Ruffled Feathers Eatery

Once again, greed and questionable business practices on the part of the property management company has resulted in another restaurant closing at this location. That is two restaurants in two years. Hmmm?
The property management company does not negotiate for the success of the business. Rather, they negotiate for their best interest. They just want a lease on a closed business so they can collect rent but not have to service the building. This has been proven time and time again with yet another restaurant closing. Shame on you! Our economy is fragile enough without ruining the lives of small business owners just trying to live the American dream. Ruffled Feathers proved that they had customers. Sure, they are not Manresa — but come on. They served fresh salads, rotisserie chicken, and the best hummus I have ever tasted. If you really wanted — you would have worked out the lease issues months ago. You chose not to. Now, the employees are out of jobs, the owner and everyone who gave their heart and sole have lost everything, and the downtown has yet another empty hole where a business once stood. Look around folks. How many vacancies are in this building alone? How many stores are actually occupied? How many businesses have opened and closed in this building in just the past year? The building owners should reevaluate their relationship with the property management company before it is too late. The negative reputation they are earning will be hard to overcome if this continues much longer. No one will want to do business with them.
What is the definition of crazy? Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.
Warning to potential future tenants — do your due diligence. There are plenty of vacant buildings in downtown San Jose. Do not fall for statements or claims made by the property management company concerning psychographic, demographic, foot traffic, and profit potential for this location. The property management company just wants you to sign the lease. Don’t put your money or your future on the line with this company. History is doomed to repeat itself and you will lose everything.

Oh no… I can’t believe RFE has closed down! They always had a good flow of customers at any time too so it wasn’t because their business had slowed down. I read that it had something to do with their lease contract but I’m not sure what happened with that.
I HOPE somehow they open up another location somewhere. I loved all their fresh and healthy options that cost less than $ 9 per item and made me stuffed after each meal. I loved all their cute décor and their scrumptious dessert items. It was definitely my go-​to if I was ever craving a salad or fresh pita chips and hummus.
I am soooo sad about this but even sadder for those who haven’t had the chance to try this delightful restaurant!

I want to give Ruffled Feathers Eatery at least three stars. I really do. But feeling bad about giving it two stars isn’t a good enough reason.
I passed by the place a few weeks ago and skimmed through the menu posted by their front entrance. The menu seemed promising and by «promising,» I mean that they serve mac and cheese. I’m a sucker for mac and cheese. RFE was closed at the time so I made a mental note to return at a later date.
Fast forward a few weeks… I drop by for a pre-​Cinequest dinner. I go for their Gilroy garlic rotisserie chicken ($ 6.99), per the cashier’s recommendation. I order dark meat, of course, because once you go, umm, dark, there’s no turning back. I also go for a small side order of their mac and cheese ($ 2.99) because I already told you that I’m a mac and cheese fiend.
I’ll sum it up by just saying that small portions, unexciting flavors, and disproportionate pricing lead me to the conclusion of two stars. Furthermore, the rest of the menu was bland. Boring salads, pita wraps (I dislike the wrap concept in general), and primarily basic pastas. I was being spineless by wanting to give RFE three stars, but in the end, the fact that I’ll never be include to return here warrants it two stars. I’d much rather go to Sonoma Chicken Coop a few blocks away if I want rotisserie chicken. Sorry.

This place is okay. decent. and chill.
I love the wall décor nailed on the brightly painted wall… and the smell of the espresso and freshly made pastries as you enter.
I was however disappointed they didn’t have the strawberry brioche bread pudding, the night we came for our pre-​cinequest dinner.
None of the other dessert selection struck my interest, so i decided to go for a meal instead.
My friend and i got the Eatery Pizza and the Eatery Pita.
The pita, was so so. It was a good size, enough to feed a hungry soul. However. I really didn’t really taste the garlic in the chicken. and the cranberries didn’t really mesh well with the whole thing.
The Eatery Pizza though was good. If they just used the same ingredients of this pizza, to a pita… the pita would have been wonderful.
From the outside, you’d really think this place would have more than fountain soda and espresso. I was slightly disappointed they didn’t serve alcohol.
Would i come back? maybe so. But food ain’t that crave-​able for me to consider it.

