Rudy’s Can’t Fail Cafe

Decent food, slow and careless service. No urgency to seat us. Slow to get the check to us. There was no need to tell us that they were on shift change as an excuse.

Great café for your morning appetite. Delicious tasting omelet and coffee.
That’s what I needed. Thanks guys. Go early on the weekend. I hear this place gets filled up quick.

i clicked 1 star because it won’t let me write a review.
WORST SERVICE. FOOD IS NOT GOOD.
our server did not say hi nor smiled. felt like rushed. did not checked on us and orders took waaaaaay too long.
ordered corned beef hash– very bland and some raw potatoes
our first time and will definitely not come back nor recommend it.

Good food, small place, short time between placing and receiving the orders, friendly staff and little pricey

Great place to eat, gets packed while waiting to be seated. It’s such a random hole-​in-​the-​wall, but it’s pretty popular .
Pros: food is delicious, portions sizes are amazing. Pancakes are fluffy. Some servers are really nice and friendly.
Great brunch place
Cons: they forgot my side of hash browns. I had to ask twice (went during brunch rush).

Disappointed for a 2^nd time this month … The person that brings your food is responsible to ensure your meal is cooked to order.
There will not be a third time

Yesssss, another late night spot to get some dope food after getting off work late! Perfect, cause we’ve completely exhausted all the other spots, and I hate going to bed hungry.
My mom was actually the one who introduced me to this spot. She described it as «hipster and cool», and told me everyone that works there «had a beard» (she was kidding around– my mom’s adorable). My bf and I hit up Rudy’s at around midnight and we were STARVING, as always. We shared a plate of wings– SO BOMB, but I like mines crispier, so my boyfriend polished off the plate. Then we shared a monte cristo! I am in love.
The staff is so damn friendly. The guy that ran our food out from the kitchen was so kind and pleasant that he literally made me question my entire career in the restaurant industry. The bartender who took our order WHILE working the entire restaurant and bar top was dope. I love this place! Prices are a lil on the pricy side but I will most definitely be back.

Sometimes, after epic nights you need pretty epic food that. «Won’t Fail» in fact it. It shouldn’t «Fail» because you need something to balance the epic night you had or about to have. It «Can’t Fail» you, because think about it… After boozing up or pregamming food is pretty important. In fact you would be an… «American Idiot» (sorry to you sensitive folkz) to not have visited here if you live in the greater bay area (Oakland, SF, Emeryville, Berkeley) well I guess I fall into that «American Idiot» spot because I had no clue about this place until one of my «Now Unilocaler» friends brought me here. Why all this «Can’t Fail» and «American Idiot» talk? Well you’re about to find out why! Here is my review.
4÷22÷16
Rudy’s Can’t Fail Café is named after a song by «The Clash» named «Rudie Can’t Fail» pretty cool huh? Oh and it’s partly owned by «Mike Dirnt» the Bassest from «Green Day» who I might add also happens to be an Bay Area native… So my puns were justified right? Anyway, this place is pretty «Rad» not your run of the mill «Diner» joint. Probably why it was featured on Diners Drive-​Ins and Dives. I’m hitting you guys with some heavy info here!
This place serves beer even in the a. m… Curse you Rudy’s but in the best of ways: D the prices here are decent. The menu items are probably a «little» bit more then people will pay for similar menu items at comparable restaurants. But at the sametime, portion size is what set’s it all apart from other diners. And each thing on the menu seems to have a unique name. A trend that most independently owned diners seem to run with now in days.
Service ⁵⁄₅
Food ⁴⁄₅
Prices ⁴⁄₅
On this visit I had the «Heartstopper Breakfast» $ 16.75 and why would I want something called a «Heartstopper» when in fact I want to live to see another day? Well it sounded delicious! It consisted of Eggs, Cheese, French Fries. Sour Cream and… Bacon! Give it up for Bacon you guys! Oh and a medium cooked Beef Patty. It was prepared kinda in a «Scramble» of sorts. And it was everything I dreamed of… Like the combo of ingredients is I think what most people want when they eat breakfast. Meat, (unless you’re a plant killer) Cheese, Potatoes «Done»
Will I go back there?
In a New York Minute! And if not this Emeryville location considering I’m not out that way a lot, maybe the Oakland Location.
In conclusion, Rudy’s is an exciting dining experience. From the décor to the food, you would know that you’ve entered into something vastly different. Portion sizes here are «Huge» so be aware of that on your visit.
As always « Unilocal» your own experience!

