Front Street Cafe

This is the perfect little spot on Whidbey if you want to take the ferry, see some views, and eat some super fresh mussels. They have several flavor profiles of mussels to choose from, from traditional white wine & shallots to curry and more. You can get your mussels with just toast or add linguini. It’s not a huge place, and service could be improved (although we’ve had no major issues), but overall it’s a solid choice for Penn Cove mussels. I did have a bad mixed drink once. So now I stick with wine which is just fine with me.

We ate at the Front Street Café a couple years back. We arrived a little early for our whale watch tour and decided to grab a bite to eat. Friday Harbor sure is a cute town, but its offerings are limited as it’s an island. We probably chose this place because it was cheaper than some of the other options. Our meal was OK, I think I had a sandwich. I vaguely recall you have to go outside the building to go to the restrooms, FYI. Not too bad but I probably wouldn’t come here if I ever find myself in Friday Harbor again. The view is nice though and I’m sure the patio would be lovely in warm weather.

(visited on a Sat. afternoon and off-​season)
Honestly, this is the place I tend to avoid at all costs.
Anything right in front of you when you roll out the ferry terminal usually has «tourist trap» written all over it, if you ask me. This IS the San Juans and this IS Friday Harbor, so quite honestly, this even reinforced my «tourist trap» radar to the Nth degree. Initially, we did drive right by and parked our car farther into the interior of the town, in order to do some walking and go to some less «trafficked» locations (which tend to have more value for the $ and usually more pizazz).
It just so happened, by the time we checked out a bunch of small shops and made our way down to the waterfront, we were FAMISHED.
I fought the urge to concede and take part in the usual tourist-​victimization, but the hunger was taking over; completely affecting my judgment at this point.
It was probably a good thing, though. The menu posted outside wasn’t screaming «GET IN HERE» to me so I called a few other local spots and much to my dismay, no one was really serving breakfast later in the day on a Saturday (WHAT…don’t you people ever get hungover in this town??) Even though the $ 14 Huevos Rancheros posted on the outdoor menu was making me pretty f-​ing nervous, I stifled my dissent and made the plunge.
Much like the exterior suggested, this place has INSANELY great views of the Sound and the Ferry Docks. If you happen to get a great Fall day like we did, the views are absolutely gorgeous. I could tell immediately that this place has to do INSANE business in the summer (I said a quick prayer to the «food gods» that I wasn’t here for a Saturday Summer crowd.)
Indeed, there were some food items that were priced pretty steep. Like I mentioned, the $ 14 Huevos Rancheros was just laughable. Huevos Rancheros are usually a menu-​closer for me, but there’s no way I’m going to pay $ 14 for breakfast unless I am getting a lap dance with it. I have a hard enough time forking out $ 11 at Patty’s for GIGANTIC breakfast scrambles every one and awhile.
So I went with the Southwest Omelet and my girl went with the Veggie. Both reasonably priced for a tourist stop in Friday Harbor and both of them quite tasty. We both commented on how light and fluffy the eggs seemed and how the veggies seemed very fresh and the country potatoes weren’t greasy or cold. The chorizo in my SW was delicious, too. Not too greasy and very flavorful.
Service was speedy and satisfactory, but there really wasn’t a whole lot of people in the place. I cringed just thinking how long it might take to get a plate of eggs after a stay here during the height of the summer months… thank God for 68 degree Fall trips!
Anyway, our experience overall was good. Food portions were decent, price was decent. Service was decent. Great outdoor seating as well, but we weren’t so lucky on scoring a seat.
My only small beefs that day were the prices I witnessed on lunch and dinner fare after flipping through the menu (burgers and sandwiches flirted with upwards of $ 15 a pop) and the small cyclone of swarming flies that accumulates in the middle of the restaurant when the windows are all open. I can deal with flies (in what was for the most part) an open-​air environment, but the prices could definitely make one queasy if one were to be stuck here in July for lunch or dinner.
I’m just going to make sure that never happens.

I was hopeful to snag a tasty drink during my ferry wait. This café looked cosy and promising and had quite a few people sitting at tables outside. The service was lackluster as the woman at the register informed me that there were a few coffee orders in front of me. I placed my order and popped down at a table expecting maybe a 5 – 10 minute wait. Over TWENTY MINUTES LATER my small cappuccino arrived. I think it was 24 minutes to be exact. Ok, I understand being busy but this place was not exactly heaving. I could have had an entire meal in the time it took to recieve my beverage. An apology would have saved the day. However, when I told the server «I was not expecting such a long wait this took over 20 minutes!» she just looked back at me sullenly. Hello!!! Whatever happened to «I am sorry it took so long».
I will not be trying this place again.

Upon the insistence of a friend, our bicycling group went here for breakfast before catching the ferry back home. Apparently, they have excellent granola, a bag of which he purchased along with his meal. However, it seems that many people up here make their own granola or so they claim… ask around and you’ll see what I mean.
I had the french toast w/​berries and a sticky bun, both of which satisfied my sweet tooth though my companion’s meals looked equally delicious. The place has the look and feel of a coffee house with an interior finished nicely with a faux paint effect. It was a little cramped at the tables with our large group.

They close shop at 3pm in the afternoon. We wanted a light and non-​seafood-​smelling place and found it right after we got off the ferry. We had simple (but good) sandwiches, soups, and dessert. Easy going atmosphere and quick food/​snack. The view was nice — right across the street from the ferry landing.
If you want to see a picture & other review: