Loring Cafe

I loved the work they did with the interior here, which managed to touch many adjectives that don’t always jive with each other, such as «vintage» or «funky» or «chic,» but Loring Café managed to hit all these points in apparently being inspired by the owners’ past projects in Minneapolis. There also was an elevated stage that featured live music.
Sadly, the food didn’t quite rise up to the occasion. Don’t get me wrong, things weren’t bad here, but the quality or portions didn’t jive with the prices they charged for what was mostly gussied-​up traditional American fare, with entrees going for $ 20 and above. That might not seem like a lot in given the cost of living and dining in the Bay Area overall, but at least in Oakland, you could get better bang for your buck at many places considered upscale. Indeed, the crowd leaned more towards a more genteel stock than the bohemian types Loring may have really been aiming for. Service, however, was indeed friendly and particularly helpful with respect to the menu offerings.
While I’m always sad to see businesses close, I hope that the next tenant at this space will be able to retain some of the nice physical attributes of this venue.

I came here for a business lunch and thus had the liberty to order anything I wanted without worrying about the price tag. But it turns out my tastes are cheap, and I opted for the second cheapest thing on the menu – Israeli Couscous with Butternut Squash. It was good, don’t get me wrong but for 16 dollars? It was a tiny portion, served in something that resembled a cereal bowl (I would have taken a picture, but working so…). But it was definitely flavorful with the large couscous particles popping in my mouth with every bite. The vibe of the place was sweet, homey with an edge of bohemian, it felt just right and the service was professional as well. I see this as a place to take someone from out of town to enjoy a nice fun dinner, but I don’t think I would be frequenting for lunch any time soon.

Average. Don’t let them seat you upstairs, you’ll be forgotten. Iced tea was fresh but still warm, no ice until waiter finally retuned to hear our request and then found ice.
Scallops soaked in heavy cream sauce on still-​raw potatoes: bleh. Not coming back. To be fair my coworkers loved the Cuban sandwich. Overpriced but good.

I really wanted to like this place since I appreciate its funky décor and convenience to my work. However the food was pretty lackluster and the smell of the place was really off putting. I love the vintage vibe, but it was hard for me to commit to an enjoyable dining experience when the whole restaurant smelled like an old closet.
The menu is as eclectic as the décor with a few pastas or sandwiches and a few salads. Unfortunately I didn’t really click with any of the options except for the Unilocal reviewed artichoke ramekin. Our server was overloaded with the lunch rush and I caught him while running food back and forth to take my order. I asked if the ramekin was fit for a lunch option. The server laughed it off that a «small plate is small». Noted. That’s unfortunate since the more appealing lunch options are the small plates.
I got a hamburger and my companion the Cubano. The meat of both entrees was a little old tasting and the fries were burned (and I had asked for a salad not fries). In the space of our lunch the table beside us sent two orders of fish and chips back for tasting old as well. Perhaps we happened to frequent on a delivery day that hadn’t yet arrived. Both were $ 16 for less than passable lunch fare.
All in all I’d give it another try for a drink and small bite but I’d be sure to sit by the door for fresh air!

The place was packed. The waitress apologized for being the only front of the house staff. According to her they don’t have a second waitress on Saturdays because it’s so slow. Call that a huge red flag, which we promptly ignored. My date wanted the steak med rare without the mushroom gravy. I had the seafood stew. Her steak comes covered in mushroom gravy. Our cool waitress apologized and another was ordered. Steak comes, no mushrooms but covered in gravy. Again, so sorry we’ll fix it. This grey piece of meat cooked to death shows up. My date decides not to complain. «I’ll just eat it at this point»
Now on to my stew. After I pushed through the ring of congealed grease coving I notice not much seafood. Lots of muscles and a few chunks of shrimp. Zero scallops and clams. Oh and as our check came our appetizer showed up. The bacon dog I ate on the way home was the bomb.

Artichoke ¹⁰⁄₁₀. Swordfish Paella ¹⁰⁄₁₀. Mussels and garlic fries ¹⁰⁄₁₀. Service ¹⁰⁄₁₀. Water ¹⁰⁄₁₀.
Bathroom setup and faucet combo. Priceless.

