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Category: American (Traditional) [Edit]
Neighborhoods: Lower Hills, Lakeshore
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As I get older, I am fortunately less drawn to "interesting," "quirky" (read: "totally unreliable and flaky") folks as friends. Less sexy descriptors like "sincere" and "loyal" carry greater weight with me. Rolling Dunes is one of my most loyal friends.
No, there is nothing particularly earth-shattering or life-changing on the menu. But who cares? What Rolling Dunes does have is consistently good and comfortingly familiar food, natural and friendly staff, and really awesome pancakes (pecan butter=love) served all day for those occasional moments when you just neeeeed breakfast for dinner.
I don't eat out much anymore, maybe twice a week. Lately at least one of those meals is a Rolling Dunes soup and/or salad for weeknight dinner. Sometimes I eat in, sometimes to go, but even when I'm just waiting for take out, the waitress with the cool haircut stills bring me a glass of water. Little things like that mean a lot to me these days, and make me proud (and grateful!) that this friendly spot is in my neighborhood. After a long day, knowing that I can get a healthy, affordable, friendly meal (without cooking it myself!) goes a long way.
I'm a fan of crepes - the savory and the sweet. If you roll it up in one of those thin, warm pancakes, I will eat it. (Pause for the obligatory phallic joke because I pretty much walked into that one.)
Rolling Dune serves up some tasty crepes. Granted, I've only had one so far, but I wouldn't be against going back to try a few more. This first time I had the Twist Crepe which featured jack cheese, onions, spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, and ricotta cheese. From perusing the menu, I saw some pretty inventive mixes of flavors. I wanted to try them all. The capacity of my tummy is not that big though, nor do I want it to be. Be forewarned, you could easily split one entree between two people. In addition to the entree, you also get homefried potatoes and a salad with balsalmic vinagrette.
No fuss, no mess, no wait. Get in line, order your food, and sit down. The lady at the counter was really helpful in helping choose a crepe too for you "I-don't-know-what-I-want" eaters.
Those of you who aren't into crepes, 1) what's wrong with you? and 2) fear not, they have plenty of other entrees for your enjoyment.
I'm gonna agree with another yelper on here - this is a good place to go for a nice, EASY brunch.
Most of the time I end up coming here after a night out with friends for a hungover brunch. Compared to other brunch spots I've been to with lines out the door, I've never had to mess with that while I'm nursing a "hate the world" mentality.
Just get in line, order your food and have it brought to you. Rare is the instance where I've had to wait for a table.
I would recommend the Tin Tin Pan crepe - a savory crepe with some tofu, spinach, cheese, marinara (amongst other things), that most of the time I default to. It's always pretty solid. The Hillary sandwich is also delicious - grilled moist chicken, pesto, tomato. I add some avocado to mine, and you're pretty good to go. According to the server, it's one of the more popular ones.
I can't say anything about the pancakes, but the last couple times I've gone, they have looked AMAZING, and I keep meaning to get one. Could be worth a check out.
A regular hangout for my family and I. The atmosphere works great for kids and my wife and I like to eat breakfast here when we have the rare day off without the munchkins too.
I especially like the Eggs Blackstone and the Good Morning Crepe.
Order the Pete's.
I have been coming to this place for years and it continues to get better with each visit. The food is extremely consistent, the service is stellar, and the prices are cheap. I've eaten at every crepe place in SF and Oakland and can confidently say this is the best. Never salty like many of the other crepe places, always pleasant, never disappointed. Thanks for the great addition to the Lake Merritt casual dining scene.
This was a unexpected find. My friend, her mom and I were really hungry after taking a break from garage sale hunting and were looking for some where to eat lunch. When a lovely lady said try that place around the corner called "Rolling Dunes" it became a hit. My friend and I walk the lake just for lunch there at lease one a week.
I was on Lakeshore running a few errands and thought I'd try somewhere new to grab a quick lunch. Before realizing what an extensive crepe menu they had, I popped into Rolling Dunes. I think I waited longer trying to make up my mind than I did for my food.
I ended up settling for a cup of their lentil soup (I had had a crepe earlier in the week), and left with a steaming hot cup of soup and side of bread. As I drove back to the office I could smell its deliciousness seeping out and got eager to slurp it up at my desk. Lo and behold, the reason I could smell it was because their to go container did not do it's job well. It definitely was "to go," and by that I mean "to go all over my car."
Thankfully, the crappy manufacturing of the soup container did not taint the taste of this soup and I was able to salvage enough to enjoy. I definitely give the flavor, quality, and amount of their soup 5 stars. Maybe next time they should let it cool a bit before packaging up...I came to the conclusion that the glue started to melt, causing severe leakage. Regardless, hopefully I'll make it back to try one of their many delicious crepes.
