Essanay Café

The food was okay, but went here twice for Lunch and both times the service was horrible. The waitress kept coming back with out our food or drinks we ordered; super absent minded. Horrible. Tried it once for dinner wasn’t any better.

No worries, a new spot is opening in the former Essanay Café on Saturday, September 24^th… check it out here:

I’m sad to hear that they have closed. I was going to eat here a second time before writing my review since my first visit was so-​so and I knew that they could do better.
Alas, I will not have the opportunity.

I was sad to discover that this little restaurant off the beaten path has closed it’s doors. According to their website they can’t afford the lease and they have decided to shut their doors. There is talk that a new group is taking over, but until we will have to wait and see what will happen with the new management group and kitchen staff and what it translate to the plates that comes out of it.
It’s really unfortunate, because I have taken a liking to several of their breakfast/​brunch dishes. I have been meaning to write about my visits here, since my personal favorites were the crème brûlée french toast, which was custardy, rich and the fresh fruit’s acid added a depth of flavor. The duck confit sandwich was to die for… served in a toasted baguette and the duck was well seasoned and had a great robust flavor. The staff whenever I interacted with them were attentive and friendly, and always took good care of us. Also every month they would do a 5 – 6 course tasting menu with wine pairing for $ 50! It would be an event with the winery, and the meal was serve family style.
Sadly, this is another restaurant that went away to soon and Ill always look back at the meals I had there fondly.

Essanay Café is located in antique mecca, in a small downtown area that feels like I’ve entered a time warp and transported back 50 years. Every single shop within a 3 block radius sells antiques, no joke. Oh and the one candy store.
Arrived for brunch on a Sunday and noticed only about 15 tables in this cozy café, so the wait time was about 30 minutes for a table of 2.
We ordered:
Country fried steak: The gravy and potatoes were amazing! However, the steak was perhaps a little overdone and so it ended up being too chewy for my liking.
Red flannel hash: I’m not a fan of beets but this dish was unique and refreshing. If you’re a beet lover, definitely try this!
Overall the food was OK, but mostly I was very disappointed in the toughness of my steak. Could’ve been a one off, but not sure I would return unless I happen to be in the area antique shopping.

COLD. not cold because it was a cold day… IN FACT, it was a nice sun shiny day and the restaurant was MUCH colder than the weather outside!!! Every time the door opened it wouldn’t shut so a waiter or whomever would have to go shut it all the way. I actually had to get up and shut it myself once because I was freezing my tush off! I had 3 cups of coffee JUST to stay warm!
The food was OK. Nothing fancy, I had the Crème Brulee french toast which sounds much fancier than it really was… it was honestly nothing special.
With the location and reputation of the restaurants in the area, I expected better. I don’t think I’ll be going back.

Walking in here made me feel like I got transported to 1970s Oklahoma. I’m from LA, so don’t get me wrong… but the whole area that is Niles is just peculiar. Driving under a bridge or something to get into the area made me feel like I was going back in time. Okay enough.
The café is cute and lovely and gives you the high expectations of a good time. The staff know all the locals by name and from that I expected an awesome brunch with my cousin who had come here before and raved about their food.
Let me put it to you this way about the «diversity» here… It was as if two kids from Bollywood walked into a 50s diner. You can interpret what I mean by that as you read on. We were swiftly seated into a booth and had the menus given to us just as fast. So far so good.
We decide to order the famous french toast and a tomato/​cottage cheese omelette. We asked for DRY toast, syrup for the french toast and an extra plate as the two of us were sharing. Mind you of the server with the mark under his eye. He started off all nice and friendly and turned into a young Archie Bunker, no joke. Our food came… WITHOUT: an extra plate and syrup and WITH: buttered toast.
After telling «the one with the mark» about it, he went to go get it changed… mind you he TOOK away out omelette because of the toast. Normally they leave that toast and bring you an extra toast because THEY messed up. What was he going to do with the buttered toast? Eat it himself? Dislike. The kitchen is about 20 feet away so I could see everything that was going on. He helped a party of around 20 people, the patriarch (connected to an O2 tank) pay the bill, when he could’ve just gotten our syrup, butter, dry toast and a plate quickly… our food was getting cold.
He forgot again when he came back with the dry toast of everything else. Our french toast was getting soggy. We asked for ketchup for the omelette and NEVEr got it.
The french toast is still getting soggy when he brings over butter BUT NO F**KING SYRUP. Meanwhile, he brings out food to newer customers in a nearby booth.
OVER FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER, we get our syrup and because they ran out of spreadable butter (WTF?), I was forced to use a stick of cooking butter… WHERE AM I?
He knew we were pissed and did little to fix that, little Archie Bunker, I will never get food from you ever again… Like I said, watch out for the one with the mark under his eye. I hope you read and this and realize just how crappy you were. because I dont think you did at all. You, with the mark, and the dark curly hair.
The food was good, but I doubt I’ll be returning. –2 stars for minor racism and shitty service.

