I've been here several times in the last year with different sized groups of friends. I think the food is good and well-portioned (I'm tired of both tiny tapas and giant portions). Have tried several pizzas which are good, I really enjoyed the pork tacos (although they are messy!), we liked the spaghetti, and a friend raved about the chicken curry sandwich. Â I really like the idea of a restaurant that I can go to on a random Tuesday and not feel like I'm breaking the bank.
The wine list is about right - not overwhelming, but a good selection and some very reasonably priced bottles. On my most recent visit, our first server clearly knew the list well and steered us toward wines that we all enjoyed. I like the fact that they offer free tastes of the wines, but honestly, table service was slow and spotty, and I'm not sure that I'd be willing to wait for the tastes and then wait for the order. My most recent visit was with a few friends, and twice I watched our wine orders just sit at the bar for quite a while before one of the servers found it. Â The service is always cheerful, but has been slow on several visits (and I haven't been there on a night when it's more than half full).
I like the decor - sort of rustic and unfussy, and really would like to sit outside when the weather cooperates, as the fairy lights and patio (almost) make you forget you're sitting next to the Gold's Gym parking lot.
Hoping to make it for happy hour some day!
Excellent dinner/happy hour location. Â The atmosphere is cozy the service is way above average. Â They give you free samples of as many wines as you like, ranging from $7 per glass to about $13 I think. Â We ordered the mahi mahi and the beef sliders which were both excellent. Â Our server could not have been friendlier or more helpful when we asked for advice on what to order. Â Will definitely come back here again soon.
Review Source:Had dinner with a couple of friends last week....as soon as we sat down our waitress Khadijah greeted us and took our orders. She is the best waitress I have ever had in my life, and trust me I have had many. She was smiling the entire time, extremely respectful, and we could tell that she genuinely cared about our experience at Cafe Caturra. My friends and I could not stop talking about how amazing she was. If you're ever in the area, stop by Cafe Caturra and ask for Khadijah....you will not be disappointed....I will definitely come back, and I hope Khadijah will be there!!!!!!!!!
Review Source:This is one of our favorite places for lunch, happy hour, and dinner. Â Their club sandwich is the best around, and I LOVE the orzo salad. Â We also love the deviled eggs, guacamole and pimento cheese appetizers, which are happy hour specials, too. Â The wine selection is impressive, and the small plate entrees, especially the salmon and seared bistro filet, are perfect for dinner. Â I'm not a big fan of the tacos, but otherwise have never been disappointed with the food.
The decor is creative and modern, and it creates a great atmosphere. Â The service is also fantastic. Â The servers are very helpful and attentive, without being intrusive.
Finally, while this is not a "kid restaurant," I have a very well behaved two year old, and he LOVES the pizza at Cafe Caturra. Â And the servers are super friendly and not put out by my bringing a child to the restaurant, even during happy hour. Â Love this place!
My wife and I met up with some co-workers here last week for happy hour. Wines 9.50 or less are $5, the draft beers (they only have two) are $5, and they have a special, very limited food menu. My wife and I ordered a white pizza, I loved it. Although my wife thought it had great flavor, it was a little crunchy for her. We also ordered the crostini with roasted tomato, basil, and mozzarella as well as the crostini with goat cheese. The crostini with goat cheese had great flavor but the bread was stale. The other crostini was too crunchy but still tasty. Our waitress was very cute and very nice. The hostess was really nice.
Our first experience wasn't bad but it wasn't great. The service was really good though... so that's a big plus. Â I can see is returning in the near future. If it wasn't for the inconsistency with the crostini this would have been four stars.
Had a good light, late dinner here the other night. The servers were happy to seat us, even though we walked in ten minutes before closing. Really like the ambience - the table set up is interesting, and they have a wine tasting bar in the middle of the restaurant. We were told that tastings were free, but decided to do tastings another time.
The food came out pretty quickly - the Brussel sprouts side was my favorite, and my husbands crab cakes were really generously portioned and tasty. I had a shrimp pasta in white wine sauce, which was fine, but a bit plain.
