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Aldo's Harbor Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Breakfast & Brunch Breakfast & Brunch [Edit]
616 Atlantic AveSanta Cruz, CA 95062
(831) 426-3736
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take-out:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Breakfast
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Casual
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
158 reviews for Aldo's Harbor Restaurant
Review Highlights
-
"Food was amazing, I had the fish tacos(SO GOOD." In 20 reviews -
"Plus dog friendly outdoor seating on the water." In 13 reviews -
"It was served on their tasty (and filling) fugasa bread." In 14 reviews
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158 reviews in English
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Review from Jim T.
San Jose, CA
2/20/2012
Great View,
Great Service
Great Food
Been going here for 30+ years
have never been disappointed yet. -
Review from Mary W.
Seaside, CA
5/7/2012
We saw this place and Diner,Drive-ins and Dives. We thought we would try it out. Not to impressed. The food was good but the service SUCKED. It took our waitress forever to come to our table to ask what we wanted to drink,and then it took her forever to get the food to our table. I had to ask her to bring me more water,which should never happen. It was not at all busy. The location was nice and the food was good but the service is something to be desired. I have been to plenty of restaurants to know what good service should be.
The food is good,you get what you paid for in portions. -
Review from eric m.
Dallas, TX
5/1/2012
Big fan of Guy Fieri...I found this little joint on the "Flavortown" app---and I wish I hadn't. Man, what a total letdown! We landed in San Jose and drove down to Santa Cruz and we were pumped....The place is a dive---and that was cool. The staff was lifeless, but we didn't care! We were ready for some great fish, some awesome calimari and some homemade raviolis.....(it's all about the food!)
Yuck.
Greasy and bland calimari and the cod was deep fried and overcooked in once again, bland coating....But the pasta would be the salvation, right?
Wrong....Thick, chewy and the spinach/cheese filling was less than tasty.
Aldo? Al-Don't.
This place needs to stop watching reruns and start working again...i am not going back. -
Review from Nicole P.
San Francisco, CA
4/22/2012
Beautiful location- right on the water. you can watch the boats coming in and out.
Great outdoor seating especially on a beautiful day. Food is good....we had the calamari, fish tacos and the crab sandwich. The fish tacos are tasty but not really tacos they are almost like mini burritos.
Service is where they could use some improvement. we were initially seated in one area then told the area was closed and we had to move. Then once we were reseated we were told it would be quite awhile before our server could be with us since she had too many tables. when our server did come by she didn't really greet us just simply waited for us to order. Everyone was nice but just not great service. Go for the view and expect to wait awhile for everything. -
Review from Lisa S.
San Jose, CA
5/24/2012
My boyfriend saw this place on Diners Drive In's and Dives, and convinced me we had to go. We got there at 11am on a Saturday morning and the place was already starting to fill up. We waited for about 10 minutes and then were seated. We ordered the calamari, the seafood pasta, and the crab Sandwich. The calamari was pretty good and very fresh, but I think the best part of everything else was the bread. The bread is amazing there. Overall the experience was nice, the food was pretty good, and the view and weather were amazing. I want to go back and try their breakfast, the french toast and eggs benedict looked great. If you are in the Santa Cruz area it wouldn't hurt to give this place a try. However, if you want amazing seafood, head to Sam's Chowder House in Half Moon Bay.
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Review from Mary Ellen T.
Oakland, CA
5/26/2012
Waited a long time for someone to take our order . Waited 45 minutes no food, no coffee refills, no one checked on us. We were on the outside deck, our waitress was inside. I went in and as soon as she saw me she remembered us and brought out food that was cool and the wrong order. What a mistake.
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Review from Scott H.
Santa Rosa, CA
5/14/2012
Well we went to Aldo's on Mothers Day. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO HAVE A MEAL there. Expect 2-3 hours. Service was very sketchy...we did not receive our appetizer for 1 HR! I wanted to leave but I was with my wife and kids and they chose to stay. The food was horrible. I ordered Cioppino and received tomato sauce very little shell fish. My wife ordered fish tacos and she swore they were barely cooked. All in all a terrible place to have lunch. I will never go back.
-
Review from Kate R.