This location must be cursed… I’m sad to report that Ruffled Feathers isn’t much of an improvement upon the previously situated /​equally disdainful /​rightfully closed Asqew Grill.
* The best part of the meal was probably what we received first… our dessert of pumpkin bread pudding. The portion is small for $ 4.99, but is sweet and satisfying enough that it can be shared between two people. The custard tastes just like pumpkin pie, although the overall execution for bread pudding was a little off as there were chunks of dry-​ish bread on the top layer… an indicator that the bread-​to-​custard ratio was off before baking.
Thank goodness we asked to have the bread pudding served whenever it was ready, though, because we waited a whoppin’ 25+ minutes for our entrees to come out. I wasn’t expecting fast food, but time matters when tummies are rumbling, and Cinequest and zombies await!
* My sister ordered the ¼ rotisserie chicken (with dark meat). For $ 5.99, she received a chicken leg. You read that right: A CHICKEN LEG FOR SIX DOLLARS (and 3 measly. overly salted pita chips with a tablespoon of hummus on the side). Last time I checked, chicken legs cost about 59-​cents a pound, and Costco offers a whole rotisserie chicken for $ 4.99. This six-​dollar chicken better be mind-​blowing, right? Well, the «Gilroy Garlic» flavor was basically minced garlic. tasted like the jarred kind. and was smothered on the chicken and garnished with a bit of chopped parsley. Woopdeedoo.
* My Eatery Pitza ($ 6.99) on whole wheat pita was overwhelmingly salty. Perhaps I should have expected it since it comes with feta, but the pesto, sundried tomatoes, chicken, pinenuts and basil weren’t enough to balance out the salt. I did appreciate the option for whole wheat and the crispness of the pita, though, which was nice and light, like a super thin crust pizza or flatbread.
There are way too many great restaurant options in DTSJ to warrant a return visit to Ruffled Feathers. If their mission is to ruffle up their patrons’ feathers, then they have surely succeeded.

It was near dinner time while we were at the San Jose Convention Center for my daughters’ cheerleading competition (). We were in between their last performance and their awards ceremony, and looking for a place to eat. That Sunday, downtown San Jose was unusually crowded, and many of the restaurants were pretty full.
I was looking some a place that was quick (not fast food), and yet a decent menu. We looked at the menu posted outside of this restaurant, and decided to check it out.
One orders at the cash register, and they’ll bring out your order when ready.
We ordered:
–Kid’s Mac and cheese (
): baked to order with cheddar cheese, and topped with bread crumbs. Came with a side of fruit. Very hot and creamy. No processed cheese used here!
–Bow Tie Pesto Pasta with Peas (
): Made with spinach, cheese, pine nuts, parmesan cheese, pesto cream sauce. Fresh ingredients made with this dish, and quite tasty.
–The Eatery Pita Pitza (
): Chicken breast, sun dried tomatoes, herb jack mozzarella, feta, pine nuts, on top of pesto. Also very hot when arrived to the table. Generous toppings without being too heavy. My daughter liked this so much she wanted to trade her bow tie pesto with me.
The orders do take a while to come out, but they are made to order.
On a little side note, there was a table full of «men» make snide comments about the seeing all the cheerleaders from the nearby cheerleading competition, which my daughters, in their uniforms, were participants. My oldest heard them and felt uncomfortable. I looked over my shoulder towards them and gave them a good, long stare. Hopefully realizing who was with me, they quickly went silent, then left the restaurant. Hope they felt uncomfortable as much as they made my daughters feel uncomfortable.
In spite of this, the staff at this restaurant were very friendly and warm.
Also the prices are very reasonable. I hear the desserts are good, may be worth another trip back.

My friend lives in the apartment above this restaurant so I always pass by when I visit her. They have their menu posted on their window so I’ll occasionally stop and look at it. Every item sounds yummy, especially their dessert list. I just had to try them. So I finally went in yesterday…
We ordered the mac and cheese, BBQ pita pitza, and pumpkin bread pudding. Service was super fast, got the order within 5 minutes. The mac and cheese was mediocre. Nothing special. The BBQ pitza was too tangy… they really need to ease up on the sauce.
I really wanted to like the bread pudding. The texture was different and it tasted a little too «eggy». However, I did like the scoop of Cinnamon gelato. If it wasn’t for the gelato, I would have passed on this dessert entirely.
Sadly, my expectations fell short. But I will come back to give them another shot.

I stopped by here on a Thursday night to try out the food. Got the combo pita with chicken, romaine, and avocado with a small spoonful of hummus and pita chips with my order. Also tried the mac and cheese and the potatoes for sides and the pumpkin bread pudding.
The pita and the hummus were my favorite parts of the meal. The whole wheat pita wasn’t super cardboard tasting and there was a decent amount of chicken in it. The mac and cheese was missing some spice/​flavor and wasn’t as cheesy as thought it would be. The potatoes were the opposite story as it was almost super herbed. I liked them better than the mac because the potatoes tasted fresher.
The bread pudding was definitely different as only the top was solid in texture and the bottom was the mushy soft part of it. Add the ice cream that they scoop in there and it becomes way too watery. Definitely not the kind of bread pudding I’m used to.
With the amount of business that they get at night, I’m hoping they can survive and perhaps make improvements. At night, their exterior doesn’t have a lighted sign so it may not attract foot traffic. If I were to come back, I’d stick to pitas and chicken.

