Fat Apple’s Restaurant & Bakery

We stopped in for lunch due to multiple recommendations but were very disappointed.
Service was friendly enough, but slow and communication wasn’t great. I’d be about to ask a question or order something, and the server would take off, resulting in multiple trips back to get what was needed.
The food was just so-​so. There’s no need to charge so much for such a huge Arnold Palmer. Really. The fries and onion rings were over cooked and too greasy, as if they’d been cooked, then cooked again to serve later. Plus, they came at least 15 minutes after the sandwiches came out. I had the meatball sub… Sauce was kind of bland and the pico de gallo on an Italian (ish) sub makes NO sense to me. If something comes with a side, state it. Because fries or Cole slaw were specifically mentioned on some sandwiches and not others, I thought the sandwich was á la carte. Then I was surprised with an item on the plate I can’t eat. I hate returning food to be remade, but I had to do it. If this stuff had been described better on the menu, we could have avoided that.
The meatballs themselves were decent, my partner liked his burger well enough. The salad dressing is house-​made, and pretty tasty. Overall it was just a pretty underwhelming experience.
This place is really pricey for what it was. I definitely won’t be back.

This is a great place for comfort food. I love the staff here. Everyone is super friendly. There chocolate chip cookies and anything chocolate here is great. I don’t know what they put in their cookies but they are addicting.

been coming here for 40 years, but now the hamburgers are less juicy, the french fries are frozen, and the good onions rings now have a spicy disgusting coating. no more sorry

Food is good and priced reasonably. Service is OK. But the Berkeley location is extremely cold inside. Seems like you’re at a picnic in Alaska rather than Berkeley. They don’t want to turn on the heat. Heater supposedly does work. Too bad as what should be a great experience is a frozen nightmare.

Came here for breakfast the other day with my parents and I was surprised by the quality of the food. Don’t let the size of the place fool you because the food here is good. Yes the place is small and on the weekends there might be a slight wait but it’s worth it. The staff here are really friendly and they are quick about their service. Everything here is organic and there are plenty of items to choice from their menu. There are also items that you can buy so you can take a treat home. The only thing that I will complain about is the parking. Since this place is on the corner in Berkeley, it is hard to find parking at times, especially when it’s busy but other than that, it’s not too hard to find a spot if you really look. Also, because this place is small, the seating inside can be a bit squished but if you don’t mind that then it will be a good experience for you.

Don’t order potpie. The crust is premade and tasteless and cold. It’s just dropped on top of the sauce. Total waste if money.

Went pretty late on a Sunday for some dessert and they were out of everything I wanted. They were well stocked on the season dessert (pecan pie), so we stuck with that and it was really good. The staff was really friendly and tried to work with me as best they could. Its’ a nice place to have lunch or dessert and catch up with friends.

This was my second opportunity to eat at Fat Apple’s. The waffles are still served slightly warm, but delicious as ever (I would recommend asking your server to heat the waffles as soon as you get them). The pumpkin pancakes stole the show today. Highly recommended!
Also, the servers forget about drinks. I always get water to wash down my syrup; ask for a pitcher, because otherwise you’ll be parched for most of the meal. Atmosphere is noisy on the weekends and not much better on the weekdays, but the food is quality and having lived in Berkeley, when you find a good breakfast place, you stick with it! Also, classic Berkeley parking: none. You’ll have to plan your parking and walk in. It’s right on the corner of Rose and MLK.

I have been coming here since the 70s. And in the last 6 mo it has gotten worse and worse.
Mostly I eat the large mixed salads with chicken. But everytime I order one there is less and less chicken and its dry and burned. I heard they send their less successful cooks to this location. And its not like the salad is inexpensive… its a standard price. Im disappointed. Id never recommend this place anymore and after years of goign there once a week I will find another place where the food is good. I do want to say that a good number of servers really go out of their way to please you. They clearly know the place is deteriorating because they are the ones to whom we complain. I understand the change in minimum wage is hurting places like Fat Apples that except on weekends are not full… but they could change that with better food (some with higher prices).

Sadly, I can only give two stars. I’ve been waiting for this location to get back into the swing of things for years, but I am finally giving up on it. I won’t be returning.
The food is only one half-​step above Denny’s, the décor is Denny’s with carpet, the service is very mediocre and sometimes terrible, and the pastries are sad. However, because they probably have astronomical rent, the cost is much much more than the Denny’s experience.
Details to expect — tired and uninteresting food. One cup of coffee — good luck getting refills. A few pastries but don’t get your hopes up that they are fully stocked with all of their listed items. Very muddy coffee. Bitter some might say. Ambiance, boring. My kids’ artwork is more lively than this slight hint at a Jack London theme.
It’s like they’ve given up completely. Just a sad shadow of its previous self.
Two stars given because you won’t get sick, and the cheese puffs are still very pleasant.
Good bye Fat Apples. We really had something once.

Good, solid comfort food, shakes, fries, and baked goods. This is the «friendly» Fat Apples. I won’t go to the one on Fairmont anymore due to poor service.
Parking at this Fat Apples can be a challenge and they have ¹⁄₃ the seating capacity, but the service is fast and friendly.

Decent breakfast and pastries. It gets very hot on a warm days. My nephew really enjoyed his breakfast. The décor is a little outdated.

This place is the type of restaurant I’d go on a road trip when no other options are available and I’m starving and it’s 9 am and I’ve been driving nine hours.
Other than that situation, I wouldn’t eat here. Bland and pricey food paired with a sad environment of fluorescent lighting, generic paintings, water stains, etc. Comparable to a Denny’s.
Finding places like these always surprises me considering how competitive and high-​quality the food is in the East Bay.