I live near this place and have been a few times. This time I went with a friend from out of town and she seemed to like the place. I always get some sort of crepe. This time I shared the Mama Mia Crepe. I don't remember exactly whats in it except chicken, pesto, and tomatoes. It was freakin delicious though! The crepes are big enough to share with someone if you're not big eaters.
We also decided to each have a dessert crepe! Both of our dessert crepes were delicious and one thing we loved is that it comes with the option of whipped cream or ice cream!! I mean for the same price can you even compare the two? Of course we both had ice cream, it was delicious!
There are some awesome brunch spots on this block!
I think this one is my favorite because I love me some savory crepes!
Today I had the Amore Crepe - Salmon, Spinach and Cheese with a side salad and homestyle potatoes, DELISH!
I was honestly ready for some scrawny sliced up lox, but there were some hearty pieces of grilled salmon filet in there! Totally hit the spot and it was washed down with refreshing Iced Mango Tea.
Fiancee had French Toast and Ham. His plate was just as yummy and the fresh squeezed OJ was perfect.
Excellent, fast service. You order, pay and find a seat. Food is brought out to you promptly with attentive staff around to refill your drinks and take a way your plates.
Loved the artsy ambiance, great pieces adorned the walls.
The crepes here are really good. Loved the spring salad and potatoes too. I will definitely go back and try the dessert crepes or a piece of cake. Yum.
Great place. Service is fast and they are quick to refill your drinks. Had the mama mia crepe and sunset dessert crepe. I loved that the crepe came with potatoes and salad. Also liked that the dessert crepe came with a choice of ice cream or whipped cream for free. Quality is definitely worth the price.
Although, I was a little disappointed to find out that the pasta was only served during limited hours.
They have non-crepe options!
The coffee's only ok (we usually fuel up at Peet's first...and afters), but the pasta's pretty passable, and my friends who like sammiches, salads and the like seem to enjoy the rest of the menu.
Good brunch option from time to time. Friendly service, nice big open space.
I have been to Rolling Dunes twice. The first time was a few years ago, when it was new. I don't remember having had a good or bad experience then, so I agreed to go back recently with a friend. Let me tell you, I regetted that decision almost immediately.
This is the kind of place where you go to the counter, order your meal, have a seat, and they bring your food to you. Strangely, however, they put a line for the tip right on your credit card receipt before they've even had a chance to earn their tip.
My friend ordered first. The lady at the counter was very short with her, and difficult to understand. While the lady rung her up, my friend tasted the lemonade she'd ordered, and told the lady that the lemonade had turned. The lady didn't understand the phrase and was rude to my friend about not understanding. Instead of saying, "I'm sorry, what do you mean by that?" she snarled, "What do you mean, it turned?" My friend explained that the lemonade had gone bad, and the lady had the gall to argue with her, claiming that she had made it herself earlier that afternoon.
First, just because she made it earlier that afternoon doesn't mean that it couldn't have gone bad in the intervening hours, or that the lemons (or lemonade mix, more likely) couldn't have been bad already.
Second, even if most other tasters would have found the lemonade acceptable, THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.
Instead of apologizing and trying to make it right by offering my friend an alternative beverage, the lady grudgingly gave my friend her $1.85 (or whatever) back.
At this point, I was so flustered that I gave my order wrong, forgetting to ask the cook to hold the cheese in my scramble. I didn't realize my error until after I had sat down, and I was too afraid of the nasty lady behind the counter to change my order.
When the food came, it was decent. It was served hot, which I suppose I appreciated, but it was on the overly salty side, and in any case, I already had a really sour taste in my mouth from the unbelievably rude service I'd had.
In the end, I had lost most of my appetite before I was even served. I will never, ever go back to this place. EEEEEEKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!
I love the pesto chicken crepe from this place, as well as their wonderful spring salad with a tangy vinegarette.
Incredible. Only disclaimer is that I have not been here in a year or two, but when I did go regularly, it was fab!
Oh, Jessica E is right about the Parking. It eats ass.
I've been in this spot a few times so today I decided I was going to try it one more time before I go play tennis.
The one day I just want a simple egg white omelette w/chicken apple sausage and toast w/some OJ and just when I was going to rip into my meal my damn omelette was raw!!!
I was livid. I paid $15 just for that and it raw!!!! And how the hell can u make a raw egg white omelette?!?
Let's just say this is the LAST time I'll be in this place. I'm only giving u one time to try and kill me w/raw eggs!
YUCK! BOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!