Delicious! I was wowed by the unique approach Ruffled Feathers takes to their food! I dishcrawled through 3 courses there… mmm heaven.
Not only was the service ridiculously fast, but their pizzas are wonderfully fresh and on thin pita. I had the veggie pizza! Sweet bell peppers, melted cheese, and an awesome light sauce to give it the pefect touch! They are known for their pita apparently, so I had the hummus as well with some pita chips. Delish and full of flavor! Both the chips and the hummus!
And oh my, you can’t leave without visiting for dessert. I had an orange ginger panna cotta. Thick and creamy panna cotta with mandarin oranges and a wee bit of juice on top. Finished eating that quickly. ;)
Can’t wait to go back for the dishcrawl Jan 26^th!

Like another reviewer, I really really wanted to like this place.
I like the menu — short and simple, based on chicken and pita. Pricing was pretty reasonable, and ambiance is pretty chill. I like the casual atmosphere — sit wherever, order whenever, and food comes to you. Service was great — everyone was really nice.
Then there’s the food.
— The ¼ chicken, rosemary flavored, was REALLY good. Nice and moist, great flavor. Too bad their chickens are itty bitty. The ¼ chicken was more like an appetizer — def get the half instead.
— Black bean side dish was pretty good too. Small portion, but it’s a side dish, so that’s expected.
— I ordered the «taco salad». There was NOTHING «taco» about it, except for the guac and sour cream on top. It came with bbq chicken, which I was worried about. But I assumed it was going to be somewhat barbeque’d — it was more like regular chicken dunked in cheap bbq sauce. Waaaaay too much bbq sauce. In fact, so much that it ruined the taste of the whole salad.
— Saving grace was the Hummus and pita appetizer. Yum. Pita chips were delicious, hummus was surprisingly good. I would just order this and chicken and be happy.
For what it’s worth, I think the «taco» salad could be improved by either:
1. changing the bbq chicken to anything else
2. ask them to lighten up on the bbq sauce!!!
Like I said — I really wanted to like this place. Especially considering it replaced my beloved Askew Grill. That salad just killed those last 2 stars. And by «killed» I mean annihilated. Considering the rosemary chicken was good and prices were reasonable (at least for downtown SJ), we might come back to give it another shot.

Business was great! Good food! Different environment! My only request would be to have the tables already pre-​set with dinnerware. Being handicap they don’t have their silverware set up low enough for everyone to reach. It’s a hassle to ask them to reach things for you. My suggestion is after you order for the cashier to give you a wrapped set of silverware.
Beyond that the place was great!

Nice place. We came for dinner on a cold Tuesday night. Plenty of tables. The place is a bit like Sonoma Chicken Coop with a nicer atmosphere. We started with Coconut Cilantro Pumpkin Soup which was nice, just a little too much cilantro for me. We then had the Pesto Pasta and the Combo Pita. Both were tasty. Menu is limited, however. Disappointing that as a wholesome food place, they didn’t have whole wheat pasta.

I just went here today for a really early dinner with my groupon pass! It was a $ 10 coupon worth $ 20 that I purchased last week. We decided to have a feast and try everything and take the rest home to munch on while we study.
When we first walked in, I immediately noticed how beautiful the décor was and how clean this place was. Definitely a plus. The girl at the cashier was super nice and explained how the place worked. We grabbed menus and ordered, you ready for this?
1) Pita chips with hummus
2) BBQ chicken pitza
3) 2 pitas (1 taco pita and 1 combo pita)
4) Bowtie pasta, add chicken in a red sauce
Yes I know, ridiculous. But I plan to stay up late tonight after finishing this review and I need my snacks :) It was really easy to use my groupon and all the employees were soooo nice.
The pita chips with hummus were SO GOOD. WOW. Hummus is most definitely yummus here! They had a garlic flavor and a jalapeño-​something flavor. It wasn’t spicy or anything, it just had great taste. Both flavors of hummus were really good, not too rich.
About 10 minutes later, everything else came out. I’m not a big fan of BBQ flavored foods but I had a bite of the «pitza» and it was pretty damn good. It was thin crust and magically wasn’t burned! Simple yet tasty. They made my hubby’s pita wrong because I had to modify mine a lot and I think the cook was confused but my hubby still enjoyed his. My combo pita had 2 kinds of chicken in it. I replaced the cheese/​ranch with balsamic vinaigrette. And I of course added hot sauce for that extra kick. SO BOMB!
At last, the bow tie pasta in a red sauce with chicken. The chicken was SO tender and delicious. The sauce was great too.
Our original total before the coupon, with a soda was $ 37 for ALL THAT FOOD. This place has really decent prices for great food. The service was wonderful and so was the food. I must admit I wasn’t WOW’d when the pitas came out because it looked like it was all lettuce. However, when I ate it, I had to admit it was tasty.
Of course, I finished none of my food. I took home half my pita and half of my pasta. He took home most of his pizza but demolished his pita as well as most of our appetizer.
I like the menu items here because everything is simple, tasty, and affordable. Definitely give this place a try. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised :]

