Cody's All American Cafe
Categories: Seafood, Steakhouses [Edit]
Neighborhood: La Jolla8030 Girard Ave
(between S Coast Blvd & Prospect St)
La Jolla, CA 92037 (858) 459-0040
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: No
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
- Good for: Breakfast, Lunch
31 Reviews for Cody's All American Cafe
Cute little place with a great view (if you sit outside). It was a chilly morning, so we opted for inside, which was super cozy. There is a bench to sit on all along the wall with lots of pillows. I got the healthy breakfast salad. I've never had salad for breakfast, but this was good with poached eggs on top of a bed of mixed greens. I really enjoyed the vinaigrette also. After stuffing myself silly all vacation long, this was plenty filling and much healthier than many of the other options. The service was also good, and coffee and oj hit the spot.
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Cody's is such a fun place for a weekend breakfast, brunch, or lunch. It's a cute little place with outdoor seating and you can bring you're dog! The food is really good, I've gotten an omelette before with spinach and the somoma chevre and it was delicious. My bf got the BLT and in his words "the bacon was really thick and good, and the bread was good too". Yeah it's a little pricy but whatever, you're in la jolla.
So nice and peaceful to just chill for a while here and drink some coffee.
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Great location, horrible parking. (But parking always sucks at the cove.)
The view is great and service makes up for the crammed space. I ordered the Fish & Chips and really liked them. The breakfast bread is so yummy!
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Okay, here's the deal. The view is gorgeous, especially if you sit outside, which I recommend. The prices, however, are just too high. Yes, it's La Jolla, but there's just no need to spend $30 per person for lunch. The breakfasts are amazing, and the sandwiches are also really good. Be wary of the bathroom, though -- it's basically an outhouse, which is strange for such a nice restaurant. Sit in the sun on a weekend morning, and, as long as you can spend the extra cash, have a relaxing and lovely start to your day.
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What a great find. We were staying La Valenica and wanted a nice place to eat breakfast outdoors. Well we found it, right away we had water, break and jam at our beautiful outdoor seating. This place is cute, wonderful ambiance and good food.
We ordered the egg white omelet, spinach, mushrooms, tomato and sonome guravee. It was delicious! We had the orange juice which was fresh squeezed, coffee which was not too weak - not too strong. We liked it so much, we're going back tomorrow.
Service was good too, always checking in on us.
First and foremost, before you spend 10 min whizzing around La Jolla trying to find parking on the street, there is GARAGE PARKING! I wish I had known that while I was going up and down Girard trying to find a decent spot. I ended up parking down the street and had to wait double-parked with my blinker on for ten minutes while watching a surfer to get changed from his wetsuit into his clothes. He was skillful at holding up his towel while changing. He was certainly a looker and was taking his sweet time getting undressed. Let me tell you, it was quite the show =P
OH WAIT!
Back to Cody's....
The restaurant itself is this charming corner restaurant in La Jolla. The whole ambiance is quite cozy with a wonderful breeze and view if you choose to get seated outside.
Upon arrival, all tables were setup with bread, butter and jam. The bread definitely held my hunger up while we waited for the rest of our party.
This review of Cody's may be bitter since I didn't order anything "brunch-y". I had to order the fruit salad. The fruit was fresh, the granola was crunchy and the yogurt was packaged. What else can I comment on? Let's just say, if you're a vegetarian, there aren't many options available. As for the pomergrante mimosas, they were delicious and were constantly getting topped off.
All-in-all, Cody's is a nice place to take family or out-of-towners for a lovely brunch before hitting the beach.
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Unusual ingredients do not a special meal make. My omelet had hickory-smoked bacon, and New York White Cheddar, as well as avocado in it. But even with these fine constituents, it was pretty boring. I couldn't taste the hickory smoke flavor in the bacon, nor could I taste much difference between the special white cheddar and a regular yellow cheddar (and yes, this is coming from a person who loves cheese and knows the difference).
So they put this restaurant in the most expensive part of town, put a fancy website together, threw in some fancy ingredients, and let the local rich folk flock to the "special" restaurant. Be my guest. I'm going to go and get the same quality of food for a lot less at someplace else down the road.
What IS worth paying for is the nice ocean breeze and the view, if you choose to sit outside. That was truly wonderful. Also, the service for our (very alcohol-inclined) group was outstanding. The pomegranate mimosas definitely were a hit, and our waiter kept the bottles coming, while still keeping up with the food orders and clearing out the empty plates.
Will I come back? Probably not. You can check it out if you'd like, but it's just not me.
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I was here for breakfast and it was so delicious. It was a beautiful day too, so the view of the ocean from the restaurant is amazing.