Nice portion sizes for a light meal or for tapas style. Wish we could make the happy hour sometime, but it ends at 6 every week night - too early for us!
DISAPPOINTINGLY TERRIBLE. Â We really wanted to like this place but we will not be going back:
1)We watched multiple tables that came in after us be served their meals first; finally our waitress informed us that another table got our food
2) when our order finally arrived, the burgers were raw, the risotto was terrible, the lasagna was greasy, and the side of Moroccan vegetables was bland
Too bad, this place would have been such a great neighborhood spot.
It only got even  one star because they comped our meal after we complained to multiple people.
This place specializes in small plates but dishes are under $12. The food is ok and they have great happy hour specials $5 pizza and wine, $3 deviled eggs, hummus and guacamole. I most stressed that it's usually packed and they have regulars and don't expect to have enough food to need a to go box.
Review Source:I went for happy hour & sat outside. Everyone was very friendly & accommodating. I asked for tastes of 2 wines & was pleasantly surprised that both were really good. I'm a wine snob & hard to find 1, let alone 2, I like. Had hummus trio - YUMMY! My server even brought more bread to "finish off hummus" - that's service!!
LOVE IT & will come back for great HH deals!
I go to Cafe Caturra about once a week! They have awesome happy hour prices mostly on food and wine ($5 glasses of wine with a great selection)! The food is mostly small plates and all of it is delicious! I especially love the mini burgers, Mac and cheese, raspberry walnut salad and the shrimp tacos! They have ample outdoor seating that is very pleasant and a nicely decorated interior. The service is always good and the atmosphere is laid back! This is a great restaurant to relax and hang out with friends and enjoy great food and drinks!
Review Source:Our family gathered at Cafe Caturra for a Mother's Day brunch. Â We thought the service great, our waitress was attentive and courteous. Â food was excellent. Â i had the gazpacho soup and a ham & cheese quiche. Â the gazpacho was the absolute best I have ever had in a restaraunt almost on par with what my wife makes. Â the vegetables in the soupmwere all fresh and crisp, slightly blanches as they should be. Â just the right touch with the spices, which made it even more enjoyable.
Review Source:My grandmother had high hopes for this place. Needless to say her dreams were crushed. If you are with a group this place is ideal, but if your looking for a more quiet setting I would bypass this place. The place was so packed that our server pretty much rushed us to order which didn't make sense considering he took his sweet time bringing our check. The happy hour would be the only reason to visit this place.
On to the food, my grandmother ordered the jerk shrimp tacos. She didn't realize that she would be getting two teeny tiny tacos. The only thing she could say about the tacos was that they were spicy. I ordered the little burgers with a side Caesar salad. The salad was delicious, the burgers however um no! They needed salt, BBQ sauce, ketchup, something to give them flavor. I like my burgers well done no matter the size but these were medium, medium well whatever it's called; they were pink inside. One big complaint I have would be THE WATER! First why are the water glasses so small? And the water is warm. When I go to a restaurant I expect a big glass of cold ice water nope not here.
Well as you can tell we will definitely NOT return to the restaurant. One and done!
This was my first visit and I wasn't sure what to expect. I had the prosciutto and arugula pizza, while my mom had the lamb chops with mashed potatoes. Both were very good and perfectly portioned. The pizza packed a lot of arugula and prosciutto, so no complaints! The lamb was cooked perfectly and was accompanied by seasoned mashed potatoes which complimented the lamb.
Did I mention that the prices are very fair?
Our server Anthy was happy to help and was ever patient with our indecisiveness. Our positive experience can be attributed to her since this was our first visit and we were doe-eyed going through all of the food choices. Definitely coming back! **Tip** You CAN sample wine before ordering.
I live near the area and have been meaning to try this out. Â I was very pleasantly surprised. Â Decor is sophisticated but warm, I especially like the wood fire oven that you can see from the seating area. Â And the prices are very affordable compared to the area. Â A fish entree is only 12, which a steal. Â I tried the pizza and brussel sprouts; both were delicious. Â The pizza dough is very chewy but not overly starchy; very generous helpings of proscuitto and arugula. Â The brussel sprouts were really good too. Â I'm very happy with the quality of the food overall.
