The Adobe Cafe

We had to wait for EVERYTHING even though the place was practically empty. We waited half an hour for drinks. Booooooooo!

So nice! Everyone participated, whether singing or encouraging, it was sooooo fun!!!’
What better way to break the ice with my first Meetup up, than a night of Drinks, Food, and Karaōke! Come join the fun at this Authentic Southwest Retreats right here in South Philly! They have the freshest & finest Mexican, Southwestern & Vegetarian specialties :-)
We also partake in the Karaōke night. I believe they have Karaōke only on Fridays and Saturday, after 9:00pm!
The staff were soooo very friendly and laid back, but punctual and on point! They were very approachable and enjoyed being a service to their customers.
My group LOVED this venue and we will come back!

Great food! Great delivery! Good drinks. Terrible karaōke dj… very little command over the sound booth. The best singer could make your ears bleed… unless you «tip him.» It’s such a shame that we don’t have a local karaōke joint. As of 5÷528÷16, it’s definitively this one man’s fault that we won’t be here for karaōke ever again. Seems like a small complaint, but when it’s bad, it’s REALLY apparent. And I didn’t know until multiple poor karaōke experiences at Adobe Café. Please save your ear dumbs the horror. 0% to do with the karaōke-​ers. I will NO LONGER come here for «live entertainment.» Who let this guy control a sound mixer?! I’ve hear BAD karaōke before, but never 100% because of the dj, until now, and not this consistently. WHY?! PLEASE STOP.

We stopped in at The Adobe Café mid afternoon last Saturday. We started with some guac, which was okay but in desperate need of a touch of salt, and a pitcher of mango margaritas which was delicious and did not skimp on the tequila — made with mango purée and house made triple sec and sour mix… I advise asking for little to no ice!
Three of the four of us ordered vegan offerings — mushroom and seitan quesadillas and seitan fajitas. The fourth ordered a shrimp quesadilla. They use Gourmet brand vegan cheese which does not melt or stretch and has an odd flavor, so don’t get the vegan quesadillas. The seitan was decent, a bit bready, and worked much better with the fajitas, which I recommend if you’re vegan (or even if you’re not considering our non-​vegan friend wished she had ordered them).
The non-vegan’s shrimp quesadilla was strange… I should have advised her against mixing seafood with cheese.
If we return, I think we’ll stick with fajitas and margaritas with an order of table salt. The 3 star rating holds true… it’s a-​ok but nothing fabulous.

dive bar with gourmet prices. go for the drinks go elsewhere for food unless your totally trashed and then it doesnt matter anyhow. but either way youll be overpaying.
the soup provided didnt at all resemble the description… no sign of potato, corn, or chorizo but visually resembled a curry with no discernable taste… certainly microwaved before serving.
tacos served with beans that resembled a pile of dried bloody diary, you know how they say that black poo means blood instool… well yeah… again soemthingsitting on a burner for hours, throw some water beer or stock in there ffs to keep up with the evaporation. beef was crunchy, again more nuked stuff. rice seemed boxed likenthey shop at the acme up the street, come to think of it the stringinesss of the beef is spot on with acme.
get drunk, leave before other places close, or load up on hot sauce. the place is huge but the booths were empty because the food sucks… just demolish that area and apply for a caberet license to put in a dance floor, will cater to the people who get totally smashed in there. shrink your menu to something you dont have to nuke or fry in 2 week old oil. then i may stay for more than the drinks when everywhere else is packed at the bar.
this is mexican food from the international aisle in the supermarket, they must be the only restaurant (whether be chinese, japanese, italian,…) without mexicans working in the kitchen. much of the pictures are from 2 or more years ago, dont trust anybrepreseanration of the food if more than 6 months old. maybe im biased, coming from san diego where you cant help but to trip over a decent taco but between here and cantina id go for cantina but only then chips or burrito with special requests. asse the ridiculous food prices to cover the unused square foootage in the dining room.
come to think of it the e passyunk area sucks balls when it comes to late night food, ie after 12am. we desperately need a food truck alley to compensate for the dismal brick and mortar options.