Always a must when in the east bay. Beer for Breakfast yum. Coffee is high power two cups and a Rudys Camp ale is a «can’t fail». If you have friends in town take them here as this will change their view of Oakland.
Recommend — tower of power!

What can I say, they haven’t failed me yet ! My boyfriend and I have been here a few times. In fact, when his whole family came to visit us, we took them here once. They enjoyed the food so much they wanted to come back one last time before they left.
They have a pretty huge menu so I try to pick something different every time I come here. The monte cristo is on point! There egg Benedict selections are great choices too. It’s a nice unique looking restaurant right by Pixar. For those who are vegan/​vegetarian, they have choices for you too! My boyfriend is vegan. There aren’t too many places that cater to vegans and non-​vegans (although I don’t mind vegan food).

The food is massively flavorful, vegetarian friendly, and in substantial portions.
The service is good, and although, with a salty disposition, still helpful and polite.
The coffee is the worst thing to happen to things that cost $ 3. I call them Burnt Reynolds. It’s not Philz they’re serving, and the last time I checked, serving the cooked dredges at the bottom of the pot is not a delicacy. It’s as if they decided to leave the pot on for a couple days and let it distill into a nice sludge and added water to it again. It’s advertised on the menu as endless, but you probably won’t need to take advantage of that deal.
Get the chilaquiles!

I really think this place is highly overrated. It is very convent so I go, but the food isn’t all that. It is a very fun place. The food is ok. If you are hungry and close by come on in and have a bite to eat. Plan for a long line during peak hours. Also check to make sure you are ready to pay the bill as it’s not a cheap place.

Really cool exterior and really cool feel to the diner once you sit inside. It has a very retro and fun look.
I ordered the Monday special, which was the meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Everything about the dish was eh. It was entirely under-​seasoned and underwhelming, but not terrible.
If I was from the area, I would be willing to go back and give it another shot and maybe order something different, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to return.

Do not get the burger. It’s not good. The meat is dry with no flavor. If you do decided to get it, ask for two sides of mayo to help wash it down. The bacon is good and the fries are OK.
Coffee is good and black. I love it. A little on the bitter side but so much better than 90% of the players out there.
Service is great. All of the servers we’ve had have always been very friendly and attentive. It’s not her fault the burger sucks.
Try the French Toast. It’s good! The apple sausage is even better!
Corned Beef Hash is passable but reminds me of my factory job cafeteria breakfast. It’s ok.
Although I feel three stars is being a little generous we’ve been here half a dozen times and will be back again.
Don’t come to early because the outside patio isn’t open yet.

I only visited once, but would definitely go again when in the area.
–Atmosphere, Service & Parking—
The atmosphere is low key, hip and just chill with that diner restaurant feel. There’s art on the walls, dolls lined up in another area, the ground has black and white zig-​zag theme going on. I think I came around midnight, while friends and I were looking for a spot to eat after they had went to a baseball game and returned. We found Rudy’s and were happy to see it open till 1am. Nice!
In general they’re open on 7am-​1am everyday with breakfast served weekdays from 7am-​1am and weekends from 4:30pm-1am and salads, soups, sandwiches and specials being available after 11am.
Service was friendly, fast and on point, no complaints!
Parking is limited as their lot is small, but there parking around the adjacent streets should be available.
—Food, Drinks & Price—
I noticed they have a huge menu with breakfast items and lunch/​dinner items ranging of all types from egg dishes, pancakes and such, specials, salads, soups, sandwiches and burgers, appetizers and more. They also have everyday specials and daily specials as well as a brunch menu for the weekends. A dessert menu with about 5 plus options also exists. The menu definitely provides good decent food for all sorts of tastes.
You can get that breakfast item or lunch type items at any time basically. They had a nice selection of drinks to go along with the menu but also with some beer on tap as well. A friend liked their chai tea latte a lot and thought it was very good.
I had the Monte Cristo and it did not disappoint. It’s a Challah bread French toast sandwich with honey smoked ham, smoked turkey, Swiss and cheddar cheese. Topped with powdered sugar, served with a side of hash browns or French fries. This baby was huge and was served with a side of either hash browns or fries. I’m a fan of monte cristo’s and found it to be pretty darn good; it came with some syrup in case for that extra sweetness. At the price of $ 15.75 it’s probably one of the more expensive items.
Prices are pretty moderate ranging in the average price of the $ 8 – 13 range overall I would say.

