Cafe 4

I used to LOVE their truffle fries and would go just for them but they stopped making them with the cheesy stuff drizzled on them and they haven’t been the same:(

When I was in Charlotte North Carolina I was at a café that served chicken and waffles which was amazing. I went to café 4 that also served chicken and waffles that was the best I have ever had.

Shoo Fly Shoo was a winner at The Mezz Cocktail Bar. I was lucky enough to be there for the Grand Opening. Nice casual vibe in a comfortable and modern space. Café 4 owners were engaged making sure everything was perfect. Truly impressed every time I visit Café 4.

I’ve eaten at Café 4 twice. Both times, my food was great. I also tasted the food of several other people and thought it was all really good. The service was excellent both times. I would highly recommend this place.

Positive: good coffee and the atmosphere seemed promising.
Negative: we went for brunch. our server, Taylor J, seemed disinterested in providing any helpful recommendations for the menu. No greeting when he came to our table. Our dining companions said he rolled his eyes while I placed my order. We asked for almond croissants… he brought 2 almond and 2 chocolate croissants. Didn’t really acknowledge requests we made but would bring what we requested. Not sure what his attitude was about but maybe he needs to be working in the back of the house. The food was underwhelming. My corn cake Benedict was below average. Pretty dry, not much hollandaise sauce, bacon was tough and avocado on top was more black than green. The oatmeal on the side was bland and not very flavorful for brown sugar oatmeal. I didn’t finish my meal. My husband got the Americana scramble and he finished it but said it was bland.
We aren’t in Knoxville much but should we ever return, we will not be eating here. We did enjoy our meal the night before over at The Royale.

After having lived in Knoxville for about 4 months now, café 4 is the go to place I take any visitors. The menu has a great variety and the chicken and waffles are a favorite! The outdoor patio is a perfect spot to people watch :)
This is a great Saturday brunch spot and right next to the farmers market. Coffee is okay. some days it’s good, others I don’t care for it but I continue to go back!

I didn’t really enjoy their atmosphere. It is a little too cramped for my taste. Their menu was really boring. I had a hard time finding something I wanted to try from their limited selection. I ended up choosing the chicken mac and cheese, and it was really good. All the food we had was really delicious!
The service was slightly above average, but our waitress didn’t know much about the bar.

Great patio. Good food. Good microbrews. Not a place to go for drinks.
We went for dinner and sat on their lovely patio. My son had a hamburger that he said was great! I ordered the meatloaf which was fine except it wasn’t meatloaf. It was 2 grilled chopped steaks covered in a mushroom demi-​glacé. Now, it was tasty although the chopped steak was overcooked. But don’t get my hopes up for meatloaf and bring me chopped steak.
They have a good selection of beer but I was in the mood for a drink. They just got their liquor license and had a very limited selection of spirits. Even the way the menu described the «limited selection of spirits» made it seem like they really didn’t want to do liquor but had to for outliers like me. I settled for a margarita and all I could taste was sweet and sour. It was better after I added an additional shot of tequila. I would have been happier if they were true to themselves, and just stuck with beer as opposed to a half-​assed attempt at liquor.

My girlfriend and I went to café 4 randomly on our vacation this past week.
Going in a woman greeted us and told it was about 10 minutes to get seated. That’s fine we say. Less than 5 minutes later we were seated. This is unacceptable. I was ready to wait an additional 7 minutes and the staff was organized and helpful! Exhausted from the time switch, we are seated and greeted by a kind waitress, who informs us of what’s on tap and directs us to the drink menu. The prices aren’t reasonable, they’re downright cheap. Disgusted with how affordable this dinner will be, I order a local blonde brew, and my other half orders a white wine.
Now for the food. Not only was it prepared in a reasonable time, but it was delicious. I’m very confused as to why management has decided to make the food tasty and priced fairly. Any other restaurant would charge double. I had chicken and waffles because I’m no fool.
⁴⁄₅. The only reason it’s not a ⁵⁄₅ is because Jesus himself didn’t sit down for supper with us.

Disappointing :(
Went in for brunch and had very bland breakfast tacos and an over cooked corn cake Benedict. EVERYTHING was over done. I posted videos… The poached egg yolk was pretty much cooked through, the corncake was like a biscuit from the pilgrims first voyage to America, the bacon was SUPER hard, and the grits were sticky and cold.
I’m giving this place a three because I hope to try them for lunch one day and be pleasantly surprised but as far as brunch goes, I’d say it was a solid miss.

Café 4 is becoming a favorite brunch spot when we’re in Knoxville. And Market Square is such a cute area!
I can only speak to brunch, but it is delicious and reasonably priced. There’s a pretty wide range of brunch option, from oatmeal and bakery items to chicken and biscuits to sandwiches and salads. They are usually pretty busy, which is reflected in the service, but the staff is helpful and friendly. The only thing I would caution against is the «mega-​mosa.» This XL version of a mimosa comes in a pint glass and is LOADED with ice (ice in champagne??). It basically just tastes like watered down OJ. Opt for an infused champagne instead — I was partial to the prickly pear. yum.

