Allston Cafe

Thank God this place was shut down. Violation after violation after violation. This place was a disgrace for Boston.
BUT.not always. it used to be cool and trendy. but then there was the change. New owners. The owners in 2009/2010.and I think anyone and everyone in Boston knows who I am talking about. couldn’t even get out of bed in time to open the store on time. It was no secret they liked to party… AND HARD.(disgruntled employees like to vent).
You would have to be ignorant not to notice. It greatly reflected on the store.employees.and customers. The owners were dirty. I mean FILTHY.(can we say TAKE A BATH… at least ONCE a month!!). The owners were rude.unprofessional.and were OFTEN known to «screw over» not only their employees. but their customers. They had absolutely NO BUSINESS. running a business. No one wants to hear about YOUR marital problems. should’ve kept it at home… or at least called Maury.
Broken raw eggs stayed at room temperature ALL DAY LONG! ECHH! (This was told to me many times by many employees. and apparently their freezer was always breaking down. spoiling food that they continued to sell).
They would sell product way past its shelf life.(this was proven by the Board of Health in Boston).
It was over priced. food was awful. coffee was constantly stale. bagels and muffins too… and the owners fought almost everyday with one another in front of their customers.(like I said. Maury).
This was a historical landmark for Boston. until this shady. uncompassionate couple took over.
They never. NEVER changed out their milk.cream.or half and half. It was NEVER on ice. and through the hot. steamy summer days. it would quickly become a poisonous «cottage cheese» substance.(I personally knew 3 people who went to the ER because of their poor restaurant habits. and this was probably a big reason that helped this place get shut down). Bet!
The Board of Health was AAALLLLLL over them. This place was dirty itself in its interior. It ALWAYS smelled like B.O.!! And I mean THICK!
This place single-handedly.(dare I say it. even over the Applebees in Shelbyville Indiana).is BY FAR the nastiest place I have EVER. EEEEVVVEEERR stepped in. I felt like I needed a month long bath and a few doctor check-ups.just for walking by this place. I hope by now someone with heart and soul grabbed this place by the antlers and shaped it up. it deserved it. It was a shame what they did to this place. I enjoyed my stay in Boston. It is a great city with so much to offer. But. this place.this place alone. is the WORST experience that I have EVER had with a restaurant/café.in my entire life. It was a nightmare with four dirty walls and a stained ceiling. And the art. the art that one of the owners put up was not only tacky. but not customer friendly at all. It is a good thing not many children ever stepped foot in this junkyard of a café. AND NO ONE KNEW ABOUT KEEPING A RESTROOM TIDY!
They were ALWAYS out of 80% of their ice cream flavours. and 50% of their coffee flavours. Often this café had a very morbid.spoiled.soured smell and atmosphere about it.
The female owner wore the same outfit for days. and wore freakin’ sandles (dirty.crusty feet).and brought a VERY unappetizing appeal to this dingy place.(by the way. you really needed to wipe the corners of your mouth. what was THAT anyway!?) Take note. she was constantly pouring beads of sweat. not only all over her temple. but more than likely the product you were purchasing.
I hate that this place alone gave me the ONLY bad experience I had when I lived in Boston… otherwise I could give this beautiful city nothing but thumbs up.
Why did I give this place more than one chance… cause we are all stupid and ignorant at some point in our life. This was mine.
For the record. for Unilocal’s sake. cause I respect what Unilocal aIlows us to criticize. I was BEYOND nice with this review. There is NO WAY in Sam Hain that anything will EVER top this nightmare of an experience. This was the most rotten tomato rating/​dining experience/​restaurant visit. I have ever had in my entire life.
There is no way I could EVER give ANY PLACE this poor of a review. Congrats! you have won the nightmare of my dining experience! Shame your head proudly.
I thank you. the city of Boston. for knocking these people out of the game. I feel sorry not only for the customers. but for the poor employees that had to endure such a horrible ordeal in this «no excuse» of a bad joke.
I have to end with one funny. bad note… I literally saw one of the customers threaten the male owner of this store for the «crap» he was served… and the male owner ran faster than the Road Runner out the back.
Just…awful.PERIOD!
Once again. negative stars are needed… and some disinfectant.

Some of my favorite coffee in the city. The Tiny Mighty and the Hostile Hangover Takeover are amazing. Great atmosphere and staff. Was my regular coffee/​breakfast spot when I worked in Allston. A+
Update: are they gone? What happened?

A combination of maliciously neglectful service, filth, and vermin make this place the worst place to go out in all of Boston.
Unless you like flies in your coffee.

