Cafe 207

We really loved dining at Café 207, but the last time we drove by it was dark. I heard it is now CLOSED. We’ll miss you guys!

Best steak I have ever had. No joke. This place should be putting steakhouses around them out of business. And ambiance is equally amazing. The main entrée came out on a pile of delicious blue cheese potatoes and perfectly cooked veggies. I have gone here repeatedly, and have yet to find a restaurant I like better.

Meal of a lifetime! If you want the BEST steak of your life… eat here! BIG HUGE cuts of beef and cooked to PERFECTION! 3 people can share their tomahawk steak! ITS MASSIVE! ribeye can easily feed 2.
Apps…get the mushrooms! it comes in this yummy saucey gravy that you can dip bread in… heaven!!!
the ragin pasta is divine! oh what else… everything else is amazing! I am drooling still from last nights dinner!
I know some people dont like looking into the kitchen but i love it! its interesting to see them cook your food! I like the place its very intimate and cozy. Great service to boot!!!

Very cool hidden spot. Very small and intimate. Ordered the bacon wrapped shrimp, was okay. Blue cheese wedge salad was tasty. Filet mignon was really good BUT it had a lot of grissle. For the price, I should have had a better quality piece of meat. My boyfriend had the Rasta Pasta, which was super flavorful BUT too spicy even for a guy who loves a bit of heat.

One of the worst service I ever got before I even order. I walked in there and asked for a menu and this Old Mexican guy showed me a menu next to a register didn’t even bother grabbing it for me that was a feet away. And when I asked again he said or u need that to look at it. R u kidding me?

Really cool spot. My parents really wanted me to try this spot and we went there for my sister’s bday. They said it is the best spot in San Clemente. I agree that the food was fantastic and so was the wine list. Also, the ambiance is top notch. The only reason for 4 stars is they were a bit taken aback by requests for substitutions. Some of the side dishes are really unhealthy and I myself don’t indulge in garlic/​gorgonzola mashed potatoes all that often. I had a filet mignon and it honestly was top notch. Highly recommended, just be ready to loosen your belt. Price was reasonable given the quality.

This restaurant is fantastic. I took my wife and my mother in law here for dinner last weekend and it Rocked. The setting is fantastic including a salt water fish tank which feels very appropriate in San Clemente. Service was great and the owner comes by says hello demonstrating that they are glad you are there. The blue cheese salad is excellent and the filet mignon with Gorgonzola mashed potatoes was perfect. I finished with a crème brule which was also fantastic. I will be back often.

The food is amazing. The Café Salad and the artichoke hearts were rich and very fresh, The service was fantastic and the steaks were second to none. Café 207 has a great warm atmosphere which made it even more enjoable. I highly recommend this resturant,

One word sums this place up… Weird!
My wife ordered angel hair pasta with shrimp. We both tried to taste it, but it had no taste.
I got a steak. It was actually cooked to temperature perfectly, which is more than I can say for most steakhouses. It was too charred for my taste, but I cut off the char.
I would have given three stars if I could not see into the kitchen. But, I could and I saw the chef texting and not washing his hands after using his phone. I just saw a study that cell phones are more dirty than toilet seats. He also walked people to their tables and handed them menus, then went right back to touching food without washing his hands, ewww.

Unilocal Cliff Notes:
Bad customer service and hygiene.
Unilocal Unabridged Version:
I used to live in San Clemente, so my fiancé and I would often frequent café 207. The ambiance isn’t amazing, but it was still a nice little restaurant near our house. We’d been there probably a dozen times, and my experience in the last time, was enough to make me never want to go there again. My fiancé and I ordered our usual, the bacon wrapped prawns as an app and 2 filet mignons. I never really enjoyed bleu cheese, so I made a small request to not sprinkle any on my mashed potatoes. So the server walks over to the open kitchen and tells the cook my request and he turns to me and loudly says, «No bleu cheese?! Is someone on a diet?!», which was mortifying as it was in front of other customers. No, dumbass. If you noticed, I’m ordering a filet and BACON-​wrapped prawns. I eat whatever I want, I simply don’t like bleu cheese. What a douche. If you have an open kitchen, you should be a little conscious of what you say and remember to always wash your hands.

I must have come at a bad time …
I am picky. Very picky. Having traveled extensively throughout the world as well as working as an assistant to the chef at a culinary school, I had the pleasure of dining at many excellent restaurants, learning about food, food preparation, and service. My standards are high and by these standards I offer my reviews.
We were very disappointed in our experience. We ordered the special which was an ribeye steak — cooked medium rare. We found it rather gristly and chewy. The vegetables were on the uncooked side. The mashed potatoes were okay but rather plain. I have to admit that the size of the stake was plentiful.
I think this restaurant has potential but frankly I do not see why others gave it the high ratings.