After receiving an unprofessional smart-​ass response from the ignorant chef at this horrendous establishment, it’s no wonder the rest of the staff is as rude as they are. Maybe if he spent more time training his ungracious servers on a thing or two about common courtesy and taking these reviews as constructive criticism instead of being a total jerk, his restaurant would reach out to more locals in the community and actually bring in business.
1) Spend less time worrying about if customers have a reservation and more time in the kitchen. The food needs some serious work, buddy.
2) Learn to set silverware for the proper amount of guests per table. It’s not rocket science.
3) Go back to elementary school and learn the basics of common courtesy: Say «hello, how are you» and «thank you» to guests.
4) Don’t bash on your previous customers’ reviews just because they’re providing the public with honest feedback. You signed up to put your business on Unilocal.Be ready for the good and bad. If you don’t want a negative review, don’t give bad service (and please learn some proper grammar and punctuation in your private messages).
Never have I been so appalled by a business owner of any sort. If you want to continue supporting such an atrocious business, be my guest and waste your money. There are plenty of other restaurants in the area that deserve your attention way more than this one.

Despite the five stars, this review is not all sunshine and roses. There is something very sad in this review and I want you to prepare yourself. It was almost sad enough to cost the otherwise brilliant Essanay Café a star. And if you’ve read my fairly generous reviews, you know that means business. But I realized, after I put my sadness aside, that the lost star belongs to us, the patrons. If you’re sitting down now, I’ll break the Sad News: they’ve ended their first Wednesday of the month Family Night Dinner. I feel the responsibility does lay partly at my feet. I know I didn’t make it to every single one they had. It was a really great tradition though. The waiter observed, when I expressed my grief, that he had enjoyed the fact that simple country fare was highlighted on those nights.
Please, Essanay owners, if you read this, «I’m sorry! If you ever bring them back, I won’t miss them AND I’ll tell all of my friends!»
After I put my sadness aside, the group I was dining with proceeded to enjoy a fantastic meal out on that first Wednesday.
As a table, we opted for the house wine, which was just fine. We began with some top notch starters. I would recommend any from the nibbling that I engaged in. The brussel sprouts were to die for. I plan to attempt the preparation with pistachios at home one of these days. The pork *something* on toast (I forget its name) received rave reviews. Salad was fantastic. I recommend it all!
I ordered the delicious Rockfish and Artichoke stew. It was served with garlic and pickled chilis. It may sound crazy, but it tasted wonderful. The overwhelming favorite for entreés was the steak with pommes frites and green beans. Four ordered that and none were disappointed. The kitchen was accommodating with the level of done-​ness. The other orders were a child’s pasta and an amazing duck risotto.
Unfortunately, we all had long days ahead, so the night ended without dessert. (Well, actually, the child worked his significant charm on our waiter and got the house to comp him a homemade ice cream that he finished in short order.)

Good food, great service, cute ambience.
I had the french toast and a mimosa. Both were really good. The french toast was sweet and delightful, and not too much where I left feeling like a pillsbury doughboy.
My friend had the cheeseburger, and said it was really good as well.
Service was friendly, prompt, and helpful. Ryan was our waiter and he was great!

Open mic nights, sweet potatoe fries, eggs florentine? COUNT ME IN!
Essanay is owned by a Fremont local and the passion for food is obvious by the quality of the food served and the ambiance of the restaurant. It looks like a high-​end café and is nestled in the Niles area, a cozy place to take a stroll and enjoy antique shops and the newly upgraded railroad station.
I love the food here and the service is always fast so I never have to wait too long to enjoy my meal =)!

We went to dinner on the Wednesday «Open Mic» night, and the performers — a mix of music and poetry/​storytelling — were surprisingly good, providing a solid two hours of entertainment. The restaurant does fill up, so get there a little early if you want a good seat (the open mic portion of the evening starts at 7 pm). Open Mic night (which is usually on the second and fourth Wednesday night of each month) features a limited bistro menu, with smaller portions and generally lower prices.
Surprisingly, Essanay seemed to be slightly off their game food-​wise. I wanted a beer that wasn’t too heavy, but they were out of the Molson Canadian, so I settled for a Corona. The bread (served with olive oil) was just ho-​hum; nothing special. And while the flavor of my NY steak (served with potatoes) was OK, it had more fat in it than I’d expect for such a small cut of meat. Not bad, but not up to Essanay’s usual standards.
On the other hand, my girlfriend’s pork entrée was excellent. For desert we split a generous piece of carrot cake, which was moist and tasty with a particularly good frosting (although the cake would have been even better without nuts). The decaf coffee was good as always.
It was a fun evening, and we’ll certainly go back for Open Mic night again.

