2-9 Café

Decent place to come and watch a game without too much of a crowd. They have different food specials everyday… That being said, the food is only average — nothing great. The only reason I gave 3 stars instead of 2 is because the beers are pretty cheap.

I like this place. It is really casual and low-​key. I’ve never seen a line to wait for a table. The crowd is young (probably all USC students). I’ve dined in several times and have enjoyed their service. I’ve also ordered to-​go when I’m on my way home.
I love their fries and their burgers. My favorite is the Sante Fe! This is the entrée I usually get, either with a salad or fries. It is really flavorful, and always satisfying. The salads entrees are equally delicious. It’s just good American food.
I wouldn’t go out of my way to go there, but I did appreciate having it close by when I was in the USC area.

Everything I have tried here is amazing! It has something for everyone. All types of dishes. Traditional and healthy.

I’ve been here a couple times since it’s just right down the street from my apartment. There’s nothing special about the food and it’s definitely not worth the price. Although, I must say that drinks are quite cheap and even cheaper during happy hour. They have lots of tables, small tvs all around the restaurant, and a patio if you want to sit outside. The place has potential to be the «spot» near campus but there’s very little life to the place and the service can also improve a little. I came here for a lunch meeting on a Monday afternoon. No one greeted me when I walked in and it took FOREVER for them to take our orders to the point where we finished a 45 minute meeting and didn’t want to eat anymore. We just got up paid for our sodas and left.

You know when you read the Unilocal results but still think in your head, «maybe it’s not that bad, I’ll check it out for myself?» Yeahh. trust the Unilocal reviews this time. I’ve been meaning to go here for awhile and now that I have I am super underwhelmed. At the most I can say this place is mediocre.
Pros:
Cheap
Football was on T.V.
The ranch and diet soda tastes good
Cons:
–The food didn’t have much flavor to it, more like you are just stuffing something edible in your mouth to fill your stomach but for no reason
–Our waiter barely said more than 3 words to us each time he came to the table. Oh and did I mention they were all in passing, not even actually stopping at the table.
–Phone ranggg and ranggg and ranggg the whole time we were there, many employees walked past and zero picked it up
–I felt like crap after I ate the food
Honestly, I am not that harsh on restaurants and most I would return to again. I am pretty sure I will never return to the 2 – 9, and I highly recommend you don’t either. Check out a restaurant on Fig, anything would be better than this.

Between the wallet-​draining venues of LA Live and the fast food mosh pit encircling the university, it can be hard to find a genuine, cozy place to dine in these parts. And i had just about given up trying to find one until I stumbled across the 2 – 9 Café.
I’ve been here 4 or 5 times now and never had a lesser experience. Their burgers are some of the best in town, and all very reasonably priced (Most are only $ 7 or $ 8, including fries). Same goes for the drinks. It’s nice enough for a well-​occasioned evening but casual enough to satisfy a night out for a couple of good friends. An oasis of quaint character in a sprawling desert of hustle and bustle, and a privilege to have in such close proximity to the university.

There needs to be more places like this around USC. Awesome outdoor eating area. Solid, fresh, non-​Pollo Loco food. Awesome specials. There’s always a drink or food special everyday. Good service. Definitely will be coming back. Also there’s lots of TVs to watch the game!!!

In a mad dash for lunch during jury duty, I ran into this place while looking for the Health Hut… which I couldn’t find. This was appealing cause a) it was open and b) it has its own parking lot.
There was a staff of 2 manning the dining room and they were fumbling around cause there was a huge party of like 15 and then me. A few more people came in after… Clearly they were understaffed.
I ordered the Cobb salad with turkey before my server walked away hoping to get my order in before the masses. It would have been nice if the menu mentioned it had carrots and onions… Which I would have requested removed. Gasp… I did it myself… The agony. And good thing I ordered the dressing on the side cause the blue cheese wasn’t good. I got ranch instead which was. All in all it was a decent salad. Didn’t skimp on the toppings. $ 9.95
No rush to come back… Although I did want to try the sweet potato fries and nachos I read about.
Decent prices and super close to USC and the Metropolitan Courthouse.
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I had an all-​around horrible dining experience at the 2 – 9 Café. The service was poor at best.
In my salad, which came completely drenched in dressing, I found a DEAD FLY.
The owner slapped my friend on the back with a menu, instead of politely asking him to scoot in his chair. Rude.
If you want to eat good food in a good environment, do not go to the 2 – 9. Beware!

This restaurant USE TO be greatttt. Now that they’ve switched management and are becoming TK burgers… well they are just okay :[. No longer do they offer some of the favorites like the Natural Sandwich.
Go back to the old menu!!! please

I guess this place has it’s type of clientele, and that’s college students with a penchant for drinking, and not a care who their waitress is. Last time I was here, we walked in and it took them five minutes to notice us standing in front of them and finally offer us a seat. After ordering, the only thing we got was our food. We had to ask for the utensils, napkins, and condiments. Shouldn’t that have come first? Finally, we had to go up and give the credit card in order to pay… we could have just walked out and they would not have noticed. Normally I’d understand if the place were busy and all, but there were only two other tables besides us.
Overall, it’s a decent place. But if you’re there for good service and good food, then don’t go here.

Taco Tuesday!!!
Around 3 dollars for decently size and derlicious tacos.
Cons: Everyone seems to know it, but the service is pretty bad. The waitress I had was quite friendly (although some of them are a little bitchy). I think they’re just pretty understaffed and it takes ages to get ANYTHING.
Pros: TACO TUESDAY! Beer is CHEAP.
Go with a big group when you’re not too hungry. And on the days with specials
Tuesday: tacos.