Santa Cruz, CA
4/27/2012
Had such a bad experience I wrote a letter to the General Manager. It's been over a month and haven't heard a peep: no call, letter, email. Soooo ... here's the letter I wrote that describes our horrible experience in detail. Do not go to Aldo's. If you want a great harbor-side dining experience go across the harbor to the Crow's Nest .
-----------------------------
Dear Mr. Servin,
I wanted to tell you about a most unpleasant lunch my husband and I had on Friday (3/9/12) at Aldo's. Being relatively new to Santa Cruz, we'd heard friends say how lovely your restaurant was, and a great way to spend a beautiful afternoon dining by the harbor. Friday was just such a day, so we headed on down. We weren't the only ones with this idea, and so the 20 minute wait was not unexpected.
What was unexpected was not to be approached at our table until another 15 minutes had passed. And it went downhill from there. To summarize: our food arrived 40 minutes after we were seated, the fries were not hot, the calamari in my sandwich was as tough as a rubber tire, our waters and teas where never re-filled until we finally caught our waitress and asked her to please refill all our glasses. When another table asked the same thing of her, she grumbled under her breadth, "Sure, like I got nothing better to do." Never an apology and barely any courtesy, our waitress (who never introduced herself, but our receipts says it was Danielle) was frankly one of the worst servers we've ever had because of her poor skills and her crummy attitude. Begrudgingly I left her a 10% tip, but really should have left zero.
After reporting back to my friends of our disastrous lunch, I was told that this was not the norm for a dining experience at Aldo's. So instead of posting all this information on Yelp or other website that would damage your restaurant's reputation, I am writing to you so that hopefully the situation can be rectified. I know that running a restaurant is tough: people call in sick at the last minute and a myriad of other problems occur out of your control. But the bottom line is that the special times that my husband and I choose to eat out (which isn't often since I love to cook), we expect to have a much more enjoyable experience than we did on Friday.
Sincerely,
Kate R. -
Review from Melissa L.
San Jose, CA
5/12/2012
This is a classic Santa Cruz restaurant! The food is great, the servers are friendly, and the view is most beautiful! I love this place.
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Review from John B.
Los Gatos, CA
5/8/2012
Apparently surviving on foot traffic, the parking or lack of it sucks, what's with the abandoned vehicles clogging up the area.
My crab omlet was bland, my wife had the scramble with artichoke hearts, no attempt to incorporate the artichokes, just thrown on top. With all the places to go for breakfast in Santa Cruz, you can skip this place and save a few bucks in the process. -
Review from Marissa H.
San Francisco, CA
2/26/2012 1 Check-in Here
Pretty darn good. Big selection of breakfast items, homemade frugasa (sp?) bread, and an amazing view.
We split a waffle - large, flat, thin & crispy. Good maple syrup
I had 1 slice Raisin Bread Frugasa French Toast. Not as thick as Texas Toast but thicker than regular toast. Coated in confectioner's sugar w/ maple syrup, it was yummy.
Fruit cup was disappointing - a few grapes mixed in with chunks of (out of season) cantalope & green melon. Not flavorful at all & for $4.95 for a fruit cup, I expected a lot more than that.
The view is impossible to beat...hard to have a bad spot in the entire restaurant. Friendly service & they kept our water & coffee filled. A bit pricey. Lunch menu looked good too. Bathrooms aren't much to write about - unisex, tiny, right by door. -
Review from Gaby C.
San Jose, CA
4/16/2012
I would probably actually give Aldo's 3.5 stars, but since we can't do halves, I'm going to have to round down for this place.... My favorite part about this restaurant is the outdoor patio seating. You get such a great view of the boat harbor and all the sailboats and kayakers out in the ocean! I had the fish tacos, which were really yummy and I would definitely order again (I like that the fish isn't fried and it has a yummy pico de gallo type salsa and chipotle sauce on it)... Overall, I think the ambiance and location are the winners here over the food. If you ever need a place to come and relax and socialize with friends and family you should check this place out.
-
Review from Anthony P.
San Francisco, CA
1/15/2012
Had the Harbor Side breakfast at Aldo's. Nothing special, breakfast was simple and hit the spot. Sat out the deck and enjoyed the beautiful morning/view. Place was steady with customers, service was fine.
Harbor Side Breakfast is $6.5 M-F and 9.50 on the weekend. Two eggs, two pancakes, choice of sausage or bacon.
