Specialty’s Cafe & Bakery

Terrible! Don’t go there if you are not in a hurry. Forget the quality of food or service, the place is plainly unorganized.
The only reason I went there is because it is the only place in the same building I work and I was in a hurry. By the way, it still cost me more half an hour for a freaking Cobb salad! 15 mins after I placed my order, the pager still did not buzz. I went to the desk to check and the front desk guy said someone took my Cobb salad by mistake and he alerted the guy before the elevator door closed or something. The front desk guy said he will give me the RETURNED Cobb salad from the guy who took it once the guy came back to switch. Only after I expressed not being comfortable to take the returned salad, the front desk guy agreed to make a new one. But I still waited for another 15 – 20 minutes before I got the freaking Cobb salad. Oh the guy who took my order never came back to return before I left the place. No apology/​sorry or any nice gesture offered by the front desk guy at all (not that I really care).
So here is my suggestion. Don’t go there if you have time. Take a nice walk to the spectrum with a lot of choices and much better food.

Went here on a suggestion from a coworker & I am so glad i did! Its like a Panera or Corner Bakery but 100 times better! I got the chairman on thyme foccacia bread with cheddar cheese. Fresh bread, packed full of veggies & so delicious. I also got the spinach, berry & goat cheese salad with a scoop of chicken salad. Delicious! Also super convenient online ordering.

I should have tried their cookies since many Unilocalers rave about them. I got their choc chip croissant and it wasn’t too impressive, tho it was on one of the better side. I wish it was cheesier but I tasted glazed powder sugar frosting more. Pastry texture was pretty good.
Ambiance is a modern cafeteria serving mostly workers from the building where it is located inside. I just live by so it is in a good walking distance, great place to take a short walk and grab lunch.
I got the cheesy beef sandwich and asian salad with balsamic vinegar for my mom, got a coffee and half shot almond milk latte. They serve illy coffee and use Pacific organic almond milk for almond milk latte!!! Yay! I did appreciate wide variety of milk options and casher’s ability to take my complicated coffee order accurate.
Sandwich is pretty small, nothing fancy. Salad was served a lot but not enough chicken pieces, both were served on a Costco paper plate. I think their specialty must be their bakeries. I got there during the peak lunch time, most bakeries were already gone.
I should take a morning walk and grab some of their freshly baked cookies and bakeries.

This is a fantastic bakery! Almost like a Panera Bread concept, but much better! I love the options they have here, and the pickup option is very convenient. Had my lunch break here with a friend and called in our order which was ready for pick up at the door. I ordered the chariman sandwich with thyme focaccia bread and cheddar cheese, added pesto. I was very impressed and pleased with my sandwich. I am always on the search for a good sandwich, and this place hit the spot. The bread was so tasty, and the ingredients tasted fresh. The sprouts in the sandwich didn’t have much value, but I left them in. I tried this peanut sauce with my food that my friend had used for his salad, and fell in love with that too. This place is very welcoming, close to Spectrum, and has parking in the garage of the building with validation. I will be back here again soon!

I never liked sandwiches till I tried the sandwiches here. They make food with the simplest and freshest ingredients. And they are just delicious! I also like the options to order food their website and go pick it up at a designated time. On the website, you also get the option to customize your sandwich and read about the food facts.
My favorite includes turkey pesto and hot pastrami and Swiss. I will sure find new favorites as I explore their menu.

First, the cookies are amazing! I like cookies, and I certainly enjoyed each of the ones I got during my visit.
The sandwiches are also good. They’re pretty large and tasty. The service is very friendly and fairly quick, even during the lunch rush. If you’re close by and hungry, I’d give it a try, and treat yourself to a cookie.

Horrible service. The manager was talking to someone the entire time behind the counter, had no idea what she was doing there anyway. Kitchen completely backed up. They would literally have no customers if not for the ones in the building. Basically the only choice for food in the building and they know it. Won’t ever go back. Very expensive, horrible service. They kept screwing up everyone’s order. I told the manager that the kitchen is backed-​up, he didn’t seem to care.