There is a very nice outdoor seating area that will be awesome in the summers; I can see myself going to lots of happy hours and casual dinner nights here....glad I tried it out. Also, a froyo place next door--score! Â Now if only they built a CVS..I would have everything I needed in that plaza.
I have been on a number of occasions. Â I was never quite happy with the ordering system. Â You ordered at the counter. Â They changed to table service and I go more often now. Â
I like their Raspberry, Walnut, Blue Cheese salad. Â Sort of hooked on it. Â These salads can be way over the top with the dressing, but Caturra gets is right every time.
That and a glass of wine makes for a great lunch.
The wine selection was surprisingly limited. Â None the less, the serving of their wine is done heavy handed. Â Nice pour!
There is an outdoor firepit, but they won't light it up. Â I'd love to see them do something with it so as to destract myself and other patrons who may be lured away by the frozen yogurt place next door.
I met here for a business meeting for lunch and was pleasantly surprised by how nice a place it is.The space is very open, but at the same time quiet enough to have private conversations. It also wasn't super busy, which definitely helps keep the noise down. Would definitely come here again for lunch if passing through!
Review Source:Great neighborhood place. Nice selection of wines (malbec is one of my favorites) and small plates, especially. I really enjoyed the mussels. Nice salads. And yummy bruschettas. Excellent service. Never felt rushed or uncomfortable, even when the place is busy, which is often. Will definitely go back.
Review Source:This place is great. Real European feel, and lovely, relaxing atmosphere. Everyone working there is extremely pleasant and friendly. The services was good. The menu is decent and very well priced, including some delicious, non-pretentious seafood items. Everything we ate, particularly the desserts, were excellent. The wine choices were limited but well curated. The atmosphere is almost perfect except for the flat screen TVs which seem out of place and unnecessary. Will definitely be back!
Review Source:2nd time at Cafe Caturra, which opened here in Arlington about a year ago and is just down the street from us. Decided to start Valentine's Day off here with a few glasses of wine and share a nice wood-fired pizza with the Mrs., and it certainly didn't disappoint. We've done the whole reservations at an "upscale and overpriced" DC restaurant thing a few times before, where you have to reserve a table at least 2 weeks in advance, but here we just walked in around 8pm before catching a late movie. While all the larger tables were full, there was a nice cozy 2-top table in the bar area waiting for us, good timing! This has now become one of our new favorite neighborhood places, look forward to trying another one of their delicious pizzas next time, and going for some happy hours and wine tastings in the future.
Review Source:I always wondered what was inside of this place after driving by it hundreds of times on the way to the gym. Honestly, it is not a bad place at all. If has an interesting atmosphere, and a solid menu. Pepperoni pizza is decent, but you do have to try pretty hard to mess up a pepperoni pizza.
Review Source:I would definitely come here on a weeknight and get take-out. Â There was a table of 12 ppl seated near us on a Friday night, however, who were ridiculously loud. Â Every table in their vicinity was miserable. Â Management should have said something to them, it was unfathomable. Â S. Arlington crowd I guess. Â
The wine selection is up to standard with any other nova wine bar and considering that they also serve more food than a wine bar, I was a little impressed. Â they had a $9 malbec on the list that was decent. Â Weird to comment on a salad, but I thought the caesar salad was fabulous - better than your average. Â
The service was great, we had two waiters bc i attempted to get away from the loud crowd and both were friendly and as attentive as they could be on a Friday night. Â I always love when waiters ask me if i want another glass so that I don't have to ask and seem like an alcoholic by my third glass. Â I'm eager to try some other plates, and I heard they pack up things for carryout well so I'll be doing that!
So close to being great...so close.
As others some other Yelpers have mentioned, this is in a somewhat off-the-beaten path location in South Arlington.
