Very nice and laid back. Â No rushing you through the ordering process and no speed serving to clear you out for the next customer despite being in season. Â Good selection on the menu and prices are what you expect for a nice sit down meal on the cape. Â Food was good and everyone was happy. Â The structure itself is also unique and rich in history. Â We plan on making this a regular stop when we are down on the cape.
Review Source:You indeed have to be an Optimist to dine here, as evidenced by the fact that every time we go back here with Ma and Pa Crank, the wait gets longer and longer and longer on both ends - ordering and delivery. The food has always been mezzo-mezzo at best, and no so hot when it's not so hot for being delivered late, so the Cape-seasonal-induced waiting - which seems fairly universal in-season these days, but that gets you no brownie points from yours truly - makes this an avoid-as-long-as-Ma-and-Pa-Crank can be persuaded to pass it by.
My sister keeps insisting there's no good restaurants on the Cape these days, and insofar as she has a point the Optimist is a good case in point. A lot of places open doing just fine, but the seasonal pricing and pack-em-in, shoot-em-out attitude seems to take over just about every place. And in the meantime, the old school places like the (old) Marshside and (the original) Jack's Outback get re-imagined when their original proprietors step aside, and you end up with almost no options for a locals breakfast-and-lunch place, certainly none that are affordable.
Yes yes I am sounding  like an old crank these days, but every time a place like the Optimist declines I become more of a pessimist.
Two stars for the glass half-empty, then. (Or in our case, the coffee cup.)
We had a great breakfast here while traveling off-Cape. We were looking to go to Grumpy's, but the line was out the door so we kept driving west on 6A. Â The restaurant is located in a historic house and it's got a nice vibe to it. Â Very welcoming.
For a Memorial Day morning, it was not crowded but it deserved to be for the quality of the good and the setting. Â It must be the pricing. Â One star deducted for being a bit pricey ($8 breakfast sandwich and a $50 bill, with tip, for 2 adults and a 4 year old).
Josh was a great server. Â Seems like a well run place. Â Food was great.
1 star deducted for pricing but would definitely recommend for a casual , relaxing meal.
I believe the name refers to the kind of person you'd need to be to enjoy a meal here.
The house is cute on the outside, average on the inside. The patio is nice, but right next to the road.
I had an omelet that was [unintentionally] served cold and filled with inedibly salty salmon bits, which I left in a large pile on the side of the plate after choking down the omelet. The server did not appear to notice this, and when she asked if everything was OK, I informed her that the salmon was inedible. In response, I got a dull stare. The bill arrived without comment or adjustment. I suggested to the server that when a customer is not happy with a meal, a bill adjustment, or perhaps a conversation with the manager, might be in order. The bill came back with a 10% discount.
My friend had what she said was an OK burger accompanied by a bag of chips.
The ice cream at the place across the street is fantastic.
You can do orders of magnitude better very close by. Keep on driving.
I had been here years back when it was another establishment that I loved. I went back a few times since and was seriously underwhelmed. Today I arrived for a board meeting brunch. I was 10 minutes early. The hostess asked me to wait for our table. I noticed many open tables but did as I was told. 10 minutes later she asked if I wanted to sit at our table. Well, ya, that would have been nice 10 minutes previous since it was ready. Anyway, the setting is charming. Our waitress was great. The food is basic fair, nothing wow. Smuckers Jam in little packets, fake maple syrup, commerical bread (vs homemade found at my favorite breakfast spot, ya, I am spoiled). I had the English Breakfast  (Joy) with scrambled eggs cooked nicely, great homefries, butter soaked toast, mushy grilled tomatoes and a few grilled mushrooms. It was fine at 9.99. I was invited and treated which I graciously appreciate. I am a food snob I will admit. A few spot on places on the Cape have ruined it for others. Having said that, this is a decent spot and our sweet waitress shined.  They have a patio which will be nice in sunny warmer weather.
Review Source:Went here for brunch on a Sunday. Â The menu is great, lots of options. Â The restaurant is in a very beautiful house that is actually listed on the Historic Registry. Â
The service was lackluster. Â It took a good ten minutes for us to get coffees. Â Food was good, not great, but not bad. Â I had a vegetarian eggs Benedict and enjoyed it. Â Prices were reasonable.