Just so so. Had lunch here. It is expensive and the product is not noteworthy. They have baked goods on display in a case but if an online order comes in at the same time as you place your in person order they will snatch your selection for the online order and tell you the item was already claimed, which I found rude and bizarre.
Service was also suspect. Given a buzzer for our table that never went off. When we went up to inquire, our order had been sitting there for awhile. Customer service is not a priority here.
Not a bad option, but with Irvine Spectrum and other options closer, I don’t feel like I need to return.

When I’m in the mood for a wonderful lunch, I visit Speciality’s. Favorite sandwiches are the pastrami and the veggie. However, the Brie and apple sandwich is always a hit when we cater them for meetings.
Also? They have the best peanut butter chocolate chip cookies on the planet. Ugh, they are amazing.

Everything here is amazing! You can’t go wrong with anything! Their croissants are to die for! LOVE! LOVE!

When i’m in the mood for a sandwich, I hit up Specialty’s. They have a wonderful selection of sandwiches, soups, and pastries, as well as salads which I haven’t tried. The quality of the food is superior to your run of the mill sandwich shop. If you like bread, their bread is amazing. Medium built with a soft texture.
I normally order their napa waldorf chicken salad sandwich. Nice chunks of chicken and creamy mayonnaise usually hits the spot. When I crave soup, I go for the tortilla chicken soup. Each soup bowl comes with a piece of their focaccia bread. Perfect for dipping.
If you’re in a rush or have not time to dine in, you can order ahead of time through their web site. Pick up easy as they leave your order in a brown bag in the pick up area. Just grab and go.
There is validated parking in the building garage.

The Spinach & Bacon salad is delicious. First time here & I love it. I can’t wait to try my peanut butter and chocolate chip cookie!

We love this place for lunch
Great job guys
I get soup n vegan salad
Great choices for healthy living

I don’t know where the great reviews came from but I will not be back. The end result of the products just wasn’t good. I was pretty disappointed in the quality of pastries we got. We got the following items:
Three cheese quiche– Tasted raw flour in the quiche
Ginger molasses cookie– This was ok, a little spicy
Dark chocolate walnut cookie– Underdone and pasty in the center of the cookie
Oatmeal banana muffin– Very dense, bland, overall not good
Orange poppy seed bundt– Very dry, would be completely flavorless without the icing
Don’t know if the quality of the items was affected by how long these pastries were sitting out but I would not take the risk in trying this café again. Such a shame because everything looked good.

The location isn’t super convenient, as it is nestled within a work building between some parking structures, but man is this place consistently good! From salads and sandwiches, to their cookies (PEANUT BUTTER AND CHOCOLATE CHIP ALL THE WAY), it’s good eats.
What I do like though, is that it’s super easy and quick to order to-​go. online ordering FTW (and illegal parking with hazard lights, on the side of the street).

At my last office, we had Specialty’s catered to us ALL THE TIME. So I got kind of tired of the place.
Until, that is, that I went there on my own accord and ordered what I wanted.
If you’e feeling peckish, their cookies are tasty. What I love are the asian chicken salads (I’m not a dressing lover but I love ginger dressings, and they definitely don’t give you enough. I’d recommend asking for extra.) I also tried the vegetable soup recently, as I wanted to feel nice and cozy. Soup was good — not as much flavor as I would have liked, but I would still probably order it again. They frequently have calm chowder, so I am hoping to try that soon.
What I love about this Specialty’s is the ease of ordering online for pick up. Order and pay online, and your order will be ready in a «grab and go» environment. No needing to talk to anyone or wait — just grab and go. Really simple, great idea, especially if you’re in a rush.