From now on when I think of Cody's I'll think of "Grilled Salmon Sandwich with a ponzu glaze and green onion." .... Homer, beer, hmmmmmmmm.
Others who were with me at this Yelp event didn't like their Crab dishes so watch out if you're going here for crab. My Grilled Salmon Sandwich was grilled perfectly and they didn't go lean on the salmon either. Just how I like it.
The waiter service was awesome. Our drinks were being refilled as soon as they were empty. That went for the alcoholic beverages and water. Waiter/ waitress service can drive people away or keep them coming back for more. In this case, it turned out to be a win for me. I'll be back soon.
And to dog on Josephine's review a little. I found parking within 5 minutes right around the corner. :P
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Location, location, location! Beautiful views of the beach in La Jolla. Perfect for brunch, or a weekend lunch. Good to take out-of-towners for a view and a way to start your day before walking around the town or along the cove. The outdoor patio provides the best seats in the house. Depending on the time of year, if you do choose a seat inside, you can get forgotten.
The last time I was here, I got a grilled chicken sandwich that had gruyere, tomato, basil pesto, and pancetta. It was a good, solid sandwich and came with "hand cut french fries" that were also good. Another person in our party got the hamburger with NY white cheddar cheese and enjoyed it immensely. Another dish worth mentioning from the table is the Oven Baked Rigatoni Pasta. It came with smoked chicken breast, wild mushrooms, oven-roasted tomatoes, fresh herbs, bchamel, and parmesan. It looked really good and my friend liked it but said it was kind of heavy. But you would know that prior to ordering when you read the description. I was debating that one but decided on the sandwich since it was warm out.
Service-wise, both times I've been there it kinda sucked. First time, like I said earlier, we were inside, and were forgotten. Had to ask for things multiple times and waited forever for refills. Nothing worse than nothing to drink when you're eating! Second time, sat outside but still had forgetful non-existent service. The bus boy was really good though and he kept up the tip. At one point we discussed trying to direct all of our tip money to him instead of the waiter. But at the eleventh hour, the waiter realized that he had messed up. (He had brought out the wrong sandwich and then I'd waited for a good 15 min for the right one). He made up for it by bringing out extra fries and at the end of the meal, a free carrot cake, which was divine!
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So, Yelp invaded Cody's for a fantabulous brunch on a lovely, cloudy Saturday morning. It was good, not great. The selling points for this joint are its location right above La Jolla Cove and the quaint cottage that it resides in. The outdoor patio where we were seated is quite large and the perfect place for a sweet brunch. The service was adequate as they kept us refreshed with some quite tasty pomegranate champagne mimosas (though it was lacking on keeping us hydrated with water). The coffee was unspectacular, but was refilled promptly.
Now the food. Well, I knew exactly what I was getting when I viewed the menu on the website: Blue crab eggs benedict. Even the server recommended that dish. Yummy, right? Not quite. I guess I was hoping for larger chunks of crab meat on the English muffins to no avail. The flavor was not overwhelming. I've had much better eggs benedict, granted they never had crab.
There are other places you should go to than Cody's for breakfast. Can't comment on the lunch/dinner options, but I'm sure they're okay. At least prices were decent ($10-20 per entree). Cool place to go if you happen to be in La Jolla one morning, otherwise just go to Perry's Cafe or something.
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This is a nice restaurant to have a leisurely meal, whether it's for breakfast, lunch or dinner. Parking can be hard to find during the summer but during the non-busy season when tourists are not invading La Jolla, you can find all day garage parking for as low as $3.
Please avoid the grilled chicken sandwich at all cost. This is very forgettable. However, I would like to recommend the Rigatoni Pasta. It has a light sauce and the right combination of herbs. Very refreshing and is definitely one of my favorite pastas.
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great for lunch, with wine. location? Check. Great wine? Check. Good service? Check. Reasonably priced, fresh food? Check.
i loved the BLT, ummmm. Also, if you're looking for something a little healthier - the chopped salad was also good. Def. sit outside, and def. get a bottle of wine... or four? Def. don't plan on wanting to move for a while.
PLENTY of outside seating and plenty of great breakfast and lunch options.
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While the views are amazing the food is not. First off if you are going to be that waitress that doesn't write anything down...please...please don't mess up our order. It just makes you look bad. After finally sorting our drinks order out, the food came and was less than impressive I ordered the eggs benedict which came out as a hardboiled egg with some redish sauce on it. Not worth the wait or the price.
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I like the location, and the food is pretty good, but you mostly pay for the location.