My husband and I have a soft spot from the Optimist Cafe. It is the first place we discovered when he moved here a year ago and we have been back so often that the wait staff knows our names and we were congratulated on our wedding when we returned from our honeymoon!! :)
It is a sweet, small space with mismatched tea cups and tea pots (my favorite is the elephant, which they reserve for me when we walk in!). It has mismatched decor and sugar holders, fresh flowers and sweet smiles from their friendly staff.
Their food is heavenly. Heart shaped waffles, light salads, yummy eggs in all different ways, English breakfasts and many, many different teas! It is girly, but not too girly that my husband doesn't love it :) The ONLY food item that I am not 100% fond of are their omlets. Everything else is worth the trip!!
Go visit our favorite breakfast joint and the only thing you will be disappointed in will be the summertime line! :)
After our plans to go to the Vineyard got scraped (thanks to a Gale wind, or whatever), we decided to explore Hyannis a bit. We explored and then went back to our B&B for a bit of rest while deciding where to eat lunch.
Scouring Yelp for ideas, I found the Optimist and remembered that I had found it previously and it was at the top of my list for places to eat. That settled it - off we went to Yarmouth!
We walked in and were sat within 2 minutes. I loved the calm, relaxing decor with the subtle optimistic messages on the walls. And I loved the halogen lamps with crystals glued on them!
I went healthy and got a salad with mesclun greens, tomatoes, cucumber, apples and walnuts - and asked for the "roasted red onions" and gorgonzola, as well as grilled chicken. The onions were NOT roasted, as the menu claimed, and the cherry tomatoes were a bit frozen on the inside. I also don't know what dressing I got. But it was all delicious!
My husband the Ultimate Triple Decker Club Sandwich (Your choice of sliced chicken, turkey, ham or roast beef with bacon, lettuce,
tomato and mayonnaise. Served on our thick toasted whole wheat bread). He went with roast beef and devoured the entire plate and the Cape Cod chips (I got his pickle!). I had one bite and really enjoyed it.
The only down side? My Diet Pepsi that was VERY watered down.
Our waiter wasn't amazing - he didn't check in with us until we were pretty much done - but we didn't need too much, just more water. He was not mean or anything, just not as attentive or friendly as people usually are on the Cape.
The online menu does not seem to be updated, but is pretty much the same.
Overall, a charming, pleasant place for brunch or lunch.
Last breakfast at the Cape before heading back to reality. I think this place gets good rating due to the ambiance and atmosphere. I can't say much about their food. I must say the place is cute. It's nice to see tables spaced out instead of being crammed together.
Ambiance - 5 stars
Food - average of 3 stars
2 Optimist Breakfast were ordered and one special. The special was biscuits and gravy with grits. My friend gave the dish a 5 stars due to the taste of gravy. I didn't think much with the gravy. I thought it was a little too dense. It seems like gravy had a little too much flour. Mist potatoes that people were raving about was bland and it wasn't crusty like Arlo C mentioned. One thing I appreciated with the dish was that it wasn't greasy. My eggs didn't come dusted with herbs as Margo V mentioned. The place is showing some inconsistency when comparing with what other yelpers experienced. 3 stars for Optimist Breakfast. To me, Keltic Kitchen and Hanger B definitely served better breakfast. There wasn't anything unique with the breakfast at Optimist Cafe. It was all about the ambiance. Definitely would not go back to Optimist Cafe for breakfast.
Adorable place inside and out. Â You feel like you're walking into a cartoon when you approach this place, with its colorful decor and happy whale greeting you at the front. Â The inside is just as colorful and there's artwork from local artists adorning the walls. Â Very cool.
I was here for lunch, and although this place is more known for breakfast/brunch, the lunch menu is vast and the options are unique. Â Do get the scones! Â They are the best I've ever had! Â Be sure to also order some tea for yourself. Â I believe this is a staple of the establishment, and with several delectable varieties to choose from, you can't go wrong with your decision. Â I got the green tea tropical flavor, and it was quite amazing. No sugar needed!
For lunch, I had the curried chicken salad sandwich with a small side cup of butternut squash soup, served with Cape Cod brand potato chips. Â My husband had the chicken curry entree. Â Both meals were delicious and the serving size was just right for the price.
Highly recommended!
Must try..great place when I see a lunch place packed after lunch with cars I know it has something good going on and it did. they advertise the best reuben and they delivered good amount of corned beef, enough russian and kraut to compliment yet not over power..reasonable price..waitress blond hair, adult, accent was wonderful ran everywhere very impressed with all staff polite already told people about The Optimist...will be back...
