West End Cafe

I went to West End Café for the first time and I must say, it was exceptional. Our waiter Vinny was outstanding and really made our dinner wonderful. He recommended the tuna pizza for an appetizer for me and it was delicious. I had the salmon for dinner which was also great. My girlfriends and I really enjoyed the food. The place was a little noisy because it was really busy but other than that I couldn’t have asked for a better meal.

My go to place for a guaranteed great meal. I love rack of lamb but unfortunately not too many places make it well at all. West End does! Best rack of lamb I’ve had and I am a foodie! I always get the tuna tar tar for an appetizer. My only complaint is that on occasion it is too salty but when it’s on point it’s perfection. All in all you will not have a bad meal here.

Interesting and nice décor. Food and service are good. Nice wine list. 3.5

A wonderful restaurant with great food and drinks. Service was a bit slow but work the wait I would defiantly go back. Great choices

We came to celebrate my friends wife birthday, when we pulled into the lot and saw it was like the only place at the end I said not good. (First time here). So we went in the décor was very nice. We had a reservation so as soon as we got in we were seated right away. Waitress came right over to get our drink order, bread and water came right over. So we order a couple of apps, honestly I forgot what we had as apps.(lol) they were good though… So they have a pre fixed meal from starter to dessert. so I ordered the steak (ribeye) with fries. the steak was cooked just right and for dessert I had the carrot cake which was made on premise (awesome) and a espresso. One thing I have to say that we didn’t feel rushed and it was a good feeling not having to say anything. overall great experience and will come back. Great customer service:)

I was not impressed with the food, the presentation of the food nor the atmosphere/​waitstaff. I ordered off the set menu and everything was just OK with no grandness or vision.
I had the meatball appetizer and the ravioli dinner, with the chocolate lava cake. The meatballs were good (highlight of my meal), the ravioli was a hodgepodge of flavors and textures that did not compliment one another and the lava cake had no chocolate lava — it was more like a failed brownie with some ice cream on top. It didn’t even have a good round chocolate flavor. Nothing was robust and crisp to the palate.
The actual place was aging (lackluster décor) and it wasn’t super clean — while that normally would not bother me, it didn’t feel like anyone was at the wheel of this establishment. The waiter did not provide me extra butter when requested and never refilled my drink. They did have some interesting garlic knots before the meals — but those can be purchased at any decent pizza place. It seemed to be a place where OK is good enough, yet you can’t get in without reservations and it’s rather expensive.

Great Place — amazing Staff /​Food /​and Atmosphere …
Try it you will love it!

Meh. Nothing to really wrote home about here. First of all, the fact that it is isolated in an otherwise abandoned shopping center does nothing to boost its reputation. The interior was nicely lit and decorated, however, and for a Tuesday night the tables were pretty filled. There were many people sitting at the bar as well, which did make it feel more «happening» than its exterior location would suggest. The service was excellent. The food was ok. I enjoyed the salmon. Everything was well priced. I think my biggest gripe was that the reviews and ratings made it appear that this is a trendy place that would be great for a special occasion such as a birthday. I was so put off by the initial appearance that it affected my overall view of the place. I judged the book by its cover, so sue me.

Went to West End for restaurant week in the fall of 2016. This place kicks ass. I was pleasantly surprised by the food and drinks here. I had a few different cocktails. All fall themed which was right up my alley. The menu is seasonal. I had duck tacos for my appetizer and they were to die for. I would go back to west end just for the tacos. For my entrée I had steak which was cooked exactly to my liking and the mashed potatoes that the steak was served over were heavenly, so smooth and so creamy. To finish I had the bread pudding which was also very good. The star of the night was definitely those duck tacos.
The location is different and I would not have expected to find gourmet food there but I am sure glad I did

This is a very nice a restaurant, and honestly, it’s one of the nicer restaurants in Nassau County. The food tends to be great, the service is good, and the atmosphere is nice. It’s really just a great place. They do tend to be a little pricey, but not when you consider what you’re receiving (quality). I’ve been here multiple times over several years. Overall it’s really just great, and I recommend trying it. I would also recommend getting the price-​fixed 3 course dinner which includes an appetizer and dessert. The steak here is good, anytime they offer lamb it’s really good, the chocolate lava cake is good, and they just really have good food overall.

This place is amazing. I went for my birthday yesterday and the food was delicious.
The Good: Food is amazing from appetizers to entrée’s. I had the crispy duck tacos and the ahi tuna pizza. Both were very delicious, the duck was tender and rich and the ahi tuna was colorful and quite filling. My entrée was the lamb ragu. I am usually one to not leave anything on my plate, but between the appetizers and the baseball sized garlic knots they give you beforehand I wasn’t even able to finish my food. The noodles were cooked to a perfect al dente and the lamb was very flavorful. My dessert was the pistachio ice cream which was very good as well. I also tried the apple cobbler and crème brûlée which were both very sweet, as they should be.
I went for during a weekday so the fixed price for a select app, entrée, and dessert was a really valuable deal.
The Bad: As mentioned as before, it really is just the location of the restaurant that is the issue. I was not able to find it at firs and would not have known it was there had it not been for some recommendations.
_​_​_​
I will definitely come back to try their other menu options, but overall a good experience.