I'm always looking for great locally owned breakfast places and this was a nice little find. I ordered the american breakfast with fresh fruit while my friends ordered omelets. Out of the three, I enjoyed the vegetarian omelet the best which had scatterings of wild mushrooms, spinach, and tomatoes. Everything seemed fresh and light. Nothing was greasy. Make sure you sit outside so you can enjoy the beautiful view of La Jolla cove.
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This cute restaurant, architecturally and culinarily, boasts an all-Californian experience. A renovated 1940s cottage, Cody's overlooks the descending street to the cove. Make sure to sit outside on the deck to catch some blue ocean vista while you're savoring grilled crab cakes with lemon-basil aioli. It is a perfect spot to bring visiting relatives on a leisurely weekend.
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I hate it when there's sooo many good choices on the menu but you can't try them all! That's what this place was like. I really wanted something with biscuits and gravy but decided to get the salmon sandwich instead of breakfast. The fries were great and the salmon was good and rare, but I pushed the bread aside. Inside someone had a side order of bacon and it looked like he got about 8 pieces. Also had the mussels with white wine and bacon. Pretty good quality and good sized portion. I don't know if the waitor just forgot but he didn't charge us for corkage! Woo Hoo!
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Thank you yelpers for telling me about this wonderful restaurant! We were on a trip to San Diego and this breakfast place was such a find. The blueberry pancakes are about the best I've ever had--just a little crisp and buttery around the edges, fresh blueberries within, nice buttermilk tang. My latte was very good, albeit a bit too foamy for my taste. They even had biscuits and gravy! For being in La Jolla, Cody's is reasonably priced, friendly, and sort of granola feeling. It reminds me of the little cafes in Mendocino. Best of all, you have a gorgeous view of the ocean from the patio cafe and after you've gorged yourself on pancakes, you can take a walk along the La Jolla cove. Bliss.
Cody's is so spectacular! Although a newbie in the restaurants of La Jolla, it is by FAR my favorite lunch spot in the area, hands down! The food definately lives up to the amazing view off the deck. Their burger is gigantic and gourmet with tons of delicious shoestring fries and good hearty roll/baguette thing. Their tomato soup was creamy and full of incredible summer tomato flavor. But what was is my absolute favorite dish, the dish I want when I crave crab every so often? Their blue crabcakes appetizer. holy lord. I am a crabcake purist, deep-fried or full of breadcrumb filler is a major no-no. This crabcake was fresh, flavorful and chockful of crab pincher meat! Crabcakes and that amazing soup (which I hope they still have on menu, given the winter months!) make a wonderful light lunch when shopping in the area.
A La Jolla Cove MUST!
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Had breakfast here recently. The service was understaffed so we didn't get much attention. BUT the food was oustanding. I ordered the House-Made Rosemary Biscuits, pepper gravy, sage sausage and scrambled eggs. May have been one of the best 3 breakfasts I've ever had while dining out.
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Wow seems like everyone likes this place and gives it 5-stars but I was here for dinner and was underwhelmed by the food and the service.
The special that evening was a flat-iron steak. I was hungry so I thought a steak would hit the spot. However the portion was SO small!! I think there was maybe 6 or 7 tiny slices of steak with a sprinkling of vegetables. I thought it was an appetizer. I wish some one told me this was tapas-style!!
Furthmore, I expected and could have used a steak knife. I was going to ask the waiter for a steak knife but by the time he returned, I was already 1/2-way finished. I noticed that 2 people in my group that ordered the cheeseburger got steak knives. What's up with that!?
Also, another person in my group ordered the salmon and that too was a very small portion! Certainly not worth the $22.
Not only that, I had to ask the waiter for a refill on my drink. The person next to me also grabbed that opportunity to ask for a refill of his drink too! This is definitely not 5-star service !!
We were recently down in San Diego because my crazy husband ran the Rock N' Roll marathon. So Saturday morning while the hubs was visiting the runners expo thing, my parents and I went to grab brunch. We stumbled upon this cute little place in downtown La Jolla. We sat out on the very charming patio with large umbrellas and cute pillows on the benches (the website has great photo's of this). Breakfast was delicious, I just ordered the egg breakfast and it was great and for an egg breakfast it was beautifully presented. The bread they brought out before hand was great and the juice was fresh. We also experienced very friendly service. Great place for breakfast!