Samedi soir dans l’adorable ville de Knoxville: tous les restaurants sont pris d’assaut par la population locale qui a fait péter les robes de soirée et les talons hauts!
On arrive à réserver une table chez Café 4, 45 minutes d’attente, c’est le temps qu’il nous faut pour aller boire un verre en terrasse, ça nous va.
Lorsqu’on revient, on est installé en terrasse et un serveur très sympa vient s’occuper de nous.
Pour 15 $ par personne, on prend tous les deux le «chicken and waffles»: poulet frit, purée onctueuse, gaufres copieuses, sirop d’érable et sauce qui piqué un peu. C’est très très très copieux! Et assez simple. Mais on se régale et c’est le principal.

My favorite restaurant on Market Square. Aside from having cool covered outdoor seating every meal is great. Their daily specials are a great value meal. Take for example the $ 5 burger featured on Monday. This is not one of those tasteless frozen patties. This burger has the taste of a $ 15 burger. Our favorite server is Sara, the beautiful young lady from Persia. She is a breath of fresh air and is a delight. The last time we had her as our waitress it took her a few extra minutes to take our order, we are very understanding when a restaurant is packed, anyhow, Sara brought us bread and a free cupcake desert or being patient. This kind of customer service keeps us coming back. Also, make sure to try their famous cupcakes.

I’ve always had great food here at Café 4. One of my favorite meals here is Grilled Cheese Dipper which is the tomato bisque soup and grilled cheese (add avocado)! I also love their fried green tomatoes, Lobster Mac N Cheese flat breads, and pimento cheese deviled eggs. They also have a bakery right outside the restaurant and a coffee spot. I enjoy being able to come here for dinner before a show in the back at the square room. They have a great patio, that can also be used in colder months because of their heaters.
Blue Plates through the week:
Mondays are $ 5 burger nights
Taco Tuesday
Hot Chicken Wednesday
Thursdays are Chicken and Dumplings
Catfish Friday

I was really sad that they didn’t have a full breakfast menu during the week. So I settled for one of their small breakfast sandwiches and it was really good. I’ve had other food from here and it’s been really delicious. I really like the atmosphere and and in joy the variety of items they offer. Great coffee and really good desserts.

This was one of the only areas open for breakfast on a Sunday that was near our hotel.
We only came in for coffee but was immediacy wrapped in the very calm ambiance of the interior décor of the upper seating area.
The café Au Lait was excellent and priced very well compared to nearby coffee shops. A huge selection of very tasty looking pastry and bakery items was on display and very tempting! I will be back for sure!!!

This is really one of my favorite places that I have ever dined. The food was superbly presented and prepared. The décor and the design of the restaurant with an open feel with the glass allowing you to watch the goings on in the theater is very interesting. I recommend the salmon and the fried green tomatoes.

Let me preface my review by saying that I’ve never eaten dinner here.
I’ve gotten pastries and baked goods from Café 4 probably two dozen times over the last few years. These are fantastic. Really well done and inexpensive.
Most recently, I checked it out for brunch.
The coffee. It was rather flavorless, unless acidity and bitterness are considered flavor.
For a starter, we got the Fried Green Tomato Stack. Super idea and well executed. The tomatoes weren’t super flavorful, even for green tomatoes, but the balsamic and goat cheese saved it. Probably wouldn’t get it again, but it was a fun idea.
I got the Farmer’s Scramble with the roasted potatoes. The eggs were light, fluffy, and perfectly balanced with the veggies and goat cheese. By far, the highlight of the meal.
My partner got the breakfast sandwich, on a croissant with a side of grits. The only problem? It came out on a bagel. Sure, bagels are delicious, but buttery croissants are the perfect complement for a sandwich. The server who delivered it wasn’t our waiter, but he checked if everything was okay. I told him that the sandwich was to be on a croissant, not a bagel. He apologized and said he would correct it. He left the original sandwich and never came back. Our waiter asked how things were, we told him, and he said he’d just bring out a new one. But, at this point, we were starving so we just went ahead and ate it. Maybe he saw this, or maybe he just forgot, but the croissant never came.
The breakfast sandwich on a bagel was pretty darn good, but the awkward service was more of a problem than the bagel-​switcharoo. The grits were fantastic.
Nothing was overly exciting, but it was all very well done. With the right sandwich, the place still wouldn’t quite be 5-​star (for brunch), but it may have given me reason to go again.

