Maltby's Restaurant
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Private Lot, Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: Yes
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: Yes
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: Yes
49 reviews
Palo Alto, CA
"This is my favorite thai restaurant in Palo Alto. The staff is very friendly--the manager always remembers my name. And the food is great!…" read more »
21 Reviews for Maltby's Restaurant
Return to Maltby's? I would not could not on a train, I would not could not in the rain, I do not like Maltby's this is true and I'm willing to bet you would not too!
Expensive!! I don't remember what I ordered that was so freaking fabulous that it should cost so much. The staff was not particularly personable. I've had much better in Los Altos Village!
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O.M.G. I just got back from the worst lunch ever.
Picture this: I'm having lunch with one of the head honcho's of my company, a woman who I'd love to have as a mentor, who I'm trying desperately hard to impress. So I take her to the one place in downtown Los Altos she hasn't been so she can have her first real American cheeseburger (she is Kenyan).
She gets served her cheeseburger and her first reaction is "Oh we should have gone to McDonald's, this doesn't look very good". I get served my salad ... A EFFING ROACH CRAWLS OUT OF IT. Of course being the nervous fumbling idiot that I am, rather than scream and return the food, I hide the roach under my napkin rather than disappoint this woman even more.
Needless to say I barely ate and I think this woman thinks I'm crazy but I will never EVER return to this place.
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Let's look at this in a relative way.
There are not a whole lot of places to get a beer in Los Altos, and so this should be taken into consideration when handing out stars.
Also, I know the owner of this restaurant, and so I might be biased.
However, I eat here all the time (not for free, despite my connections) and enjoy it because I am not being overcharged, which is something that happens a lot for mediocre food in this particular town.
I would say that prices are "chili's" prices, but much better food. Some of my favorites include the French Onion Soup, Fresh Petrale Sole, Caesar Salad with grilled prawns (best dressing you'll ever taste) and the Maltby's House salad.
Any of the above are great with a pilsner, or something from the well-compiled wine selection.
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The food was very overpriced and very under-satisfying. The server I had seemed disinterested and in a hurry to get me out of there! The beer selection was good and that's the only reason why I'll give them any stars at all.
My cat is in kitty prison at Adobe for treatments (this sucks), so I find myself in Los Altos a lot these days. I walked over here for lunch today while waiting for the vet to get out of surgery.
I had a burger and fries. Ordered medium, got more like well done, and the burger itself was underseasoned. Fries were OK; still haven't found the world's best fries. It was kind of refreshing that they didn't give me a ridiculous portion of fries, actually.
They did forget to charge me for my soda, which was nice.
I guess overall I would go with "kinda meh," but I'm willing to believe they have other good stuff and I'm feeling charitable with the stars.
This was the first restaurant I ate in in downtown Los Altos. It was very nice of my friends to take me out to lunch to welcome me to town. They are very health conscious friends so there must be some redeeeming health queslities to Matlby's reatruant. This is one of the old standards of long time Los Altos residents.
I thought the food was just OK and over priced for what it was. I had salmon and a salad. The salmon tasted like artiificial sweetener. Very stange. The salad was quite good. I was tempted to rate it more stars, but I haven't been back. Have never been tempted to go back. I guess it is just not a destination for me and that means 2 stars.
I`ve been eating at Maltby`s for about half my life, so I may be a little biased, but the food is always good, very reasonably priced, good service, and James is an awesome guy, so I like to do what I can to frequent the place with family. Very family friendly. The Trivia Pursuit cards at every table are always fun. Very homey atmosphere.
Maltby's is THE Los Altos dining experience. I grew up in Los Altos, and can't seem to eat here without seeing a few neighborhood faces. The owner is a British transplant who serves a combination of comfort pub foods (try the bangers and mash, or one of the pies) and California cuisine (like the teriyaki salmon salad, DELICIOUS daily soups, or sandwiches). A great many beers on tap, including Fat Tire, Sierra Nevada, Pyramid Hef, Newcastle, Guinness, and more.