I used to really like this place. Good crepes. Order at the counter to avoid too much interaction. Mannequins hovering. Yummy looking desserts.
One day, my dining partner found a wire in his crepe.
That was kind of weird.
We got our money back, but still.
I wasn't sure if I would go back, but I'm kind of shameless about things. I've seen a cockroach in my fondue in New York and a gnat in my soy sauce in Oakland. A wire? Who cares!
I think I still need some time before I can eat here, but I am grateful for the availability of hot chocolate and espresso drinks.
I mean, Peet's and Arizmendi close at like 7!
Last week, the weather was pretty crappy and I was really craving some hot chocolate. I tried to rush to Peet's before they closed, but I'm way too cool to run so I didn't make it.
Then I remembered Rolling Dunes. I ordered my hot chocolate.
Happy!
Then I walked past Easy and thought how my hot chocolate would be even better with some Bailey's.
I sauntered in with my beverage, ordered a shot, poured it in, and walked out to enjoy my hot beverage in the cold, crisp evening air.
My first visit to Rolling Dunes was for breakfast one Sunday. We arrived at 10am, which apparently was just in time to beat the crazy rush of people waiting in line out the door to order their food.
I had eggs florentine with salmon and it was heavenly. I could see myself getting hooked and eating that same meal every Sunday. The fresh squeezed OJ was served in a really big glass, which is rare to find. The coffee was solidly good, but in no way great. Everyone at my table was similarly pleased with their meals. I would rate this experience 4 stars.
I returned to Rolling Dunes recently for dinner and didn't find the pesto pasta with scallops to be particularly tasty. As a matter of fact, it was downright bland. I admit that I'm more into garlic than some, but rarely do I salt my food, and I had to reach for the shaker 3 times, which equals a 2 star review.
Definitely check this place out, but go in the AM and go early if you don't want to wait.
Went here for dinner. Prices were very low. I got the special: chicken guacamole burger, which was HUGE and came with delicious, crispy roasted potatoes w/rosemary AND a nice green salad. Plus sour cream on the side, which gets me every time. Atmosphere was really casual, you order first, then get a number and sit down and the food is brought out to you. Pasta, crepes, sandwhiches and salad make up the menu.
When D's bro was in town, he went here for breakfast two days in a row cus he liked it so much! I will definitely be back.
No nonsense place for breakfast - from the time you step to the counter to order your food to the time you sit down. There was a bit of a wait for our food but it wasn't too bad. Food tasted yummy - especially since I was so hungry! It was pleasantly not too crowded around 9 a.m. on Sunday and we found easy parking nearby.
On a mission to order nothing but "specials" for a while.
I went for the beef ravioli. It was nice and spicy. I didn't even know that I liked spicy ravioli, but apparently, I do.
My skinny little pal got a chicken crepe with pesto (w salad & those marvelous potatoes) that tasted phenomenal when topped off with a little of the spicy ravioli sauce.
I couldn't finish my meal, but my dear sweet toothpicky-framed friend cleaned off her entire plate. I don't know how she packed it all in, but she did.
I'm committed to returning until I've sampled at least half of everything on the menu.
Open 'til 10. That alone is awesome.
Breakfast available all-day.
Sweet and savory crepes, and some…
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Meh. Totally unimpressed. I was really disappointed as this is within walking distance from my place. I've lived in the neighborhood for 5 years and finally gave 'Rollin Dunes' a shot. Not sure if it was a bad day or what, kinda hope so for their sake.
I ordered the Roasted Eggplant, Pepper, Tomatoes and Mozzarella Sandwich with Pesto. I'm not entirely sure how you can go wrong with a sandwich full of some of my favorite ingredients, but they did. I think they actually forgot to put my order in because my food turned up about 5 minutes after my friend's did. I don't mind that so much, I know 'stuff' happens', nobody is perfect and we all make mistakes. But I honestly couldn't believe they served me that sandwich!! I understand some sandwiches can turn out to be messy (slippery avocado, sauces and such) but this was ridiculous!! It was an absolute disaster on my plate. I know this sounds real petty but the truth is, I couldn't even pick up the damn thing up. Who chops tomatoes and peppers for a sandwich?
Add my friend said her Denver Omelet tasted like it was made on a BBQ. Bad day?? You tell me.
Doubt I'll head back.
Such a peaceful place to enjoy a nice meal. I love the beautiful mural of some faraway beach. The staff is friendly and unobtrusive.
I enjoyed Pancakes w/ eggs and chicken apple sausage. The walnut butter should be packaged and sold it's so delicious! My date had a chicken sandwich and salad. He claimed it to be the best chicken sandwich he's ever had...lol...I didn't try it, but the bread looked mmm mmm good...
