Cafe Lava

Service was horrible. Everyone there was rude. When we ordered drinks, my friend asked for a coke and I ordered a diet coke. They looked at me like I had three heads. Then she got an attitude with me because I wanted something they didn’t have. What kind of café doesn’t have at least one diet drink available? Needless to say, we didn’t stay to find out how the food was. Do not recommend this place at all.

Stopped in to grab something to eat !
And end it up loving it .
Nice and friendly staff as well as very delicious food. Will for sure come back and for sure bring friends.

Wow this place was good! First off the place is beautiful when you walk in and has a different style that you really don’t see. The hostess didn’t speak fluent english but they spoke very kindly and was comprehendible. I ordered the lava salad which was very good (made up of shrimp, seaweed, and avocado). Then I had the steak which was also good. My favorite part had to be the lava cake! It’s a desert made up out of crepes and chocolate cream sauce. So good! Will be back soon for sure!

I had the Transylvanian Stuffed Cabbage, and my husband the pork schnitzel delivered to the hotel where we are staying; both dishes were plentiful and amazing, and had a homemade flavor! It was so good, I called them up to tell them how delicious it was and thank them!
The stuffed cabbage comes with a side of what I call polenta (it has a different name for them, I can’t remember it but it’s like corn meal, except creamy and not gritty, delicious) and my husband’s dish had a side of thinly sliced fried potatoes and a garnish of pickled cabbage. The schnitzel was huge– and they gave me a load of food as well. Everything was tender and also arrive hot, something I appreciate because I hate cold food (that’s supposed to be hot).
It did take about 45 minutes but there had been an accident on the road, so forgiven, especially since everything was so good!
Highly recommend!

My friend wanted to try this place and I figured why not. We went with a modest group of 4 and I made sure to look over their site before going over. Let me kick this review off by saying: DO NOT just walk in on the weekends. You NEED to make a reservation.
Everything started off with a very painfully awkward tense atmosphere when we walked in. No one smiled. They asked if we had a reservation and we didn’t. When I explained we just were trying the place for the first time and didn’t know we needed one, the hostess made it seem like it was a great struggle to find us a table. One table out of the whole dining room was being used. That’s it. I explained I didn’t see any mention about needing a reservation on their website, and the hostess’ response? «Well now you know for next time.»
We sat down, with wine glasses at each plate and they had no diet soda. We wondered for a moment if this was truly ‘casual dining’ as they had claimed on their site and on the front of their menu. We only stayed because of our waitress. Our waitress was delightful, pleasant and incredibly patient and kind. Had we been greeted by HER at the front instead, we wouldn’t have felt so awkward. Now, this place had been incredibly fancy up to this point and what comes on as music? Rap. I couldn’t fight back my laughter as I sat there listening to ‘Today’s Hits’ surrounded by wine glasses.
The food was good. The presentations are remarkable. The best moment was the dessert. The desserts ARE FANTASTIC! This place could fly alone by those amazing desserts! SOOO GOOD! The desserts, tasty food, and wonderful waitress are really what made this place worth the three stars. However, sadly, that awkward beginning was so painful we won’t be returning.

First time I was there, the outdoor seating was great. This time indoor seating AND service was VERY POOR. After the hostess seated my party of 7, the waitress came over and told us we have to move to a smaller table. A table that was too small, and uncomfortable for my party. The place was not busy, so I don’t know why they did that. I felt embarrassed in front of my guests and uncomfortable walking across the restaurant as we stood there and waited for her to reset the table.
Also there were many small children running around the place, making noise and disrupting our meal. It was bad. They were playing tag around my table, and hide and go seek in the curtains. Neither a staff nor a parent reprimanded them. I will not return.

One of my favorite restaurants! Tonight was my second time eating here. We had a very nice waitress. Although service is a bit slow and the food takes a while to come out, it’s well worth the wait. The Greek salad and escargot is great, and you can’t go wrong with any of the shish kebabs. My family always orders a bunch of appetizers for the table along with shish Kebabs for the table. That way we try a little bit of everything. For dessert we were brought out a slice of their famous «Lava cake» which was on the house because the waitress spilled someone’s drink outside… It was a very nice gesture of her even though it wasn’t that big of a deal. It’s good that they show that they care about their customers. At least the waitress that we had. Overall, great experience like that last time and I can’t wait to come back!

