Alley Cafe

Well glad to see im not the only one who was completely disappointed! I use to tell everyone about this place. the portion size is no comparison but the quality is what was sooo disappointing no more fluffy pancake that could fill up two people, omelet had a piece of sliced cheese i have no idea what kind of sausage they used hashbrowns were frozen quality. Why would you change such a good thing? i dont care if they raised the prices & kept the quality the same. idk how any regulars or repeat customers will go back. Very disappointing!

As everyone has mentioned, there are new owners. Prices went up, portions got smaller. And it still takes extremely long to get your food. So sad! This was my go to spot for breakfast.

Wife and I were completely happy with breakfast, this is an old nostalgic place under new ownership in. Large portions, fresh food, decent pricing. Great staff, great service, first time in, we’re new to Pinole. not greasy like you would expect. We will come here again. I suggest on Saturdays because the farmers market is across the street. See you for breakfast!!!

I came here shortly after they changed owners. I wanted to give it a try. The staff was okay, they aren’t horrible. Food however, is comparable to Denny’s. Nothing at all like the original Alley’s.
I’m sad to know I will never have my original Alley’s again. :(

This place used to be great. Do not go here. They could not get my order right at all. My friend ordered an omelet. It was suppose to come with home fries and he got hash browns with cheese on them and then they asked if he wanted eggs on the side. They were runny and not mixed at all. I ordered biscuit and gravy it was disgusting. It tasted like it was made with vinegar or something. It was supposed to come with home fries they never came and I asked and then they brought me hash browns. This place is not the same. Be warned do not eat here.

Came here last Sunday for brunch and the second time around it was just blah. We walked in and waited to be seated and the waitress said she was going to clean the booth so that we can sit down. We sat at the booth and one lady took the dirty dishes off the table but didn’t wipe it. After 10 minutes of waiting to get our table wiped or even get menus to look at we were about to walk out and just go somewhere else. The waitress who said that was going to clean our table finally came around and looked confused and asked, «were you here all along?» Well yah you saw us walk in! After that she finally cleaned our table and gave us menus. We ordered 2 omelets and when our waitress came to put our food down it turned out to be a completely wrong order. She took the order back and I guess the cook made an order for a table that was already gone. Not sure if it was the waitress’s fault or the cooks fault but I can hear her yelling at the cook which made it uncomfortable especially since the restaurant is small so all the customers can hear anything.

I’ve lived in Pinole all my life and have only been here a few times. I went today for breakfast around 10:30 and there was no wait. Originally my family and I wanted to go to Tina’s but you already know it takes five hours to be seated.
As others have mentioned, this place is under new management. I don’t remember what this place was like before because I went when I was so young but I had a decent experience today. I guess we came in at the right time before the rush because we didn’t have to wait. The service and food were alright. I can’t compare to what it was like before but from what I had today, it wasn’t nearly as bad as other Unilocalers are describing.
The place is hella small so I wouldn’t recommend for big groups. 4 or 5 is pushing it. The booths are so small too. My cousin and I felt so squished in them. There was only one waitress and she was attending to everybody. She did an okay job but I think one more waitress could be beneficial. But service was okay. Had to call her multiple times because she wouldn’t just check up on us, again because she has so many people to service.
Food was alright nothing special. I was pretty disappointed they ran out of their corn beef hash. She said it was their most popular item. If it’s your most popular, maybe you should make note of that and have more? I opted for the chicken Apple sausage. It was good but I’ve had better. Their bacon was a nice thick cut which was good. Portions were big so you’ll have leftovers which is always a plus. My plate was about $ 9 which is not bad at all.
All in all a decent place for breakfast and an alternative when Tina’s is packed. I don’t think I’ll find myself coming back here because I didn’t really like the vibe and the food was just okay. Café Soleil in El Sobrante is still my go to for breakfast.

Nice friendly servers, wonderful fresh orange juice, nice quiet setting, only the regulars come here. Nicely maintained.

When Codie and her family own the place it was great. It had a warm feeling to it and it was very personable. The wait was long but it was due to only Codie cooking and the food was worth the wait. Now they have new owners and two cooks in the kitchen. The place is not personable anymore and the wait is extra long and not as good.
This was our go to place on Saturday or Sundays every weekend or every other weekend. We came to know the Codie’s family and enjoyed talking with them. We even spent a few times after closing sitting talking with them. Now the thrill is gone with the new owners. The warm feeling is gone from the place. Really sad!

We went there for breakfast and I am happy to report we had a great meal and experience. The last time I was there (5years) ago I had a bad experience waiting forever to get my food. I swore I would never returned. Once I heard it had new management I decided to give it a try.
The service was great the food came out promptly and the coffee was fresh! This place needed a change… and change is good! Also the portions are fair no more super size loose my appetite portions.