Review Source:Great breakfast, get there early. The place is very nice, very well decorated and the food is amazing. Everyone in the place was happy  it was a very good breakfast experience, Great coffee also. They do lunch also and high tee in the afternoon.  Sadly they don't do dinner but I bet it would be great if they did.  I would go out of my way again to eat breakfast here while on the cape.
Review Source:Have a craving for a classic English breakfast (complete with a grilled tomato) or a spot of tea? Â Then this is your place.
Located off of 6A in Yarmouth, this breakfast/brunch eatery is inside an old ship captain's house. Â The decor is very simplistic but encourages relaxation.
I tried a belgian waffle with bacon and a side of homefries. Â My GF ordered a breakfast sandwich. The food was good, not great. Â We also shared some amazing cranberry-orange scones with fresh cream and preserves. Â They were excellent.
We ordered tea with our breakfast as well, and they were served in individual pots. Â What I thought was clever is that all of the tea cups and pots had different designs. Â The lack of uniformity gave the restaurant an air of playfulness which is always a good way to distinguish yourself.
I would eat here again if on the Cape and would recommend it to others.
Visited this nice, neat little spot right on 6A as we were leaving the Cape. Very good service and a manageable menu with just the right amount of choices. Not terribly crowed when we arrived but as people piled in it got a little noisy. Food was very good, especially their Mist Potatoes. A good bet if you are looking for something in that area.
Review Source:We stopped in here on our way off the cape after looking up brunch on yelp. We could easily see why this place was voted #1 in the area. It had a unique decor and menu and lots of personality. I agree with a previous reviewer that the music was a little annoying, but it wasn't overwhelmingly awful. My partner had a breakfast sandwich with hollandaise sauce, and said it was fairly average. I had a waffle with banana and strawberries and it was fairly good -- not as many berries as I would have liked, but not too bad. You should go, just for the experience.
Review Source:While driving down 6A we came across this cafe. Â I wanted something different and it was very reasonably priced. Â With tip we spent $30 for the 2 of us.
They have a decent menu selection that reminded me of cafe menus in England. Â It's definitely something different.
The only downside was the slow service. Â They really could have used another server helping them out.
Otherwise the food was good and the service was friendly (just slow)
A cute little find, tucked inside a old historic vicotorian home on 6A. Â If your like me, I love driving along 6A on the Cape, there is something so nostalgic about it. Â
I stopped into The Optimist Cafe by chance, and must say was pleasantly surprised by how delicious my lunch was, not to mention how adorable the place is decorated. Â I highly recommend the Lobster Salad Roll served alongside a garden salad, which had a ginger lime dressing. Â The dressing was thick (think mayo consistency) but it was delicious! Â My lunch companions were equally satisfied, sans a sendback. Â The Maryland Crap Stew wasv traded for the NE Clam Chowder; the crab stew is a "stay away", the chowder on the other hand was delicious.
I'd definitely recommend and hope to go back someday, on my next 6A adventure. Â Tea connoisseurs can also check out there extensive tea menu and tea time snacks, just an FYI!
Let me preface this review by saying that I adore this little cafe on historic Route 6A in Yarmouthport. We've eaten there on numerous occasions, but always for lunch, and have been quite pleased with both the food and service. I am hoping that our experience today is an aberration...
Today we went for breakfast. The harried hostess eventually managed to clear some tables herself and push two together for our party of 6. After we sat down, we realized that we were right on top of some horrendously loud banging coming from the cellar that shook our table and chairs. This pounding continued for the better part of 15 minutes while we waited for the food to arrive. We couldn't even have a conversation it was so very loud. Another problem, early in our visit, was that they had run out of French Toast...it was only 9 o'clock!
The food finally came (after a long, loud wait), but only partially. We had to ask multiple times for my husband's grapefruit and son's bacon. Additionally, they brought out blueberry pancakes instead of chocolate chip pancakes (which had been misdelivered to an nearby table). My "Irish" oatmeal, was not the steel-cut oatmeal I had been expecting, but rather plain old flat oats, and I had to ask for a pitcher of milk 3 times before it was finally brought out to me. The menu also said it came with raisins and brown sugar. The waiter eventually brought out the raisins, but after asking repeatedly for the brown sugar, he confessed that they didn't have any. We also had to ask multiple times for a refill on our coffee and the pancakes looked anemic as well.