Some months ago, I received a message on Unilocal from the chef at Essanay Café to encourage me to try his restaurant. I looked at the website and then wrote back, saying I would love to support a local business, but the menu had no vegetarian items. He wrote back promptly to explain that the menu changes depending on what they buy fresh from the farmers’ market that week, and that there is always a vegetarian option. I’ve been meaning to go to Essanay ever since, and on my birthday I finally did, for Sunday brunch.
It’s a nice little restaurant, with booths and tables, with some striking nature photographs hanging on the wall. I did notice a little dust on a sideboard and the Charlie-​Chaplin-​style derbies that hang here and there in the restaurant, though.
Our server was charming and courteous and attended to us very well. My mother and I had the eggs Florentine, which we both enjoyed immensely. One of my poached eggs was cooked a little bit harder than I would have liked, but there was still plenty of yolk to mix with the parmesan mornay sauce. Instead of English muffins, the eggs and spinach sit atop a biscuit. It was delicious. My husband had the mushroom omelette. While the mushrooms were a little watery, he said the omelette was perfectly seasoned. All the dishes came with deep fried potatoes that were light and crisp.
For dessert, I had the dark chocolate mousse. It’s served in a little liqueur glass with sea salt on top, with whipped cream on the side — decadent and rich. My husband had the carrot cake. They give you a big slice! It’s topped with the lightest cream cheese frosting we’ve ever had. It’s just sweet enough and doesn’t overpower the cake.
We brought our ten-​month-​old son with us, and they accommodated us with no problems. The baby had some fruit (persimmons and apples), potatoes, and was wild about the carrot cake.
I’m planning on returning for dinner some time soon. (And for brunch, so I can try the French toast!) I really liked Essanay. It’s relaxed without being too casual and the food is expertly prepared without being too fussy or fancy.

Came back here a couple weeks ago for a brunch with the fam. Everyone was delighted by the meal, especially yours truly.
I tried the eggs benedict, always a plate you must try at least once at every breakfast location you frequent (the other being chicken fried steak).
Quite honestly it was the best I’ve had — spinach & artichoke hearts with a hollandaise that was perfect, silky, and sexy. Yep, sexy.
Mama ordered the french toast that I tried which was also moist and quite the bomb.

I grew up in Union City and rarely ever made it out to Niles. (Well, does looking for the White Witch at midnight in Niles Canyon on a loopy teenage outing count?) As an adult, I’ve done all I could to live elsewhere because I found food and cultural events more interesting the closer one got to the Bay Bridge. I’ve always viewed Fremont/​Union City/​Hayward as formulaic, strip mall hell — excluding all the tasty Southeast Asian and South Asian food, course.
At any rate, I read a Unilocal review of the Essanay Café a couple of years ago and had been meaning get there for dinner. Seemed like an apropos place and midpoint for a meetup with some girlfriends from high school who’ve dispersed around the Bay Area.
That little area of Niles has been revitalized, not gentrified, in that it the area looks spruced up yet truly held its silent film era charm. (Essanay was the name of a film company that produced and filmed a number of Charlie Chaplin flicks right in that neigbhorhood.) Essanay Café is a small, white tableclothed, brickwalled, quaint spot and an oasis from the suburban, corporate sprawl that is Chili’s, Denny’s, Applebee’s, and other chains ad nauseum.
The girls and I had a roasted beet salad with very dark, hearty beats and fresh greens, and a couple of decent crab cakes. (Others might find those crab cakes wonderful but some blue crab cakes I had in Virginia set quite a high bar.) We sipped on «Guavosas» which were a delicate combination of guava juice and dry, sparkling wine. I assumed the guava would overpower the wine but it was quite nice on the palate.
I hoped the girls would order something different from me but we had all eyed that rib eye entrée since we glanced at the menu. It was served on a bed of wilted arugula and braised short rib meat that was flaked into a near hash and was the backdrop to a few small cubes of potato. The steak was nicely seasoned so you can actually appreciate the taste of beef and the meat crusted just so. It was tender enough to cut with a butter knife, and smooth, almost creamy the bite, and decadent. This certainly was a beef lover’s meal. I would have preferred a bit more potato and far less short rib. Sort of gilded the beef lily there.
For dessert, we had a chocolate cake topped with marscapone, a crème brûlée served with a little watermelon granita, and a nectarine crisp. All made in-​house and all quite lovely codas to a nice dinner.
Oh, and the main server looked a lot like Taye Diggs and was pretty good humored about my teasing him. Thanks, Taye — er — James.
Yes, I’ll be there again soon.

