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OK, I am so boring I get the SAME thing EVERY time! I know all of their sandwiches, I've been to a ton of locations, but I always go back to the Del Monte Special. (Avocado & cheese .... sweet!)
This location is SO FAST it's scary. Perhaps it's because they are near a hospital and know the urgency of efficiency, or perhaps they know how to run a business, all I know is when I order a sandwich -- that sucker is practically being thrown at me within 2 minutes!
I love them so.
Someone recommended this place. I walked in and had half a sandwich and a bowl of their "kicken chicken" soup with a bag of chips. About $8.40 Loved it. I saw someone walk past me as I was munching down my lunch with a small bow of macaroni salad on their tray. It looked good and I went up for some plus another bag of chips, a piece of pumpkin bread, and a chocolate chip cookie with oatmeal. $7.50 more.
Anyhow, the pumpkin bread and the cookie were great. The macaroni salad, I only ate half - not so good. The funny part, a teenager with his father that sat at the next table saw me go back up for the macaroni salad and did the same thing and bought some macaroni salad after he finished his sandwich and only ate half of his.
Anyhow, a nice place to go for a soup and sandwich. I later discovered there are at least a dozen locations. Nice concept. Decent sandwich.
4.5 stars
When i first moved out here, I was probably the biggest Erik's Delicafe fan in the world. Over the last 3 years, I have wasted away to a 3-star rating. What happened?
Let's start with the positives:
-They have this wild west thing going on that I really dig. I don't like Westerns, and actually gag a bit when I see that it necessitates an entire genre of movies or books. Westerns? Seriously?! Why not a genre for Outer Space then? ANYWAY, they always have a solid collection of antique-ish things that gives me something to look at. And they serve drinks in the glass canning jars, which encourages me to get root beer for some reason.
-The jail house chili is solid. They give you cheese and onions to top it off and its even better in a bread bowl.
-Erik's Goo is one of the most underrated condiments in the market
Now the nagging negatives:
A. Sprouts. I don't hate sprouts. I actually enjoy them. But a man can only eat so many sprouts in each bite, and that amount is always violated on the most pivotal center-of-the-sandwich bite where all the sprouts are having a mosh pit. Plus, if you want to save your wich for later, you must remove the sprouts before they get all slimy and gross.
2. Variety. I couldn't eat here everyday. I have found that out when trying to eat here 3 times in one week. I think most people have one, MAYBE 2 sandwiches they like. Tops. It really limits the frequency you can visit this place.
-- Holiday Sandwich only offered during holidays. Any sandwich with stuffing and cranberries on it should obviously be sold during the holidays. But why stop there? That would solve your problem with the above negative by bumping up my number of enjoyed wiches to 3. I would visit more if you had my fix all year round.
IV. Huge Speed Bumps. Seriously, what is up with that. I think you owe me for the skid plate on the bottom of my vehicle. Your parking lot is laced with those land mines.
Minus one star because the parking lot sucks. It's a pain to get in and out of, and often the immediate parking is all taken.
But otherwise.... I love this place! Their sandwiches are fantastic (makes you forget for a minute that you're @ a chain), the service is great, and even more so.... even in rush/lunch time... they manage to whip out your sandwich QUICKSTYLE!!!
Best eats:
-If you're watching calories: Sweet Liberty - a basic turkey sandwich with a twist, and the lowest calorie contender coming in at 520 calories.
-If you're a vegetarian: Natural High is verrrrrrrry good! They had a special recently called the Vegetable Rustica that had eggplant and bell peppers that was out of this world as well, but I don't know if it's a regular on the menu yet.
-If you want something great: Turkey Walnut Pesto -- it says it all in the title, and it's tastyyyyyyy
-Soup: Clam chowder is surprisingly good here. Something I wouldn't personally expect from a chain.
You can tell there is a lot of thought put behind the menu, and employee training. And everything is FRESH.
Vegetarian review: I had the "natural high" which consisted of two wheat pita pockets with a few veggies and about three slices of cheese.
I was shocked to see that they use MICROWAVES to heat the sandwiches - in 2009 that's just wrong!
The result was a thin, warm, gooey mess of cheese that left me wishing I had gone to Specialty's or Roger's Deli instead. I also had a side of pasta salad which was just ok, and a bland oatmeal chocolate chip cookie for a total of $10; for $10 I could have done so much better elsewhere.
To top that off, the walls are littered with extremely kitschy decorations, making it feel like a Midwest crap fair. They could have saved money on the decor and bought real ovens instead.