Delicious coffee, great sandwiches
Very cool hipster/​artsy motif going on inside.
It’s usually too packed to actually get a table when I go in there but I’m usually in a hurry anyway so it’s not a big deal.
Everything I have ever gotten here was good. Especially the tiny mighty which is my favorite. Cheap and DELICIOUS

I like this place a lot. The hipster-​to-​normal-​person ratio is usually 14 – 1, but what’s better than people-​watching and eavesdropping while waiting for your breakfast? I have heard some amazing conversations in line for my food/​at neighboring tables. And once, I saw a midget with a mohawk in there. Awesome.
I have tried basically every sandwich. Favorites for breakfast: Tiny Mighty and MegMuffin. Both delicious and cost about $ 3. The french toast is also excellent, as is the oatmeal. Breakfast burrito is hit or miss — sometimes, it’s great, sometimes there’s not enough cheese and chili inside.
Lunch: Hot and Sweet turkey is delicious, as is the ham sandwich that comes with mango chutney (or something like that). The BLT is… a BLT. The tomato-​basil-​mozzarella on foccacia is gigantic and satisfying. I could go on and on.
Yes, sometimes there is a line and wait for food, esp. on weekends. But that’s because it’s an understandably popular place and the kitchen is small. The staff is very friendly and chill. I usually can get a table/​seat within 5 min. And the wifi is free and fast. Me likey.
Oh, one more thing: they never give you crap if you need to pay with a credit card, even if you only get coffee and want to charge less than $ 5. No attitude about that, which is nice. Other businesses should take note.

I always get nervous about giving out five star reviews. I mean that is like saying I love you, if you do it too soon you’ve ruined a relationship, or at least it becomes very awkward. Anyways, hey Allston Café, you are as good as it gets babe.
Really though, this place is pretty fantastic. To begin with I think his name is Justin, the white rapper who you see at all those underground shows in Allston knows how to wake you up in the morning. Salty and direct he doesn’t soothe you with the pleasantries of the morning. He can clear a line, and clear you sleepy head with his intensity.
The coffee is great. I’m spoiled, I can’t get my coffee anywhere else and feel as satisfied. The food is cheap, thoughtfully prepared, and healthy with a vegan leaning.
The atmosphere is very independent with an empyhis on showcasing the color of Allston. You can’t be anywhere else. Well maybe Williamsburg or west Chicago would have a similiar/​same vibe. Accordingly the crowd is tatted up with messy hair and funky clothes. Mostly keeping to themselves reading Death in Venice or pretending to do work on their macbooks/​other apple product. If Hopper were around and paiting today, this is what his iconic diner would look like.
The service is pretty slow, but I think it just means they are taking their time to serve you a superior product. Besides, they aren’t in any rush to kick you out. I think they would be just as enthusiased if you were hanging out looking like a hipster/​chicster and not purchasing anything.
Allston Café, it’s like the Seabiscuit of cafes. It has heart. Which should be it’s tagline when adapted into a teledrama on the Lifetime Channel.

Allston Café is a little bite of hipster heaven. Delicious vegan pancakes and muffins, burritos to die for and yummy smoothies make this place taste great, but it’s hard to keep your eyes on the food with all of the bizarre and interesting people who keep walking in an out the door! Combine that with the constantly changing artwork on the walls and you’ll forget about what you were chomping on.
Great place for vegans and omnivores to commune!

I went to Allston Café tonight because I was craving ice cream.
I was greatly disappointed with the service. The staff member who scooped my ice cream was wiping his nose on his arm while doing it. He was called from the back of the store because the vanilla frozen yogurt was «too hard to scoop».
I wish I’d said to just keep the ice cream and left.
When I got home, I ended up just dumping it down the drain.
To top it off, they didn’t honor the 2 for 1 ice cream coupon I had from the Entertainment book and just threw it away.
I will never be back.

I wholeheartedly love Allston Café. That said, I fully recognize it is not going to be a café that everyone can handle.
First things first, Allston Café is completely endemic to the neighborhood. No need to ask around folks, you are in Allston Village. For some people that conjures words and images like «student ghetto», «hipster hangout», «dirty crust punks», «40 oz.», «artsy and alternative», «un (der)employed youths-​in-​revolt» who are «slummin’ it on Daddy’s dime»… whatever the hell it is you think normally happens in Allston, Allston Café will not necessarily contradict those notions. From the artwork on the walls and tables to the staff with all of their piercings and tattoos to the customers who might’ve read On the Road as a self help manual to the indie kidz bop that plays all day, the nontraditional vibe is everywhere. If those ideas give you pause, not only are you in the wrong café, but you really shouldn’t have taken the B-​line past Kenmore…
Beyond the perceived culture, I’ve found service to be perfectly nice and friendly and I am not even one of the regulars the staff knows by name. From what I’ve seen the folks there have been more than accommodating to all types of legitimately annoying people. (Being civil to someone who thinks they and their espresso are entitled to just park at a four-​person table during peak business hours is certainly beyond my politeness range at any rate.)
People and culture aside, the food is great and cheap! For breakfast, the megmuffin, the tiny mighty, and the egg and cheese are tops. (The first two I no longer eat as a vegetarian). Sandwiches: try the Taj of BLTs or the ultimate tomato and mozzarella. Most things are rather customizable for vegetarians and vegan and accordingly I’ve found Allston Café to be one of the few places that has made my switch from omnivore to vegetarian seamless. In terms of drinks, I don’t drink coffee, so I can’t comment on its quality, but ALL of the smoothies are good.
Initially, I was going to give Allston Café four stars and if I were still eating meat, I absolutely would have, but for inexpensive vegetarian options, friendliness, a debit/​credit card machine, and free wi-​fi I’m adding the final star.