What a find! My quest for locating what appeared to be a decent little spot was RIGHT ON, thanks to this handy little tool I use called Unilocal.Good thing for me, it’s at a halfway point (sort of) between a dear friend and I. I would have never known it, but it’s actually hiding along a small strip of Niles.
The attention to detail was obvious starting from the décor, to our server’s recommendations for wine, to the food, to the covered patio out back. There was a guitarist playing music that night on the patio, but we opted to stay inside to enjoy catching up. It’s the first time I can remember in a long time where I enjoyed every morsel of my meal. Well, almost. By the time I got several bites into the carrot cake, I decided to cut myself off. The bottle of wine we chose, and their only Zinfandel, complemented each course perfectly. The portions were just the right size too.
The staff was ever so friendly and willing to wait for the two of us to finally exit the building at way past closing time.
They offer something called a Vintner’s Dinner where they pair wine with a special menu. I’m guessing it would be another great meal. Other reviews mention brunch being good here. We’ll have to try it for sure.
The only suggestion I would offer is for the website to be kept up to date. Both my friend and I had anticipated our entrée choices based on the menu posted online and were surprised to find that most of those items weren’t on the menu that night.

If you’re looking for a change from the typical chain restaurants that litter Fremont, then this is a place to try out. It’s a cute little, cozy restaurant tucked away in the Historic Niles district of Fremont.
I decided to try it for Easter Sunday brunch this year. It was a fixed menu of about 10 – 12 items, which wasn’t bad. The selection had a little bit of everything, but I went with the nutella french toast, which felt like a dessert more than breakfast. It was good, but average compared to some of the other brunch places I’ve frequented.
I’d still go back to try dinner here, because the menu seems interesting.

The food is still above average, especially for the greater Fremont area and it still has a very intimate feel to it — a cozy café, with a high tin ceiling, situated in Niles — which seems to be packed with antique shops and curios.
For those who are sick of the big box stores and chain restaurants of Fremont proper, it’s a nice place to escape to.
On the other hand, we received somewhat spotty service on our last visit here. The waitresses and waiters are nice enough. But I get a little cranky if I have to wait too long for my coffee or water… It seemed like most of the rest of the restaurant was populated by friends and family of the guys who were providing the live music for the day. Sometimes the waitress would tend to their needs, and then turn around and head back to the kitchen without checking in with us again.
We were given a table by the door and right next to the amps, for the guys playing their music — which turned out to be far too cold and too loud for our baby. We were told a table in the back was reserved, but no one sat at it and when another couple came in — they were told to «sit wherever you like» by the same waitress and they ended up sitting where we would have preferred to have sat… which was a bit weird and annoying.
I still love their food and I think they offer a very nice change from the cookie cutter experience and dull and boring chains that we mostly encounter in Fremont. But I do feel there is room for improvement here…

«Fremont needs more upscale dining.»
That has been a popular refrain for many a Fremont politician since when I was in high school, and it has been over ten years (just barely) since I have graduated from high school. Since 1999 Fremont has gained more restaurants but all of those restaurants, even though they are more upscale than what was before, are chains (PF Changs? Claim Jumper?).
I’m pretty sure Outback Steakhouse is one of the higher rated «American» restaurants in Fremont. Yes, it’s that sad. It always seemed that any good food in Fremont (and the rest of the Tri-​Cities for that matter) were «ethnic» and «American» food was bland or chain.
This place bucks the trend. A small restaurant in Niles that tries to have seasonal and locavore menu. And it totally works. Everything on the menu was good, they way they prepared the duck was not exactly what I was expecting but still very good. Service was a little bit inefficient because there was only one server working, but then it was a Thursday night.
The one weakness of this place, and I think this is a pretty glaring weakness, is that everything very good but there is not dish that is truly spectacular or known as a signature dish. While very pleased, nothing wowed me.
This place has five-​star potential and Fremont needs more places like this.

Fine dining. Fremont. I mentioned to my co-​workers in San Francisco that I was going to a «nice restaurant» in Fremont for my birthday and naturally the laughter broke out immediately.
Clearly a few people out in the ‘burbs are starting to wake up and realize that we like to eat more than just P.F. Changs and Applebees!
I had no idea how small this place is until we walked in … I’m definitely glad we decided to make a reservation! Apparently live jazz is their thing on Thursday nights — the night we went there was a lone guitarist strumming away — the waitress informed us that the rest of the band had called in sick.
Interestingly enough, the salad ended up being the highlight of the meal. Field greens, walnuts and topped with three skewers of coconut shrimp… different and tasty! The entrees were interesting but not mind blowing — I ordered the fillet Mignon meatloaf and my wife ordered the New York steak served with pommes frites. Cucumber infused water was an interesting odd little touch as well. A very nice beer selection — I get all giddy when I see Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout on a menu!
Most of my four stars go towards the great service. They belt out an awesome rendition of Happy Birthday and seem to have a lot of character. I hope this place sticks around.