The food is overall highly satisfying, but you wont be dreaming about it for days after. Dining experience is fun, with trivia cards at your table to keep you busy while you wait. Maltby's is the perfect solution to the weekly "where should we eat tonight?" dilemma. If you are trying to show a taste of the town to visitors, however, I would opt for another selection.
This is an interesting place to check out in downtown Los Altos. I'd give it a 3.5, but it doesn't quite deserve a 4. I've been here on three separate occasions for brunch now and it's a nice place to have a liesurely meal with family and friends. They have a couple of tables outside which is nice on a cool summers day.
There's a decidedly English twist to the menu and the corned beef and hash is real, chopped corned beef... not that canned corned beef and hash stuff you'd find in a diner. The service is a bit on the slow side, but the waitstaff is nice and doesn't rush you at all. Overall, the food is pretty decent and the pricing is inexpensive for brunch. I think most of their brunch offerings are around $10. Oh yeah, you should definitely get a side of their onion rings... tasty stuff.
Oh yeah, they have a decent selection of beers on tap as well. There's a bar area where you can just order a pint and watch what's playing on the flatscreen above the bar. Check this place out.
Cute, AND right around the corner from Main Street (which means more parking and less commotion). You seat yourself-- but they always acknowledege you when you walk in (to avoid that awkward, "did they see us?" situation).
It's similar to diner food (patty melts, club sandwiches, milkshakes), but then there are also some upper echelon entrees as well. Everything I have ever had here has been fantastic.
BEST PART OF MALTBY'S.... little box of Trivial Pursuit question cards on every table in case you get bored. Who doesn't love that??
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I like Maltby's.
Pros:
- good draught beer selection, generally some locals + a couple belgian and/or germans (although I do wish they'd rotate out their selection a bit to be a bit more seasonal)
- solid bar food (apps, sandwiches)
- reasonable prices
- one of the few places in downtown Los Altos I can walk to on a Friday night to drink a couple beers
- nice staff
Cons:
- they close too early
- entrees might sometimes be .. disappointing. I ordered the duck cassoulet one night and absolutely hated it .. it was stodgy and tasted off
Don't let that last 'con' phase you - my fiance and I have eaten there many times and we have both always enjoyed our meals - I think the duck was an anomaly.
I think this place is a little over rated. My parents LOVE this place and all of my parents friends do too. I think it might be a better place for the 30+ crowd. The food is just OK by my standards and the prices are pretty high but it is a quality place. And the staff there is great. They are always super friendly.
It's THE great family restaurant in Los Altos. If the Chicken Cobb sandwich wasn't so damn good, I'd probably be able to give you some other menu hints...but I've never heard anyone complain about anything on the menu. Atmosphere is homey, comfortable and you're bound to run in to neighborhood friends... If you're by yourself...head to the bar and have dinner there with a brew and watch the game. Hats off also for all of their charity and fund raising events.
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Hi, I'm actually the bartender at this restaurant, and I've been working here for almost 5 years, and for good reason! The owner, James, is a great guy to work for and I think he runs his restaurant unbelievably well. There isn't a single thing on the menu I wouldn't recommend, but customer favorites include: Skirt steak salad cooked to order, homemade meatloaf with mashers and gravy, beer battered fish and chips, an AMAZING 1/2 lb burger (we will cook it rare if you like it that way!), Mushroom Ravioli with prosciutto, Crabcake Salad, and a Cobb Sandwich.
We have excellent lunch specials that combine a cup of our famous soups with a small salad or a whole sandwich. The prices are very reasonable for the amount and quality of food. I believe our service to be among some of the best. You can come in jeans or a suit and be comfortable.
At the bar, we make a mean margarita, and also refreshing mojitos. Most of our customers are regulars, and if you try us out you will be one too!
Call for directions and hours. We aren't open very late because Los Altos is sort of a sleepy town. Also, we are kind of off the main drag and our address is deceptive - you might get lost from Googling us so we can give you better directions over the phone.