The ambiance is warm with contemporary seating, mixed with homely wood accents. Very welcoming and keeps true to the concept of the restaurant itself.
The servers are attentive and if you're lucky enough to snag a seat at the bar, the bartenders are pretty knowledgeable of the wines they offer. The service is why we always end up coming back, but the food leaves something to be desired.
We started with the crostini with goat cheese this time, and it was somewhat lacking. Greasy from too much olive oil, it masked the tangy goat cheese flavor. I got the chicken mozzarella sandwich (my go-to since it has bacon) and a caesar salad and my friend ended up getting the roasted chicken. Both were ok, but I tend to stick with the sandwiches (the chicken salad sandwich is particularly good) and, when I want to gorge, the mac and cheese definitely hits the comfort-food spot.
Overall, it's worth a try if you're in the area, want a quiet location with a small but decent wine (and bottled beer) selection, and good service.
***Tips: Mac and cheese.
Good food but the menu is a bit limited and the specials never seem to change, e.g. every time I've gone the soup has been butternut squash and beef meadly, good soups but I'd love some more variety.
Great happy hour deals on both Pizza and Wine. Â The pizza is artsy pizza not pizza pizza but good nonetheless.
If its busy the wait staff seems to get overwhelmed and there is a bottleneck at the entrance. Prices are some of the most reasonable I've seen in the area. Parking is an abject disaster.
for a wine bar, i thought they would have more wine options and possibly food and wine pairings. i like that its tapas so that way we could try more items but some of the items were really disappointing.
good:
- meatballs. delish...
- fish special changes. we happen to the red snapper with parmasean risotto.
- butternut squash hash didnt look like what i thought it would, but it was still tasty.
- service was very good. attentive. and people kept coming over to make sure we were ok, i think including the manager.
bad:
- no flights of wine. grrrrr
- we got the cheese and charcuterie board. the cheese options were total suck. it was brie, cheddar, blue, and gouda. I can buy all those at the store myself. if its a "wine bar" shouldnt you have some fabulous cheeses that i wouldnt normally be able to find if i just walk into any grocery store?
- shrimp scampi was SOOOOOO oily.
I probably would not come back here because i have curious grape and cheesetique closer to my house with much better wine and food options, in my opinion.
Bleah. Â I gave this place more than a fair chance, and I'll never go back again.
First visit. Â The host told my husband and me to sit anywhere we'd like, and that a server would soon be at our table. Â After a LONG wait, a surly waiter showed up and lectured us about how we should have placed our order at the front counter...that the waitstaff's job is to deliver meals from the kitchen, not to take customer's orders. Â We told the waiter to take up his complaints with the host. Â After all that, our meals were wrong -- as a vegetarian, I'd ordered the mushroom sliders, but I received some ground-meat dish. Â When the correct meals arrived, they were over-salted and inedibile.
Second visit. Â Because the location's so convenient to my house, and because it's often a good idea to give a place a second chance, I took my mother there for dinner. Â We had polite, attentive service and really good food.
Third visit. Â Mom and I went back again. Â The waiter barely paid any attention to us. Â I waved him over -- I almost had to stand on my chair and jump up and down -- to tell him that Mom's chicken salad had a stale, rancid, "off" taste and smell. Â He gave Mom a menu and said that he'd be back in "two minutes" to take her replacement order. Â Twenty-five mintues later, he finally showed up and asked Mom if she'd decided on something. Â We both expressed our disgust about the inept, inattentive service and told him that we needed to leave. Â He had the audacity to bring us a check WITH THE FULL PRICE OF MY MOTHER'S BAD MEAL. Â I deducted the cost, left a $0 tip and a written comment, and vowed never to return to this poor excuse for a restaurant.
I dig their happy hour! Lots of cheap appetizers/small plates to choose from (the flatbread pizzas and breads & spreads are reliably good), and you can't beat $5 glasses of wine, especially with a large, high-quality list. Â The large patio is great.
Be prepared for a sort of free-for-all system when it comes to service (you don't have one waiter/server, it's sort of a group effort), but the service is always good.
