Went to lunch here for the first time with my brother. Â Will NEVER eat here again. Â Here is my first and last experience at this dump:
Waitress took at least 15 minutes to bring me water and ask for my drink order. Â When she did drop off the water and take our drink order she then asked "Are you ready?" Â As in, ready to order. Â "What would you like to have today" or "Do you need more time" would have been a much more pleasant "greeting".
I asked for "Iced Tea, no lemon". Â She did not have the courtesy to mention that it is a pre-flavored iced tea.
Table was dirty. One of the spills on the table had a dead bug in it, Â I asked waitress if she could wipe that off...she huffed about it (this is when the attitude began, at second point of contact.)
Waitress did not check up on us to see how the food is or if we needed anything. Â Walked passed our table multiple times and ignored us so after 2 sips of my tea I realized it wasn't what I thought it would be. Â My waitress was non-existent so I asked the only other waiter (a male) if there was regular iced tea, he said no and that he will get my server to help me (no team work on his part.) Â
My change came to $16.00. Â She gave me 3 five dollar bills and a one dollar bill. Â Would have been courteous of her to break down one of the five dollar bills into 1's for her tip. Â I guess she assumed, after her crappy service, she was going to get a $5 dollar bill (or more) as a tip. Â
My order was incorrect. Â It was missing a key ingredient. Â
My brother's order was incorrect. Â He was missing his chipotle sauce that came with his sweet potato chips.
The bun on his salmon burger was a cheap sesame seed bun that looked like it's "from Safeway" as my brother stated.
The "salad" that came with my sandwich was a handful of spring mix with NOTHING ELSE on it, that was completely drenched in their house soy vinagrette dressing.
Waitress did not offer any other condiments to go with our lunch (we were sitting outside, so there was nothing on the table but salt, napkins, forks, knives.....and a dead bug.)
I normally wouldn't nit pick about every little detail but the service was so incredibly bad and the food was WAY overpriced for the quality, I feel like everyone needs to know how my experience was. Â I never get a chance to go to lunch with my brother. Â EVER. Â And the one opportunity I get to go to lunch with him, it wasn't as pleasant as it should have been because of this restaurant we chose. Â It's funny because we couldn't decide between Table 24 and Shelby's (we reviewed both menus before deciding.) Â When people meet me for lunch, I usually go to Table 24 because I have never had a bad experience there...food or service. Â But this time I thought of trying something different. Â NO WONDER Table 24 is always a packed house at lunch and Shelby's is practically empty. Â And to top this whole experience off, I decided I would give this place a small chance before writing this review. Â So I called the restaurant and asked for the owner's name. Â The person that answered the phone responded by saying "Carlos". Â The he proceeded to say "What is this regarding?" Â I said "It is regarding something I would like to discuss with the owner." Â He said "I am the owner...I'm Carlos." Really?!? Â Wow, then why didn't you say that when I asked for the owner's name in the first place! Â How about "I am the owner, my name is Carlos, is there something I can help you with??" Â Geez. Â So I hesitated, and said "Nevermind." Â His response, "No, no! Â Tell me!" Â Ugh. Â I didn't even bother telling him of my experience because of his unprofessionalism. Â So sad. Â No wonder my experience was crap. Â It all boils down to the management. Â I am truly shocked this restaurant is still in business. Â Choose Table 24, NOT Shelby's.
I came here with some co workers on a Friday during lent which for Catholics means no meat. Â I ordered the half sandwich combo with their tuna melt and sweet potato chips.
I'm a little hesitant to order tuna melts because of the amount of mayo most places put in them but this one was delicious. Â If your a big meal kind of person this would not have been for you but for a tiny girl like me this was great. Â It was an open faced sandwich on an english muffin topped with tuna, a huge tomato and melted cheese. Â The two sides I chose were a green salad and sweet potato chips. Â There wasn't anything exceptional about the salad but the chips were so fresh. Â They didn't taste too oily and they were perfectly salted. Â I will be back again!
The only bad thing is the service was a little slow. Â We came around 12 and sat outside. Â We had to try to flag down the waiter to get our waters refilled and the waitress took awhile to initially take our order.
We go to Shelby's every year for the Mother's Day Brunch. My daughter is named Shelby so it's apropos! They really outdid themselves with their food this year. It's always been good but yesterday was just fantastic! The pork tenderloin was amazing! The staff is always friendly and makes us feel welcome. I'm making a commitment to eat at Shelby's more often :-)
Review Source:I brought my new manager here for lunch. The staff is very very friendly and made excellent recommendations for lunch choices. I had the mango chicken salad and my manager had the grilled Cesar with prawns. They make all their dressings there and they were both delicious. As someone who eats clean all the time I do not feel like I need to run an extra mile because I ate here. Fresh, delicious food with very good service!