The atmosphere is comfortable, clean and tastefully decorated with the setting resembling an old Mexican town from a western flick.
The server was very kind and sweet. Unfortunately, she knew near nothing about the food offerings and could not solidly answer any questions that I had about the vague and typo-​riddled menu.
The food was not good in any way. The chips were very bland because they had no salt on them. The salt on the table was coarse, so it didn’t come out of the shaker.
The beef chili tasted like spicy, canned tomato sauce with dry, overcooked cubes of low quality beef dropped in.
My chicken burrito had very little shredded chicken in it, and barely anything else but a small amount of beans and cheese in a flattened tortilla. It was an unappealing presentation surrounded by half decent rice and a nice mixture of varietal grilled vegetables.
I liked the server’s demeanor, the ambiance and the energy in the bar. The food, managment (or lack there of), the server’s knowledge and the menu were bordering pathetic.
I wouldn’t eat in the dining room again, but may catch a beer in the bar, watch a game or play some quizzo. Not good Mexican food.

I love adobe! My girlfriend showed me this place and we come frequently now. Get a beer and a shot of tequila for 5.50, and follow up with some slammin food in the dining area. And then head to the stage for some karaōke! All around a good time and a thumbs up for my opinion. The bartender Dulce is always a great bartender and such a friendly, welcoming person. She’s always got a smile on her face and is very attentive. Summertime they got the tables outside which is nice to sit at.

Cool place to stop in for a drink or five.
Food: ³⁄₅
Service: ⁵⁄₅ (based on a slow night)
Drink: ²⁄₅ (draft beer was kinda flat)
Overall, it makes a great neighborhood bar. Don’t expect anything fancy.

I love Adobe, service is always great. food is amazing, love their wings! esp the veggie, it’s a quick walk from my house! the margaritas are great and I love the homemade sour mix. def recommend it to anyone, especially for their wings!

I have walked by this place a million times, but had never stepped foot into it. It was cold, the first snow of the year, so I slipped in.
Football was on, so I stayed for a bit. I ordered the recommended steak tips, had my citywide, and enjoyed myself. The menu is southwestern, with many options.
It doesn’t seem like the cleanest or homiest place, but it is alright for a stop in here every now and again.

The all you can drink open bar for the Eagles game is a must. Please make sure you know it is not all you can eat. 30 dollars and you are set to go. Great vibe!

Adobe Café is a bit like the late night text after a long night out. Can I come over? It’s not my intention, but it always happens!
All jokes aside, Adobe Café is seemingly one of the last stops on a series of Passyunk bar crawls I’ve done over the past few years. I definitely don’t give it the credit it deserves, nor do I remember what type of credit it deserves.
It’s a decent spot; the drink prices are pretty reasonable, and you definitely won’t wind up waiting long for an order. The staff is pretty cool too.
Once I overcome the immaturity of my impulses, I will undoubtedly give you the attention you deserve. Those chips in the pictures look pretty good. Maybe tortilla and chill?

I will give this place a star because is karaōke and there are multiple televisions. This means that I would potentially return for a football game (East Passyunk is really hurting for a good place to watch sports) or on an ill-​conceived night full of bad decisions and too much booze, I might stumble into some really off pitched, screaming pop song singing. I will reserve my next visit for when I want to hate myself for a week.
I certainly will not ever eat the food again.
Adobe just makes me so frustrated because they have this huge space that could be amazing in a great neighborhood and they just let it sit there dank and sad. It survives on some perception of dive bar hip and a lucky location but it really just feels like wallowing in depression. It is obvious that no one cares that much and it is not in a punk rock apathy kind of way. It is in a your aunt and uncle that live in that horrible part of the state, eat processed foods and do nothing but watch television kind of way.