In my quest to try all the happy hours in and around Crystal City, Cafe Caturra is now one of my favorites (the other is Jaleo). Â On the one hand, it looked very appealing from the outside, but on the other hand, it's in a non-walkable part of town, in the parking lot of a Giant in what used to be a Blockbuster, so that's what kept me away for so long.
Upon arrival, the one disappointment was that the happy hour menu on their Facebook page listed the hours as 4-7, 7 days a week, but when we got there, we discovered it was really 4:00-6:30, and not on weekends. Â Fortunately, we were there at 6:27, and they let us put in our order and get happy hour prices. Â As an added bonus, you can sit anywhere in the restaurant and get happy hour prices. Â
$5 wine by the glass may sound pretty average for a happy hour, but at Cafe Caturra, this includes their ENTIRE list of wines available by the glass, and the ones I tried were excellent. Â They also have a special going on (not related to happy hour) with a $10 flight of three champagnes, which was very enjoyable. Â I believe the $3 happy hour beer selection includes all their drafts.
As far as food, I enjoyed everything I tried, but the pepperoni pizza ($5 at happy hour) and steak satay were my favorites. Â The pizza is small, but big enough for a meal for one person. Â It had great flavor to it and a delicious thin crust. Â I also tried the deviled eggs and goat cheese crostini, which were satisfying, but not exceptional, so I'll probably try something different next time so I can slowly try all their happy hour offerings.
Service was pretty fast, though they weren't too busy when I went. Â For those interested in happy hour, this is the menu, which is available 4-6:30 on weekdays only:
$3 BEER - $5 WINE
MARGHERITA PIZZA 5
WHITE PIZZA 5
PEPPERONI PIZZA 5
SMALL BURGERS 5
HUMMUS TRIO 4.5
BREADS & SPREAD S 4.5
CAPRESE CROSTINI 4.5
GOAT CHEESE CRO STINI 4.5
WHITE CHEDDAR PIMENTO 3
TUNA, BASIL & WHITE BEANS 3
DEVILED EGGS 2.5
A solid four stars for their happy hour, and I'll definitely be back. Â Their regular menu is also reasonably priced.
UPDATE: the small burgers and hummus trio are excellent. Â The white pizza was rubbery and disappointing, but the crust was still good. Â You can easily feed two people dinner and drinks for a total of $30 at happy hour. Â On the regular menu, the steak sate has been hit or miss. Â The first time, it was really tender and wonderful, but the second time was dry and chewy. Â The gorgonzola garlic cream sauce that accompanies it is delightful. Â The lamb chops, brussels sprouts, and reuben sandwich are all delicious.
BEWARE! Â Salt is a condiment, not a side dish! Â
I'm sitting at home chugging water because I'm in a salt coma from eating at Cafe Caturra. Â Message to the kitchen--lay off the salt! Â Every single dish that comes out of this kitchen is dipped in sodium. Â Then they add some more for good measure.
Our server Quashawn walked up and greeted out table by saying, "Are you ready to order?" Â No hello, no how are you, no do you want to start with something to drink? Â We were all impressed by our server memorizing our order until a second person came out to make sure she captured everything. Â She ended up missing multiple items from our order. Â Our food was delivered, with a side of salt of course, and no one ever came back to see if everything was OK. Â
A guest at our table said that the food was "clumsy." Â He had the spag and meatballs and felt like the dish was prepared well ahead of time, stuck in the fridge and then re-heated when ordered. Â I had a quiche which had a nice custard texture...but, surprise, it was coated in salt! Â We were plagued by a collection of plates throughout the meal. Â We reasonably had 20 plates sitting on our table by the end of the dinner. Â We were about a minute away from clearing the table ourselves. Â We finally flagged someone down to and asked for our check. Â
We even called the restaurant's main phone number from our table, trying to get someone to pick up the phone so we could get our check delivered since no one was on the floor...but the collection of five servers standing at the hostess stand didn't pick up the phone after multiple rings. Â
Our group desperately wanted to like this neighborhood restaurant but it is unlikely we'll be back. Â
Final thought--don't forget to order a side of salt!!