As it turns out, Rudy can fail, especially at the egg scramble I had today. It reminded me of my own cooking when I’m feeling really lazy and make eggs that taste rubbery because I’m not paying attention to my cooking. I think to make up for the lack of flavor they loaded this scramble with a TON of cheese. This cost me $ 12! For rubbery eggs and Denny’s quality hash browns. The diner counter was really dirty — like it hadn’t been wiped down in hours, and new customers were coming in just as old ones had left without anyone paying any attention to bits of food and water all over the counter. Also, I understand that not having paper napkins is eco friendly but DAMN invest in some cloth ones maybe? The waitstaff was setting my silverware down on the dirty counter. No napkins. People must come here because it’s the first restaurant they see off the BART station.

I am sitting here in the restaurant in a pretty serious state of disappointment. My experience has been,
overall, a huge let down. I ordered an iced vanilla latte. It was delivered hot. I let them know. They poured the hot latte over ice so that it was watered down and lukewarm. I ordered a turkey sandwich on toasted rye with onions and pepper jack cheese. They brought me out a turkey sandwich on toasted white with cheddar and no onions. I let them know. They brought me out all the right ingredients but the bread I toasted and were REALLY rude about it. The menu had said smoked turkey. Turkey was not smoked. Our drinks were never re-​filled. We were checked back with once and rudely.
At least my wife’s fries were good. Her sandwich was ok. I have come here for years and the last year this place has REALLY fallen off.

These guys tried to charge me $ 18 for a burnt cup of coffee and 5 eggs (2 egg whites adds $ 4 to the total)…
Honestly, the folks who work here are not very welcoming, the coffee is not good, and the food is just okay and WAY overpriced ($ 15 for a marginal salad). I’d much rather go to the Panera down the street folks are much nicer there and the food is just as good.

My gf and I just had dinner at the counter tonight, and just had an awesome, awesome experience. Ive been coming to Hollis St. Rudy’s for years, and the staff tonight were the most fun, friendly, quick, and hospitable i have ever experienced at Rudy’s. Maya, who served us is great! Give her a raise! A+ guys! After a rough day, it was so nice to be greated with a smile like we were. Thank you guys!
–john

Just had lunch here. Definitely surprised by the prices. 16 $ for a burger and 3 $ for a cup of coffee? Wow
Good food, nice portions but 40 $ with tip for a club sandwich, omelet, coffee and soda seems a little steep.

Initially chose this place based on two things, 1– pictures of food and 2– my last name is «Rudy». My husband and two daughters and I were thoroughly impressed. The pancakes are awesome, corn beef hash breakfast plate was good but my Yuletide Benedict was so scrumptious!!! Definitely going here again when visiting the bay! Also had the house made Bloody Mary which was super good!!! And the chocolate cream pie is out of this world. Parking can be hard though

Because of all the hype… we decided to order our lunch here today… and I can’t stop thinking about how disappointed I am with the sandwich I ordered. I ordered the breakfast club sandwich… I was looking for the bacon because you cannot taste it at all. The only thing that you can taste is the lettuce and tomato. It seems like there’s only 2 slices of bacon cut into half. One for each tower of bread. For the amount of money you pay for a sandwich they could’ve at least spare 4 slices of bacon… for each tower of bread… so disappointed…