This place is in need of a Jon Taffer «Bar Rescue». The bar was empty and two other couples were seated in the dining area. There was a kid playing behind the bar. The bartender and waiter raved about the steak tips and wings. The steak tips were cooked perfectly and the wings were well done.
Our waiter was trying to be funny and wasn’t; it was like attending a bad comedy club. We asked his name and he replied, «what’s your name?». Then, he shares how slow his night has been and he was restless. Dude wtf! I will say he was very attentive, just keep the sarcasm to yourself.
The décor is horrible, if the foh (front of house) looks like crap I can only imagine how the kitchen is set up. After eating three wings and a few of the steak tips; I pictured a salmonella filled cutting board. A refrigerator that barely works with expired food shoved in it. In order for me to come back, I’d need to see a recent health inspection. My second star is because Adobe offers the citywide special.

I so want to give this place a good review but based on service I just can not do it. My boyfriend and I frequent this establishment solely for the wings the tequila special and that’s about it. Me and my girlfriend went last night we sat at a side table for about 20 minutes and never got waited on or even greeted for that matter. We decided to move to the bar figuring maybe they would acknowledge us. Luckily the woman bartender was nice once we made eye contact she took our orders right away and was very nice. The guy bartender on the other hand is rude. He basically ignores you. So if you go just sit at the bar or in the dining area because time is money and I don’t like wasting mine.

It may be pointless to write a review about this place. Based on the other reviews it’s obvious the owner either does not care or has no idea Unilocal exists. Lets start with the good… The bartenders were really friendly and we never had to wait very long for a drink. Okay, end of good.
The bad…
I was sitting with my friends at the front bar around 11pm when I hear the faint sounds off-​key singing. Could it be… Was there karaōke in this establishment that I was not privy to?! There was! Hurrah! Lets grab these drinks and head to the back room. We quickly found a table and decided to put in our names immediately since there were a lot of people in the room. I walk up to the front with a smile and say «Hello» to the Karaōke DJ. He gives me a blank stare. I say, «Can I please put in a song?» He ROLLS HIS EYES and says, «Name?» I tell him my name and he just looks back at me blankly. I said, «Do you need to know what I am singing?» and he said, «You’re on the list.» But he didn’t type anything and he didn’t write anything. He just points to his clip board of scribbles. My friends put in their songs and are told it will be about an hour. No problem! We get some beers.
We sit giggling and drinking watching all the drunk people sing. Then I see the same people go up to sing 2 and 3 times. I am no KJ professional but any newbie KJ keeps a rotation going and puts in new singers before the same people sing multiple times. (They do this so people don’t get on Unilocal and write reviews about how they are awful KJs.)
After waiting almost 2 hours my friend goes up to find out how much longer it will be. The KJ (who said he calls himself Ryan) said I am up in 2 more singers. We wait another half hour and it becomes obvious we are never coming up. The next thing we know it’s 1:45am and he puts on ‘Bye, Bye, Bye’ by NSYNC and his ‘show’ is officially over. We just laugh because after multiple beers, tequila shots, and waiting 2.5 hours to sing it’s really just funny at this point.
The bartender/​busser comes up and my friend asks if the guy is always so bad at his job. He said, «Well, he does accept bribes.» I am not going to bribe some dude to play my karaōke song. I will tip you when you’re good at your job.
Tips for the guy who ‘calls himself Ryan’:
1. Go in a rotation. Use the typing device that comes on your computer to make a list of names. When the list of names is over… start again.
2.Stop being a dick or just be the guy who ‘calls himself Asshole’ so we know what to expect.
3. Ask people what song they would like to sing when you take their name. Then you wont have all the dead space between songs.
I am sure no one at Adobe Café will read this because it’s obvious they haven’t read the other reviews. If anything, I am posting this to show respect to all the awesome Karaōke DJs in the Quad Cities, Illinois/​Iowa! Hi, Jeff Pieler, Robert Wyers, and Jaimie Jorgensen! You should come to Philly and show this fool how it’s done!

