Sophia Cafe

Alas, but my favorite go-​to place for shawarma has closed. Earlier this Summer, and with apparently very little fanfare Sofia Café closed their doors. I really hope they’re looking at opening up at a new location. But, I’m losing hope at this point.
One website still has the menu up as if nothing happened, while another website has a simple one line of text saying opening in a new location soon. Not sure where I’ll get my Sufganiyot this year for Hanukkah!
(dropped a star because they’re not open).

Currently closed. Their website says they’ll be opening in a new location soon.
I also had read somewhere that there would be new owners at this location/​
Hope Sophia Café will re-​open somewhere. I have ordered many of their boreka platters for parties. They are so delis!

This place is closing this Friday 5÷31÷14. If you go by, you will see a letter in the window telling people the business got sold.
Enjoy it while you can. :)

I really wanted to love this place. It had all the markings of a neighborhood favorite. It’s small, homey, and so quaint. There are seats outside so you can enjoy a nice Sunday morning. But I think it’s too pricey for the amount of food you get. I was still hungry after my meal.
Turkish coffee is so good! It was my first time trying it. No creamer is needed as the sugar is added directly with the grounds when they made the coffee. I was wondering why it took so long for them to deliver it when they told me each cup is hand made. I was only sad that it was such a small cup, I wanted more! This way of making it means there is sludge at the bottom however.
I ordered the potato and onion boreka plate. I didn’t really know what I was ordering so I was pleased with the flakey crispiness of the bready dough. The filling was sorta bland and uneventful. My meal came with a very refreshing side of cucumber and tomato salad. I ordered several falafel balls which were good. Crispy on the outside and not too dry on the inside.
They have a couple homemade sauces. Their «mild» sauce was SO SPICY. And their «spicy» sauce was not as spicy. Maybe they mixed it up when giving it to us.
Overall quality of food is good, but quantities are too small for the price.

Latest update since I see my last review was in 2008?
Daughter and I did the pedicure followed by Sophia café last Thursday.
The food is still delicious. I got the falafel sandwich, daughter got the chicken breast sandwich, and we finished it off with baklava and i got a Turkish coffee. Everything is so fresh. The quality and flavor of the food is excellent. Do not leave here without getting a baklava. Even if you are stuffed from your meal, get one to go. You won;t be sorry.
We were greeted immediately upon entering, there were quite a few people inside for a weekday, the woman (I’m not sure if she is the owner) gave us menus immediately, took our orders quickly even though she was the only server. The food was delivered in a timely manner as well.
I cannot say enough good things about this little café. I love the food, the service is excellent and the prices are still reasonable.

Pretty gosh darn good.
They had ran out of baba ganoush the night before (selling well, good sign — and the server’s favorite, another good thing), so I had the option to up a portion in the combo plate I got. More hummus it was, and good it also was.
Had a mint lemonade with the meal, tasty, and a turkish coffee on the way out. Like the Turks say, black as hell, strong as death, and sweet as love.
It’s been my style lately to drop a 4 star review first, and return later to see if the 4 did the job or if a star +/​-​is in order. I feel it’s gonna go up, but I’ll let y’all know for sure next time.

I was impressed by the quality of food and the service at Sophia Café. My friend and I found the place by chance while driving though the area. It’s a small hole in the wall place with about 8 tables. The lady who greeted us when we walked in was so friendly and seemed genuinely happy to see us. The warm greeting set the tone for a pleasant dining experience.
I ordered the lamb shawarma plate and was pleased with how it tasted — lamb was nicely grilled, salad and hummus were both fresh and tasty, and the pita bread was warm out of the oven. My friend had a salad with grilled chicken and was pleased with that choice. The homemade lemonade and iced tea are also both very good.
Will definitely stop by again the next time I’m in the area.

Let me start off by saying that the service was great. The woman was very friendly and attentive. The problem was with the food. Something was off about my lamb plate. I felt sick after about 3 hours from leaving there. My sister felt sick as well. She eventually threw-​up about 5 hours after eating there. The time it took to digest the food matches up with the food sickness symptoms, which is why I attribute it to the food rather than another cause. It was really unfortunate since the lady was so nice.

Delicious food, great service. Had everything you want in a Greek restaurant, including homemade desserts. I don’t know what more you could ask for, except more tables for if it gets more popular.

Sophia, you’re slipping.
I used to think Sophia Café was hands down the BEST Mediterranean food around. not so sure anymore. Some of the menu items are still on point, but others not so much. For the prices charged, everything better be spot on.
My boyfriend and I used to love the shawarma plates. We’ve both tried all the flavors (lamb, chicken and fish). I used to die over the chicken shawarma. I’d daydream about it and stop by to have it at any opportunity. The chicken used to be all or mostly white meat. The last time I had it, I was extremely disappointed to find nothing but dark (thigh) meat. Maybe it would have been better if it was cooked longer than usual (dark meat obviously takes longer to cook), but it was fatty with lots of connective tissue, and hardly edible. I threw almost all of my $ 13 dinner entrée in the trash and haven’t ordered that since. Boyfriend tried the chicken as well and agreed that it was gross. What happened?
I’ve also been by Sophia Café more than once during their stated business hours to find that they were closed. Not a huge deal since I live nearby, but c’mon. Other times, I’ve called to make sure they were open during stated business hours and there was no answer. Be open when you say you’ll be open…7:30 shouldn’t be too late to get dinner on a weeknight from a place that closes at 8.
The matzo ball soup used to be a consistently solid choice. The last time I ordered it, it had a putrid scent and off flavor, like the carrots and celery in it should have been tossed into the garbage and not into my soup. I got the large, so it was $ 10. For bad soup. It used to be so good. What happened?
Some of the other items are very, very good. Read on for specific descriptions of the better choices:
falafel — made to order. smaller balls than most places, so they come out extra crispy. tasty spices. good flavor profile.
hummus — possibly the best hummus around. it’s creamy with lots of tahini. very good. (but it better be for $ 7.00 per order.
dolmas — possible the best around. they usually come warm. I’ve always wondered if they were made to order. the rice filling is perfectly spiced. the last time I ordered them, they were not quite as fresh, but most place’s dolmas aren’t, so i’ll give Sophia a pass on this one. Again, for $ 6.50 for 6, they better be good, and they are.
«cigars» appetizer — ground beef, ground garbanzo beans and spices stuffed into small pastries, fried to perfection. truly delicious. highly recommended.
falafel sandwich — delicious. if you order it to-​go, they wrap each half separately. it’s really too much for one person, especially if you’ve ordered other things.
shawarma — don’t order the chicken without confirming it’s mostly white meat. the fish is a flaky white fish (think sole) spiced and sautéed. def not battered/​fried. smallish portion, but very good. the lamb is delicious. the chicken used to be great. not so sure anymore.
matzo ball soup — used to be great, recently had a bad batch. order a small portion and see what you think…
eggplant salad — meh.
borekas — decent.
baklava — good.
pita — good.
I’ve been to Sophia’s a number of times, and have tried many items on the menu. I used to be unilaterally impressed with the food. The prices have always been high, but for great food, that’s okay. Recently, I’ve been less satisfied with the quality of the food. Not sure what’s going on. This definitely used to be a 4 – 5 star place. