Centennial Café

I didn’t expect to like this place much since well, it’s a hotel restaurant but after working for hours at this point and it was rainy, I didn’t want to leave the hotel to go get food for a late lunch. My friend and I came here for a late lunch and it worked out for us since we were told it was a flash flood outside a few minutes later.
Our waitress was really sweet and personable. She was helpful on suggesting what to get and a lot of the stuff I saw on the menu, were what we had at Monduel’s the night before. That’s ok though. My friend got the southern smoked burger and I got the chopped chicken sandwich, which had chipotle mayonnaise on it, perfect little kick to the sandwich.
I also got a focus smoothie, which was blackberries, bananas and almond milk. It was a nice combination to my lunch and acted like a dessert as well.
The food came out rather fast and we got to talking to the waitress for a bit. English is not her first language but she was doing awesome and apologized, when she didn’t have to. I love friendly people in general. Overall, a great experience.

Server was good. Burger was not even warm. How does that happen? If im paying $ 14 for a burger at least cook it to order.

Great service here. We wanted a dish of chocolate ice cream and one of vanilla. We were told it was not available but since we had ordered it through room service we knew they had it some where in the restaurant. We stopped a server named Paul and he said he was sure he could find us some and he did. What a delight to have someone who cared enough to go out of his way for us. We have been at the Hyatt four four days-​what a pleasure.

Staying at the Hyatt for a conference and it’s pouring outside, so ate at the Centennial Café for lunch rather than brave the weather.
The waiter recommended the fish tacos, which is generally something I love, so I went with that choice. The dish came with three tacos on ~4″ corn tortillas, with what I think was pan-​fried fish with a light batter. Topped with a cilantro cole slaw. The tacos were nice. The fish was well seasoned and cooked, and the slaw brought a nice creaminess from the dressing and a crunchy texture from the cabbage. They were accompanied with a small cup of beans. Overall a nice dish, that seemed reasonable for $ 14 at a nice hotel (although I am not familiar with Dallas prices, so I have no idea how this compares to the local area.) It wasn’t the prettiest plate, though. The tacos are served on a metal taco holder that didn’t exactly scream haute cuisine.
Service was spotty. I didn’t arrive until about 1:45pm because it was packed until about 1:30. It was practically empty when I arrived, but there wasn’t anyone there to show me in or seat me. I asked the first server I saw if I should just seat myself, and she quickly found me a table when she realized there was no hostess in sight. My waiter arrived quickly and offered suggestions when asked. My drink came quickly, but the food was fairly slow to arrive given how empty the dining area was. My drink was refilled when my food was delivered. Then when I finished my food, it took a while to flag down someone to bring my bill.
So, not terrible service, but just not consistent. It just seems out of place at a restaurant located in a major conference center.
Overall, this was a perfectly reasonable meal and experience for a casual hotel restaurant. I wouldn’t search this place out, but I also wouldn’t have any qualms about eating here again if the situation presented itself.

I was less than thrilled with the customer service I received. I sat down at 1:02pm and a busser offered me a drink. I waited for 15 minutes before asking him if I could order and He asks another server if she can take my order and she says she isn’t working that section. I watch 3 parties that came in after me order and get their food before I did. Finally my server shows up another 15 minutes later with my meal. She apologized for the delay with my food and comped my ice tea. I will never eat their again. Food was good but the bad customer service is all I can remember.

The food is decent, but what really impressed me about this restaurant was the service. My waitress was Adinah and she went above and beyond for my table two days in a row and even recognized me the second day. As a person with severe food allergies, dinning out can be very stressful and cause a lot of anxiety. Adinah made me feel welcomed and safe to eat the food. She even cut fresh strawberries for my side because I could not eat any of the other.

I was really impressed with the hotel, but very under-​whelmed by the service and food here in the restaurant. The dinner buffet, at $ 16.50 sounded like a good option, but the food was obviously old and barely lukewarm.

The food came out at a very fast pace which was great as our lunch time was very limited due to a work conference. The food quality is another story… The «table side Guacamole» definitely lacked flavor and it should just be labeled in their menu as a small «side of guacamole»… There was nothing «table side» about this item. The staff could definitely be more friendly, when I asked questions about the menu our waitress was not very cooperative. My lunch mate had the fish tacos which lacked flavor in all areas… Not even the sauce that came with them helped with the flavor. I also may I point out how bizarre it is that management doubles their duties as food runners. Perhaps being more staffed for busy seasons would help tremendously. Their pricing does not match their product quality.
3−11−15
Came back today to give them a second chance… I’ll give credit where it’s due and this place definitely redeem themselves after yesterday’s little fiasco. I’ll up my rating to a four star… Everyone was friendly today and pleasant… Today they offered a buffet option with great items for 13 dollars. Way to step up your game Centennial café

Poor service. Maybe cause they are under staffed. Order not correct. Food average for the price.

Menu is pretty bare. Had the NY Strip to avoid the «natural» steaks. It was USDA Select quality at best. Tough, gristly, chewy and dry. Service was great.

I tried Italian buffet which is really good, especially lasagna

As far as hotel cafés go, the meal I had here today was OK. Beef brisket soft tacos, nicely dressed. Ask for some of their homemade salsa and a bottle of Cholula on the side and you’ll be all set.
Note: The days and hours they’re open are listed incorrectly.

Average place to eat, especially for such a nice looking hotel. I guess I just expected more. Don’t get the BLT. The bread is gross. The burger looked ok. The fries were good.

we stayed over the weekend for business meetings downstairs. We ate here because it was in the hotel. What a mistake. The waitress literally «forgot» about us, her words. As a result, a rare steak came out like shoe leather, the samon ws like rubber. Both had horrible sauces on them to cover up being reheated. We did not receive. Refills or drink service. The place was empty, so no excuses. The management sat in a room off to the side. They could see what was going on as they ran through, trying to ignore the few people until they got back to the kitchen.
Be prepaired for fast food quality, but at 40 dollars a person.
The hotel (Philisee Downing) did say that they would make it up, but never have.
The best idea, save the 24 dollar parking (or use a private lot and walk), order in or pick up something from anywhere else.

Not bad at all for a hotel restaurant at lunch. I ate here for lunch on Tuesday and Wednesday. I tried a cup of the tortilla soup and the black bean burger the first day and the quesadilla the second day… both pretty good! Pleasant service and ok atmosphere.

I was staying at the Hyatt where this restaurant is and needed food. There are really no other restaurants around the hotel so we decided to eat here while we stayed here. One day for lunch I had the tortilla soup which was good but I wished it was bigger. Its more of a cup of soup rather than bowl.
I also tried their breakfast buffet which was very delicious and full of many items like fruit, yogurt, danishes, eggs, potatoes, sausage and an omelet station. Some of the items were a little cold, but that may have been because I was waiting for my omelet to be made. I went for the buffet vs. an entrée at breakfast because coffee and juice are included in the buffet and the price would have been higher to get an entrée and a drink.
Not bad for a hotel restaurant. They were fast and friendly. But I would not go here unless in the hotel already.

It’s a matter of convenience that brought us to Centennial. We were staying at the Hyatt and it would have taken so much effort for the valet to get the car, then go find parking downtown, etc. that we ended up there.
We started with the Trio of Texas Goat Cheese. DELISH! They served three different kinds of goat cheese. I know one was spicy, one was cilantro & citrus and there was one more that I can’t remember. They were served with some oily toasted bread. The restaurant also serves as a complimentary starter several different kinds of bread with butter. Starter — AMAZING! It was $ 10, but I felt like it was worth it.
I had the pecan smoked mozzarella salad. It was $ 8. I feel like I TOTALLY overpaid. The lettuce at the bottom was wilted. The pecans were small and tasted old. The mozzarella was dry and the tomatoes were kind of shriveled up. I think if all of the things were fresh, it would be yummy. Also, I thought it was going to be a «real» salad — more than a freakin’ «side dish»!
My husband ordered the chicken fried steak. WOW, it was HUGE! I don’t think it was worth $ 19, I’d say 15 :) It was seriously the size of the plate. My husband said that he could tell it was battered fresh and pan fried which was really good. He said that it seemed that the bacon gave the some flavor to the gravy, yet… oddly enough the bacon it’s self was oddly not «bacon-​y». Weird! The mashed potatoes were meh.
All in all, please get the car out of the garage and go eat downtown unless you’re almost incapacitated :)

Came here after the last day of our large conference. And after 3 days of getting little to no sleep and not enough food, the meal here was worth the wait. I had the quesadillas which were really good! I have been here a few times and the food is always tasty, I will definitely be back.

I had the buffet for $ 14.50. When I went there, it was quite empty. The food was pretty good though. They had a lot of healthy food. The thing I loved the most (and shocked me too) was that they served Israeli cous cous. I am a fan of Israeli food so I was quite delighted to see it. It tasted pretty good. The chicken alfredo was eh… can’t complain too much, but it sure didn’t taste like the real thing. The next time I stay at the Hyatt (or in the area) I will probably stop by for a bite.

The Centennial Café is one of the restaurants in the lobby of the Hyatt Regency. Since it could theoretically be a separate dining place, I’m doing a separate review from the Hyatt hotel.
I’m not sure you’d pick this as a breakfast location if you weren’t staying in the Hyatt, but since there aren’t a huge amount of choices in this part of downtown, it is a viable option. They do serve breakfast and lunch here, open until 2 pm.
You are going to pay hotel prices, but the best deal is the breakfast buffett. It’s in the $ 15 – 16 range, but comes with juice and is all you can eat. There’s a hearty pile of the basic breakfast staples (eggs, bacon, sausage) as well as huge piles of fruit. So there’s enough to mix and match with picky eaters.
The service is fantastic with waiters refilling my coffee and juice almost every five minutes. They also were very friendly and made it a pleasant experience.
So, if you’re in this part of Dallas and are really hungry, the all-​you-​can-​eat buffet is a reasonable choice.

Decent place if you’re staying at the Hyatt and dining by yourself like I was. It was quiet, food was decent, and the waiters were attentive. I wouldn’t recommend coming here otherwise, but it’s well-​suited for a solo business trip dinner.

maybe i should try the breakfast buffet…
i came here twice for dinner during my stay at the hyatt and i don’t recommend the country fried steak… blech! i was ill afterwards. the service was great though! now, my second time, my kobe burger was awesome! service, not so good.
i guess if you’re in a bind, like you have nothing else to eat, this would be an ok fix. it’s pretty pricey though…

I LOVE BREAKFAST BUFFETS!!! No breakfast buffet item makes a Cambodian kid from Lowell, MA more happy than biscuits and gravy. I seriously get excited like a little kid when I know I’m traveling past the Mason-​Dixon line for business because that pretty much guarantees biscuits and gravy for breakfast. I’ve determined that as long as you go past Philadelphia you’re good for some biscuits and gravy. The breakfast buffet served here stands out… maybe because it’s a mix of just plain-​olé good American breakfast staples with a Tex-​Mex flair to it. I love Tex-​Mex and I love Tabasco with my eggs and they had like 20 different kinds of chili sauces… oooooooohhhheeeeeee! I like it hot! I even put hot sauce on my biscuits and gravy when I feel a little hot and naughty. Too much info? I love biscuits and gravy like a fat kid loves cake!!!