This place has been across the way from Johnny Rocket’s for some time now and I finally found the time to try it!
The layout isn’t bad. Walk in through the patio area, grab a menu, walk to the counter, and order.
1) Pita and Hummus: Pita chips served with creamy, garlic hummus.
MUST get. It’s a tasty treat for your mouth before the main dish comes out. Just don’t forget the spearmint gum for later.
2) Mac and Cheese with crumble topping
Other Unilocalers spoke highly of the mac and cheese so I thought I should give it a try. You have a choice between a small portion or a large one. I recommend ordering the small portion if you’re ordering other things. Wasn’t very impressed with it because it seemed more «out of the box» rather than «homemade», but I’d be willing to give it another chance.
3) The Basic Pita: Grilled Chicken breast, tomato, mozzarella, herb jack, and some signature garlic stuff.
Overall taste was decent. My palette wasn’t amazing. I was expecting a pita stuffed to the brim with all the ingredients, instead I get all the yummy good stuff WRAPPED. That’s fine, it’s going to end up in my mouth anyway. NOTE: Like any food wrapped, the ingredients fall out with every bite.
Overall impression: It’s conveniently located downtown. A lot of foot traffic pass through. Food isn’t too bad.

Walking around downtown San Jose on Friday night I spotted the sandwich board outside of this place so I walked up to the front door to check out their menu. They specialize in rotisserie chickens and offer it prepared four ways on its own, in pita sandwiches and in salads. After taking care of some errands on Saturday morning I decided to try it out.
Since I was planning to visit the Spirit of Japantown Festival I figured I’d order lightly and grab some festival food later in the day. You order at the counter and find a table for yourself. There are tons of seating both inside and out at this place. Greeted by the friendly staff I ordered a ¼ chicken and chose the Gilroy Garlic variety. They offer both dark meat only or white meat only portions so I asked for dark meat only. I ordered a small Veggie Rice and a water to eat in.
Be sure to grab your own utensils and napkins before heading off to find your table with the number stand that they give you. The wait was pretty lengthy. If I had carried a book with me I would have probably finished a chapter and a half, and I’m only an average reader. The portions were surprisingly small too. The ¼ Chicken Dark (
) was just the drumstick quarter off of a miniature chicken. The four accompanying pita chips were standard tortilla chip size.
I liked the pita chips which were toasted in herbs and cheese and were very crispy. The chicken was just okay. I loved the super crispy skin but there was barely any flavor in the moist chicken meat. While it looked like there was quite a bit of chopped garlic on the outer skin the overall garlic taste was very weak.
The Veggie Rice (
) uses basmati rice. It’s not my favorite variety of rice because of its characteristic of being soft. The vegetables in this side consisting of carrots, zucchini, red and yellow bell peppers were all cooked super soft just like the rice. It was lightly seasoned. It tasted too health-​food like or in other words, bland. I finished it though because the portion was so small.
I’m not sure if I’ll return or not especially with hockey season coming up and countless meals in downtown San Jose, but I wish them well.

Ruffled Feathers is a nice addition to all the other good restaurant choices downtown. The menu basically consists of 4 styles of rotisserie chicken — Gilroy garlic, rosemary herb, smoked BBQ & traditional, integrated into their salads, pita wraps, & pita «pitza’s,» along with a few pasta dishes, and sides like hot potatoes (that looked really good!), black bean & rice bake, & veggie rice; mac & cheese, a Minestrone soup plus a «soup of the day.» There’s a small children’s menu and a few interesting desserts, unfortunately, the strawberry brioche bread pudding was calling my name … but I resisted!
I went today with two co-​workers. We were greeted and the ordering process was explained. We took our numbers and found a table — a little bit cramped in the back seating area (too many tables and chairs) if there’s a crowd. Our food was brought out fairly quickly. I had the Eatery Pita that consisted of a whole wheat pita stuffed –stuffed being the operative word– with garlic chicken, chopped romaine, crumbled blue cheese (no skimping on the cheese), dried cranberries, roasted almonds, and a balsamic vinaigrette. It came with a dab of hummus and a few crisp pita chips. The hummus was excellent and I’d order that on it’s own next time.
Very comfortable inside, wait staff are friendly and eager to please. I’m definitely going back!