I had to come back and give this place its fifth star.
On my return visits, it's all been right.
I know what I go for and what to expect, I get it with polite & fast service, I get to jam out to the music plus the vibe still remains nice and friendly.
Why jip them a star when I have zero complaints?
Way to go, Dunes!
I am super disappointed that I did not hear about this place sooner. I've lived practically down the… Read more »
Something at Rolling Dunes puts me at ease as soon as I walk in the door. I've been here with friends and family, but this is also one of the places where I feel really comfortable eating by myself. I always go for the pasta plates-- at less than $10 they are such a good deal and so yummy too. It comes with a fresh green salad and bread. They have a different pasta special every day of the week and I like the one that comes with cream and broccoli. The fennel one was a little too spicy for me. I like the fact that you order at a counter, but still get the food brought out to you. The staff are friendly, but not in-your-face. They leave you enough space to read your magazine, and don't make you feel awkward for being there alone. The quirky artwork and decor are the icing on the cake that make this a casual, but unique, neighborhood restaurant.
This place has been totally off my radar and I'd never been interested until yesterday. Something about the signage always struck me as very 80's in an uncool way.
However, a friend was visiting my place near Lake Merritt, it was about 3:30, she wanted a snack/lunch, and I needed something like a salad to hold me over till dinner. So, soup and salad would be perfect on a chilly day- and even though Holy Land is on the way, Arezmendi serves soup, and there are a myriad options on Lake shore, none seemed more appropriate than Rolling Dunes.
The interior is pretty crazy- there are several murals, 'works-of-art' AND there are weird life size mannequins scattered about-a couple above the gigantic ventilation fan in the kitchen, and another guy in the front of the house; this one paper-machie and donning blue glitter overalls as he climbs a ladder. Whatever, they need to reassess these things! Visual clutter! Exposed brick so the atmosphere is still somewhat tolerable. The tables are pine and the veneer on the tops are wearing with age.
You order at the counter and take a number. There's a silverware and condiment station you can help yourself to.
Anyway, I ordered the spinach, beet and feta salad, (hold the candied nuts, thanks) and some cream of spinach soup. The soup was salty and creamy and I wonder if it was made from scratch in house, but even if it wasn't it was good, and the salad was exactly what I wanted.
The combo was just under $10.00, a deal.
My friend tried a turkey burger which was huge and looked pretty good if you're into ground turkey. It came with red-potato home fries which seemed kind of random (I'm sensing a theme, here!) but apparently they were tasty. Her order came out to about $ 11.00
So, all in all a safe bet for lunch, and I'd imagine their breakfast is good, as well. I'm a satisfied customer.
Rolling Dunes was a great little brunch/breakfast place right in the center of Lakeshore village.
The cashier and servers were both extremely cheerful and friendly. The atmosphere was also quite nice...big open windows, lots of light, perfect for people watching.
Breakfast for two was about 20 bucks, but we left completely satisfied. Both of us got the Denver Omlette- ham, onion, cheese, pepper, and a few other goodies. The problem was that I ordered an egg white omlette with no cheese, and the other person ordered a regular omlette with no onion. I ended with cheese all over my egg white omlette and he got stuck with extra onion.
The food ended up being so good that we just couldnt complain. Regardless, such a mistake at what I deemed a pricey breakfast place earns Rolling Dunes 3 stars.
My Mother and I came here after a doctor's appointment. My appointment was at 7:30 so we were able to eat breakfast after. It was OKAY... The one thing that bothered me was their tea. I'm a green tea drinker and the only green tea they had was this one that tasted like fruit juice.. a little weird for me. Anyways onto the food.
I got this healthy veggie omelet that you could substitute egg whites for regular old eggs. I'm currently on this weight loss competition and it sucks b/c if it wasn't for that I would've gotten what my mother ordered. Anyways, it wasn't bad.. tasty.. it had all of my favorite veggies and was surprisingly filling..
My mother ordered the corn beef and hash... She said it was really good and it sure did look good. The corn beef was the good kind where you can see the chunks of corn beef.
I will probably come back when I'm off this dang diet and can eat something more tasty... I'll also need to remember to bring my own tea bag.. I should have known better.
Lots of interesting crepes. Service was quick and food was pretty good.
I go here about once a week and have a BLT or pancakes and enjoyed every bite. I bring friends and family when I can and they enjoy their experience as well. What I really love is the staff knows what they are doing. They can handle the Sunday crowds with grace. I love that they enforce an order-before-you-sit rule -it makes Sunday brunch more civilized.
