Cafe Vahik

This place makes a delicious chai! It’s creamy and sweet but still full of spices. The people there were efficient, no nonsense, but still kind and gave great service. It’s the perfect place to stop for a cold drink before walking down to the beach.

Love this café! The owners are extremely friendly and welcoming. They have great bagel sandwiches and delicious ceviche! I had the Mediterranean bagel which was super yums. The ceviche lunch special is $ 8 for a nice big bowl of ceviche, chips and salad, a great deal!!! I have yet to try the yellowtail sandwich, I’ve heard great things about it. This place is the best to come to for a nice meal after an afternoon spent at the beach.

THE place for coffee and a great breakfast or lunch. Everything is fresh, made-​to-​order, and generously portioned. There is no other La Jolla café that compares.

Please try Café Vahik.
Vahik is the first name of the owner who works so hard and turns out fantastically delicious meals. Specialty coffees are wonderful too. So many menu choices for food. All served in a clean and peaceful environment.
I would also like to add this: I went there for a coffee as I was staying at the hotel across the street. At one point I asked about the word «Vahik»… The man who was waiting on me smiled the best smile ever and said, ‘That’s me, my first name’. He then asked me MY first name…
5 hours later I returned with my husband for a very late lunch. As I entered, Vahik greeted me by name. I introduced him to my husband and before we left, Vahik had called us by name often. That’s huge. Also… we live in the South, in NC. Hospitality is something Southerners are very proud of. Vahik is a shining example of the hospitality he obviously grew up with and practices every day. Thank-​you, Vahik.

Café Vahik is a total hidden gem. We visited today for lunch after finding it on Unilocal of course. I had driven past Café Vahik numerous times and wondered about it but had never taken the time to look them up.
I’m very glad I did today! Café Vahik has a solid menu with numerous bfast bagels, paninis and salads. They also have specialty items like ceviche.
Atmosphere: Smaller place with tables inside and a few tables outside. They have a quiet vibe even though it was very busy. You order at the counter and they bring food out to you. You also pay after you are done eating– which is always a good sign of hospitality.
Food: We ordered the ceviche which was very good. It was served in a big bowl and topped with avocado with chips on the side (pls see photo below) it’s made with parsley instead of cilantro which is different but it worked — my bf liked it bc it wasn’t too zesty, I had the half chicken sandwich with a Caesar salad– the salad was my favorite part of the meal as the lettuce was nice and crunchy and the dressing wasn’t too overpowering. My bf had the California bagel which he enjoyed.
Service: The owner takes the orders and seems like he makes the cold orders. He was very nice and friendly happy to answer our questions. There was one cook as well, who brought out our food and was very nice as well :-)
The price was right — as our three items came up to $ 22. We definitely plan to come back to Café Vahik.

The menu is Tasty and fresh, always properly done and assembled on the plates. I live nearby and I come in quite often for sandwich bites. It’s also fast and easy to order for to go, which I prefer to do as well. Great service and friendly people around. I like this spot!

The best local spot ever! I almost didn’t want to write a Unilocal review because I don’t want to reveal this secret place!
I have been going to Café Vahik (previously known as Windansea Café) since I was a teenager. Vahik (the owner) knows me by name and can usually guess my order.
For breakfast, you cannot go wrong with the California bagel (my ALL TIME favorite)! Get it to-​go and walk down one block to the beach and watch the surfers shred.
If you are in a lunch/​sandwich mood, you cannot go wrong with the Ham Diegan or the Turkey Breeze. The Ham Diegan has an amazing apricot mayo.
The only negative thing I can say about Café Vahik is that it is a little slow. If you are in a hurry, call in and place your order. Vahik will have it ready for you.

Friendly, fast, reasonably priced, good atmosphere, and last but not least great food. I had the California Omelette. ⁵⁄₅ will come again.