Fast forward and the hubs completed the marathon in 3:33:34 and he was in need to replenish some serious calories. We stopped for lunch at Fred's in PB and a couple of hours later needed a place to eat dinner. Since breakfast was so wonderful, I suggested we go back to Cody's for dinner. It was getting cool outside and the June gloom of SD was in full effect, so for dinner we sat inside. The inside is still very cute. We ordered some salads all very good and also shared a plate of mussels. The mussels where fantastic prepared with a red sauce, ham and garnished with cilantro. I ordered the flat iron steak and unfortunately wasn't all the tasteful, I ordered it well done (not that I like it that way, but right now that's what I have to do). The hubs ordered the BBQ Glazed Roasted Salmon and he loved it, but he loves anything BBQ'd and it was a unique way to prepare Salomon. All in all it was a good dinner.
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Small place in the Downtown La Jolla/La Jolla Cove area. Pretty popular, you might have to wait a few minutes to get a seat. Their breakfasts looks great from what I saw...but I had something from the lunch menu. Fancy chicken salad with green onions, sun dried tomatoes, and a basil aioli, with yummy fries. It was delicious. My boyfriend had an open faced (which apparently is called a tartine) rare tuna sandwich which was great because they didn't overcook it. Washed down with a couple iced teas...a great, relaxing time on a sunny day.
Edit: Excellent Bouillabaisse
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Cody's gives you that "Sunday Brunch" feel.
The location is simply a retreat if you choose to dine al fresco. The perfect place for people watching as they are heading towards the beach. The weather is sunny in La Jolla--the sand, the waves, the beach, the park, the grass, the pets, the volleyballers, the frisbee throwers, the suntanners, the loungers, the BBQ-ers, the boarders, the rollerskaters, the shoppers--all this to see while you are seated in front of the table dining and toasting and laughing with friends.
The food--oh the food! I had the Oyster and Chips meal. The juicy oyster was encrusted with bread crumbs and rolled into sesame seeds with a dipping sauce of a vinegary sort.
My best friend had a Serious BLT--it couldn't get any more serious than your typical Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato. It was a mountain of a sandwich!
My sister and another friend of ours had the Awesome Fish and Chips which was delicious because it wasn't as greasy as they usually come.
We felt like dining "fancy" al fresco so to accompany our meal we ordered Chardonnay, Fuzee Chardonnay. I'm not much of a wine drinker but I would have to say that this was crisp and smooth and not overpowering. YUM!
Great place to eat with a view of the park and the ocean. It was perfect finding this place going towards the beach. The food was just the right serving sizes and when the menu says "SERIOUS BLT" they weren't kidding. The "Awesome Fish and Chips" were pretty awesome and they had this oyster and chips type fish and chips that were really good. I believe it was rolled in sesame seeds and then breaded cuz it was really good. The service was pretty fast when it came to bringing out our food, but as far as waiting right after you get seated was a bit slower.
I'm picky when it comes to restaurants and I enjoy having a great experience from the beginning to the end and the first few moments at a restaurant can definitely change the whole mood of the meal.
When ordering your seafood dishes here definitely have the Fuzee Chardonnay, its a much smoother sweeter Chardonnay and perfect to have during lunch.
Word to the Wise: They do not serve any type of hard liquor. I couldn't have my lunch Cosmo here...DAMMIT!
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We had dinner on the patio, with a view of the park and the ocean. The atmosphere is perfect. The waiter was very pleasant, attentive, and extremely handsome. I had a chicken pesto pasta dish (of which I cannot remember the name) and my partner had the salmon. Both were delicious! The price is good for the food quality, ambiance, and service. I look forward to eating there again the next time I am in the area.
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Even though we had to wait a little to eat here, it was worth it. The view is nice, and the service wonderful. I had a granola breakfast thing w/soy milk and it was very fresh. Don't remember what my bf had, but I know he enjoyed it a lot. It's a small place, but definitely give it a try if you're in the area and don't mind waiting.
Absolutely spectacular. You gotta sit on the patio and enjoy the nice view- right next to the beach.
It gets crowded so I would suggest putting your name down and walk around beautiful downtown La Jolla, maybe to the beach, or do un po di shopping- Went here with the family and we ordered:
1) Calamari with a roasted red bell pepper sauce topped with green sliced olives- outside of Cyprus, this had to be THE BEST calamari EVER. You must try it.
2) Tuna tartine sandwich- delicious- with a black olive tapenade.
3) Asian Salmon sandwich- Devine
4) Flat-Iron steak- looked good, didn't taste it. But the fries that came with it- the kind they serve with steak -frites- like I was back in Paris....
5) Bouillabaisse- like I was in Marseilles.
6) Chicken BLT- didn't taste this either, but my little sister didn't talk during her meal. Yeah, that's saying something.
My lemonade was delicious, the waiters were cute, and the place was packed. It's a winner.
Nice view..not too trendy...average food...somewhat too touristy for my tastes
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I had a burger. It was good.
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