If you’re over waiting 2 hours for a brunch in the Bay, you can count on Rudy’s Can’t Fail Café. This place isn’t fancy or hipster or anything of that nature: just good food served by good people.
My favorite dish there is the dazed and confused. It’s a really good twist on a benedict. Chorizo and Pablano peppers mixed with two eggs topped on hash brown smothered in hollandaise sauce with avocado on top and a side of toast. It’s one of the most well put together breakfast items I’ve had. It’s quite addicting and delicious. You just need some hot sauce, but other than that it’s a great dish that molds together well!
On the menu here you’ll find your regular breakfast items and random spins on dishes. Enchilada omelets, hash brown benedicts, delicious and mouth watering french toast. The service is decent, they are very polite and do their best when it gets busy. The wait in the summer or non rainy days isn’t as bad because they are able to utilize the outside seating. On a crowded day we waited about 20 – 25 minutes for a table of 3 and this was with the restaurant at max capacity.
Definitely would come back when I’m in town!

Walking distance, not a long wait (unless it’s raining…), and open all the time, a fantastic diner in Eville. Their food is typical diner food, with of course a Bay Area foodie twist. Chicken Enchilada omelet? You bet! Hella types of eggs benedict! You know it!
Hot chocolate is great, coffee is decent. Service can be a little slow, but they’re accommodating of all types of food preferences (veggie, vegan, GF, etc. etc.) Go here! support local business!

Whoa. The service here was terrible. It took an amazingly long time to get menus. After getting them ourselves, it then took an infinity to order our food. We finally got our order in and waited an eternity to receive our food. Getting the picture here?
The food was mediocre. Nothing stood out. We ordered the eggs blackstone and the Rudy’s heartache. The hollandaise for the blackstone was ok although it wasn’t memorable. The corned beef in the heartache was just meh.
I loved the diner feel of the place but it appeared as if they fell short everywhere else. 2 stars.

I loved walking in to hear music playing, art of various types on the walls including from tasteful graffiti.
This place reminds me of a retro, vintage diner with a twist of modern music.
The servers were casually dressed and laid back.
Their service was quick yet attentive.
The menu is quite extensive, so your first visit may cause a delay in choosing because there aee so many options.
I had the Challah French Toast with egg whites and chicken apple sausage. They dusted the french toast with powdered sugar and slivered almonds. It was served with heated syrup and butter on the side.
I ate it all! Not in one sitting, but I ate the rest later. It was all so good. That french toast was a hit!
I’ll be back for more.
You can sit in a booth or a table. Either is good since the place isn’t that big. However, it is quite popular as evidenced by the crowd that came in for lunch.
Next time I’ll peruse the menu to see what else they have.
Check them out!
Great job!

I was planning of having a nice dinner after work (children’s hospital oakland). I worked all day til 5:30pm, until I got called to an emergency and the procedure took til midnight. No dinner. I was hungry and looking or options at Midnight.
The problem is, I’m doing a vegetarian challenge for myself. It is easy for me to simply eat anything with meat. I could have easily went to McD’s, Jack’s or Wendy’s and got a cheap meal. But I figured I need to put more effort to find options.
I did not think I would find a vegetarian option this late.
Unilocal pointed to Rudy’s Can’t Fail and said it was highly recommended by Vegetarians!!!
Surprisingly it is 10mins away.
Once I got there, I parked (not too much of a lot, but tons of street parking), The neon sign let me know I was in the right place. I walked in and asked if they were still serving.
With a pleasant smile, Becky said «Yes».
I told her I was trying to be vegetarian and she showed me and offered me some good options.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — —
While the price might be above cheap status, I will say it was very well worth it.
I went with the Veggie club. Triple decker with sliced avocado, roasted pepper, lettuce, tomato and grilled onion. I also opted that the side be a salad (fries and hashbrowns are the other option).
I also contemplated something else as I didn’t know if it was enough, Becky told me when I see it, it will be enough.
Surely, the serving size was appropriate for the price (IMO).
As much as I wanted to taste the shakes, I just kept to water as I am trying to be good.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — –
Very nice place and to me, comfortable.
Becky was very friendly and helpful. I figure at this late, some of the staff just want to get out, but my service was good. The 2 other staff members didn’t help me, but Becky always checked up on me and made sure I was taken cared of!
They are open til 1am!
Great options for food and if you are vegetarian. Great!!!
The price was high, but the quality of the food was great IMO.