I have to say that I will probably not come back to this place. Wanted to stop and have a nice breakfast with my daughter before my appointment next door. When I came in the door the first person I saw behind the counter, I said hi and good morning to. He did not say anything back to me. I was the first person at the counter and then other customers came in after me and the other male employee commenced to helping them with their order of business without even acknowledging me.
A female who appeared to be very busy started to help me with my order. Still no good morning or nothing. She told my order and that was it.
A place like this I can not expect red carpet treatment, but I do expect plain old basic customer service.
Food was decent though

This place is fantastic, the owner and his wife are wonderful to interact with and the food is always great.
The bagel sandwiches are a guilty pleasure but they make great salads and omelettes, so it’s a easy to keep it healthy. They remember regulars by name, it’s the kind of business one is excited to support.

I like the ambiance of this place, very casual and laid back. My husband and I have come here twice. He always ordered their omelets and I tried their yellowtail sandwich and playa del norte salad. I would say that the portion of their omelet is standard, but their playa del norte salad is huge and it has a lot of pecans, which I like! For women, I would say that their sandwich is also big since I couldn’t finish them at once. The sandwich came with spring mix salad as well. Also, I tried their iced chai tea latte and it was so good & refreshing, better than Starbucks’ one in my opinion.

Do you enjoy small mom and pop spots? Do you like «no frills» menus? How about places off the beaten path? If you said «yes» to one or more, then I recommend this place!
Once we arrived, the gentleman behind the counter was friendly, polite and professional. The menu was very simple, not froo-​froo, and prices were absolutely reasonable! The gentleman took our order and said he would deliver our meals to the table. The café is small, but well laid out, and decorated with photos from I assume local artists. Our meal arrived in less than 10 minutes and was piping hot!
Only gripe I had, was my eggs were not over easy. Oh well. Still tasted just fine to me! I’m really not picky. $ 6 got me 3 eggs, 3 slices of bacon and a slice of toast (BEST Multigrain bread I have ever had!).
Before leaving, we ordered a protein shake. Let me tell you, it was so delicious. Made with protein powder, banana, milk and ice and only $ 4. The said gentleman said «120 calories, no fat, no carbs, no sugar», I was sold! It was creamy and refreshing. This place truly makes me want to live in La Jolla so I can become a regular here!

My boyfriend found this place on Unilocal,and boy am I glad he did :) The food was amazing, we were greeted as soon as we walked through the door. Sure it took a little while for them to take our orders but staff was limited and it just gave us more time to mull over their menu. We ended up ordering the Turkey Breeze and the YellowTail Sandwich. Everything was delicious and fresh! Definitely not disappointed with price AND quality.
**Came here a 2^nd time to confirm and it’s still delicious. However, 2^nd time I had to try the yellowtail Salad as everyone on Unilocal was raving about it. Annndddd I concur. It was sooo good! Definitely craving to come back. (Only thing is that it’s a little out of the way for me…)

Nice little place. Cheerful, clean, and we had no problem finding a free table. The service was prompt and friendly. There is a nice assortment of sandwiches on the menu and the bagel sandwich I ordered was very good. My spouse was satisfied with his breakfast plate of eggs, toast, and I don’t remember which breakfast meat.
I could see making Café Vahik a weekend habit.

Met a friend here around 1pm for a quick bite and this was the perfect place for it!
Never been to La Jolla area so I just Unilocaled places (duh) and saw some good reviews and recommendations for the yellowtail here.
I ordered the yellowtail sandwich on ciabatta bread WOWWOWOW y’all weren’t kidding when you said it was delicious! Super fresh and perfect on a crispy ciabatta roll topped with tomato, avocado and a lemon vinaigrette. Sandwich comes with a side salad at no extra charge.
So much food for reasonable prices and a cute shop for brunch or lunch. It’s also really nice that they let you pay for your meal after you’re done eating.