Disappointed!!!
The Alley was me and my sons favorite local spot for a delicious, hearty breakfast and the family that owned and operated were really nice and attentive. Apparently ownership has changed and with that came higher prices and way SMALLER portions and just ok in the taste department.
The servers and cooks are unorganized…
I guess we’re on the lookout for another spot

Used to be one of my favorite breakfast places. RECENTLY SOLD
New owners are possibly the same owners from Embers because I noticed some of the same waitresses. Quality and service have gone way done. Dirty tables the whole time I was there, while people were waiting to be seated. Unfortunately, my last time!

First I like to say; I’ve been coming here since I was a youth. The food was great and Yes it took awhile to get in and wait for your food.
I order the Mexican Omelet, it was not the same at all, the description was similar but they added avocados, not. It stated with chili, got black beans, WTF.
If you like your taste buds, go somewhere else folks. I was also the person that use to recommend this place, but no more!!!
I will not be coming here anymore!! How sad!!!

I really hate giving a bad review to small local places but when it takes well over an hour to have my food served to me after being sat down I get a little annoyed. Not to mention having to entertain myself by killing the ants crawling around our table to pass the time.
I’m not sure but it looked like new ownership, they had two cooks and three waitresses and they were still just as slow as when it was one person doing everything.
The food for the price is still a great value and delicious.

Time in: 11:00am
Wait time: 1 hr
Total time done eating: 5 mins
Total time to pay bill: 5 mins
Time leaving: 12:15pm
How the F do a couple that sat down 10 mins after us get their food at the same time as us?
Alley — Your two cooks need to really learn to prioritize what you guys are cooking first and what takes the longest to cook and not have 10 tickets untouched. Your place is not that large and I’ve seen one cook knock out more food than your two cooks. Damn shame because the food is not bad for the price.
Waitress — Didn’t even apologize that our food took so long. Didn’t even attempt to let us know «the kitchen is backed up». After food came out, didn’t even check on us to see how we are doing. Matter of fact, she avoided us the whole time (place isn’t that big lady, I can still see you) lol wtf?!
SMH.

Fist time here since the new management. My girls and I have been coming here since pvhs 97 cutting morning class days. The service was good and fast. The food prices have definitely escalated. My friend order the French toast with over hard egg… her
Egg still had runny yoke but my hash browns were black but overall they might be worth coming back.

With a recent change of ownership, the prices have gone slightly up, and portion sizes are now ‘normal’, and no longer crazy huge like they used to be. Despite all this, they are still cheaper than many worthy alternatives.
I’ll still come here from time to time, but probably not as often as I used to.

I’ve been coming here for almost 30 years and the food has always been pretty much the same. The hour-​long wait time was always worth it for the quality and portions of food.
This morning, we were pleasantly surprised to get a table without having to wait behind 5 or 6 other parties, then really surprised how quickly we got our meal, then shocked when I got a look at it. Even more shocked when I tried to eat it.
It looked like it was made in a prison kitchen, or maybe a homeless shelter. The biscuits and gravy were virtually inedible. The biscuits themselves so hard that I literally had to break it apart in bite-​sized chunks with my knife, with some difficulty, at one point pelting my girlfriend with a half biscuit that flew from between my knife and plate. A chisel honestly would have been more useful. The gravy was principally grease, to the point that it was semi-​translucent.
The hashbrowns were undercooked and bland. Bland! Potatoes are bland by nature and yet somehow these were especially flavorless.
The «Irish Benedict» looked good on paper, but the eggs were overcooked and the hollandaise was extremely lemony, which may have been a legitimate culinary choice, but also waaaay spicy.
It was just overall, just incompetently prepared. Probably the worst $ 30 I’ve ever spent.
The staff seemed really nice and I hope they keep an eye out for a different gig, because this ship is definitely sinking. I’m really going to be sad when this place goes under. I will miss it.

Under new management? There was hardly anyone there on a Sunday at 11 am, which should have been our first warning. We sat at the counter so I had a good view of the cooks. TMI.
1) Waiter touched coffee mugs on the rim, not handle, and who knows where his hands have been? Wait staff: never touch the «business end» of anything being used by customers! 2) We didn’t get menus for a good 10 mins 3) French toast was cut with the same utensils used to chop and flip meat on he griddle; there was meat on my French toast… 4) The main cook touched raw meat with his hands and proceeded to touch clean dishes for customers, including my fruit bowl; no washing of hands 5) the fruit ($ 6!!?) tasted of onions; perhaps they cross-​contaminated with an onion knife? Wouldn’t be surprised.
WON’T BE GOING BACK. I can’t believe we stayed past complaint #1, what a waste of time & money… :shudder:

I was given several recommendation of this place. The food is good and I love all the Giants décor
The only downfall is we had to wait at least 20min for our waiter to come and another 45 for our food. It seemed they were really short on staff.
Aside from that the food is great! It’s a cute tiny place and the French toast was delicious!