This is how I feel at Café Caturra's happy hour: <a href="/redir?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DZkiSYmn74os&s=b36440ea32662ff944264e1ef1eed168842483ae9a392d90c1cee8bef0395f66" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.youtube.com/w…</a>
I *love* happy hour, and I love a good happy hour deal even *better*. Â When a friend asked me to join her at a fundraiser HH at CC, I didn't have to think about it long. Â When she mentioned CC's HH $3 draughts (anything on tap), $5 glasses of wine (anything on the menu), and a variety of $5 small plates (from pizzas to dip samplers), it only served to clinch my decision. Â And since my initial induction to CC, I've HH'ed many at time.
There are so many things things to like about CC that bring me back on the regular for HH:
+ The wine list is manageable and impressive.  The Spanish Adegas Gran Vinum Nessa Abariño, crisp and minerally.  A robust and smoky Octavia Cabernet Sauvignon out of California's central coast.  The surprising, lightly oaked Thomas Henry Chardonnay from Napa.  These would normally run you $30 - 35 a bottle, but CC's HH lets you have exceptionally generous pours for $5 a glass.
+ The décor is modern and minimal, yet comfortable and inviting.  You can easily lose track of time and end up whiling away a few hours here.
+ A large outdoor patio with plenty of seating, some cushy couches, and heat lamps for cooler weather.
+ The service is so well-intentioned and warm. Â Everyone from the hostess and bartenders to the servers and runners. Â I have to give a special mention to Adam, CC's manager, who is so gracious it's almost suspicious. Â Every time we've been here he has personally come around to speak with us and thank us profusely for happy hour-ing. Â Always happy to oblige, Adam!
+ Even outside the $5 HH menu, CC's price points are unusually low for the DC area. Â $6 mac 'n' cheese (fairly average), $10 veggie lasagna (pretty good). Â We've also nibbled on a five dollar Dip Trio with classic hummus (meh), white bean and tuna (great flavor), and white cheddar pimiento (soooo noms), as well as some roasted tomato, fresh mozz, basil, and balsamic Caprese Crostini (very nice), a margarita pizza (needed salt), and a white pizza (inhaled it).
Annoying things about CC, you ask? Â Well...
- That well-intentioned and warm service can be rather slooowwwww sometimes. Â I don't, however, find it to be as confusing or perturbing as other reviewers. Â Perhaps HH at CC is more straightforward than regular meal times.
- The affordably priced food won't blow you away. Â There are some menu stand-outs, and then some ho-hums.
So, kids -- one. plus. one. Â equals: come to CC early and often for HH. Â Forget about dinner, forget about lunch. Â Just HH yourself silly at CC.
Came in for a light dinner of some sandwiches. Â The pork panninie was very tasty and the tomato bisque tasted very fresh, light and with nice kick. Fair price and conveniently located within walking distance from my appartment. Â I am sure I will come back even on a weeknight when I don't feal like cooking. Â It was nice to have a good selection of wine for my date and the creme brule topped it off. Â
Waiter was very friendly, thank you.
Very uneexpected great place off Glebe road in arlington.
There selections of red wine is great. Appetizers are very good. The fresh flat bread is outstanding.
Always great service and SUPER friendly bartenders. Its a hidden gem.
Only slight negative is they could use some more bar area seating.
Cafe Caturra's offerings are somewhat similar to that of Panera (pick two; soup/salad/sandwich combo) but then they offer additional options such as cheese and charcutterie platters, small plates and wine/alcoholic beverages. It's also similar to Panera in the fact that you order at the register and then find your own seat, but in this case you can receive additional service from your seat or even choose a seat at the bar.