I cannot even believe this place gets rated as well as it does. It was BAD. The service was horrible. The food was pricey and not good. The steak’s «sauce» tasted like salisbury steak sauce out of a tv dinner. The potatoes tasted fake. They undercooked our forgotten side of brussels sprouts, they shook my husband’s manhattan drink, charged us full price when it was supposed to be happy hour. The only highlight was the interesting shower sink where you wash your hands. We will not ever be back. So much great food in the area– don’t go here.

We live across the street so this place is very convenient.
The décor is very cool and they have a lot of different types of furniture/​seating. Service is good and friendly.
The food was only ok. We got the pasta and the salmon. Both were not as good as what we could make at home. The pasta was watery and the salmon was bland. For $ 15 – 25 dishes, the expectation is higher.

Right when I stepped in, I left like I was in a scene of Jim Carrey’s «The Mask». The lights and design felt like that Cuban nightclub in the film.
I had no idea this place existed on my block and I’ve been living here for 3 years, how could I have missed it? I was stunned by the architecture, unique atmosphere, and quirky art. The mussels were amazing. The Cubano sandwich was very dry (no sauce and carnitas were hard to chew because it was very dry). Other than that, I’d come back to try the other dishes and overall because it’s a unique fun experience and feel.
I also got a kick out of the bathroom sink designed like a shower head and the powder hand soap.

I met someone here for a meeting. The service was just okay. The food was a bit pricey, but perhaps these prices can be commanded for this area.
The parking at night it atrocious! However, there is a lot across the street wheee you can pay a flat rate of $ 10 and not have to circle around the block repeatedly.
I ordered the fish and chips which was $ 16. The fries were decent as fries are. The fish had a light and flaky batter. The two pieces you get didn’t taste greasy. I felt for $ 16 you should have 3 pieces of fish.
They give you a side of what I think was coleslaw. It didn’t have any sauce on it so it looked like shredded red and green lettuce.
I asked to taste the lemonade. I asked if it was fresh. The waitperson (tall blonde female) said it was made with presevatives. Wow! She came right out with it. Upon tasting the lemonade, I decided to order a Coke instead ($ 2.50).
My friend ordered the Cubano sandwich which was made with pulled pork and pastrami. She said it tasted like shoe leather with a lot of mayo on it. Yikes! I don’t think I’ll try that next time.
This place has a cool vibe with stage lights, exposed brick, an area for a piano player to display their talents. Jazz and hip hop music played through unseen speakers. I heard they have live music on some night during the week.
The bathroom! Omg! A visit to the bathroom was an experience. As soon as I walked in I felt like I was being transported into the ‘Alice in Wonderland’ movie. Look at my photo. It doesn’t really do it justice. The sink looks like a weird piece of outer space apparatus. You can see that photo as well.
I would like to return on a night they have live en t entertainment and try different food.

Wow I walked in and sat down but got no menu after having to wave my hands and waiting for a few minutes finally she came but with out the menu she’s a real airhead so all she keep on doing was apologizing for her incompetent so I got upset and walked out hungry thanks for having such bad help and to bad to I was looking forward to eating there.

Love this place and can’t wait to come back for happy hour! Great ambiance and great food.
We had:
Caprice Pizza App — Yum!
Grilled Salmon — Good
Chicken Vivek — SO GOOD
Veggie Sandwich and kale salad — Good