Might go for lunch another time. -
Review from Dan P.
San Jose, CA
We decided to try Aldo's based on "Triple D". The calamari is incredible. Cooked to perfection, not rubbery, with a light breading. Definitely recommend them. I got the fish tacos. Lots of shredded mahi-mahi with a subtle collection of cabbage and sauce that compliments well. They were much larger than I expected. Definitely a filling meal.
Great views, great food. -
Review from Skye J.
Santa Cruz, CA
3/13/2012
Good friendly service, good food, Yummy hibiscus mimosa and great bloody marys! I love eating out on the patio watching all the boats in the harbor pass by. I wasn't impressed by the food itself but the place has a nice presence about it. Enjoyable place to eat, drink, and socialize.
-
Review from Mike A.
1/6/2012
I love the deck seating. But, if you took that away, you are left with a mediocre diner that is somewhat in the middle of nothing. So, as much as I like going here, I can't give it more than three stars. Aldo, you're cool, but it's really because I like looking at the pretty boats in the harbor. Without that, you've got a decent artichoke heart scramble and a questionable bathroom situation.
On the bright side, they have something on the menu called a "Hot Chocolate Child". Good luck trying to figure that out. I opted for OJ instead. -
Review from Jessica J.
Redwood City, CA
12/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
After an afternoon of ocean kayaking we decided to kill our curiousity about this strategically located restaurant nestled in with the sailboats, yachts, and kayaks in the Harbor...
We loaded up the gear and headed over to Aldo's for some authentic seafood!
We sipped our LongBoard Ales (Draft) while staring out onto the Santa Cruz Harbor and talked about the adventures of the day.
Fish N Chips... Calamari... Chicken Pesto w/ Bacon Sandwich... or even a big ol Juicy Aldo's Burger w/cheese... We were warmed up and filled up with our selections here at Aldo's after a fun filled day on the water.
It's definitely a greasy little divy diner, so don't walk up expecting a romantic dining experience with a gorgeous view. You are in a Harbor for boats, fishing, and water sport... So here at Aldo's you don't have to worry if your kayak took in a lot of water and your pants are wet. YOU are welcome here. =0)
The food and service are equally as delightful as the view, but it goes with the territory for sure. The tables and seating might be a little sticky, but if you can get past those little dirty details? You're good to go! Enjoy! (we did!) -
Review from Alyssa L.
Benicia, CA
11/20/2011
I would give this place 4 1/2 stars, but I dont think yelp will let me...I first saw this place on Diners, Drive ins, and Dives and immidiately wanted to go. I was a little hesitant to with it only getting a 3 1/2 stars, but I really liked it!
First, I've noticed some people are bashing the service, but our server was very attentive, checking on us (my bf and me) 4 times thoughout the whole lunch. We got our food quickly (and there was a very large party there!), and felt like we weren't fogotten.
Second, I ordered the Grilled Snapper whic came with rice, veggies, and fugasa bread. It was SO GOOD! It was the kid of meal that made you sad to see it gone. The fish was so juicy, and so fresh (to my knowledge, they cath all of their own fish), the rice was very flavorful, and the bread was good too! My bf got the bacon cheeseburger, and I had a bite, also VERY good. Of course this isn't a specialty burger place, to get the full experience, I think you should get fish (duh), but for non fish lovers, the burger is a great choice. It was super juicy and flavorful, and the bun was so soft and not overpowering. They also have homemade pasta and raviolis, which I want to try...but damn that fish was good.
Third, the location was really nice, right on the harbor. Unfotunately, it was raining when we went, so we couldn't sit outside but it wasn't an issue. I do have to say the dinning room is a bit less than classy. They have a TV that was playing football, and one poster of Diner, Drive ins, and Dives, but as for decor, it was a little lack luster.
The only bad things about this place (the reason it didnt get 5 stars) is the inside was a bit dingy, the parking is far away, and not free.
This place, you have to realize, isn't some 3 star michelin restaurant, it's a feel good family owned place with good food. it's not fancy, but it tastes good, and for me that's good enough. -
Review from Steve H.