Review Source:We had dinner here last Friday (1/11/13). Â I suppose the first clue may have been that the place was virtually empty. Â Therefore, the service was pretty good. Â But, the food and atmosphere could use some definite work. Â They have a plastic coated menu (ala Denny's without the pictures). Â The Cesar salad dressing was heavy and tasted like mayonnaise and the steak in the steak fritte was tough and had a lot of untrimmed fat left on it. Â Finally, a glass of plain old house Chardonnay was $14. Â It is so unfortunate that Theater Square can't land a good restaurant. Â I have been disappointed by Table 24, Barbacoa, and now Shelby's. Â I know the first two share the same owner, I don't know about this one.
Review Source:Had a nice lunch with a friend the other day.
We both had the 1/2 sandwich and soup, salad, fries.
My friend had the sweet potato fries with chipolte dip - excellent.
All of the food was very tasty. Â The bill was not bad for Orinda.
Service was excellent. Â They refilled our water glasses constantly.
I had been once before and had a wonderful cobb salad, but didn't see it this time.
(I hope they bring it back. . . . )
I will definitely return. Â This place seems like a safe bet.
I had a good experience the first time I was here so I suggested we come here to celebrate one of my friend's birthday and we were the first ones there when they opened. Â I had a good experience the first time I was here so they were interested in checking it out. Â The waiter was very gracious and the birthday girl and I decided to split the turkey and bacon club sandwich with a mixed green salad. Â Both were delicious. Â We each also ordered a cup of the tasty carrot soup. Â Our other friend ordered the green lamb chop salad and the meat was very tender. Â She came back a few days later for lunch on her own and had the lamp chop salad again! Â The only drawback was we were deciding on having dessert for our friend's birthday but the restaurant got busy and the servers got overwhelmed and since we needed to get out of there to go shopping with a time schedule, we had to forego dessert and it took awhile to get the check. Â Other than that, the servers were very nice. Â But we spent about 2 hours in the restaurant.
Review Source:The place has nice ambiance and the staff are nice and attentive. Â It's a good place to take clients here for lunch. Â I've been here twice already but I have to give it a three star for the food and price point. Â I had the salmon for lunch today and for almost $20, I think that I could have done better elsewhere. Â However, this is in Orinda, not Berkeley or Oakland, or San Francisco, so I have to keep my expectations realistic.
Review Source:Walking around downtown and thought of trying a new restaurant. Shelby's has a great eye appeal when you first walk in even though I think the front area is just wasted space.
Not sure how new the place is but all 13 tables were full so looks to be a popular spot.
It took awhile for the starter salad, but I was pleasantly surprised by the presentation. The soy vinaigrette was different but very enjoyable.
I had the pork tenderloin over potatoes with beets and goat cheese on top. The presentation was great but I must say at first I was a little concerned with the portion size being too small when it came out. Now my girlfriend got the bow-tie chicken pasta which was basic but good.
So overall not bad, think I'll try another place in the plaza next time.
I'm quite sure Shelby's has the best food in Orinda. I really enjoy the Penne Arrabiata, okay anything that has bacon gets my vote, and this is really well done. I've also had the Chinese Chicken Salad which is well worth it. I also like that the owners are there a lot of the time and you get served by the Chef and the Manager from time time, it adds that human touch. The food is great and the prices are reasonable.
Review Source:Went for dinner tonight, the food was great. Portions were great and price point was accurate. Ordered the bruschetta as an appetizer, was super good the garlic aioli came thru and really had great flavor. I ordered the spinach, pear, and duck confit it was delicious, my boyfriend ordered the steak frittes its was huge and was great the mushrooms on the top were great and my dad ordered the lamb chops. The lamb chops entree was a lil small however, he said he was full. To accompany their meals one had chardonnay and the other ordered red wine that they were also happy with. I would definitely come back here!!! The ambience is excellent, can definitely go there with a date or with parents. All in all its a great place.
Review Source:I tend to leave big milestone reviews for times when I am with my folks, Â husband and daughter. 1000 reviews. Dang, I get around!
Last Sunday, we decided it had been too long since we had all spent time together and planned on meeting here for dinner. Both my Dad and Toni had been before, but it was a first time for us.