Came here in the morning wanting to try out their cinnamon rolls because I’ve been craving one, and this place is close to my work.
I was pretty disappointed because usually I feel that bakeries like this, should have pretty amazing baked good! I’m a HUGE dessert/​carb/​break addict, so I’ve had my fair share of baked goodness, and the cinnamon roll was a huge disappointment to me.
I thought it was going to be moist/​chewy, but the inside was fairly hard (not stale), almost like the yeast didn’t rise or something! I was pretty disappointed. I got a croissant as well, and it wasn’t fluffy/​buttery either. Pretty disappointing for a bakery IMO.
The place is clean and nice, with free WIFI, so it’s good for if you want to sit down for a while to surf the internet or do some work. Parking took me a while to figure out, but you basically have to park in the visitors parking in one of the nearby structures and walk here. If you park in one of the structures where you have to pay for parking, they will validate it.

Specialtys is one of those places corporate/​office people go to eat, have meetings catered, etc. I’ve been to two of these locations and that’s where you typically find them. Most people know them by their cookies. They are delicious!
FOOD:
–Breakfast sandwich: I’ve only tried the bacon egg and cheese sandwich and I didn’t care for it much. I felt the egg overpowered the sandwich it was more of a spongy texture. (2 stars)
–Steel Cut Oatmeal: I don’t know what it usually comes with, but I had mine with brown sugar, cranberries and almonds. It’s hearty, delicious and keeps you full just like oatmeal should. (4 stars)
–Salads: I haven’t had a salad in a while, but they are usually pretty tasty. You can build your own salad, but just make sure you are mixing the right ingredients that complement each other. I once built my own salad with a series of items I like in general not considering how flavors would clash and it ended up tasting like a garbage salad.
–Sandwiches: The Peanut butter sandwich is delicious which has peanut butter, cranberry sauce, apple and bananas. (4 stars) They have others, but I can’t remember what they are and how much I like them.
–Cookies– They are known for their cookies! I HEART their black and white (double chocolate chip cookie with white chocolate), their Wheatgerm chocolate chip and semi chocolate chip. (all 4 stars) They also sell day old cookies for half the price. I think it’s worth it because the cookies are still delicious!
–Pastries-​their coffee cakes are good. I’ve had the peach one– it’s even more delicious warm with coffee! (4 stars)
–Coffee– They serve Peete’s coffee. I don’t care for it much because it’s too rich. (1 star for me!)
–Catering– This is an excellent place to get food catered from for meetings and such. They’ll deliver within reasonable distance. I used them for another job I had a couple years ago and I never had a problem with the delivery.
SERVICE:
Usually friendly service anytime I’ve walked in. If you order online and pay online as well, they’ll have your food ready in cubbies to pick up so you don’t have to wait in line when you get there. (4 stars)
LOCATION:
I work near this area so I just cross the street. If coming from afar, you can park in the parking structure but I’m not sure if they validate parking. Otherwise you might have to pay. (3 stars… only a challenge if you don’t work in the same building)

I love Speciality’s since I’m a big sandwich/​salad person! Great lunch spot. This location is on the first floor of the KPMG building across from the Irvine Spectrum. Don’t forget to ask them to validate your parking as well!
My favorite sandwich ever is the Turkey, Apple, Brie & Bacon sandwich. It sounds a bit weird to have apples in your sandwich. but I swear to god it just works. It’s a bit on the pricier side ($ 9.71) and it’s pretty fat, like 900 calories or something. I’ve also tried their salads which are HUGE and delicious! Minus 1 star because it’s kind of expensive here.
For dessert, I like to get their Semi Sweet Chocolate Chunk cookie. These cookies are thick and amazzzzzinnngggg, especially if you have them warm it up for you! However, they are also pricy ($ 2.59).
The cool thing about ordering here is that you can do it by yourself on an iPad or just pay at the cashier. I like using the iPad cus it makes me feel cool.

They have fantastic sandwiches, sweets and salads.
I highly recommend the Southwest Salad with BBQ or Roasted Chicken, the Spinach Salad, and oatmeal cookies!
I heart Specialty’s!