These are the two items I am reviewing:
TURKEYWALNUT PESTO 6.49
Roasted and freshly sliced Turkey Breast, Fresh Avocado, Jack Cheese and Walnut Pesto Aioli on 9-Grain Wheat Bread
with Red Onions,Tomatoes and Sprouts.
Tomato Basil Bisque
-------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------
Oh my goddddddddddddddddddddd
So good first of all any place that puts sprouts on sandwhiches instead of lettuce is an A+ in my book. The avocado was so fresh and creamy and tasted exactly the way you want your avocado to taste (sometimes I get shitty avocado that makes me sad) The pesto is not a green pesto and I didn't taste it when I ate the first half of my sandwhich but then hours later when I ate the second half I could really taste it I guess the flavors needed to settle a bit.
The soup was good, pretty much like trader joes but a little more thick, and they give you bread for dipping which was tasty.
And instead of paper cups they have jars you drink out of.
Yummmmmmmm
As a Californian now living in Boston, I cannot even communicate to you how difficult it is to find a good sandwich place on the East Coast - and even harder to find sprouts. Once, I even got bean sprouts on my sandwich - you know, the kind that goes in pho, NOT the kind that go on sandwiches.
That being said, this place is great. The sandwich choices were varied and all sounded delish. We opted to share the farmer's market (veggie) and the turkey walnut pesto. Service was fast and friendly, and the sandwiches were just what I was craving that afternoon. And you've gotta love drinking out of a mason jar.
The only areas of improvement that stand in the way of the final star were:
- heartier, thicker bread: the bread seems like standard supermarket fare (although the molasses is really good!)
- Better coffee - mine tasted blah
- "Erik's Special Goo" could use a name change
4 stars!
I used to live around here, so I picked this location to meet a friend over lunch last week.
This is an average sandwich shop, semi-self service, and very popular during lunch time. I ordered the "Pilgrim's Progress" + $1 cup of "Chicken Rice" soup.
-- the sandwich is delicious as usual, I like the avacado and turkey combination, this is a well made sandwich. Though compared to other more budget shops, the quantity for the price ($5.99) might not be that big.
-- the "Chicken Rice" soup is not good at all, it's some watered down version of pre-made soup... would not bother wasting my $1 next time, even if it's part of a promo...
p.s. don't forget to ask them to stamp your frequent buyer card! buy 10 get 1 FREE. =)
I had delicious sandwiches from here and also visited the Gilroy location.
I also don't understand the sprouts, maybe a healthier approach to sandwiches. They should also supply extra floss since the sprouts are quite obnoxious.
Erik's delicafe used to be located conveniently around a family I worked for. During my long breaks, I would often come here and sit inside and take advantage of their air conditioning and shade.
I've been to both the one in Gilroy and the one in Mountain View, I'm not sure if they are a chain or a franchise.
Anyways, I've had their garden vegetable soup, nothing really special there. The last time I was here, I ordered a turkey sandwich on wheat bread, and mustard instead of spread. It was pretty good from what I could tell, the ingredients were fresh and the people in the store were friendly, but nothing really special. I could have gone to safeway or subway and ordered a sandwich there and it would have basically been the same. I'd stop by again if it was convenient but it's not somewhere that I'd seek out on my own.
The staff have always been nice to me and they don't seem to mind if I hang out in there for a few hours while I'm filling out paperwork inbetween sessions.
I really like this chain, this location was especially well organized. They were excellent in their speed & service.
Their turkey walnut pesto is very delicious, it also has cheese, avocado, & tomato in there. I got their half sandwich, half soup combo which is a good deal, only $6.50 and you get half a sandwich and a cup of soup. The tomato basil is super good :)
So overall a great find, affordable prices + good variety of sandwiches + good in speed (not much of a wait considering how many people are in line during the lunch rush) = Good lunch !
I went here today for lunch and it was really good. I got the Abbott's Habit. Warm, flavourful and a good price. The service was quick and the staff was on top of everything.
Of the three locations that I've been to this was the nicest one. There are huge windows all around the restaurant which makes it really bright and pleasant.
If I'm in the area again and need a snack, I'll pop in here.
Yay! Another pilgrim's progress addict. Replace spouts with lettuce and I'm good to go. Soups, chili, brownies, breads all Healthy food! You can't beat Erik's Delicafe.
