Café Bistro

No complaints about the Bistro! The service set-​up is a little strange however. You come in and order at a counter first. You pay and are given a copy of your receipt and then sit wherever you can find a spot. The server comes over to the table and then brings the drinks from your receipt.
Once we got over the initial weirdness of the ordering experience, the food and service was actually fantastic. Our server was quick and polite and just attentive enough.
My hubby ordered the citrus shrimp salad and I ordered the classic Caesar. His shrimp were perfectly seasoned and grilled. My chicken wasn’t exciting but the Caesar dressing was superb and the Parmesan crisp added a great crunch to my salad.
After we ate, the servers brought our receipt to the table along with a tip dish. Just again, a little strange. We left our tip and continued shopping. We will continue to eat here during our shopping trips. The food is light and fresh and the service isn’t overbearing at all.

My boyfriend and I always stop in for their white chocolate bread pudding. Nothing else compares. But today we decided to eat lunch also. The food took a little longer than normal, they were pretty busy and it being a weekend that’s too be expected. But unfortunately when our food did finally come my chicken was under cooked and still pink in the middle. I hadn’t been feeling well and the under cooked chicken spoiled my appetite. I promptly sent it back and asked for a bowl of soup instead and told them not to worry about remaking the chicken. The server was great and made sure we were well taken care off. She refunded us for the plate and our dessert. And they still made me a new plate to go. Which I greatly appertained, because I am a nurse and I was going in to a 16hr shift and to have a full meal prepared for me to eat at work is rare. Even as we were walking out the manager stopped us to make sure everything had turned out ok. I cant say I ever had such a great bad experience. Thank you!

Perfect place to stop when you’re shopping or in the area. Located upstairs Nordstrom with artisan deli foods. I always order a side of fries with olive aoli here. They have the best fries ever.
Their tomato bisque taste fresh and has a hint of spicy. Definitely does not taste out of a can.
I also had the turkey citrus sandwich during my last visit and it had a wonderful combination of flavors. It kinda tasted like thanksgiving because of the turkey with cranberry!
The service is very good and attentive. The prices are fairly inexpensive for the quality of food that you’re getting and for being at la cantera.

Why not give Café Bistro 5 stars, I use to come here at least once a week for like 3 months straight! I’m crazy I know. But once I like something I continue to go and get it until I’m tired of it… I’m not tired yet.
My go to meal would be the grilled chicken Cesar salad. This is one of my favorite Cesar’s so far. The chicken is always juicy and they don’t over power the dressing.
My boyfriend has tried pretty much all the sandwiches and his favorite is the bistro club. With all the sauces on the side of course.
Bistro French fries! A must eat!!! I always order extra cause they are just that good.
Pros: ask for bread it’s complimentary! You can use your Nordstrom card here, rack up those points. Their complimentary chocolate, Markers, beats Andes chocolate.
Cons: can’t think of any right now. But I’ll update once I find some!

Café Bistro is consistently good. The food is always fresh and tasty. Their bread pudding is out of this world. I highly recommend this eatery located inside Nordstrom.

Even if you don’t shop at Nordstrom, come to the bistro anyway. It’s probably one of the best places to eat at La Cantera. Very relaxed atmosphere, staff is incredibly welcoming and nice (like pretty much everyone who works at Nordstrom).
All the sandwiches are good but I always get them with fries because those fries are delicious! The steak is pretty good but I’m not a huge fan of the butter they or on top. It’s a little tart. The olive aioli is really good though. The desserts are all delicious. Especially the triple berry cake. It’s so moist and not too sweet. Nothing beats coming here during the winter, I usually get a warm bowl of soup and their perfectly toasted bread. Sometimes I come with just the purpose of eating here, no shopping involved.
Nordstrom is known for its customer service and you will definitely see the quality of the service at the bistro. One of my favorite things is the mint chocolate sticks that they give you with your check. You can purchase them now thankfully. It’s a perfect way to end a meal.