New place in the area. Open only 3 weeks. Met the owners, very nice people. The food was good. The portions were small and no sides came with the meal. I had the ½ Chicken smoked BBQ. There was a small dab of Hummus with some great chips with the meal. Since there were no sides, I think there should have been a bit more hummus. Just a suggestion. I had the Lemon blueberry parfait, which the owner made herself and it was awesome.
The prices are good, but if you get a side, a desert and a drink… then it adds up. So in review, I had 2 pieces of chicken, a dessert and an Iced Tea and walked out for 17 bucks still feeling a bit hungry. Either a bit larger portions or a side with the meal would fix this.
All in all, it was a nice experience. The food was healthy, tasty and the restaurant was very clean. All the staff were very friendly and my food came out quickly. I would eat there again.

This place should be packed to the gills — or should I say «feathers»? haha! It SO worth a taste. Many restaurants downtown are good, but heavy, in atmosphere and menu. Not Ruffled Feathers. The food is satisfying and flavorful. Nothing on the menu is fried. YAY! The place is beautifully appointed and comfortable, with outdoor seating which is perfect for nights in San Jose. You can cozy up to the dessert bar and feel swanky while indulging a sugar fetish.
The menu is informal, but creative, based around four types of rotisserie chicken, pitas, and salads, with plenty of appealing choices for vegetarians as well. Or, you can have just chicken, if you are in that sort of a mood. Prices are low for the high quality of the food and the restaurant. Nothing on the menu is over $ 10, and most selections are $ 7.99 or less. A place with whole wheat pitas and home made marshmallows that lets your wallet breathe? Oh, yeah… one of the desserts is a chocolate fondue for 4.99, which includes fruit, cake, a cookie and the «house» marshmallow… and I haven’t even mentioned how nice the staff are, even the master chef.
Ruffled Feathers has my vote for «place to bring friends» and «place to treat myself when I have been working too hard». If only they were open a tiny bit later… closing time is at ten PM on weekends.

Ruffled feathers is «ok»
The pita wraps are ²⁄₃^rd pita ¹⁄₃ filling. Which is nice if you are craving just a plain ol’ pita bread with 3 pieces of rice and two shreds of lettuce.
Truthfully, I prefer a big, fatty dose of filling in my pita wraps. For their inspiration and mentor, they should look into visiting California Chicken Café in Southern California. Perhaps the nice folk there will teach them the ways of wrapping a pita wrap… and portions of fillings. CCC, I miss you, so!
The pitza: a pita based pizza was good. Not delicious. Not terrible.
Overall, this place needs to seriously kick it up a notch with food. I know it’s new, but that doesn’t excuse poor menu items.
I fear this place may turn into another empty store front in the history of San Jose.
Overall: nice idea, not so great execution.

Maybe it’s because the restaurant is brand new and they are still working things out, but I don’t think it’s reasonable to wait 20 minutes for a salad.
Upon walking in, their friendly staff really put a smile on my face. We were greeted with a little introduction to their «dessert bar» — what an innovative idea! It seems like they have many different desserts to pick from, so I will definitely be back to try out some of their sweets!
The décor is cute and glamorous. I loved their purple walls and chandeliers, and their beautiful wall decorations!
You order at the counter, and they will give you a number and bring the food to your table. I ordered an Asian Chicken Salad and was going to eat it there, but the wait was too long and my lunch hour was ticking away, so I ended up having to box it.
The chicken in my Asian Salad was BBQ chicken. Not really a matching flavor in my opinion. Also, it was a bit too dry for me. I understand that they might be going for the charred, rustic flavor, but it was really dry. What was strange, also, was that they didn’t cut up the green onions, so I ended up with long strings of green onion in my salad… it was way too overpowering. Was it supposed to only be a decoration? The length also made it difficult to consume…
However, I enjoyed the dressing and the almond slices in my salad. The lettuce was crisp and fresh, even after I took it back to the office. The salad was not drenched in dressing, so that’s another positive thing. I also liked the crispy noodles that they put into the salad. The added texture made this salad more interesting and filling.
I know they’re trying really hard, and the staff is very accommodating and very, very nice. I will definitely be back to try out some of their other stuff (especially the dessert bar!!!) once they’ve worked out their kinks!