Love this place. You know why? Because everything is good here. They just know what they’re doing with food.
Great free garlic knots the moment you sit down… fish tacos, meats, entrée salads, soft-​shells, whatever! Everything is delicious.
Yes, it’s tucked away in an odd little shopping center, and it can be hard to find if you don’t know where it is. But the décor is great, the service is superb, and the food is just darned good. Always.

More like a 4.5. This really is the tale of two trips. I first came here like 10 years ago and I really wasn’t wowed by my meal, I remember leaving unimpressed. Fast forward to last week and this might be one of the better meals I had all year. The restaurant is a little more upscale but definitely has a Cheesecake Factory feel to the décor, but the place has been around for a long time, so I forgive them. The crowd is much older, my friend and I were easily the youngest people there and we ain’t no young chickens. The food is classic, very flavorful with a lot of developed flavors, this is a must visit especially after some shopping at Roosevelt Field or looking for a nice dinner. Also, the free garlic knots are good, don’t fill up!
The food:
Burrata– Heirloom tomato salad/​Prosciutto di Parma/​balsamic-​fig syrup. Where do I begin, first, this might be one of the best appetizers I had all year. Burrata and tomatoes are not a new combination, but this is by far the best version I ever had. The Burrata itself was amazing, so perfectly rich and creamy, the tomatoes were the best tomatoes I ever had and it seems crazy to me that I am raving about tomatoes. Every element of this dish was perfect. The prosciutto added a wonderful saltiness and the balsamic offered a wonderful sweetness. Then the few sprigs of basil was the cherry on top, this dish is an absolute must.
Red Wine Braised Short Ribs– Black truffle potato purée/​rainbow carrots/​glazed baby carrots. I really enjoyed this dish a lot, the short ribs were amazing, it was a nice hunk of meat and it had a lot of flavor. The short ribs were so tender and flavorful but the only criticism, it was a smidge dry. I don’t normally say this but the veg was outstanding, the carrots were cooked to absolute perfection, potato purée had amazing flavor and the cipollini onions added a nice sweetness.
Herb Roasted Organic Chicken– Roasted Yukon Gold potatoes/​spring vegetables jardinière/​tarragon pan juices. I thought the chicken had so much flavor, it was so moist and tender and then the skin was nice and crisp. It was good but kinda a safe dish.
House-​Made Carrot Cake– Pecan-​Cream cheese frosting. This is where they lost the half star, the desserts were just OK. The Carrot Cake had great texture, the cream cheese had nice flavor but was on the sweet side, it was interesting since you can actually taste sweet and salty at the same time, and I was not a fan of the raisins, the raisins didn’t work for me.
Bourbon Pecan Pie– Belgium chocolate/​crème chantilly. There were a ton of pecans and the flavor was nice but I thought the dessert was too sweet. The biggest issue I had with this dessert was the crust. The bottom was too soft, borderline mushy and the crust was weird, it had this weird chalky feel. But the whip cream was so perfect though, it was so light and airy and fantastic.

Always dependable but never overly impressive. They do have some creative seasonal drinks, I had the southern (something) that used muddled peach and cucumber vodka, that was served in a cute little ball jar with mint on top. Note that I said little, after the ice and cucumber slices the drink was less than 4 ounces at best. I do not mind paying for an artisan drink but not if I get less than 3 good swallows. My chicken was excellent as was my wedge salad to start, although had they used a thick sliced bacon on the wedge it would be greatly improved. So overall, good meal, nice atmosphere but just misses from being much better in my book.

Still great service and classy setting, I just preferred what I ordered last time compared to this time. I didn’t even realize until my 2^nd visit, but the ceiling décor is beautiful!!! Drapery everywhere, adds to the classy vibe. We did the same thing where we got 1 prix-​fixe menu for $ 30 plus a shrimp-​lobster quesadilla to share between the two of us. I thought the shrimp-​lobster quesadilla was okay (I’m not a huge fan of lobster but I definitely liked the cheesy shrimp with the tomatoes and mango that came on the side) and (as part of the prix-​fixe menu) with the jumbo shrimp pasta I wasn’t a fan of the sauce that was used. However, compared to last time, the burratta cheese was even better than it was originally (they added prosciutto under the cheese this time– YUMMM two faves in one). I also thought the molten cake was better this time with enough of the «ooze» that I was looking for during my last visit. The garlic knot balls they give in the bread basket are amazing– ask for extra: P Entrée prices are on the higher end, so I think it’s really worth it to do the prix-​fixe menu to get more bang for your buck — we left superrrr full.