We had a blast here last night. The outside seating made me forget I was on a busy street.
I’m so glad a friend of mine recommended this place, and that we went before reading some of the reviews on Unilocal that were negative. Our experience was really great. As of 2 years ago, it’s been under new ownership.
I’m always looking for unique and interesting, however my husband prefers safe, due to dietary restrictions. This really fit the bill, plus it’s a BYOB.
The food was very good. My husband ordered a surf and turf for $ 27.00,that he said was pretty good. I got a Chilean Sea Bass in mustard sauce that was delicious.
The guitar music was just perfect. They had a blanket at every table, which will be a great touch as it gets cooler. We will definitely return here!

I really don’t understand the bad reviews on here. Yes the service can be slow at times, but we usually come here to eat and talk so I don’t mind. The food has been consistently great. We just celebrated my moms bday here and the whole experience was great. I went there to set up a menu and I dealt with Natasha — who’s one of the owners — she was very pleasant and helpful. The size of our party changed last minute and they were very accommodating. Since we had an early dinner and It was going to be hot outside, Natasha suggested we eat the main courses inside and have dessert outside since they have someone playing the guitar out there — what a great idea. Everyone in the party loved going outside for dessert — the setup outside is very warm and welcoming. Out waitress Ulyana was super sweet and she was running around the whole night and made sure everyone was done as requested.

Never again… The service is horrendous. The food was not that good, and my plov had big chunks of fat, and tiny bones in the tiny pieces of meat. The food took over an HOUR to come out. Even though it was only for 6 people, the entrees came out at separate times, the waitress didn’t seem to want to be there, and was not accommodating. The only part I liked was the way it was decorated.

I had lunch with my mother, we wanted to try something different. The food was so tasty, not the everyday menu. The presentation was so impressive it felt like an upscale dining experience with great company, my mom

Very good food but it came out cold. Almost like it was pre made and heated up. Service was good. Horrible club music.

The service can be very slow at busy times. There is something about their lattes that kept me coming back. I really like the comfortable, warm environment and décor.

So I was contacted by someone from this place accusing me of working for one of their competitors, which I don’t, accusing me of fabricating/​lying in my review, which I’m not, and threatened to get a lawyer and possibly sue me. Which they are more than welcome to try. My original review is true and an honest account of the experience I had there. It is protected as Free Speech under the First Amendment of the Constitution, which is backed up by a lot of case law. This is sad bullying retaliation tactic and a poor choice by the restaurant.

Everything I said in my first review is the truth, I was not the one yelling she was. that is not how you treat a customer. Was I upset of course I was it was my dads bday and we got served rotten food and were yelled at, but how could I scare or make customers feel unsafe if we were the only customers there? After I wrote the first review the owner or someone claiming to be the owner threatened me on fb and actually called my job and threatened to show up at my job if I do not take down the post!!! Lol it’s all good I have no intention I’m coming back there but it’s my right to write about my experience the point that I was threatened for this is just unnecessary.

HORRIBLE. Ordered many things to try and two thing came out good-​Caesar salad (which you can’t mess up) and the khachapuri which was not traditional but the blend of cheeses was delicious. Service was slowwww and we were the only table there. It took like 35 min to get the salad as an app. Waitress was nice though. Outdoor seating looked nice too. Since other people besides Russians come here they should put descriptions under the menu items. Too pricey for little portions and also I ordered things to go for my parents to try and only got half of what i asked for. Dissapointed.