Waited in line to order & took a little longer than I would’ve liked, but once we ordered & sat down, it was great! The food came out very quickly, and the service was amazing. The food was also delicious & we enjoyed everything.

This is one of my favorite cafes/​eateries. The food is pricey, but the quality is awesome. I ordered the ham and Swiss sandwich to try something new. It was delightful. The side of fries were flavored well. I ordered a Bread pudding to go. The service is great, the servers are polite and friendly. Now, time to shop at Nordstrom!

My hubby and I always shop at Nordstrom and never thought about trying out their Bistro Café. I was actually shocked that when you walk in, you actually order your good and pay first. Then you sit down at a table and a server comes and brings you your food and drinks.
I had one of the specials of the day, salmon Caesar salad, and it was actually pretty good. The only downside to it was that the salmon was so small considering the amount of salad that was in the bowl. However, the salad was enough for lunch.
My hubby ate the French Dip Sandwich with Au Jus. Can I just say «WOW». It was actually one of the best French dip sandwiches that I’ve had. The sandwich comes with French fries and a side of olive mayo dip. It was excellent.
The one thing that we were very confused with is the tipping situation. No where on the recipes does it allow you to leave a tip. Luckily we had cash on hand to leave a tip. That’s the reason why I’m giving this place a three star. Lol, I sat there a did research to see if we should be tipping.
Décor was alright and the tables were so close together that it was awkward getting out from the area that we were in. The table next to us had to move some of their bags out of the way. (Another reason for the 3 star).
I would visit again… but not one of my first choices.

Delicious options. Steak and frites are amazing. Relaxing atmosphere and good service. Solid every time.

Went to have the bread pudding one day and it was the BEST thing ever! The texture was perfect and warm, crunchy on the outside crust. The melted white chocolate with fresh raspberries gives it an awesome taste!

I love love love this place!
You order at the counter, they seat you and a waitress/​waiter serves you your food.
The food is always fresh and delicious. My favorite item on the menu by far is the crab bisque soup which is served with a crunchy piece of bread. It’s to die for! Absolutely delicious. I have yet to find another place in San Antonio that serves crab bisque soup or at least one that even compares to the one they have here.
I also think their salads are perfectly made and thee pizza is light and flavorful.
Who would’ve thought that a department store restaurant would have such delicious food. It’s a little hidden treasure.

One of my favorite lunch spots. There bread pudding is to die for! All the food is amazing and the service is GREAT!

Love this place is kind of pricey island really like their shrimp and cilantro salad its to die for a good and they always have mimosas which I love

This place is awesome! Always great food, cilantro lime chicken salad and crab bisque is to die for!

The food was decent, but overall I wasn’t impressed because it was too pricey, especially during lunch. Typically restaurants have pretty decently priced lunch specials, this one doesn’t. I tried it once, but I don’t think I’ll ever come back again.

3.5/ 5 The chicken goat cheese panini and fries were excellent here. The fries are crispy, thin, seasoned well and are served with a tasty aoili sauce. French onion soup here is pretty tasty. The Asian Salad was really salty though. The price for the sandwich meals are a good deal for the large portion, but the salads and other things on the menu are a bit pricy.
The service is a hit or miss here especially when the restaurant is pretty empty and can be slow at times. I’ve been here though when the server barely checked on us even though there wasn’t anyone else in the café.
I think this is one of the better /​more affordable options in La Cantera for decent food especially if you are craving a sandwich and fries or soup. I’d say its the best café food option in the area.