Come and eat at the bar and I can give you even ore recommendations!
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Been here a couple times and I like it. The service is fast and the food is good, portion sizes are just right for lunch. I've only eaten the soups and salads, with sides of fries and I really like the fries. They're like the mcdonalds fries except not as greasy and much crunchier and seasoned. My bf has gotten the wasabi ahi tuna sandwich both times which comes with fries so thats a good sandwich to try out =)
My favorite for lunch in Los Altos. It has relaxed atmosphere with excellent food. The owner, James, is also a waiter and makes certain that service is always prompt and efficient. One of my favorite lunches is a cup of soup with a medium rare steak sandwich. Try it!
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I feel as if I must have eaten at a different restaurant than all of these people who wrote reviews... one that just happens to have the same name and is located at the same place. This is not a "little" place, it certainly had no resemblance to "home cooked" and it was horribly over-priced. I shared a burger and the Greek Salad with a friend. The burger was well done (despite my request for medium), the meat might have been from Costco, and the fries were exactly In and Out's fries, just three times the price for a smaller portion. I will agree that the bun was good, though. The salad had none of the romaine lettuce promised... it seemed to all be napa cabbage and was not green in the least, the chicken was just really a poor quality chicken breast, and the dressing just tasted like lemon juice. I also just missed the wonderful appeal of the atmosphere. It seemed like a cross between a Friendly's and an Applebees to me. Just a general disappointment for a Yelp 5 star place.
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A stellar spot for lunch. Great service and even better soups. My personal favorite is the Moroccan Chicken. The salads are all stellar as well. I have been leaning toward the Sicilian lately. Tortellini, Italian sausage, olives, and a great pesto vinaigrette. A hearty salad indeed. Other favorites include the Chicken Cobb Sando. If your waistline can afford it go for a shake or malt!
one of the best little places to eat in the downtown Los Altos area. i usually go during the weekends for dinner, and its consistently pretty crowded even thought the wait is never too long. but be aware-- when they are busy they might forget to bring you the bread, so don't be shy to ask for some. i love coming here because the atmosphere is so easygoing and comfortable. and while you wait for your food, you can play with their deck of "baby boomer" trivia pursuit cards.
they have a very nice menu reminiscient of home-cooked meals, with large portions! i've liked everything i've tried:
(i) the burger --the bun is excellent and so are the fries,
(ii) calf''s liver--i love liver! the side of bacon tips the scale on the side of a bit too heavy, but the mashed potatoes are so good),
(iii) fish n chips--the cod is presented super-hot just out of the fryer; ask for the slaw on the side otherwise your fries wil get soggy, and
(iv) the Sicilian pasta salad is amazing--kalamata olives, a strong pesto-based sauce, and sweet italian sausage to top it off.
i usually eat everything on my plate at other restaurants, but on more than one occasion here at Maltby's, i had to bring food back with me.
it'll be worth the trip!
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Tied in my book for 1st place: Best Fish-n-Chips in the Bay Area. Fries are some of the best I've ever had. And you can bring your dogs to summertime dinner in the front sidewalk dining area.
The first line in the "Cheers" song is "Where everyone knows your name". That's how it starts at Maltby's. They know your name, remember you, and are genuinely happy to see you. Your dining experience has started on a high note. The best is yet to come.
They have a wonderfully extensive menu that meets everyones tastes, desires, and diets. The best burgers, large and tasty salads, soups to die for, and if you have any room, try their desserts. My favorites include their mushroom and tortilla soups, the BLT and Cobb sandwiches, and the Teriyaki Salmon salad. I really should try a few other items on my next 100 visits.
Maltby's is clean, pleasant, run by friendly people who "get it" in customer service, food quality, and price/value. It is exactly what dining out is all about when you decide to venture outside the office or home for lunch or dinner. Try it and you will go back just as quick as they will remember your name!
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