Overall this experience was very disappointing. This is the type of place I really want to succeed. It has so much charm and potential...I have no idea if the waitstaff or the kitchen was to blame. It wasn't particularly busy, but several orders (4 tables maybe?) went in at once.
We will probably give Optimist another chance...but at lunch, where the quality of the food (and service) has been much, much better.
Located on one of my favorite stretches of Route 6A across from Hallet's which was still closed mid June!
The food was really good. So many interesting choices. I had a curried chicken salad sandwich which was perfect. We ordered scones which were delicious but the smallest scones I have ever seen. Literally one bite. Â The creme and jam portions were bigger than the scone itself.
I would give them  5 stars for the food but knocked off a star for the decor. it was unsettling being in a gothic style captains house that had tacky blue halogen track lighting overhead. from where I sat I saw mustard yellow reflective walls ( pretty but weird in the house) track lighting, newly made stained glass windows. The floors are beautiful though. Not everything has to be authentic on the Cape- buoy's and nets or antiques. but it is such an interesting house and just jarring to see the decor inside.
Service was friendly. Skip the key lime pie. it had that refrigerator taste.
Love it, love it, love it. I'm so upset that I only found this place a few months before I moved.
The Optimist is an old sea Captain's house and is very interesting from the outside (most old places on that stretch of 6A ARE pretty cool, though). Strange whale/butler thing outside. But once you get inside, this place is very trendy with a nice big bar, track lighting, funky paintings on the walls, but with a lot of Cape Cod style decor at the same time. Weird, but it works.
Now for the food. It's incredible. But if you go, you have to get the Delight. Named so because it's 100 percent delightful. Just take my word for it.
After three and a half years on the Cape, and after trying just about every breakfast place from Falmouth to Brewster, this is it for me. First place.
Reasonably priced, reliable breakfast on the Cape. Â
The place is cute and seemed to attract a lot of locals. Â (Part of that might be due to the fact that most of the businesses were closed to the winter, but I think the food/service play a role as well.) Â Service was bright and cheery. Â My breakfast sandwich was good. Â My companion's eggs benedict were very good. Â Coffee is Douwe Egberts, which I don't like at all, so that was disappointing.
The main drawback for us was the music. Â Normally I don't judge a place on the music they play. But the mix of bad 70s, from Alan Parsons project to Crystal Gayle's Blue Bayou made me want to shove stocks into my ears. Â I hate Alan Parsons project, and it made me eat faster so that I could leave sooner.
Poor music choices on the day of my visit aside, this is a perfectly respectable place for breakfast. Â Hopefully they'll have changed the CDs by the time you visit.
Dared to venture from my favorite Jack's Outback II and was pleasantly surprised. Many excellent choices with a chef that clearly favors Hollandais and English tea favorites. Food and atmopshere were old world European with eclectic touches in a charming Victorian home.
Highly recommend, but don't bring the rugrats, not that kind of bfast place.
I picked up a flier for this restaurant at our hotel and after reading through it I knew exactly where we would have breakfast the next day. Â So many delicious options on the menu for breakfast, brunch, lunch and tea time. Â The Optimist Cafe is located on historic Route 6A in an amazing home dating from 1849. Â For anyone interested in gothic architecture this is definitely a cool place to visit. Â The restaurant is super cozy inside... a lot of attention has been given to the interior. Â A mix of modern elements (like pendant lamps and bright wall colors) with a vintage spin (tea cups and saucers). Â The walls have local artists displayed (mostly landscape scenes). Â The tables are covered in beautiful lace-like cloths with condiments stored in porcelain cups and boxes. Â And the food is absolutely delicious. Â Home baked blueberry muffins, eggs benedict, a monte cristo sandwich and perfect coffee. Â I've always loved restaurants that work in beautiful old homes and The Optimist certainly does. Â We chose to sit in the big front window with a view out on to the front yard in it's spring glory. Â Loved our visit here. Â After breakfast we continued on 6A east and came upon an amazing playground on Playground Lane. Â After a visit at the playground we continued down the road and landed at Grays Beach (marshes, birds, a footpath pier,amazing views). Â Can't beat this start to our day...thanks to The Optimist.
Review Source:
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