Lots of great sandwiches
hard to go wrong
Enjoy
This place was packed when I had lunch there yesterday. Staffs were very friendly =) Ingredients were fresh, but I didn't like my sandwich =( My usual is the "Pilgrim's Progress". They changed the ingredients on me (just as how the Erik's I rated in Fremont did). They used lettuce instead of the sprout. My friend told me this place had a paper posted, stating that sprout was not in season so they subsituted the sprout with lettuce. Honestly, that is not right. One, you can not change the ingredient of a sandwich and still call it the same name. Two, the price of the sandwich was for the original ingredients, so if ingredients changed, call it something else and give it a different price. The amount of sprout used in that sandwich does not cost the same as a tiny piece of lettuce they use now. Don't you agree? And obviously the sandwich tasted different with the lettuce! =(
The overall dining experience was ok, but my sandwich experience was bad.
Erik's Deli is awesome. Extremely reliable, fast service, and all that good shit. The Pilgrim's Progress is delicious. Also, Manuel the manager is a hell of a nice guy.
Another pilgrim's progress addict. No goo, add pesto. Soooo good with pesto. I love the spouts. On soft wheat bread, with lemonade in a jar. ahhh.
They're a bit shady with the ordering and the cash register though. They wouldnt give me a reciept.
Oh well, the sandwich is worth it!
Try those brownies on the counter. They taste weird, almost healthy.....but you can't stop eating them.......
I sure don't go there for the decor, but the food is excellent.
They serve typical deli-style fare; sandwiches and such, which are consistently delicious and all the ingredients are fresh.
I really don't care for the fact that drinks are served in preserving jars (whose scatter-brained idea was that?) but I'll forgive this since the food is so great.
A solid 3 stars.... that's not bad at all.
Its a solid sandwhich place... nothing special... and nothing bad about it.
I'm a pilgrim's progress addict (no goo, yellow mustard on the side) - what can I say. I call when leaving on my bike from the hospital at peak lunch time - most times it's ready to go when I arrive less than 5 minutes later. Staff is friendly and hustles - what more can a girl in a hurry ask for.
In response to ADRIENNE's post below - the replacement of lettuce for sprouts was clearly posted (and explained to avoid risk of foodbourne illness) in at least TWO places near the ordering (when I was not savvy to the call ahead program I used to ride over and wait the 3-5 minutes).
ASK for a punch card - buy 10 get one free!
A good sandwich place. Though the line for lunch can be long, they have the process of taking orders down. The line moves very quickly; your lunch will often be ready when you're paying at the cashier. If not, you're given a number to take to your table; your food is delivered when it's ready.
The sandwiches are good, though I preferred the sweet french rolls they had years ago. The manager and staff of this location are friendly and accomodating.
Great sandwiches and friendly staff. I love all Erik's.
This store is currently going through an external renovation (as well as the rest of the shopping center).
Can someone please explain the value of sprouts to me? I know, I know, they're nutritious but I don't believe in them as a replacement for lettuce, ever.
We went here on a Sunday afternoon (4pm) for lunch (breakfast) when I wanted some sort of roast beef sandwich, but not from Arbys. I actually found the place via Yelp by searching for "roast beef" and then click on "delis," which indicates to me that Yelp is finally becoming useful in the South Bay area. Congrats to Yelp CEO Jeremy Stoppelman and his rapper CTO, Russel Simmons!
Anyhow, the place is very nice. There was no one else there (who goes to a deli at 4pm?), so it was very peaceful. Our sandwiches were good (they do indeed have "character") and the soups were high quality.
I also used the restroom, which was clean.
Went on Thursday at 1:30pm and seemed to have missed the usual lunch crowd. Only two in front of me in line. Ordered the special hot sandwhich of Turkey, green chili, bacon, cheese, salsa ranch sauce, lettuce on a soft cheese bread, 6 inch sandwich for $5.95. Very pleased, because the bread was soft and they microwaved it. Cheese bread was so good. They forgot to give me my pickle to go but no biggie. The cold sandwiches are prepared FAST! Sandwiches range around $5+.
The decor is old, seating inside and out. Near the Nob Hill grocery store, at the corner of the mall. I never go this far into the mall, usually, Marshalls is about it for me. Pleased I drove further down the mall, past all of that construction.
One of my weekly favorites. The square meal: tomatoe bisque soup and the sweet liberty. Yes. I finish it all. Sometimes I crave it and have to have it more than once a week. Yum.
I like it here because no matter how busy it is at lunchtime, you don't have to wait more than 5 minutes in line. Manuel takes good care of us.
Met a GF here for lunch today. I tend to drive past here on weekends and think "Oh - how sad. What a terrible location! How do they stay in business?! It must be a Yakuza front!"