Came here with my friend on a sunny Saturday morning before venturing to the conveniently close Windansea Beach. The staff was very friendly and, judging on the fact that a young boy was bussing the tables, appeared to be a family.
Obviously I ordered coffee because functioning without caffeine is out of the question. My friend ordered a dirty chai latte, which she said was delicious. The coffee was fine, I mean it was just black coffee so nothing to rave about. Our food was served very quickly to our surprise because the restaurant was relatively busy.
I had the Ham Diegan, which was just as delicious as its name is punny. It came with a side salad which I am pretty sure was just lettuce, but I didn’t even know that it came with one when I ordered so I suppose that isn’t a deal breaker. There are different breads to choose from and trying to be healthy, I ordered it on wheat. It was a tad bit to wheaty and somewhat hard to chew… but still a good sandwich.
On every table there was an extensive collection of hot sauces. Yes, I was in heaven. Ham sandwiches don’t normally go with hot sauce, but it was necessary to try each one. A mysterious black liquid caught my eye — I had never seen black hot sauce. Probably for good reason. It tasted like spicy gasoline. If you feel the need to test out the sauces, take caution; that may have taken a few years off of my life.
Besides leaving the café with a disgusting taste in my mouth, the food was altogether good and the experience pleasant (except of course from that hot sauce). And it was an added plus that the quaint Windansea Beach is so close.

HELL YES. bombbbbbbbbb salads!
This place is a hidden gem if you ask me. I had the best yellowtail salad ever– it was massive and so so fresh! I can’t wait to come back and try something else. I saw a couple bagel sandwiches that looked awesome!
The guys that work here are the sweetest and everything is prepared with love.

During the last week of April, I came here on Wednesday morning at 840am with my husband, after taking a long walk around the cove on our staycation week as we live in San Diego. There was one lady prepping food for serving, actually serving, working register, making lattes and dealing with food to go… ONE!!! There weren’t many people, three tables of two outside and two individuals waiting inside. It took her forever to acknowledge me standing there and waiting to place a coffee order… it took forever to order. Finally a guy showed up from the kitchen and took my latte coffee order (simple…two triple non fat large lattes). The coffee was extremely hot and we burnt our tongs, it was milky which suggested it wasn’t 100% non fat as I requested, you couldn’t taste the coffee flavor (cheap coffee)…we grabbed our coffee and went to the beach to drink it. No smell, no flavor… no enjoyment. We didn’t finish it and went to a coffee shop 3 blocks further in the La Jolla Village.
Advice: spend more money on a solid quality coffee, get more staff to support, invest in thermometer to measure temp while heating up the milk and don’t misrepresent that you just served them with «non fat» coffee… if you are out of skim milk just be honest because you can taste it!!! I know there are regulars that love your café, but paying attention to non-​regulars goes a long way and this is why you got a not so good review from a non regular.

When your girlfriend says, «I feel like salad for lunch»…venture to the yellow awning. Youthful Mom and Pop Café serving up California dishes which are healthy and fresh. This place serves up the Seinfeld Big Salad. Known for their self proclaimed Best Ceviche, we were drawn in. Park your bike along the side and sit in some of the belly bar tables outside. Order in and pay after you eat. They also serve Breakfast all day.
Ceviche comes with a side of chips and slivers of avocado which is perfect for a snack or appetizer for a few to share. We also ordered the yellowtail on ciabatta bread and the chickini sandwich. All lunches come with the huge side salad of generous proportions lightly drizzled with a vinaigrette. This is such a California moment when you have more salad and side hot sauces on the table and you can’t fit your big ass iphone6 plus anywhere on the table. Friendly service and neighborhood gem, this place is my go to lunch place after a night out of red meat red wine intake. Now bike or walk down to the beach for the rest of the afternoon.

Small joint on the corner of La Jolla Blvd and Playa Del Norte, formerly known as the WindanSea Café. Look for the yellow awning.
I enjoyed sitting out on their patio watching the world go by on a sunny day after enjoying Windansea beach. It’s a bit dark and cramped inside for my taste. Unfortunately that day, there were a few flies outside, but I was wiling to swat away to protect my territory.
I can recommend that you try any of their coffee drinks — I had an iced mocha– and enjoy a nice big salad, because that’s what I had. Their salads are huge! I had the yellowtail salad. (see my pictures)
They offer a plethora of hot sauce on the tables, which I think would go great on one of their omelettes one day. I hope to return to enjoy their breakfast selections and sandwiches.