If you are vegan and live in the area, it’s very easy for this place to become a staple of your diet. They offer vegan pancakes, french toast, lots of sandwich options, smoothies, and a vegan breakfast burrito that is worth its weight in gold. The staff are generally very friendly and will make an effort to learn your name if you’re in all the time. It’s a great neighborhood place, if you don’t mind loud-​ish music and college students taking up all of the tables. Don’t bother going for brunch on Sundays – it’s packed. Price-​wise it’s good for vegan food in Boston.
I took off a star because their coffee (hot and iced) is atrocious, which has become kind of a deal breaker for me.

This place gets so busy on the weekends! It’s kind of a neighborhood favorite for the Allston punk kids and what not. You can see a lot of the local artists’ work displayed here and all the tables are painted by an artist too. Very cool and rowdy atmosphere and run by cool cats. Their coffee and lattes are pretty good and cheap. The «breakfast bomber» is a steal and you’ll be stuffed with all the eggs, pancake, and homefries! (It comes with a choice of meat but I don’t eat that so they gave me a side of fruit salad. Sweet!) I like eating inside here as long as I get a table. All the condiments are self serve at the station so you might have to figure it out a little. Lots of vegetarian and vegan friendly options (including pastries) that I have yet to try!
Only complaint is that I wish their egg & cheese breakfast sandwich could be substituted with avocado rather than meat. I tried it with mushrooms and it was just alright.

So for my first review I figured it should be here since I’ve gone on average 3 – 5 times a week for at least 6 years.
The staff is like a sitcom everyone has their own quirky personality and makes for interesting conversations. It can get loud and unruly at times but that’s part of the charm.
The food is quick and always satisfying. My favorite is a classic Breakfast sandwich on wheat toast with eggs, bacon and cheddar cheese thats hands down the bomb. Also if I’m extra hungry a grilled BlueBerry muffin with butter is kinda like a mini stack of pancakes. The Mini (English Muffin, Eggs, Bacon, Cheese) is also tasty and light breakfast. Can’t forget the coffee cause nothing is better then a Large Iced in the morning.
The prices are cheap which is great for the quality of food your getting, I think I spend less than $ 6 everyday.
Overall a good spot and you’ll become a local in no time.

Wish my phone wasn’t a junkface and still took pictures.
Also, I wish more places made me think «I want to come here every day.» I still call it Herrel’s in my head but whatever. I went here for maybe the dozenth (google agrees that’s a word?) time, and had my best experience yet. Bagel ($ 2) and Hostile Hangover Takeover Sandwich ($ 5.14) plus Iced coffee (~$ 2) were on my personal menu this time.
This sandwich pretty much ended my days of going to other breakfast places. It was the Jackie-​Chan-​karate-​chop to the fruits/​buds of breakfast sandwiches. Hot, spiced (I do mean spiced my friend) homefries on cheddar, with catsup, paired with a dynamic duo of spicy breakfast sausage and straight up bacon. I was truly impressed with the flavor of this sandwich, the creative pairing, and the spice. I recommend getting it on their homemade bread instead of bagel.
gwahhhhh!
Balanced, delicious, bursting flavors. I recommend anyone to try this breakfast sandwich that makes you feel like you are getting much, much more than $ 5.14 worth of flavor.
The atmosphere is boisterous and cozy, with really great local art displayed on the walls. The obnoxious and friendly counter-​worker was quick and loud, and I liked it. He even charged my friend for a small iced when she asked for a serious cream-​space in her coffee.
20c discount, score!

I came in here last Saturday with my roommate searching for some iced coffee. Well, it so happened that I was hungry too so I decided to splurge the extra $ 2.50 for a breakfast sandwich. Good call on my part.
I forget what the sandwich I had was called but it was egg and cheese on an English muffin and it was fresh and yummy! The iced coffee was pretty awesome too. The people that work here are super nice and friendly and the whole atmosphere is chillaxed and fun. I spent half my meal coloring in the random coloring books they have in the back! haha! Good times, I’ll be back :)

Not sure about all of this vegan stuff they do — I come here for the ice cream. It’s outstanding.
I drive/​walk by here all the time but didn’t stop until this week. Went twice already this week.
Frappes are good, but just save yourself the effort and get a huge portion of a few different ice creams. Mud Pie is out of this world. «OMFG Chocolate» is just that. OMFG it was good. Cookie dough is one of the best I’ve had.
Sure, it’s not called Herrell’s anymore. And it’s not in the safest area. And it needs some work on the inside. But it’s sort of eclectic with funky employees.
Up next… trying out the sandwiches. But I’ll probably just skip those and eat more ice cream!