Man, Oakland restaurant scene is getting competitive and I’m not sure if this place is going to measure up. I want to like this place because the Berkeley girl in me loves that it’s not cookie cutter and is pretty kitschy and fun. Alas, no go.
While I have had 2 good experiences with apps and drinks at the bar, dining here was sadness. NOTE: A lot of of 4 – 5 star reviews are people who did NOT eat dinner here. A lot are for just the bar, small apps, and people come to see performances on the cute little stage. I would have given if 4 stars before I actually had a real meal here too.
I came here on a double date. We all had fun looking at all the artsy and funky décor. We all were amused by the hand washing station at the bathroom where it «rains» water. We were all a bit confused about the powdered hand soap (I think kindergarten was the last time I even saw that kind of thing…)
Service – We sat down at our table, no utensils, one menu. Uh. Ok, then they brought 1 set of utensils and 4 waters. Then they spent a good 10 minutes trying to get more menus (the restaurant was not crowded at all), they gave menus to another newer table which was only missing one menu, then kept looking for menus. Finally they brought enough menus and the rest of the utensils… weird. Next, the waitress couldn’t remember our drink order to save her life (4 drinks, 2 of them signature cocktails, 1 whiskey sour, and a Belvedere martini, up, twist, no vermouth. She came back 2 times to ask again. When the food came, the server (who was the manager) spilled meat juice all over my friend’s fiancé… oy. She apologized, got another napkin then ran away. The waitress came back and said that the server/​manager would like to buy my friend’s fiancé his next drink. I guess that’s better than nothing?
Food– Artichoke Dip! This starter gave us super high hopes for the up-​comming meal. It was crisp fluffy and buttery toast with rich cheesy artichoke heart dip. Yummers.
Grilled Salmon: I asked to replace potatoes with Brussels sprouts. The waitress said yes, this is fine. Instead I got potatoes and got a side of brussels sprouts. The waitress said upon arrival that they put the potatoes on anyway but I got sprouts too. Then it turns out I actually had to pay for the side of sprouts… not the same thing at all. Ugh. Overall the salmon was cooked ok, but smothering it in a strong unremarkable tomato sauce over powered the fish completely. The curried cauliflower was ok, but slightly under cooked and lacked seasoning. The sprouts were quite amazing, but roasted sprouts with bacon? Hard (but not impossible) to screw up.
Spaghettii Bolognese: Probably the low point of the meal. This was way way way over cooked pasta with elementary school cafeteria level sauce with chunks of carrot. Ew. The sauce was watery and it water pooled at the bottom (probably from improperly drained pasta). There was no rich meat or rich tomato flavor. Basically bland school lunch food. Not good, also not like the other picture on Unilocal. (I didn’t feel right bothering my dining partners by making them wait to eat their food to snap a picture of their entrees).
Pork Tenderloin: Probably the high point of the dishes we tried. The kale had great contrast with the perfectly done pork.
Bangers and Mash: Other than lots of meat juice spilled on the diner, this got a meh reaction. Nothing to make anyone want to come back.
Overall, I’m wavering whether to take away a star. However, I left still in a pretty good mood, where as all of my 1 star reviews I left livid, food poisoned, or really really upset. I hope that things just get better at Loring. I’ll probably just come back for drinks and maybe an appetizer.

We were walking around killing time, waiting for a table at a place nearby, and we stumbled upon The Loring Café. It looked really intriguing so we popped in for a drink while we waited. The décor is so eclectic and unique that it’s just fun to look at everything. Almost like being in an antique shop!
The bartender was friendly. They use only their fresh-​squeezed juices to mix. The drinks were very reasonably priced, but then we also felt that they were a little light on the alcohol.
They had a piano player and a singer; both a nice touch.
We looked at the menu for dinner. It’s not a big menu, but it had some really appealing looking items. We’re planning to come back and enjoy dinner soon!

Where to start?.. The ambiance of this restaurant is off the hinges! Tables and décor are eclectic yet do not give off a junky hodgepodge feel, but more of a polished, modern Victorian vibe. The staff was super attentive and friendly. More importantly the food was superb. If you are a grilled cheese fiend like myself, then this is a must order. I swear they used an entire block of cheese. For dessert, I strongly suggest their ‘apple pie’, which is more of an apple tart. It came out hot with caramel drizzled all over. I would gladly walk through hot coals to eat that yumminess again.
Over all, a must dine. If you aren’t in to large crowds, I suggest afternoon dining. There are lunches, but most likely no wait :-)

This lovely little café is a welcome addition to the Uptown lunch line-​up (though on the high end — I’ve only gone when my boss was buying).
Their French-​inspired cookery is lovely — it would taste even better eaten in their outdoor seating area. Alas, they are unable to do away with the smokers who linger there, despite decency and Alameda County law stating they have to stay 25 feet away from any establishment that serves food and beverages.
If you don’t start with the artichoke ramekin, you’re missing out. Just stay inside unless you want your food to taste like secondhand smoke.

