’s not the healthiest choice. The house salad was a great size, loaded with extras, and AWESOME!
The inside inside is nice for the area. I definitely prefer it over Bahama Breeze and Joe’s crab shack. The inside’s nicer than Joe’s and bigger than both. I’d have to say the salmon is slightly better at Bahama breeze, though.

I was there for lunch earlier today. Ordered the broiled salmon salad and she crab soup. Midway through eating my soup, I found what appeared to be a fruit fly in my soup. I told the waitress she offered me another soup to take home. Most restaurants would offer to remove it from your tab. I am disappointed, especially being a high end restaurant

California Dreaming is one of the few places I will order an entrée salad at a restaurant. The California Dreaming Salad is soooo good. It has turkey, ham, bacon, cheese, almonds, eggs… pretty much everything considered unhealthy on a salad. I usually stick to Vinegarette type dressing but the ranch and bacon honey mustard dressing are delicious. Some of my other favorites are the Fried Flounder, BBQ Chicken Nachos and Seafood Nachos. Whenever I have dined here I have always had a pleasant experience. The food is a little pricey but I’ve never had a bad meal or service so I don’t mind.

I’m not sure why this place has so many mixed reviews. I had a fantastic experience here. Although I cannot comment on the food, they have New York Cheesecake brought in from Carnegie’s Deli — the best in the world. A must try. My waitress was also super friendly and gave me an extra slice!

A mediocre restaurant. Great service. Fast to greet you at the door and servers are very attentive to everyone at the table. I do enjoy the wooden interior of the restaurant. High ceilings, very grandiose.
Foodwise: Nothing in particular stands out from the menu. Had spoken to the waitress and asked for her recommendations. She said they were known for their salads since it comes with their famous croissants. Ordered the salmon salad. There was a very nicely sized salmon on top of the salad. The croissant was nice but i really didn’t care for the honey glaze on top of it. I think it really could have done without it. Overall, I dont think i’ll be back to try any of their other items on the menu, especially if they’re known for the salads?!?

Met some friends for a meal. No complaints here. Food was good, service was good, atmosphere nice. I liked the salad they have with bacon honey mustard dressing. Delicious. My husband got the chicken Parmesan. He said the chicken was very good. The only thing I didn’t like is the portions are huge! Some may like that but it’s a little overwhelming for me. We will go back.