I gotta hand it to Rolling Dunes for one dish: the Tin Tin Pan savory crepe. Here's the gist of it:
Tin tin pan
Tofu, eggplant, garlic, tomato, cilantro, jack cheese, roasted peppers, pine nuts, marinara sauce
And you get a side salad. And you get outstanding red potatoes done with rosemary and (olive oil?). All this for just shy of $8. And the portions are large enough to have seconds the next day. One day I'll have a sweet crepe here, but the Tin Tin Pan is a veggie standby.
Rolling Dunes is open till 10 o'clock on Lakeshore while most places close at 9. Good to know.
There are a few crepes and sandwiches I have tried and liked here. The Hilary sandwich comes with Chicken and a pesto sauce with some cheese, a good lunch. The Tandoori crepe comes with potatoes, peas, yellow, curry and chicken. It's not too hot. I like the little red crepe which comes with bbq sauce, cheese and your choice of chick of beef. Pretty greasy, but very tasty.
It always comes with a side of killer potatoes and some sour cream and a small side salad. They have daily soups and sometimes they're very good. I like the creamy tomato. I've only had a few dessert crepes here, mostly the one with apple cinnamon and cream..it was a tasty dessert.
The moment you walk in you get that it has a very laid back feel to it. You order at the counter when you're ready and seat yourself. No muss, no fuss. The staff is friendly, which is always a plus, because we all know, there are establishments who can care less about their customers.
We ordered only from the breakfast side of the menu, and nothing was spectacular. :T the pecan butter served with the pancakes were too hard to spread on the pancakes which were only mediocre as well. The Eggs Benedict my boyfriend ordered were nothing off the charts neither. The new potatoes were had an overpowering taste of rosemary. It can be a good or bad thing, depending on how much you like rosemary. And you must LOVE it to endure these potatoes. I prefer just a hint of rosemary thanks.
Maybe the other stuff on their menu might be better, but I can't say it's one of the MUST GO TO places for breakfast/brunch on my list.
I have to upgrade this review after stopping here for a quick dinner a few times.
Rolling Dunes offers grilled sandwiches with egg batter dipped bread. These are outstanding! The bread really makes the sandwich. The other ingredients are tasty as well (I really like the corned beef) but the tasty, almost french toast like, bread is great.
This is your basic, solid brunch spot. The two omlettes we ordered were perfectly fine, but nothing… Read more »
Great Salads with vinagrette
Yummy Bolognese Pasta
Good Chai
Super cute little place to go for a date. I had a crepe and my boyfriend had a pasta dish. Both were great so hopefully those were indicators of the rest of the menu.
I went here for breakfast yesterday and OMG!!! THE French toast, chicken apple sausage, & potatoes were delicious. The orange juice was fresh & the service was good! Parking sucks, but where doesn't parking suck around lakeshore?? I'm definitely coming back asap!
So, it turns out the crepes are quite good and the Cobb Salad is my JAM! Plus, they have tasty iced tea. I really like it.
I'll see you there, darlings!
Definitely a nice spot for a sunny afternoon brunch. Casual atmosphere, cute (well behaved) babies,… Read more »
This is becoming a must-go-to brunch spot when I come up to the Bay.
I haven't had one bad meal here...in fact, everything I've ever ordered here has been relatively good. Their crepe selection is huge and ranges from basic to a bit more interesting, portions are huge, and prices are very reasonable (about $8 for a crepe that comes with a side salad and roasted potatoes). They also have a good selection of salads, sandwiches, breakfast items, and dessert.
Seating can get difficult on weekends, but it's never been awful. It's in a nice part of Lakeshore and even though it's in Oakland, I get a whiff of NY every now and then while eating and facing the street and people walking about.
PROS: You don't have to wait for a slow waiter to come take your order, there's anchor steam on tap, the cheeseburger is decent, the bread that comes with your dinner is freaking amazing and laced with crack rocks to make you crave more, and they have dessert crepes. mmmmm good.Cool decor in a cheap sort of way, and I like the vibe in this place when they play reggae over the speakers...open til 10
CONS: The pasta (and I admit I am a hard critic for Italian food) is mediocre at best--reminds me of the pasta they made at an unnamed overpriced pizza restaurant not named Zachary's on college avenue that I used to work for. This unnamed shithole made batch after batch of pasta in the same water, so by the end of the night, the pasta was so starchy it was god awful..that, and the sauce was less than artfully prepared. If the pasta evokes those memories, you know they went wrong somewhere.
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: American (Traditional)
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: Pizza
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: Mediterranean
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: Breakfast & Brunch
Neighborhood: Lower Hills
Category: Diners
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