This is a beer/wine only place and Toni had a glass of wine. The rest of us had water. They have delicious bread knots-shaped more like a bone with a decent knuckle on each end. They are made of some sort of dough (maybe phyllo) that has both a hint of cheese and hint of spice. They were sinful and I am glad we didn't ask for more or else I wouldn't have been able to eat my dinner.
We all ordered different things with both Caesar and house salads to start. The dressing on the house salad was really yummy and tasted like some sort of Asian flavoring.
For our mains, we all ordered something different and shared bites. I had the tarragon rotisserie chicken, Toni had the halibut, Dad had the paella, daughter the steak frittes (minus the frittes add extra veg) and Kevin had the lasagna. Everything was tasty and we were all relatively pleased.
We did not indulge in dessert and service was great with our water being refilled without asking and so on.
We will be back.
Stopped in here for the first time today for lunch. I think something bad must have occurred... as in....servers not showing up to work. It is a bad sign when the chef seats you, the manager takes your order, the bus girl brings your drinks and the chef serves you. Not one single waitstaff in sight.
The service, given the above scenario, is to be excused. Although everyone was friendly - it was clear they were understaffed so the wait times were quite extensive. Again - to be excused.
The food was terrific! Interesting, fresh, well prepared.
Highly recommend for lunch.
Shelby's is one of my favorite restaurants. I love the atmosphere, food, and the little bread sticks that come before dinner. I could eat plate fulls of those little bread sticks.
I took my family here on their last visit to the bay area and everyone enjoyed their food. I've never had anything on the menu that wasn't delicious. The salmon is one of my favorites and the mango chicken salad.
So Yummy!
Had a wonderful dining experience here. We had the fried brie as an app. It was delicious, especially the slightly spicy, smokey strawberry sauce it came with complemented the cheese so well. As enterees we chose the sole and the asparagus risotto, also extremely good. Both dishes were perfectly seasoned, including the perfect shoe-string french fries.
Desert: Espresso Granita with whipped cream and great bread pudding. Fantastic!
The staff and owner were very nice and polite. The menu is great and innovative fusion of fresh california and european cuisine. As restaurant with a strong european flair, the waiters tend to leave you alone unless you call them which I love but always make sure you drinks are filled and you are taken care of. One of my new favorite restaurants in the Bay area.
Great food. Great service. Great atmosphere. Over all a steady staple to the east bay restaurant group. I guess they've changed chefs or owners or something because it was well above when I had last time I was there. Â Sometimes the service was slow but it was never because the wait staff was slacking, it was because they were being as attentive to other customers as they were to my own table. Â I will eat again and I suggest the stop off the freeway for a bit.
Review Source:Came here awhile back and I haven't been back since.
Got me a chicken caesar salad since I wasn't too hungry but it was beyond disappointing. The salad was so bland I thought they forgot the dressing. And on top of that, the chicken itself was so dry I had to drink all my water to stomach it. Blech, I mean I know Orinda restaurants don't tend to be mind-blowing but this was amazingly bad.
I love this place! I have only been here twice, and both times were during off-hours, but the service both times was fantastically friendly and attentive. Their sweet potato chips are the best I've ever tasted. I've also had their "napa melt" chicken salad sandwich and their "happy hour" pizette pizza-on-English-muffin creations. All very good and fresh. They're also very generous with their tasty "breadsticks" (more likely cheesy croissant twists). I love sitting by the street-side window and watching Orinda go about its day.
Review Source:When my parents suddenly were filled with wanderlust and wanted to see what Orinda had to offer, I was a little skeptical. While tromping around the main street of Orinda we walked into the movie theater shopping plaza and as many have pointed out, it is pretty empty. Yet, there is a little pocket with about 3 restaurants jammed right next to one another and there you will find Shelby's. We were hungry and happened to notice people outside Selby's pleasantly eating and chatting so we decided to stop and grab a bite. Â
Let me just say, thank goodness! The weather was delightful so we sat outside. Our waiter was a very friendly and knowledgeable gentleman who knew the items on the menu and was attentive and entertaining without over staying his welcome. The food was also really delicious! I had the 1/2 sandwich combo with the BLT. Great ratio of bacon to lettuce to tomato with small side salad and these amazing sweet potato chips!!! I've had sweet potato fries before, which I didn't like, but at the recommendation of the waiter I tried the sweet potato in it's chip form and I am a fan! Everyone said that their food was delicious and we came technically when they were closing for the transition from lunch to dinner, but we never felt neglected or rushed. Highly enjoyable and I will be back if I'm in the Orinda area.
First time here today, had lunch.
The sandwhich was yummy, the service was great.