I’ve come here several times for brunch or a late dinner. The brunch menu is awesome, and they have the best breakfast burritos and omelettes. They have nice outdoor seating and it’s usually not too busy in the mornings.
The dinner menu is generally pub style food, and I love the salads and the burgers. The menu isn’t too creative, but it’s good quality food and a fun atmosphere. It gets a bit more crowded at night and service isn’t the fastest.
You can also order before and pick it up. It’s really close to Greek Row, so a perfect place to walk over and grab a bite with friends!

I’m a sucker for restaurants that don’t seem like they belong where they are. Quality restaurants in not-​so-​quality locations. Hole-​in-​the-​walls specifically tailored to the locals who frequent them.
And the 2 – 9 (much like Bacaro) feels like it’s exclusively an SC student hangout. Which, as an SC student, I definitely did NOT mind.
It’s a good location for us in that it’s smack-​dab in the middle of the off-​campus housing area. Sucks for everyone else because parking is just meter or street parking. I’d recommend biking or walking.
Food is standard homey American café — a la BJ’s or Yardhouse (wraps, sandwiches, burgers, salads, etc.). I LOVE the potato skins appetizer and their sweet potato fries!
Note: Fish dishes (i.e. mahi mahi) tend to take a little longer than meat dishes.
Good variety of beers and wine! The 2 – 9 knows its patrons (college students with a budget… though let’sbereal; still SC students…)
Service is the only slight negative. Hostesses were pretty nice, but waiters/​waitresses tended to be kind of stand-​offish and uppity. I swear one girl rolled her eyes when I asked for a straw before.
Wait time for food is on the long side — but if you’re used to Cheesecake Factory-​type times, you know what’s up.

Typical food aimed at catering to the nearby USC community. AKA college food…
Menu consists of the usual burgers, sandwiches, salads, «pub» food etc but nothing too special. I had the chicken wrap but the chicken was kind of dry and the tzatziki sauce didn’t really taste like it was yogurt based but had a more mayo flavor =(i didn’t really eat much of that but the sweet potato fries that I got on the side were quite good so i’ll give them that.
I wouldn’t make an effort to come to this place but if I were starving and too lazy to go anywhere else I might consider stopping here.

Went here with a friend for happy hour. Snagged a table outside on the little patio…
Totally BLOWN AWAY by the fact that at any point in the day for $ 2.90 you can get a pint of draft beer. Keg Killer specials!!! Cheapest place I’ve ever been to in LA!
Food was also good, typical bar style food (lots of fried items, burgers, etc). The onion rings were some of the best I’ve had in a while. A table next to us ordered some and they smelled so good I just had to order a plate of my own!
A little out of the way if you’re not a USC student or live in that area… but super convenient off of the ¹⁰⁄₁₁₀.
Go there just for the cheap beer!!!

The others are correct: this place has great sweet potato fries! In addition, the food is pretty much all typical café comfort foods. Fried things, chillis, ribs, burgers/​melts. I think a good number of their sandwiches have avocado in them, too. :) Delicious! I ordered the Frisco Burger. It came with avocado, tomato, some sort of chipotle mayo, and onion on buttery grilled sourdough. So oily and multi-​colored and delicious!!! You can choose between a good number of sides for the entrees (sweet potato fries, cole slaw, fries, salad, another kind of salad…), too. Variety is the spice of life. ;)
I can’t believe I’m a senior at USC and I’m just trying this place… –_​-​” I live so close, so I’m sure I’ll be back for a beer or something.

It’s not that I don’t LOVE this place… it’s more of the convenience factor versus opportunity cost!
PARKING: Designated lot or street parking. Close walking distance to all things USC. Fight on trojans!
FOOD: The food here is very typical café fare. I had a couple of their wraps, but personally, I think their breakfast menu is a lot better than anything else. They have a decent assortment of beers for a random café. Sweet potato fries are pretty good! :)
SERVICE: I always get decent, but not stellar, service here. No complaints!
MISC: One time on a Sunday morning, I walked in here with a friend and the interior of the restaurant smelled like the inside of a stale bathroom. It was REALLY nasty!

TUNA MELT. all the way
that is all
why not a higher rating?
— prices on menu are affordable but the happy hour menu is kinda ridiculous.
— service is really slow, something I can’t stand.

100^th REVIEW! WOOHOOOOO! :)
This place, often referred to as «The 2−9» is literally one street away from my apartment and I have always driven past it but have never had a chance to actually go. But tonight, I finally went for dinner with two of my friends.
There was seating indoors as well as outdoors. There was plenty of seating available so we were seated right away. Service was just okay– not really fast but not terribly slow either. They had a selection of wines and beers but I decided on a hibiscus lemonade because it sounded yummy. I asked the waitress what it was exactly and she said it was a fruity lemonade. When I asked her what kind of fruity, she replied with, «Red.» Hmm. I didn’t know «red» was a fruit! Either way, it tasted pretty good, kinda like a sweeter punch-​like pink lemonade.
For food, I ordered the 2 – 9 turkey sandwich which came with avocados, lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese on a croissant with sweet potato fries on the side. The sandwich was overall okay and the sweet potato fries were pretty good but definitely not the best I’ve had. Portions were generous! I was really full at the end of the meal and couldn’t finish the fries.
Prices are pretty cheap and reasonable. Sandwiches were about $ 7 – 9. They also have burgers, salads, and soups. One good thing about this place is that there’s a small parking lot right next to it and parking is free! :) Awesome because there’s like NO street parking nearby!