San Jose, CA
4/29/2012
OK, after all the great reviews, Growing up in Santa Cruz and an episode of Diners Drive-inns and Dives, decided to give it a try. Lived here Almost my whole life and never tried this place. Came for lunch. While the food was OK, I didn't really see what the whole hype was about. I have had better seafood at Stagnaros as well a couple other places on the wharf. The portions are average as are the prices. The parking here is next to impossible to find unless you like a good walk. The setting is nice I will say that. It feels a little less touristy than the wharf of course. Bottom line if you want great seafood, stick to the wharf. If you want OK seafood with a slower pace setting, then this is your place. Personally, probably wont return.
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Review from John E.
10/31/2011 3 Check-ins Here
I think it's funny that I've lived in the SC area for six or seven years and still haven't been to the Crow's Nest and some other places. Aldo's was one of those places.
Last Sunday, we decided to try Harbor Cafe for breakfast. We drove past it and saw a huge gaggle of people waiting outside so we decided to go somewhere else. I have to tell you that I don't really think any place is worth waiting 30 or 40 minutes for. Forget it. What the hell? There are so many good breakfast places in SC and I'm not going to skulk around trying to find parking before waiting an hour for food.
Anyway, it was definitely a happy accident because we ended up at Aldo's instead. Sure, you might have the same parking issues at Aldo's, but they have a lot of tables outside (!!!!) by the water so you're not going to have to wait long. In fact, we didn't wait at all.
We were promptly seating outside, next to the beautiful harbor. The sun was glorious, sparkling like diamonds in the water. Offshore, whales breached amidst a group of kayaks and boats. Apparently, we were fortunate to catch them there that day.
I ordered the Morning Crew and my wife ordered some eggs and bacon. The Morning Crew is among the most delicious breakfast sandwiches I've ever had. It has eggs, cheese, bacon, and tomatoes on lightly fried toast. Man, it was superb. If you are coming here for breakfast, get it. You won't be disappointed.
Everything we had was delicious. The coffee was good and my wife's mocha was excellent. The fresh-squeezed orange juice was ice cold and the fresh fruit was flavorful. All in all, we were impressed. After breakfast, we sauntered over to the lighthouse to get a closer look at the whales. What a great morning!Listed in: Best Santa Cruz Area Lunch…
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Review from Surf D.
Capitola, CA
9/19/2011
YUK.
Breakfast was gruesome. Eggs Benedict was lukewarm, the sauce was tasteless and goopy, and the whole mess was overpriced.
Never again will I eat there.
The wait staff was less than pleasant.
There are so many great restaurants in the area. Don;t be fooled by the view.
Eat somewhere else and then walk along the harbor or the beach.
Avoid Aldos.
Double YUK. -
Review from Judi H.
Scotts Valley, CA
8/30/2011
Went for lunch on a Sunday afternoon. The weather was gorgeous, the harbor was entertaining - sea lions, paddle boarders, sail boats. A perfect day for a outdoor meal. We were seated promptly and felt that we were in for a wonderful meal. Alas, that was not to be.
We waited for quite some time to order and once we ordered it took an even longer time for my mother's calm chowder to arrive. It came with a spoon but no napkin. None of the rest of us had napkins (or cutlery) so we had to call a member of the wait staff to get us one. She smiled and said "Sure!" but never returned. I ended up going to the hostess desk and getting a few napkins after my mother had finished her chowder.
Once we got our food a wait staff member would hesitate by the table and ask if everything was OK and then almost literally run off before we could respond. We ended up searching out coffee later during our meal as well.
Overall the food was good (not great) but the staff was ineffective. I'm pretty sure we'll head to the Crows Nest next time. -
Review from Lalaine D.
Santa Cruz, CA
1/17/2012
I love Aldo's because of it's simplicity. Fantastic view of the harbor, the lighthouse, the beach and if there's an event at the harbor: the Lighted Boat Parade, Wed night races...the location can't be beat. It's my favorite breakfast or lunch place on a beautiful day. You can sit on the deck and enjoy the great activities of the harbor. Now the food. Yes I love the food. Best calamari in town, great breakfasts with Italian sausage, fucascia bread, various versions of eggs benedict and lots more. Their ravioli and seafood dishes are very good. They are NOT fancy or super expensive, which is why I love it. Warning, as some you reviewers have already noted, it can get really busy on the weekend and especially on holidays! So don't go and not expect a wait especially if the weather is beautiful.