Nice little lunch spot.
The tables were "sticky"....not dirty, just sticky. Maybe they could try table cloths or the paper covers?
The restrooms are outside around the corner (most are like that in this plaza).
Will try them again for sure.
Food is good, but the service is kind of weird. The servers don't ask how you're doing, instead they stand and stare at you the entire time, it was kind of creepy.
Also, we originally were going to try the newer restaurant across from Shelby's, but I am 6 months pregant, and didn't want to wait 20 minutes to be seated, so we decide to go to Shelby's which was empty. When we walked in, the host had been watching thru the window and said to us, "What's wrong, they wouldn't seat you over there?"...which just sounded kind of rude and obnoxious.
As i stated before, the food is good, but simply not worth the price with the weird service.
I stopped a while back with the parents for a bunch lunch meal. The service was slow, but the atmosphere was nice, and comfortable. I had some sort of breakfast selection. The bread was quite dry, and it was ok portions. This place serves as a drop-by with an out-of-town friend b/c you dont want to go to starbucks.
Review Source:That's 3.51. Â Alan and I had dinner here tonight before seeing "MacHomer" at Cal Shakes. We had the choice of sitting inside or out and chose the latter. Â It was comfortably warm and made for great people watching. Â Several people ran into people they knew and there was much greeting and chatting. Â Theatre Square is like Orinda's piazza. Â It's an appealing place, which makes it all the more puzzling to see so many empty storefronts there. Â Businesses have always struggled. Â Shelby's has probably hung in longer than most. Â
The menu was extensive and interesting.  Two dishes appealed to both of us, the steak frîtes and the lamb kabob salad, so we ordered both and shared them.  I had iced tea and Alan had water.  Normally they have cheese bread twists but they were out and no substitute was offered.  I started w/ the steak frîtes, which came medium rare as ordered.  The presentation was interesting:  fresh seasonal vegetables w/ the frîtes piled atop and around them w/ the steak resting on top.  The steak was generously proportioned and flavorful, but had a bit more fat and gristle than either of us would have liked.  It was topped w/ sautéed mushrooms and onions, which were luscious.  The vegetables were plentiful and al dente and the frîtes were crisp and good, although their proximity to both the vegetables and the steak made them lose some of their crispness.  The lamb kabob salad was terrific, a melange of chopped romaine, feta, pitted kalamata olives, tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion, cucumber and the lamb kabob.  We each ate roughly half of our dish and then switched plates.  I was happy w/ both dishes.  Service was casual and friendly.
Just went in to have latte to go because everything in Orinda was closed and had amazing service and a sample of their cooking. The chef is quite nice and cooks very well, above par for a "bistro". Definitely need to be back to have more of his European fare!
Loved the Salzburger Nockerl!
This was our third time dining here, and unfortunately we have to rate the place as "1 Star" at most; I am feeling generous right now. Â The first time was very good and service equally matched, but by the second time, it faltered and this third time was a big loser. Â
First, the waitress forgot to give us the customary "bread," while others got theirs; there was no excuse for that since the restaurant was NOT busy. Â When we alerted another waiter, after taking care of other customers, he said "the waiter (a young Asian waitress) did not give you any?" Â I think the appropriate response should have been, "I am sorry and I will have it for you immediately." Â Instead, he questioned whether we already had ours!
As for the food quality, both dishes were NOT very good.  The steak that we ordered "medium cooked," arrived FULLY cooked, dry, and chewy.  The egg plant in the Grilled Egg Plant  Salad with cheese and tomato slices did not have any grilled taste.  It seemed raw or cooked in a skillet for two seconds at most.  Of course the waitress would have learned of our disappointment had she come by to ask how our meal was, but she never did!
So coupled with the poor food quality and poor service, I will not patronize this place again. Â It is a shame because the location and proxminity to the neighborhood theatre are excellent, not to mention free indoor parking at nights. Â Oh well, there are other restaurants close by needing our attention and $$ with free parking too.
This is a great find. Â The food is fresh and is consistently good. The portions are just right for lunch - not too much. Â I like the salads that are served with dressings made from high quality ingredients- I especially like the vinaigrette. Â The staff is friendly and you don't have to wait long to be served. Â The atmosphere indoors is pleasant but sitting outside is great - feels like a European Bistro.
Review Source:Gayle and I shared a nice dinner at Shelby's after enjoying the special 4 PM Hanukkah showing of White Christmas at the Orinda Theater. Â It was also a rainy day and with perhaps a little dip in temperature, we could have been singing "Let it Snow".