Hands down, this is the restaurant that gets most of our business in San Antonio. Whether my husband and I want an affordable, but elegant meal, or we are eating out with our four children, Nordstrom Bistro has never disappointed!
Miss Elvira (sweet older lady, not the Elvira of 80s lore) greets you and you are immediately in her sales clutches with her persuasive smile. Thanks to Miss Elvira, I own all four Nordstrom cookbooks, all of which are the best I own. And, if I’m feeling particularly soft that way, I walk out with some of the chocolates that are on display by the ordering counter.
After giving your order, you are seated at a table, where you meet your waiter. All of the wait staff are excellent, and contribute to the feel of a fine dining experience.
But, even if the people were not great, the food is TERRIFIC!!! I dream about their French Onion Soup (the best I’ve had in mainland USA), and their Triple Berry Shortcake. The Chef’s Specials often tempt me, but I end up with one of my stand-​by salads (Nicoise Salmon, Shrimp Lime, or Asian Chicken), or a favorite entrée (Bistro Club, Mushroom Risotto.)
Not many people I know have been here, but when I take them, it becomes their favorite.

I just wanted to update the Unilocal-​iverse to say that the salad with grilled chicken and Asian dressing is my new favorite here. If you’re not very hungry, or if you want it as a side salad, they will split the portion for you and a friend. Other restaurants have a salad that fills this niche, but Nordstrom has my favorite yet. UPDATE: A manager messaged me to say that you can actually order half portions of the salads, even if you have no friend to share with.
Also, despite the awkwardness with having to keep cash for tipping, the service here is extremely good. UPDATE: The manager also wrote to say you can ask to run a tip on your card when you order at the counter. I haven’t tried this method yet, but it’s good advice.
Also, I would like to give a shout out to the white chocolate bread putting. Someone brought us a complimentary plate recently, and it was amazing. Also, last night, I was given complimentary decaf coffee after my meal – again, great service!

My Mom and I had a great lunch here the other day. We ordered the Turkey White Bean Chili and it was delicious. Today I called the Bistro hoping to get the recipe. I talked to Rich and he was so helpful by taking down my email and sending the recipe to me within the hour.
Thanks for the great food and exceptional customer service!

Thank goodness for Nordstrom and their bistro.
Let’s say you’re from out of town and sequestered at the Westin La Cantera. Let’s say, too, that you tend to eat healthy foods and are having a hard time finding anything with fresh vegetables. This bistro is the perfect solution.
I liked it so much that I ate there two nights in a row. The food is just fantastic. Night one was a half salad and the salmon entrée that had tons of bright, crisp green beans and fingerling potatoes. Five stars. Night two was an arugula salad with haddock; lightly dressed in champagne vinaigrette. Four-​point-​eight stars, they lose two tenths of a star for whole pieces of rock salt that were a bit much and not pleasant to crunch — a bit like eating pieces of glass.
Service was also five stars. I loved the atmosphere and thought that providing their cookbooks to peruse while dining was a great plan, especially for the solo diner.
They lose two whole stars, though, for the confusing way in which they process people. You review the menu and pay up front. No line on your credit slip for a tip (or do you need to tip when you place an order at the counter? And if you do, how much?) and your receipt is handed to you in a small folder. Wha? You take the folder back with you and place it on your table and then get… table service? Then the wait staff sweeps up the folder… because there’s supposed to be a tip in it? Then, because you’ve paid… you just get up and leave when you’re finished? The whole process is unlike anything I’ve experienced and the diner is left wondering exactly what protocol is. It was awkward and uncomfortable and a bit embarrassing.
So, in sum, food is great, service is great, system is terrible. Go, but prepare yourself.

I love their crab bisque and roasted chicken goat cheese panini. Also, if you ever want to get dessert, get the white chocolate bread pudding.

I love this restaurant! It is one of my favorite places to go with my sister and mom for lunch. I wish it were more convenient for me to go to — but it’s just too hard for me to go to La Cantera for lunch on most days. Definitely have great food and amazing amazing amazing fries! There selection isn’t amazingly vast, but I would definitely recommend this place for an upscale (but not too fancy!) lunch. The only other downside is how tempting it is for me to shop for hours when I step in to Nordstrom!
Highly recommend!