If you wander into this place, you will feel like you stumbled upon a hidden gem. You may also feel like you’re wandering into someone’s house. There is a very intimate, friendly feel. I don’t think they can seat more than 50 people or so.
You can bring your own bottle of wine and the corkage fee is only $ 10 (it’s waived completely if you order another drink of theirs). The wait staff is really nice and helpful. We didn’t feel rushed. It felt very personal.
They’ll bring very boring bread to the table. I made the mistake of having a few pieces. I should have saved room for the good food. When all was said and done, here’s what we ate:
Appetizers: I’d recommend the sauteed mushrooms. I wanted to lap up the rich garlic cream sauce. Seriously, I would put that sauce on everything if I had a bottle of it. We also got the bruschetta, but I wasn’t a fan. It has gorgonzola cheese in it, as do a lot of their dishes, and I just don’t like gorgonzola cheese. Am I alone here?
Entrees: They usually have a few specials (a couple fish, something meaty). I got the salmon and vegetable stack. Like the mushrooms, it also came drizzled in a really rich and delicious sauce. The portion size was way bigger than I expected. We were so full after our entrees that I can’t even comment on the desserts :(This is a rarity.
Oh, my fiancé got the porterhouse and devoured it (minus the bone, which our dog is still enjoying). He said it was one of his better recent meals. Just an FYI for all you meat eaters. I think Café 207 is known for steak.

Café 207 is a nice and understated place to go. It has a great menu. I usually order some kind of pasta… particularly the angel hair. I’ve also had the salmon. It has a good feel inside and is kind of small. The wait staff have always been very nice as well!

We were entertaining guests from out of town and couldn’t find a place in San Clemente that didn’t have a 45 min-​2 hr wait on a Sat. Night. This little diamond Café 207 was perfect. I made a reservation, but there were only 5 other people inside dining. We were placed at a round dining table and the atmosphere reminded me of being in someone’s home and having a personal chef! The aroma of garlic filled the air. The bread was freshly baked from the oven and was delicious! We ordered the filet and it was awesome. I didn’t care for the sauce though. Our guests ordered the ahi. I loved how the staff was attentive but left us alone for our visit! I can’t wait to return!

My hubby and I stopped by this place on our way home one night. We were pleasantly surprised to find how welcoming the staff was, and the cozy atmosphere inside. We sat at the bar and ordered drinks and apps while deciding on our dinner since there were so many great options. The wine was delicious, and the bacon wrapped prawns were amazing. We also ordered the Artichoke hearts and they were soooo good! When our food came out the presentation was fabulous and the taste was even better! My hubby got the lamb, and I got the salmon. We split a crème brûlée for dessert and stayed a little longer since we got talking with the chef who turned out to be one of the owners. Great service. Awesome food and drink. Perfect atmosphere! Thank you Darrin! We will be back for sure!

I love Café 207 it is the BEST restaurant in San Clemente !
The service is amazing and staff makes you feel so comfortable the food is amazing I’m am Ahi lover and they have awesome Ahi and the wine its like your in heaven .
One of my top favorite places to go and dine love you Café 207 :)

Say what you want about the speed of service, the staff takes pride in the interactions. If speed of service is what you want, bark up a chain restaurant.
**If however you want a dining experience, I mean the kind of experience that wins you over, the kind that takes hours to savor mentally and with your tastebuds, then you will not find a better experience**
The co-​owners are crack ups. Skip the regular tables sit at the bar and shoot the breeze over a glass of wine or a great beer. If you have questions, let them tackle the those inquiries and sell you on the entries. Nothing has ever failed to make my mouth dance.
Prices are not cheap but it’s an experience, one I save up for an wait all month long for.

The owners mother who runs the adjacent mexican restaurant recommended that my wife and I check out 207. She showed us their menu and it looked mah-​velous.
Unfortunately, after being seated we waited for 10 minutes and *crickets* nobody came by to wait on us. Unfortunate. We came in quite excited, but ended up leaving after 10 plus minutes of no service whatsoever. I brought this up to the chef on my way out and he was at best, aloof.

This place is amazing! I got the seared Sea Scallops dish and let me tell you, it’s unbelievable!
The scallop was cooked perfectly. Your fork will cut right through it like butter. So moist and tasty with a beautiful caramelization on the outside. Literally the best scallops ive had. Oh and the creamy risotto! I can write an essay explaining how good it is.
The chef knows how to cook believe me.

Pretty much I was texting ‘Holy ****!” to my friend because it was that good. Service is casual… NO they don’t kiss your ***, they make the place fun, not stuffy. Hey, they’re working, but it doesn’t mean they can’t have fun too! Work should be fun and being a customer should be fun. LIFE should be fun and we had fun there. Don’t go there if you’re a fussy weirdo.
P. S. I have been known to judge a restaurant by their bread, and their bread was incredible… fresh out of the oven.