We were greeted immediately, seated promptly, and quickly served our warm and flaky cheese bread twists. Â And when our table turned out to be just a little too wobbly, we were reseated without any fuss. Â Service was not only very friendly throughout, but also observant without being obsequious. Â We also enjoyed the warm colours, the interesting shape of the dining room space, and the upscale casual feel.
Entree prices were very reasonable, although we would have preferred a few more wine by the glass choices for under $10.  In fact, it would be easy for one person ordering  2 glasses of wine to significantly exceed their entree price.  They also had a very good choice of specials and regular offerings that will definitely merit a return trip.
I ordered a steak quesadilla special, with goat cheese, orange mango salsa, and a leafy salad. Â It was all very tasty and went very well with my pint of New Castle Brown Ale. Gayle is still raving about her lamb kabob, with whole carrots and mashed potatoes (with spinach mixed in). Â The lamb was tender enough to cut with a fork and the marinade gave the outside just the right slightly salty and crunchy taste. We both ate every last morsel on our plates and Gayle was still licking her lips a half an hour later.
What we enjoyed the most was at the end. Â After we had paid and the final receipt (with tip) was returned, our waiter encouraged us to stay as long we wanted. Â It's really great to receive good service for the sake of good service.
A staple of sandwich and salad fare for the Orinda crowd. I truly hope that they don't go the way of the majority of Theater Square business. However, they seem to have been going strong for many years now. Seems to be the best option in downtown (if you can call it that) Orinda for 'lighter' fare.
Review Source:I absolutely LOVE Shelby's. Went here for a work thing with a few coworkers and two supervisors for the first time a couple of years ago. We were taken in awe by their slightly spicy cheesy bread twists. I wasn't sure what to order on the menu so I went with a classic--ceasar salad. But this was no ordinary ceasar salad, this was GRILLED ceasar salad. Two large hunks of romaine lettuce grilled with tomatoes, avocado, garlic, and a scrumptious vinegar/oil dressing drizzled on the top. I went back two more times within the next week just to eat this salad. I still CRAVE this very salad quite frequently. Even thinking about it just now while writing this review I'm starting to salivate like a mad dog.
Highly recommend.
Shelby's has an excellent chef. I've tried many things, go for exotic stuff that you don't have a chance of making at home. He likes making those and does a good job. And for dessert: The bread pudding! Different every time; always good.
Have kids? Get them the steak & fries.
Service good.
Jazz band on Fri & Sat evenings.
Good lunch spot with indoor and outdoor seating. Â I had the falafel and hummus wrap lunch special for $9.95 and it came with a nice little salad with a soy vinegarette dressing that tasted Asian. Â My friend had the Greek Salad...which came very heavy on the feta cheese. Â Most of the salads seemed to be in the $12-15 range. Â It was a beautiful day...so it was nice to eat outside under the umbrellas and the menu offers a wide variety. Â I did notice they have a kids menu too. Â Service was fine...although I was a little weirded out when the waiter started to unwrap my straw from the paper for me, and he didn't exactly make any friends when he made some comment to the effect that he assumed we didn't want dessert. Â
We were coming from BART and it was very easy to park in the underground parking garage and just walk upstairs for lunch. Â Three hours free parking with validation from the restaurant.
A very nice neighborhood salad and sandwich place. Â In the depressed Theater Sq were no business lasts more that a year; Shelby's has managed to not just survive but thrive. Â Very good sandwiches. Â Some years back there were Jazz concerts in front of it once a week and we used to frequent it more in the summer time when the outdoor seating was delightful. Â These days you Can still sit outside, and have great light California Cuisine dishes.
Review Source:This is a nice place for breakfast and lunch (haven't had dinner here.) Â Good omelets, good salads and a hamburger that looks so damn good I almost stole it off porsche's plate when he took a client call (HA! Â That'll teach 'im!)
Good variety on their menu, prices are Orind'oh-ish (and I'm on an MTown budget...)
Nice indoor seating with windows everywhere so you can see all the action going down around town (i.e., rich people milling about). Â Nice outdoor seating in Theatre Square. Â
I've always had good service here - fast, pleasant, courteous.
This restaurant has got a really broad menu. Â The Earth salad is a mixed greens salad with thinly sliced beef. Â Very tasty.
With the option of inside or outdoor seating this is a great spot for a quick lunch. Â However the staff seemed disorganized and couldn't answer my straightforward questions ingredients listed on the menu.
I'd still recommend it - particularly if you are hungry and on route 24, it's less than a minute off the freeway.
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