My husband and I went here for restaurant week. The staff was really friendly. The clientele was a little turn off– seemed like everyone was 65+, not that anything is wrong with that –it just killed the vibe lol. Food was good– fish tacos were great, pork chop was tasty and huge and the molten lava cake was missing the lava !!
Presentation of food was excellent :). It was good but not enough to go back.

Overall I think the West End Café deserves a 3. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t superb. Maybe they are better at dinner? Who knows? I came for lunch.
First things first… It’s a good looking restaurant. The bar is long and the seating area is a good size.
Second of all… it wasn’t a bad lunch just as I said to my mom and Aunt «I definitely ordered the wrong thing» and man I was bummed fo’ sho’.
We ordered:
The Soup of the Day: which was Roasted Cauliflower, Pistachio, and I believe Raisins. Honestly it wasn’t that great. I expected some chunks of cauliflower and the soup was thick but had next to no flavor. We all sampled it cause we were starving.
They brought over delicious Garlic Knots. Heavy but delicious. I could’ve skipped the soup and gone for the knots and been a happy camper.
The water situation was nice at first but a little odd after the fact. I love when I get a bottle/​carafe of water to pour into my own glass… really. But when we’re out of water and the water is warm cause there was no ice then I got a small problem. Nothing major but just. noted.
My mom ordered the Jumbo Lump Crab Cake Sandwich with Fries. The lump crab cake was delicious. Her complaints were that the bread too much and the crab cake was falling apart. Therefore it wasn’t as advertised; a sandwich and ate the crab cake with the avocado on her plate.
My aunt ordered the Butternut Squash Ravioli with Goat Cheese. Man I love almost anything with Goat Cheese. She had no complaints and her dish was delicious.
I ordered the Chicken with Brie and Double Smoked Bacon Panini with Fries. I also asked for Garlic Aioli. I’m sorry. Here I am thinking that this is going to be awesome and it was blah. Fries were good dipped in the aioli. What can I say? European Republic has turned me into a fry dipping connoisseur.
After our lunch we all decided we’d split the Molten Chocolate Cake. It came with a scoop of Dulce de Leche ice cream. It was your typical Molten Chocolate Cake.
Would I come back? Maybe.

We dined at the West End Café for lunch on a Saturday. I was pretty impressed with how the outside of the restaurant looked– it was lit well by Christmas lights and really stood out amongst the other storefronts in the shopping mall it’s located in.
Inside ambiance was even more beautiful. An upscale café, perfectly lit and well decorated. The restaurant was steadily busy while we were there.
I had the lunch Rigatoni Alla Vodka with shrimp. The rigatoni was cooked perfectly. it was slightly al dente and so wonderfully chewy. Yum! The sauce was just right– not too creamy or heavy but definitely hearty, just what I was looking for on a cold snowy day. My fiancé had their burger with three toppings– mushrooms, onions and cheese with a side of sweet potato fries. Although I did not sneak a bite, it looked wonderful. Our aunt had the steak quesadilla which was one of the lunch specials. I also didn’t taste this dish but I think the fact that she finished the entire entrée is proof enough that it was tasty.
The menu was varied and had many options. The prices ranged between $ 9 and $ 20.
The only thing that wasn’t perfect was that our server never came to check on us to see how our food was but everything else was pretty perfect. A total gem!

I have been coming to the shopping center where West End Café is located for years and never new about this place. Tucked away in a corner its quite a surprise how many people come here. After realizing how good their service and food is, now I know whey people come.
Eats:
— Jumbo lump crab cakes was a decent size and delecious
— Rare Ahi tuna with cold soba noodles was just to die for. The tuna was prefectly cooked and the noodles paired well with it.
— Balsamic glazed short ribs are juicy to the bone and delecious as well
Likes:
— Homey atmosphere
— Bar has a big selection of wine and they also carry craft beer
— Service is good
— Portions are huge
— House bread is really good
Dislikes:
— Gets a bit loud but hey it gets busy here so I guess what can you expect
Overally I am glad to have stopped in here. Everything was just enjoyable and I cant wait to come again

The food at West End Café is fantastic and beautifully presented. This intimate restaurant is tastefully decorated and offers a prix fixe menu which is excellent! They also do a dynamite job for private parties!
I’ve been here many times for different occasions, meals and menus. Never a disappointing meal. The short ribs, shrimp and fusilli, goat cheese ravioli, duck tacos all are delicious.
There’s plenty of free parking, wait service is excellent unless they are understaffed (happened once and everyone is given one free pass).drinks are tasty, desserts are wonderful if you have a sweet tooth.
If you ever come here and are disappointed, give it another try. It really is a well run establishment with an excellent menu that is well prepared.