A lunch date with my favorite coworker gay brought us to the Allston Café. I’d popped in here once before on a freelance marketing gig, and noticed nothing’s really changed since the name was Herrell’s except the sign.
As I’d been warned, some pseudo-​homeless dudes wandered around and did weird shit like play a portable flat keyboard thing at the register when I went up to ask for syrup– but I think this may have been an employee? Not sure.
Breakfast is served all day, which is always a major win. My heat skipped a beat when I saw my menu options, which included the Breakfast bomber– two eggs, hash browns, a side of meat, and pancakes or french toast. I can list on one finger the number of fine dining establishments I frequent that offer french toast with anything else on the side.
I gleefully ordered my food from one dude and a chocolate milkshake from another girl. Not to be upstaged, my gay also ordered a shake and the bomber, but with his eggs over-​easy.
After some searching, I located ketchup, tabasco, salt, pepper, and syrup and was equipped to commence my eating. We enjoyed a delightfully cozy lunch punctuated by intermittent gushings of «I’m so happy right now.» Maybe we would have gazed into each other’s eyes if we weren’t so transfixed on stuffing more potato cubes into our faces.
Granted, it’s a hipster hangout and I wonder how clean they can really be if the manager drinks ice coffee behind the bar and leaves her purse on their ice bin, but if I ignore these small food violations and suspend my disbelief in the subculture for an afternoon, I found I can enjoy some tasty comfort food and conversation.
burp.

This place is still technically Herrell’s to me. Kind of like how the Banknorth Garden whatever is still the Fleet center. Some things just stick and this is one of those things.
I almost never come here for the ice cream and it’s probably a crime, but it’s kind of cold at this point in the year (November) and I usually take a walk out here for their great breakfast/​lunch options.
The Megmuffin has totally won me over. I love it. It’s sausage, eggs and cheese sandwiched in between english muffins that have been slathered with grape jam. The contrast between the salty sausage and the sweet jam is absolutely fantastic. Another definite has got to be the Motherclucker. Haha. It’s not technically on the menu, but it IS fabulous. A huge wrap filled with eggs, sausage patties, chicken patties, cheese, salsa, hot sauce, tons of veggies, and sour cream, it’s ready to give you a heart attack, but just one of those things where you just can’t stop eating. I can’t ever eat the whole thing in one sitting anyhow.
They also have a variety of pies and cupcakes and brownies daily and have tons of choices for vegans as well. The guy is also often insisting that they have the best coffee anywhere, but I have yet to find out. Since he lives only a couple blocks away from this place, I’ve eaten here a good half a dozen times within the last week, but that’s nothing in comparison to his eating here that many times in a day.
This place has suddenly become my new go-​to place and I don’t feel bad about it for even a second.

Allston Café is a little coffee shop sitting on the corner of Harvard Ave that is welcoming to anyone who walks by. Its a cozy place with about 10 small tables to sit down. This isnt any sort of chain because all the décor in the place looks like it was done by the people who work there, adding to the genuine feel.
The wait staff is friendly and dont seem to be the typical starbucks employee who are just there because they’re at work. These people seem to enjoy being there making the experience much better.
I’ve only been there for breakfast and they have a lot of options. They’re all tasty, but there is one item that is something like I’ve never seen before. Its called the «Hostile Hangover Takeover» and consists of sausage, bacon, egg, cheese, hot sauce, and home fries on a bagel. Its a behemoth of a sandwich and is worth going there merely to try it.

Good location, bad blueberry muffin, good smoothie, good coffee, service with a smile, cute art.
It was a really bad muffin, but the painting on the wall of a monster puking on some heart-​shaped helium balloons made up for a lot.

I love this place. Apparently the name change is due to the previous company wanting to go corporate, and the employees wanting nothing to do with that, which is pretty awesome as far as I’m concerned, even though the name change came as quite a shock.
The vegan options are awesome, they have delicious sandwiches, although they are a bit pricey if you’re a cheap grad student such as myself. However, the cupcakes and other snacks are worth the price. I find that the vegan baked good selection here is probably the best in all of Allston /​Brighton, especially now that TJ’s is closed and took their cupcakes with them and My Thai and their cake moved to Chinatown.
Also, I hear the coffee and smoothies are pretty good too, but I usually just opt for water.