Pro:
*they have booths
Cons:
*waiting 15 minutes to get attention of wait staff
* $ 14 sandwiches with brown avocado
* server disappearing only to reappear and wreak of cigarettes
*dirty tables and chairs

Came here just for the shaken Jesse Guinness espresso ice cream milkshake and was not disappointed! Especially because of the hot weather we’ve been having recently, this really hit the spot. Not sure why I expected it to be larger (comes in a pint glass with a healthy whirl of fresh whipped cream), but it was plenty filling as is. Just enough Guinness to taste and maybe feel it if you haven’t had too much to eat beforehand. Coffee flavor cuts the sweetness so you don’t feel like you’re gonna get diabetes from finishing your own pint.
Neighboring tables’ burgers smelled really good. Definitely will be back to try more of the menu. Especially the challah bread French toast… i got my eyes on you.

Two words: way overpriced
Very cool vibe diner but just average
Love the décor and the vintage booth
But…
$ 12.75 for a Reuben and fries just not right
The Ruben wasn’t even big – just a typical side wheat bread toasted with pastrami, cheese and thousand island. Fries were okay but it wasn’t even like wedge or wide fries. I enjoyed my grapefruit mimosa and the company but the whole meal should should have cost no less than $ 10. I would expect high prices in San Francisco but come on now, it’s Emeryville!
Plus, service was average too. Our waitress only came by once after our food and that was it. Brought us our food, asked me for another refil and then bill. Quick style lunch but cost a total of $ 44 for two people.
I also notice other plates ranges from $ 10-​$ 18??! There was nothing less than $ 10. A banh mi sandwich cost $ 13.75??! Umm… outrageous! In San Francisco a authentic banh mi only cost $ 5 and it’s bigger too!
At least I tried the place —but for the average food I won’t be coming back
Ruby’s Can’t fail? #FAIL

Upon our arrival to California, my dad wanted to eat at the first place he saw, which happened to be a Denny’s. Nah chill, Dad. «But I want eggs!» he pouted. Okay, Unilocal to the rescue! With a quick search I found a vegetarian-​friendly diner ¼ mile away.
So many options! I ordered a salad and some tofu wings, Daddy got his eggs and my sis ordered a taco salad.
Their tofu «wings» were simply strips of fried tofu, not remotely comparable to wings in appearance or texture. However, the sauce was amazing. (I got the sweet Thai chili sauce)
The salads were also tasty, ingredients were crispy-​fresh and my soy dressing was perfection.
The décor is cool, it looks like something out of Futurama. Service was excellent! Jasmine’s demeanor was refreshingly genuine and she did a great job of taking care of us.
All in all, this diner lived up to its name and did not fail us. It was the perfect precursor to a wonderful trip.

I have been coming here with friends for too many times to count for the past couple of years. I’ve passed by this place many times as a kid, but never came here until I got into college. It looks so small from the outside, but it’s pretty spacious inside, and it’s very close to the Pixar campus. I love the hip, yet small and intimate Americana diner feel with a slight rocker’s edge. This place is founded and part-​owned by Mike Dirnt from Green Day, after all.
Breakfast food is served all day long, and I ADORE breakfast food. My favorite meal after all. I swear, you can’t go wrong with anything from their breakfast menu, they’re all that great!
Some of my favorites, in no particular order:
1) Combat Mac and Cheese.
I’m sucker for mac and cheese, and this comes in a nice, large bowl.
2) 2 Eggs w/​8 ounce New York Steak.
C’mon, steak for breakfast! You can’t go wrong with that.
3) Sweet Potato Fries.
My Kryptonite. Ugh. Guilty pleasure of guilty pleasures. Almost every time I come here, I can’t help but to order a basket of this. I can eat it all in one sitting. I’m that much of a glutton ;) Even on the rare day I don’t finish it all, I can take home the rest and finish it up for breakfast.
4) P’sghetti and Meatballs
A Wednesday special, so if I come on a Wednesday, I have to order this. I just love a good plate of simple and classic spaghetti and meatballs.
The servers are so friendly and attentive. I also think it’s cute that they have themed tables in here. Nightmare Before Christmas is one of my all-​time favorite movies, so I was delighted to discover they have a NBC table here. I’ll be back for many more meals to come. :)

