Cafe Mattina (Reported Closed)

Recommends

The Good Grub

Joined 4 years ago

Cafe Intermezzo = Good Grub!. Okay, so the title maybe should read "The deliciousness formerly known as Café Intermezzo." Now called Café Mattina, one naturally must ask why a place worthy of the Good Grub change it's name anyways? Isn't it obvious? To try to keep the line down to 20 people at a time. And who could blame them? This place is somewhat of a hallmark of the great food that UC Berkeley has to offer. Join the massive line, and start to plan out your attack on the plethora (thank you El Guapo) of deliciousness this place has to offer. For me, there are only two things you need to know ... honey wheat bread and poppy seed dressing. Add those to anything and you can't go wrong. Let it be known, the salads will be larger than you'll know what to do with, so remember the buddy system. Better yet, go with the combo and let your taste buds rejoice. To add to the great food, this place is just damn cool. It has a cassette-growing tree right in the middle of it (if you tell me it's fake, I don't like you) and a painting with a sweet old lady making bread in a window (if you don't like sweet old ladies making bread, I really don't like you). Just remember that while you're doing a little dance in line, staring up at the giant menu of greatness, trying to crunch the numbers on how this place can serve up so much delicious food for like 7 bucks, that life is good and the grub is even better. See more at www.thegoodgrub.weebly. com

Recommends

sahummell06

Joined 7 years ago

Crave-Worthy Salads!! An oxymoron??? Not at Cafe Intermezzo!!. I have been to Cafe Intermezzo every time I have visited Berkeley for years. Now that I live in Los Angeles, I am asking them to ship me their herbal vinigarette so I can close my eyes and pretend I am in the bustle of the cafe itself. The fresh baked bread is worth every carb, and if you ask nice, and you come at the right time, they very well may let you buy a loaf for home! If you are within 50 miles of this place, drive there now and eat a salad, sandwich or soup. If you don't want to do it for yourself, do it for me!!

Doesn't Recommend

maudi

Joined 7 years ago

Good for students on a budget. This place is only good for students on a budget. Other than that, the quality is not that great. The place is kinda dirty and the salads are always too much food and soggy. The sanitation of the place needs to change. Especially since its on telegraph, which is so old and dingy.

Doesn't Recommend

gimmeyum

Joined 6 years ago

what's the hype?. Yes, the portions are huge. But so what? When I ordered onion soup, it came cold and tasted bland. The sandwhiches are nothing special. The salads are gigantic but uncreative. The food isn't bad, it's just very basic. Given a couple minutes at home, I could definitely make a better soup, salad, or sandwhich myself. If you are in a rush and havea big appetite, Cafe Intermezzo could provide an adequate meal that won't break the bank. But then again, there's always that long line! Not worth the wait. There are plenty of other (and better) cheap eats in the neighborhood that you won't have to stand in line for.

Recommends

tballw32

Joined 6 years ago

Great food and proportions if you can brave the line. There's plenty of selections for sandwiches, salads, and soups that come in hearty proportions. Everything I have had there is tasty and filling. The line's are always long, and for a reason, so if you have the time, it's a healthy meal to have on telegraph. The service isn't the best, they'll sometimes mess up your order and they were out of some items a couple of times.

Doesn't Recommend

navc25

Joined 8 years ago

Too bad they always mess up the order!. The food is usually good and a fair value but the people they hire are consistently inaccurate! It never fails that we leave there only to discover that an item in our order has been screwed up again!! We won't be returning, especially since the staff is always lackadaisical about the problem.

Contributor

Joined 10 years ago

Editorial Review by Christy Buena. Large portions of Italian food at reasonable prices draw locals in for hearty sandwiches, salads and vegetarian options.

Recommends

nightlite4life

Joined 7 years ago

Eat lots and without guilt!. Went here for the first time after walking by about a thousand times and drooling over the huge salads and sandwiches people were eating. I had the Chef Salad with Turkey and the Poppyseed dressing. It was sooo much food! The veggies were all crisp and had lots of flavor so I didn't have to use hardly any dressing. The bread is awesome and you get a huge piece. This is definitely a great place to go if you are on a tight budget...two people could easily share a salad for about $5. The downside is the place is busy and the staff isn't the nicest. But hey it is Berkeley and everyone knows that Cal kids are always cooler than you are!

Recommends

lovebeingme

Joined 7 years ago

Get there early!. All the campus kiddies come out at the stroke of noon, resulting in a line out the door. If you get there just a few minutes early, you can beat the rush. For $6-7 this place rocks! I had been there a couple times before I started to really like it and I think it was the discovery of the poppy seed dressing. Which, for the record, is much more of a creamy vinaigrette with poppy seeds present. The sandwiches and salads are huge, I've never had a conflict with the staff. (Perhaps due to my pre-rush arrival before they've doubled the number of gray hairs atop their heads!) If you're expecting fancy-schmancy gourmet food at this portion size for the price they charge, you'll be sorely disappointed. Otherwise-- Enjoy! I recommend the 1/2 salad (poppyseed dressing) + 1/2 turkey sandwich.

Recommends

jsmith12686

Joined 7 years ago

Amazing!. This place has fantastic sandwiches and salads and the value is great. The portions are huge so you always end up with leftovers for later! The long lines only attest to the great food there. The freshly-baked honey wheat bread is delicious and the vegetables are always fresh. I would highly recommend this place, it is delicious!