I tried one of their combo meals; a garden veggie panini and the tomato basil soup with brie, as a takeout order. Initially they gave me the wrong sandwich (tuna salad which I do not eat since I am a vegetarian), but I called the manager when I returned home and he said he would prepare a new meal for me that I could pick up the next day. While I would have rather had the correct meal the first time, it was a nice gesture and the staff was very polite and accomodating upon pickup. The food was decent and similar to that of Panera, although the wait time is longer. The price is about the same too, $7.50 for the combo meal.
I do plan to return with some friends at some point to try out the cheese and wine and to enjoy the atmosphere which is nicely lit with candles. Most of the seats were empty and there were mostly groups of women at the bar both times I stopped by. This would also be a nice place to meet a group of friends when the weather gets warm. They have a ton of outdoor seating and ambient string lights which will hopefully deter your eyes from the parking lot view.
I went to this place shortly after it opened and I was so confused by how it worked -- 6 different waiters, carrying empty glasses around, not sure how I was supposed to order -- that I waited months before I braved a return. Â That is until tonight. Â When an associate and I walked in this evening, Â I was immediately confused all over again.
A very pleasant woman met us at the entrance and then told us we had three choices before us: to order at the counter, to sit at the "boutique wine bar" or to ... wait, what was that third thing? Â (Sorry, Rick Perry joke. Too soon?) Â Actually the third thing was basically to do whatever we wanted, which sort of made the first two things moot. Â
Anyway I'm already confused.
Seating is Southwest Airlines style: meaning wherever you can find a comfortable chair. Â (You won't find one, by the way). Â But before we can even do that, the woman at the front hands us each a glass with a very small taste of wine within. Â Are we supposed to carry this around? Â Chug it and hand it back? Â I'm confused again. Â
I take a seat near the bar on a hard, stone-like stool. Â Then we both order a diet coke and some water. Â Waiter #1 shows up with four glasses and two cans. Â You pour the cans of soda into the glasses yourself. Â I always hate that. Â My kingdom for a fountain soda machine!, as Henry VIII used to say. Â So at this point we have before us on a medium-sized table two glasses of water, two glasses of diet coke, two empty soda cans, and two random wine glasses that we were handed at the entrance. Â I'm confused -- why is this necessary?
We order dinner from Waiter #2 and then Waiter #3 brings it to our table. Â Now here at last is where this place shines. Â I ordered a chicken salad which was delicious. Â Huge chunk of lettuce, tasty salad dressing, and well cooked chicken. Â My only fear is that when I cut the chicken I will knock one of our 800 glasses onto the floor, thereby imperiling Waiters #4-6, my associate, and whatever class action lawyer happens to walk by. Â
Incidentally I cannot help but feel a weird vibe at this place. Â My associate says I'm supposed to think of this on a par with an Panera Bread. Â Well, Panera bread is so much better organized. Â I understand what I am doing there at all times. Â Also the place feels casual. Â This place feels like a hodge podge of folks wearing gym clothes, people dressed up for a date, and a watering hole for ladies who stepped out of Knots Landing. Â "Can you believe what Abby did?" "No, and I heard Val went crazy again."
Finally the bill comes and -- guess what - it is delivered (inexplicably) in another glass with a tiny red ribbon on the stem. Â Is this so we can identify one glass from the other? Â Are there so many now that we need identifying markers? Â For those counting we now on our table have glasses of water, glasses of diet soda, emptied wine glasses from earlier in the evening, this new glass with a check wedged in it, Â two soda cans, and a partridge in a pear tree. Â What's with all the glasses? Â The dishwasher must be the highest paid person in the joint. Â
Now the price is a little high if you ask me -- like $30 for a sandwich and a salad. Â Maybe they are adding in the insurance costs for their all-but -inevitable stepping on broken glass lawsuit that is surely on its way.
I felt like I was back in California as I sat in Cafe Caturra, drinking delicious wine and eating from an amazing charcuterie plate.
I have found my  local spot, I think. :)
Mason was our bartender/wine expert and kept plying us with different lovely whites to try and answered our questions about the food expertly. Â For the lunch hour, the place was brightly lit and charming. Service was spot on and the food was very tasty. I have never had a better blue cheese and the bread was hot and chewy.
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