Black bean burger with truffle fries — they replaced the regular fries with truffle fries for me! There was additional cost but it was worth it! The burger was much better than I expected. It was clearly fresh (some mushed beans and some whole pieces) and the sliced avocados won my thumbs up. The truffle fries had the truffle taste I was searching for. As for portions, the fries with the burger was more than enough for one person. I was stuffed!
Strawberry salad with pecans, blue cheese and tomato — much better than I expected because it wasn’t overbearingly sweet. The pecans were coated with something that gave it a lightly sweetened texture with crunch and this gave the salad a good kick.
Café 4 is probably my go to café around here.

Café 4 is more than just another pretty face! Don’t make the mistake of taking this place as a one trick pony!
Yes, Café 4 is a restaurant. Yes, they have a seasonal menu that gets me every time with personal favorites like French Onion & Bacon Mac and Cheese or the Chicken & Pimento Cheese Flatbread. They also have a specific Gluten-​Free menu that doesn’t leave you feeling like you’re settling. Even vegetarians got ta shout!
But this place also doubles as a pretty awesome venue. Behind the glass wall in the dining room, you can see a stage. If you plan it just right, you can even enjoy live music during your meal that they play over the speakers in the dining room. (Not in a loud and obnoxious kinda way). I’ve caught concerts, art shows, comedy shows, and movie showings here and never had a bad time.
But wait! There’s more! My personal favorite thing about Café 4 is the lofty, living room-​esque upstairs. It’s one of my favorite places to take my laptop, grab a cup of coffee (which comes from a local roaster), and deem my work cubicle for a few hours. It’s a quiet and chill environment during the day that doesn’t get too busy. Be warned, there is really only one coveted electrical outlet that snuggles up to a working table. People are pretty cool about it and I’ve never seen a fist fight break out over the space or outlet. So take your MMA training somewhere else people! Also, you may want to bring a hoodie. It’s kinda chilly up there.

We stopped over in Knoxville to stay the night on our way to/​from Lexington. We had friends with us and I really wanted them to see Market Square, which I am so proud of as a Knoxvillian! We needed to find a brunch spot and I was certain something on the Square would do the trick. After looking at the menus for a few spots, we quickly settled on Café 4, mainly drawn in by the tomato soup with grilled cheese dipper. YUM. I quickly and easily made reservations via OpenTable.
We parked at the free parking garage and walked over, as it was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning. We walked in and I was surprised to see a bakery right in the front. OMG, the cupcakes, the macarons, the pastries — I knew we had picked the right spot! We were quickly seated in a booth that provided a view onto the Square to watch folks go by. Our waiter promptly appeared; he was both chill and engaging, an awesome combo. We were happily informed that you can order mimosas before 12:30pm, something you can’t do in the ATL. Yum, the mega mosa — its a definite win, as is the pomegranate mega mosa.
I had mega ordering issues here as I wanted every.single.thing. on Café 4’s brunch menu. I tried whittling down the menu by x-​ing out everything I could easily get in the ATL, but then I really just settled on the fact that it was about 11:15am and a breakfast sandwich with potatoes sounded perfect. I ordered mine with an over-​medium egg, no gouda, on a croissant, with breakfast potatoes and add grilled onions.
OMG, breakfast sandwich heaven! Although my egg was cooked beyond over medium, it still offered yummy flavor to my sandwich. My friend who ordered the same sandwich also had her egg done a bit more than what she ordered so my advice would be to under-​order on your eggs. The croissant was positively delicious; one of the best I’ve had in a long time. It made for a perfect sandwich base with the egg, bacon, spinach, and tomato. Simple, hearty, delicious, terrific. My potatoes + onions turned out to be insanely good. Hubby raised an eyebrow at me being a bit high maintenance to request the extra onions, but they were oh-​so-​worth-​it as they truly took the terrific potatoes to a place of amazingness. YUM.
Speaking of hubby, his chicken and waffles = best dish on our table. Café 4 hit the nail on the head with this dish: this is the BEST chicken and waffles I’ve ever had (sorry, Ron and Gladys!). The chicken is true «hot chicken» — spicy, crunchy, perfect. Balanced against that sweet cornbread-​esque waffle and the creamy gravy and you’ve got the makings of the best brunch in Knoxville. Amazing.
I’m realizing I skipped right over those pimento fritters. 6 came in a serving with a side of tomato jalapeño jam (which I kept for my potatoes, btw). There was definitely some kind of ham or bacon with the pimento cheese, but I really loved the smoky, cheesy friedness of it all, especially when paired with the tomato jalapeño jam. I’d highly recommend ordering these pups while figuring out what to order, especially if you’re having decision overload like me.
Great service, terrific food, chill ambience, easy reservations = I will DEFINITELY be back! There were so many other yummy items on the menu that I can’t wait to try plus I’d love to sit on their patio once the weather warms back up!