My friends wanted to try a restaurant they haven’t tried before but it was my turn and I knew that the food and ambience here is good so we ordered the fish and chips, swordfish paella, spaghetti carbonara, steamed mussels and side of kale salad. All were very good and the service was courteous and friendly! I love the mussels with the yummy sauce with bacon bits but the green chili peppers are a bit overwhelming so tell them to go easy on that if you don’t want it so spicy! My friend was impressed that they had an upstairs that could be used for a meeting or party. They were all impressed by the food.

I was at the New Parkway yesterday and after the film, I was HUNGRY! I’ve been making it a point to come here because I always see it on my way to work. So I decided to have dinner here. I sat at the bar and I was taken care of quickly by Melody.
I ordered myself a glass of wine and was having a hard time deciding on what to get. I ended up going for the Mushroom Duxelles Ravioli. Though the place wasn’t that busy, I had to wait awhile for my food. I’m assuming they made the ravioli fresh, but I was hungry!
Finally, the wait was over and it was worth it. Before the plate touched the counter, I could smell how fragrant this dish was. It was one large ravioli covered in various mushrooms and in a light sauce. It tasted as good as it smelt and looked. Now while I had been waiting for my food to arrive, I kept eyeing a huge loaf of bread on a cutting board not far from where I was sitting. I noticed that no one had any of this bread on their table. While eating this fine dish, the sauce needed to be soaked by some of this bread. I asked the waitress for some. And that was damn good bread! It almost seemed like a foccacia, but the crust was crisp and topped with black sesame seeds. Melody told me that the chef had baked it about an hour ago.
I cleaned my plate and emptied the bread basket. One of the waitress asked me if I wanted more bread after finishing it. It was very tempting.
Check out Café Loring. The food is great and the interior has a lot of great character. Ask for bread.

This was a great surprise! Had this on bookmark for a whole and it did not disappoint.
Walking in the ambiance felt like what my date called a TRUST SALE. Everything in there in terms of furniture looked like they bought it at an estate down to their table cloths.
The brick walls and the color with the plants added a nice touch to the intimate weirdness they had going on.
I tried the lamb skewers and Caesar Salad that was so delish! It was only appetizers but sure filled me up. My date had veal which I had 2 bites of and it tasted AMAZING.
The bathroom gave me mixed feelings. I didn’t like the fact that it was a unisex and no mirror inside and also you had to wash your hands outside of the bathroom onto a huge shower like sink.
The service was great and our waters were filled up every time she noticed it half gone.
Downside:
It was really hot in there. Probably because it was a hot day but their insulation could be a little better
they have great wine and beer selection but nothing on tap.
They close at 9.

I remember when this place was being put together. I was finally able to get a chance to go have some lunch with coworkers this last time I was in Oakland. It’s definitely a quirky place.
I ordered the chicken salad popover with garlic fries. It was chicken salad sandwich on a popover instead of sandwich bread. The chicken salad was a whole lot of chicken, not a ton of mayo and the garlic fries were garlicy but not too garlicy which was good since we are going back to work. This was quite good, definitely will have to order it again. My coworkers ordered salmon and steak sandwich to round out our table. Everyone enjoyed their lunches from what I can tell.
For a hot day, as hot as we were having that particular day in Oakland, we weren’t given any ice with our water, so it did get kind of lukewarm before long, especially since they gave us a bottle for the table.
We did have some issues getting our server to get us the check and then run the card. Considering this is downtown Oakland during lunch, where most people are running to and from work, this was very surprising.
Also — the bathrooms are strange. Word to the wise — the «room» only have the toilet, even though it’s a HUGE room. You have to come back outside of the door to find the communal sink. For a restaurant I did find this a bit odd. I guess this saves you from having to touch the door knob? Since you just wash your hands outside the toilet area. But you have to turn on and off the big showerhead sink contraption so I don’t know how that’s helpful.