But today all my hopes of hot Japanese mafioso and exciting Throwing Star and Nunchuck battles were dashed. I arrived the usual 10 minutes before this particular GF and saw the line and thought "OMG! It'll take forever to get through a line that long." So I got in line after squinting in my old age at the menu and choosing the Chicken Gorgonzola Salad. That line went so fast I was soon picking out a table. Though the place was packed at the height of a mid-week lunch hour, I soon found a table by a window and staked my claim. In just a couple minutes my GF waived at me as she headed to the end of the (now longer) line. It really only took her about five minutes tops to get through that line and get to our table.
Since all my friends have stellar taste (I mean, I *am* one of their friends, after all!) it was no surprise that GF arrived with the same Chicken Gorgonzola Salad. It was taste and the seeded bread was, as GF put it "too good". She's within weeks of doning a wedding dress for an entire day and most of a night, so she's watching the carbs again, a la 2002.
I like their sandwiches a lot. Pilgrim's progress is really good and healthy. Their carrot cake is good too. I like how their glasses for drinks are old jars. It is really a good sandwich place for lunch.
This place is pretty damn good - many more options than Boulangere and/or Subway like places - however...
This place is freaking dead - I'll be shocked if they don't go out of business sometime soon - on the weekend, I was the only person in the whole store...
Disgusting. I had the lasagne "special" and it was a piece of stale, over-microwaved crap. The edges were crispy since it had been nuked to death. The tomato basil soup was alright, although I like Safeway's better. My husband had the Speedwagon sandwich and it was also crap. It was 2 pieces of unremarkable white bread, some straight-out-of-the-package turkey and some lettuce thrown on top. He had the Texas Jailhouse Steak chili. What a joke. Yeah right.. It was watered down to the point where he added crackers to thicken it up. Total disappointment. We spent $20 on a crappy dinner. I could have gone to Safeway and gotten the half sandwich and soup for $4.99 each. Trust me, next time I will. Don't bother wasting your money eating at this craphole. No wonder there was nobody there when we showed up.
Good for the soup and sandwhich craving. Everything is really fresh and the ambiance is kind of quaint. This place is usually popular with the weekday lunch crowd otherwise it's really quiet since it's near a residential area. I usually go for clam chowder and the "Raging Bull" which is roast beef, sprouts and a green chile. My only complaint is the portions are not huge so if you're going to actively excercise after one of these meals you're going to have to supplement your calories.
Great sandwiches. Delicious soup and salad. Affordable fare. Friendly staff. My 6-year-old loves this place for the turkey sandwiches and the chance to beat Dad at a game of checkers (there's been a checkerboard at the ready in this place for years!). The atmosphere is casual and family friendly.
I am continually impressed with the quality of Erik's food. The excellence is consistent with every location I've visited. If you want sandwiches, this is the place to go...
I love the sandwiches they make here, fresh ingredients quirky decorum and delicious warm soups. It's a nice change from fast food. And personally I like the old world charm of serving the drinks in jars.
forget about the sub-quality sandwiches you get at subway, towering over togo, surpassing quiznos.
let me emphasize, I don't usually like sandwiches, but I like Erik's delicafe, wonderful ingredients combined with inventive flavoring. I'm sold!
I like this one better than the other one I've been to in San Jose, mostly because of the decor. The food here is pretty good, it's nice if you just want a break from over-cooked fried foods. Although not too bad, the price for a sandwich makes it so Erik's is more like my once a month food choice, not cheap enough for a daily or weekly meal.
I work close to the Mt. View location, so I always end up here when I need something quick and consistent. They're really busy during lunchtime on weekdays, but always fast. The sandwich makers behind the counter are amazing to watch... lightening quick.
Their sandwiches are good, but one thing that irks me is that the "stuff" inside my sandwich is usually piled right in the center... so there's this big buldge in the middle with extra bread around a ball of meat and sprouts. Luckily we have extra plates and utensils at work so I always end up taking it back to my desk to spread out the fillings. I guess I'm picky, but I need my meat to bread ratio to be even w/ each bite.
Note: most, if not all, sandwiches come w/ sprouts, but no lettuce. if you want lettuce, you have to specify. many times, they'll leave out the sprouts if you ask for lettuce... if you want both... say so! Lastly, they call their mayo "goo". they put TONS of "goo" on your sammich, unless you specify otherwise.
One more gripe: The cashier woman. She's very efficient, but she can be EXTREMELY rude. I think she's borderline bi-polar. Depends on when you catch her. SO many times I've vowed not to go back just because of her, but because there aren't many good quick options in Mt. View, I always end up there. All of the other staff is great.
this place is very good....they would earn 5 stars if they did not microwave their freakin sandwiches wtf!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!
Mountain View, CA
Category: Mexican
Cupertino, CA
Category: Delis
Santa Clara, CA
Category: Delis
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