Enjoyed a delicious dinner using our Groupon! I had the Stuffed Chicken Breast with grilled veggies. It was stuffed with goat cheese, spinach and roasted peppers. It was excellent! My husband had the blackened tilapia and it was very good. Cooked perfectly but you’ll need to ask for double blacken if you want it some what spicy. Our waitress, Dolche, was adorable and friendly, made great suggestions for dinner and dessert which were excellent. They are so good with telling you about the Groupon – it’s a great deal! App, 2 dinners and a dessert!
This our fourth time here and we keep coming back because the food is amazing, outstanding service and friendly atmosphere! We will be back again:)

I’ve been coming to this place on and off (I’m from out of town, currently) for a few years. I frequent it because it’s close to many of my friends and they have seitan wings.
Seitan wings deserve 5 stars. They are awesome. Spicy and addicting — why can’t they be a wing special? Why do vegetarians miss out on everything?
I really appreciate the vegetarian/​vegan slant to things. I only really order seitan products here because I know they can do that. Veggies often get meh in mexican food and I just avoid it.
Over the years, it seems to be getting pricey. As in, I don’t drink nearly as much here now because I want to eat the wings. Prices might reflect the growing hipness of Passyunk, but mostly it just seems greedy.
Some big negatives — they tend to be really show in service. Quite nice, but slow. This past time, we were a table in the back with maybe 2 people at the bar, and it took 15 minutes to get our food order in. I had to go to the bar and ‘remind’ them of us, I think. Once they get a rhythm, however, they are pretty good.
My preference, and yours should be too, is to go for happy hour. Their specials are pretty great. But, otherwise, I think their meals can be hit or miss and for the price, it’s a risk. Unless all you want is seitan wings. Then go there all the time.

Has Adobe jumped the shark?
Adobe became one of my regular haunts in South Philly over the past 7 years. Mostly because I love that they have karaōke on both Friday and Saturday. It’s entertaining and good, social fun. However this past Saturday the experience was a complete bust.
We came around 10ish and immediately put in some songs to sing. We waited hours and in the meantime some people sang two or three times, and some that had put in songs after us were going first. We were informed by a nearby patron, «You have to go complain to the guy, then he’ll play your song.» I glance up to see a line 7 or 8 people deep at the DJ area. People had actually queued up to complain so that they could go up and sing. The DJ had a mess of papers everywhere, and others were also complaining because there is no more paper to write songs on. I simply have never seen this level of disorganization for a karaōke DJ. It’s a shame that the previous DJ Amanda left. She was amazing at organizing the song flow, being fair and pleasing everyone, letting people know when there were too many songs in and what the wait would be.
Since I’m not getting my karaōke on, I decide to do some more drinking and go to the bar. But each time we try to get drinks we are usually vaguely ignored for about 20 minutes. There are piles of credit card receipts and dirty glasses everywhere on the bar. The bartenders were working, and friendly, but were totally in the weeds and unable to keep up.
So, I decide to play some foosball. The other main reason I love Adobe is their free foosball table in the back dining room. I’m watching four people play, considering asking to jump in on the next game. Then I realize they have yet to replace the two missing men from the table. Not only that, now one of the rods is missing a screw and completely pulling out of the table. These issues would only take a few little screws or replacements parts.
I return to my group of friends in the karaōke room where it’s about 90 uncomfortable degrees. No songs to be sung. No drinks to be had. No foosball to be played. And I realize the horrifying truth that, although Adobe was always a dive where the food was horribly overpriced, it was usually a dive where I could get at least get karaōke, beer, and foosball. Adobe had moved beyond a fun dive to a dump, where they don’t care to hire a competent karaōke DJ (their bread and butter), they don’t care to hire another bartender for extremely busy Fridays and Saturdays, and they don’t care to buy a few screws to fix the foosball table. I hope the managers read this, because without a bit of extra effort you will start to loose the patrons that supported your business for so long.

Icky, icky poo.
This was allegedly a cheap spot to fuel up on booze and people watch. It wound up being an epic failure on all accounts.
The fountain for the mixer is dirty. The rum and coke my friend ordered was not drinkable. She returned it and asked for a new one and was met with attitude.
My Sams summer was from a dirty tap. I didn’t drink it.
Avoid until they clean their lines.