Casual ambience. Lovely on a nice day especially sitting outside. Luckily we didn’t have to wait at all. Tables inside are a tad but close to one another than one’s comfort level.
The menu is huge and everything sounded so delicious! We ordered and shortly after our food came out. Although the food was good, it definitely looks better than it tastes. I had an expectation of indescribable flavors bursting in my mouth, but it was just eh — regular.
Our waitress sucked so bad that I didn’t leave any tip, and that’s very rare for me. She literally only took our order and cleaned our plates. She didn’t serve us our food, check on us if we needed anything, give us our bill, or collect our bill — nothing! She needs to find a new gig cause she’s not very good at this one. You can even see another waitress hustlin her ass to attend to her numerous tables.
I would come here again to try out their lunch menu. Their sandwiches look bomb so I hope their taste matches. See Ya soon!

I’m a fan of grits and I know a good grits when I see one.
I ordered their hot grits and bacon. They used instant grits which gave a bland and tasteless texture. By adding a piece of melted cheddar cheese on top of the grits does not make this a cheesy grits. Tsk tsk!
Service was MEH!!! The people at the counter was not as friendly…
The simply unacceptable things in life.

Two of my greatest loves in life are coffee and chocolate. What’s even more magical about this pair is that they go even better together. Rudy’s must know the way to my heart because the Shakin’ Jesse is where it’s at! Espresso + Chocolate Ice Cream + Guinness Beer?! SOLD. And I’m not even a Guinness fan, but you can barely taste it, so no worries. Coffee subtly enhances the flavor of chocolate (it’s my secret ingredient in chocolate chip cookies!), so you can imagine what an espresso shot does for this baby!
The food here can simply be described as classic no-​frill diner food. Their menu is pretty much just burgers, sandwiches, breakfast food, and comfort food favorites like mac ‘n cheese. The bf settled for a Hawaiian burger and I got the mac ‘n cheese with chicken. The Hawaiian burger was a hefty little bugger with generous portions of deli ham meat, pickles, and fresh pineapple chunks. I wasn’t too thrilled with the site of deli meat considering the burger is $ 12 and the pineapple pieces kept falling out, but it was still good. The mac n’ cheese was average — the entire dish was under seasoned and not as creamy as I was hoping it would be. It just felt like it was missing something… bacon perhaps.
The sweet potato fries were quite delicious though and I like how you can choose between not only sides like salad, fries, and onion rings, but hash browns too.
Service started out strong, but it tapered off to negligence and no one checked on us at the end. We couldn’t even get the servers to make eye contact with us when they were passing by and getting the check/​to-​go boxes at the end was a struggle!
Rudy’s is open late, parking is pretty easy, and the diner has a nice nostalgic look and feel… except for those creepy barbie dolls staring down at you while you eat. DON’T LOOK UP.

Da die Hotels in San Fransisco zu teuer für unsere Reisekasse waren, haben wir in Oakland ein Hotel/​Motel bezogen. Nach kurzer Autofahrt bei Rudy‘s angekommen gleich der einzige Minuspunkt. Keine Parkplätze, bzw Parkuhren die nur an Kreditkarte oder Quarter Dollar interessiert sind. Nach diesem Hinderniss war unser Frühstück jeden Tag ein Volltreffer. Super freundliches Personal, eine individuelle Einrichtung, saubere Toiletten, eine super Auswahl an süßen und herzhaften Gerichten. Hier traut man sich auch French Toast mal anders zu interpretieren. Super lecker!!! Vegetarische Gerichte sind gekennzeichnet. Der Preis am Ende günstig. Lasst euch nicht von der Parkuhr abschrecken. :-)