I’ve been to this place twice and each time it’s the same problem… SERVICE! It’s not like this place was busy either time I was there. The waitress and waiters simply are too busy either a.) socializing with each other and b.) staring off into space.
The food is mediocre at best. Both times I’ve been here I went not exactly by choice, this place was chosen for social gatherings by friends or family. I tried a number of different appetizers and the last dish I order was the sea-​bass. It was just ok, well cooked but had a very heavy sauce called «Dijon mustard sauce» which to me tasted like mustard mixed with heavy cream. My husband ordered a bison burger which had very little meat and a huge bun. He claims it was terrible.
Going back to the service issue: My party had a two hour meal! Two hours, and it wasn’t because we just got caught up in conversation, it was because our waitress took forever! Dessert and coffee was ordered and of course dessert was brought 15 minutes before the coffee. I don’t think I would ever go here by choice. There food simply isn’t worth it.

I’ve now been here twice and both times it has been a wonderful dining experience. My family knows the owner, so maybe my opinion is a little biased of the quality of service, but as I looked around the restaurant it seemed to be that way at each table. My little brother is gluten free and they are always more than willing to make anything on the menu gluten free. The prices are also insanely reasonable.
Because I wasn’t really familiar with the the items on the menu, I asked a ton of questions. They were really helpful in explaining everything and helping us make our choices. Everything we ordered we shared, which is probably my favorite part about this restaurant.
What we ordered: Escargot, potatoes with mushrooms, meat crêpe, cheese varaneki, sea bass shish kabob, chicken shish kabob.
Favorites: potatoes with mushrooms. meat crêpe, chicken shish kabob. This doesnt mean the other selections weren’t great, its just that I would never go back without ordering these specifically.
They also added a beautiful gazebo type section for outdoor seating.

Lava is actually one of my favorite Russian restaurants in the area. And each time I come here I wonder why I don’t visit more often. They have a very nicely decorated interior and a large, spacious covered patio. When ever I go, the weather is always very nice and I sit on the patio.
The service is OK. The food can be a bit slow coming out and they’re not that attentive. Definitely not awful, but far from good. And yes, even when it’s not busy and yes even when you’re with a bunch of Russians. It’s just not their strong suit. Now that I think about it, maybe that’s why I don’t come here too often.
The food is very good. I’ve tried a ton of their appetizers and entrees, but for some reason, the chicken schnitzel really stands out. I don’t know what they do to it, but it’s crispy on the outside, tender on the inside, and full of flavor. It’s almost like a chicken parm cutlet, but it’s different. Also, they make a dessert which I believe is called «lava cake» and it’s spectacular. It’s essentially crepes filled with cream and then layered together served with whipped cream and berries. It’s amazing. They also have this dish which is peaches in a vanilla cream sauce they is super sweet and creamy and delicious. Also, the presentation of each item is super nice. Like fine dining nice. And it’s not too expensive either.
Parking is ample, but there can be a bit of a walk if you have trouble walking. I know they do live music too sometimes, but not sure when.

I’m torn on how to write this review because, admittedly, I do not understand the culture and it would be ignorant of me to apply American standards to a place such as this… but my girlfriend who is Eastern European shared my feelings, so here we go…
Atmosphere — Great. We sat outside and it was very pleasant. I would love to have something like that in my backyard.
Food — Appetizer was great, entrée was decent but very dry (Chicken Kiev). Due to our abysmal service (see the next part) we got free dessert. I am not a dessert person at all, but it was incredibly good!
Service — Awful. At first I just assumed that like many other cultures, the meal was more of an experience and that waiting was just part of the night. However after our server took our order, we saw him once over the next hour when he apologized for the food taking so long. (We watched multiple other tables sit down, order, get their food, and eat.) He dropped our food off and we didn’t see him for another 30 minutes. We had to ask the bus boy to go find our server so we could get the check. It took another 10 minutes for him to show up at which point we asked to see the manager.
Management — The manager dismissed our concerns and just repeated that they were very busy. We pointed out that «busy» is a poor excuse considering that other tables got their food in a timely manner and had attentive severs who stopped by more than 4 times in 2 hours.
Another (much more pleasant) employee came over and apologized and offered us the dessert, which again, was very good.
I’m thankful for the evening out with my girlfriend, but I don’t think I’d come back unless I knew I’d be getting better service.
Step it up, Café Lava.