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Review from Fran W.
Bellevue, WA
1/18/2012
Pretty great place!
The calamari, is the best I have ever had. Even the batter had an umami quality reminiscent of the sea which I had never had before in calamari.
The Cioppino was spot on. Great garnishing baguette.
Great service! -
Review from Disco S.
San Francisco, CA
9/17/2011
Such a great location for a restaurant but the service here sucks. I placed my water in the obvious spot of the table needing a refill (the corner of the table) and the waitress is like "who needs refills? Nobody ok". My grandfather ordered a bowl of clam chowder and that was delivered late and last. How can every other dish arrive first and chowder last? Isn't that a freaken appetizer? So the part that gets me is we got our food five minutes after ordering and that seemed a little too fast. Is the food already pre-made????????
This place was also featured on the food network but they don't advertise all the other greasy food this place has. It shows them making their own ravioli which looks and sounds amazing but where the heck do they make that in such a small location????? Off site warehouse????? Sorry I don't believe they make their own stuff there. I really don't like ordering 14 bucks worth of food only to have the plate drowned in french fries. I hate restaurants that do this because french fries are cheap and it saves the restaurant money, not your wallet. I dunno but the food here is comparable to hooters and we all know nobody goes to Hooters for the food. Just saying
Side Note: the bathrooms when I went were extremely dirty, out of toilet paper and the paper towel machine didn't work. There's pigeons all over the place and they fly onto tables immediately after the customers leave. I also noticed there are water bowls in certain areas. I wouldn't want my dog drinking out of those especially when dirty flying rats are drinking out of them.
This place is deceiving. It has an amazing view but the service and food disappoint. -
Review from Jessica J.
Huntington Beach, CA
2/4/2012 1 Check-in Here
Good ol' DD and D's led us to the awesome restaurant right on the water. You cant beat the location. We watched sea otter the whole time we ate and walked to the light house after! So awesome. We stayed near the Boardwalk and it was about a 10-15 minute walk to the harbor. I ordered the Mediterranean Salad, Clam Chowder that came with garlic bread. The salad was HUUUUGE! And very fresh, tasty. The chowder was OK but I kept getting bites of doughy flour from the rue not being incorporated well. That was a bummer. The garlic bread was greasy and delicious. The calamari was really good. My boyfriend said the Crab Sandwich was ok but he's just being a snot- I had a bite and it was fantastic. It was a little pricey but overall a very good experience. A great place to have some steamers and beer!
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Review from Dusty F.
Santa Cruz, CA
8/8/2011 1 Check-in Here
Worst service I've ever had. Food wasn't accurate to description. Grilled tomatoes not grilled. No sauce on eggs benedict. Eggs way over cooked. My fruit cup bowl had bits of dried avocado on it. The table of two next to us had four empty champagne splits on it.
Saw our waitress twice the whole meal. The first time was after I asked (on behalf of the other tables with no server) if there was anyone working in our area. The first server told me "We have sections" but seemed happy that I let her know her table who had been waiting less than we had were ready to have someone approach their table. People were actually getting up to get their own napkins and silverware. We had to search for a server, any server, just to break a $20 so we could leave cash and get out.
I might sound like an impatient, cranky customer. Believe me. I'm extremely chill. It was really that bad.
The location is great and people obviously come to take advantage of it, but it appears that they rely on their location to make their money rather than providing their customers with a proper dining experience.
I'd imagine the place would be okay during the week when they are properly staffed but there's no way I would go back there on a weekend. Well, I'm not so jazzed on ever going back actually. I'd rather hit El Palomar across the harbor. -
Review from Aaron H.
Sacramento, CA
6/2/2011
Ok, so I've been to Aldo's twice now and here's my two cents. The Harbor location is absolutely fantastic! You are sitting over the water with a nice view of the Harbor, ocean, and lighthouse. Now on to the food.
The first time we had the fish & chips and the rock cod...both were pretty good but nothing to rave about. Now here is where things take a really bad turn. The GF and I went most recently on Sunday (May 29, 2011) for lunch. We ordered shortly after receiving our drinks and there we sat...and waited, and waited, and waited...an hour later our food arrived. Our waitress apologized for the wait but she never said anything the entire hour we waited. I watched people that were sat 20 to 30 minutes after us get their food before us...totally unacceptable. They didn't offer us drinks or a discount or anything. Ok, not happy about that but I'll live. We got the seafood pasta and the fish tacos. The seafood pasta was pretty good, but the fish tacos were really watery...the bottom fish taco was so completely saturated with water that it was basically inedible.