Good family restaurant. I really feel like I’m at someone’s house.
Great service and great food.

went into Fat Apple’s bakery side. just a few items on the shelf.
quick service.
eats:
chocolate chip cookie (1.35)
–sweet cookie, soft texture, cookie huge, some parts bland.
apple turnover (2.85)
crust not so flakey, apple ok, just average
take outs:
–baked goods slightly better than average.

Great burgers, fries, milkshakes, and baked goods. This place will always be Fat Albert’s to me and my family. One thing they have changed over the years is that they used to use shredded cheddar cheese which melted delicately on the burgers. These days they use sliced cheddar and it is not the same, so I skip the cheese now. Please bring back the shredded cheddar! :) The milkshakes are huge so splitting one is recommended.

A thousand years and a thousand more, this was another restaurant the family used to eat at. And I do believe it was called Fat Albert’s instead of Fat Apple’s (Hey! Hey! Hey!) This was the only Fat Apple’s long before the El Cerrito branch came into existence.
The Mother and I came here for lunch recently. Upon entering, I was quite surprised to see a gate with a sign «Please Wait to Be Seated.» Seriously, as if the customer (s) was part of a group of cattle? Eventually, we did not have to wait too long to be seated and to be given menus. The day we came here, Fat Apple’s appeared to be short-​staffed, the service was slow and the servers were taxed a bit in performing their duties. I had to wait quite a bit in getting water refills.
The Mother and I decided to try their breakfast plates. She had the corned beef hash and I had their poached eggs with bacon. And both of our plates came with a choice of pastry. I had a croissant and The Mother had toast with their olallieberry-​raspberry jam.
To cut a long story short, it was A-​OK. Just that. I don’t know if we will make a return visit to chow here. I do know if I get some solo time, I would like to return to visit the bakery side and give it a try.
SYOY.

Time: 1:04pm/64°F cloudy
Purpose: Been to their EC location and now this bakery location was up on the list. Remembering a not so stellar experience at EC location. I came to this place in hopes of finding something worth coming back for.
Ambiance: I just went to their small walk-​in shop. Wooden bench on sidewalk and none inside. Once inside you’ll say wow is this it? So limited on all their offerings. Painted art on wall reminiscence that of being inside kitchen at home. Utensil counter with self served pump coffee warmers, seasonal menu for Thanksgiving/​Christmas, one cold display case, one pastry/​danish, corner mounted shelfs, flip flop trashcan, napkin dispenser, cake pedestal, register. The kitchen prep area is bigger than the sales floor.
Staff: One girl about late 20s cashier other two, back of the house staff. She was cordial and nice greeted me within 10 seconds. Nothing to say other than when phone order comes in for the upcoming Thanksgiving, you’ll be left standing for at least 5 minutes.
Cleanliness: Grade B, some areas of concerns was spotted. Maybe they knew about it just needed the time or just happen recently prior to me coming in.
Eats/​Drinks: Florentine chocolate dipped cookie $ 1.85, very good flavors with no corner cutting. This cookie was the only thing that was appealing to me while there. All others depending what you get some are from from box, thaw out then thrown in oven. Anyways first bite was so divine to make sure it was consistent it took me three bites to be sold on it. Yup, I agree all made from scratch buttery taste with hints of florentine along with sliced almonds topping it off. I can tell when the item is handmade or store bought and I will challenge anyone to claims the otherwise.
Products/​Services: Cupcakes, pastries/​danishes, quiches, cookies, rhubarb crisp, coffee beans (Fat Apple’s own), cold/​hot drinks, shakes/​malted milkshakes, pies slice/​whole, ala mode, soup of day, rolls, breads, hamburger buns, granola, jams, jelly, eclairs, chili, fresh fruits. Seasonal items as of Nov. 22 gingerbread man, gingerbread houses, pumpkin pies.
Punch Lines: Small walk in shop, minimal seating, quiet neighborhood, MLK connected with Solano ave, not too much lighting, self serve coffee, average personable staff, deco leaves something to desired, modest cost, budget-​watchers, devotees in/​out, limites items, use 2^nd party coffee roaster, condensation on display cases, items looks somewhat old.
Tradeoffs: Great for long time devotees who don’t have to drive all the way to EC and pick up their cakes/​pies. This is a good starting point for ordering your goods, as you come in person, or call direct and place order.
Final Thoughts: This bakery is not one of those trend setting places were organic this/​that, locally sourced type, fair trade, non GMO, eco-​freindly type. Not even old school, just a place that does all the baking and delivering it to their restaurant location in EC. Basically most often than not, focusing on their side of business which is the restaurant/​bakery part but, also serves the public while at it. They could care less if you want to buy or not. Side business is just for the neighborhood convenience, not a their primary focus.

Their cutesy cheese puff pyramids SOOO remind me of Porto’s Cuban cheese rolls – ‘cept I prefer FA’s: less sweet and adore the many many layers of puff pastry…
Good little teaser

3.5 stars
I think this Fat Apples is not as great as the El Cerrito location, but it still does a decent job on brunch. I love that for some dishes they give you an option for toast or pastry. My advice is to check out the pastry before sitting down at your table to see if there’s anything that catches your eye. When I came here, the pastry selection was very limited (cinnamon bun and blueberry scone only). I hope this was just bad luck and that I happened to arrive when they were low on pastries, but if this is typical of the Berkeley location, then that would be a good enough reason to go to the El Cerrito location (which has always had an expansive selection of pastries every time I’ve been there).
I had the Ranch Scramble which was solid. It consisted of scrambled eggs with bacon, ham, bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, and cheddar.
You also can’t go wrong with the pumpkin pancakes!
The blueberry scone was delicious! I’ve also had the turnover which was amazing. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of their pastries…