Now it gets even worse. About two hours after eating my stomach started getting a little uneasy...it stayed that way for the next few hours until I started violently vomiting! The GF didn't start vomiting until a couple hours after me. The rest of the night was spent running back and forth to the toilet violently evacuating fluids (and chunks) from both ends and experiencing the worst cramping of our lives. Literally we didn't sleep the entire night. The horrible cramping continued for the next day and half. We couldn't eat for almost two days after. We are guessing it was from bad mussels in the seafood pasta but who knows.
I really wanted this to be a place to come back to again and again, but after getting the worst FOOD POISONING of our lives we will not be back. -
Review from Naoko M.
7/5/2011
After a full day in the sun, my girlfriends and I went to Aldo's for an early dinner.
I ordered the coconut shrimp, which came with about 5 large shrimp with breading featuring very little coconut. Sad! I love coconut, so I was hoping for some more coconut-y flavor. My plate didn't come with too many fries, but I consider that a good thing because I didn't to be eating all those fries anyway.
I did request ranch for my fries, and it was ok. it had a strong mayo flavor that I didn't love but it was fine. It was also a little runny compared to what I'm used to, but it still did the job fine.
The outdoor seating is certainly great and a highlight of the restaurant. It's also away from the boardwalk, which means it's quieter and when we were there, it was pretty quiet.
We were pretty tired from beach/sun all day so there was minimal conversation at the table. My friend's fish tacos were quite large and looked like a great deal, but I don't know how it tasted. My other friend ordered the grilled snapper but I saw her add salt to everything on the plate. My third friend ordered breakfast food (served 24 hours!) and she really enjoyed her plate.
Overall it's a reasonably priced restaurant with great views. Probably not the best food ever, but a great option outside of the boardwalk area. -
Review from Jenelle G.
Hayward, CA
12/30/2011
Fish sandwich is DA BOMB. Atmosphere is superb.
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Review from Vicky C.
Sacramento, CA
2/10/2012
Great fish tacos and fish and chips...dark ff which I love!!! Rainy day and still great views!
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Review from Simona D.
Los Angeles, CA
8/23/2011 1 Check-in Here
Yumm and triple yummmmmm
Very helpful wait staff, arranged for half order of fish tacos so we wouldn't totally overeat.
the Ciopinno (oops, bad spelling, I know!) was sooooo good, I can still taste it. Serious giant portion of sea creatures, in a perfect broth. Calamari very very tasty.
If we're ever in the area again, might do a repeat.
Hey, Guy Fiori ate here, too :-) -
Review from rich b.
Santa Cruz, CA
10/19/2011
Let's face it folks, the Only thing going for this place is the View of the Harbor. Probably the best location in town, but.
Horrible Service and the Food Absolutely Sucks.
I asked to have the table wiped and she did a lick and a miss and I couldn't believe it. Had to balls to ask if the table was now ok.
I was in shock that a person like that could hold a position there.
This place used to be somewhat better when old man Aldo was in charge.
Now, the young man in charge doesn't know diddly about running a Restaurant.
The cook, Enrique, has been there way too long, one of the worst cooks in santa cruz county.
The Wait Staff is a Disaster, doesn't know which way is up.
Another thing, the Dogs. I would say 30% of the time one Dog will
Bark or Growl at another, which of course is annoying.
The Dog probably wants to Bite it's owner for bringing it to a restaurant
I'm sure Aldo allowed Dogs to increase his Business. This is great for dog owners. But, how about Non-Dog Owners. Actually I think it is Cruel to bring a Dog. How would you like it, to be brought to a Restaurant and told that you can't eat with your Companions?
Last time I was there a woman was letting her little Dog walk around on a table top.
The Pigeons, are getting more Bold as time goes along. I couldn't believe it, there were 5 birds on one table picking at scraps and no staff around to chase them away.
Seriously, this place is really going to the Dogs and Pigeons.
THIS PLACE LEAVES PLENTY TO BE DESIREDI
I WON'T BE GOING BACK ANY TIME SOON. -
Review from Nicole L.
San Jose, CA
2/26/2011
Found Aldo's one morning while in Santa Cruz with friends and discovering the place we wanted to go to for brunch was closed. A quick Yelp search lead us here (discovering it was featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives didn't hurt in convincing the crowd either), and I'm so glad! It's now my go-to brunch place near the harbor in Santa Cruz. Everyone I send here loves it.
The outdoor seating is the best, especially on a sunny Santa Cruz morning. Great views of the harbor as you sip Bloody Mary's or mimosas (Aldo's has a full bar for brunch and actually give you the mini champagne bottle so you can make your mimosa as strong as you'd like. Woo!). I love the Morning Crew breakfast sandwich, which comes on delicious sourdough and with avocado. The potatoes were a bit too spicy for me, but that could be because I'm a wimp.
Parking is a little tricky -- if you can't find a spot on the street, bring lots of change for the harbor parking lot. -
Review from Penguin S.
Pacifica, CA
7/6/2011
Nice little outdoor eatery (I suppose they have indoor as well) with a great view of the harbor. They advertise the best calamari in the area, and I think I may just have to agree. It was tender and were very well portioned pieces and the serving size was great for a shared app with 4 people.
The bloody mary was tasty, but I'm leery of olives and onions as garnishes; but hell, I'm from Texas so I think they should have pickled green beans and okra!
I split the fish tacos and a spinach burrito. The fish taco was spicy, much more than I was expecting, but OMG it was very good. The burrito was only so so, I'd not order it again. The salads were large and the service was mediocre.
One huge turn-off for me was noticing that while they serve breakfast all day, they do charge more for ordering the breakfast plate after a certain time (was it 10 or 11?). I think that sux ass, and I just want them to know how I feel (got that Aldo?).
I suggest parking about a half mile away and enjoying the walk thru the Seabright neighborhood. -
Review from Guy C.
Scotts Valley, CA
6/10/2011 1 Check-in Here
A great location, friendly staff and allow dogs to be with you at the tables. Food was good but definitely what you would think of as beach resort food e.g does the job & the location masks mediocre.
But hey, on a sunny day with a fisherman's platter helpfully washed down with a cold beer, this is a little slice of heaven -
Review from Amy V.
San Jose, CA
5/4/2011
great outdoor Saturday lunch
i ordered the crab omelet
Pinot grigio to drink -
Review from Dennis H.
Scotts Valley, CA
9/3/2011
Great location, so-so food, very POOR service. Ground up fish does not make a good fish taco - really? ground up fish? Really?
We had to go find our own silverware, napkins, water, coffee all the while "servers" were walking by and not giving a damn.
The view was great, but not at the expense of being treated so poorly. -
Review from Greg G.
Cupertino, CA
1/17/2011
This restaurant is a local favorite of mine. Tucked next to the harbor side of docked boats. There are many outside tables with umbrellas to shade the sun, and an expanse of seating overlooking the bay on the pier. You can watch the sail boats come and go, the paddle boarders play, and the various friendly dogs and owners. it almost goes without saying, a very casual place.
The food is very good - especially for an outdoor "dock" seafood restaurant. Fish tacos are a favorite, but all other items on the menu are quite good as well. The service is very good, especially when it is super busy. The people who attend this restaurant are very friendly too.
One of my favorite "brunch or lunch" restaurants in Santa Cruz! -
Review from M K.
San Francisco, CA
8/28/2011
Me and my sister (and the dog...YES it is dog friendly) decided to go to Aldo's since Harbor Cafe was a 40-something minute weight.
I wish I waited for Harbor because the service is shitaneous.
Yes, normally I'm indecisive when it comes to what I'm going to put in my mouth, but that morning I came with a plan. Egg and cheese omelet and coffee. No muss. No fuss. When I ordered, it was SO awkward. The waiter just stared at me blankly. I even tried to joke WITH HIM. You think it would be the other effin' way around.
The service is fast, but I judge how great a waiter is when it comes to the refills. I did not get a second helping of coffee halfway through my meal. I was pretty parched.
The only thing that's great is the location. The food was ok...not the absolute best but certainly not the worst. Save your money though. Having awkward moments with your server is not something you want to handle on a casual Sunday.
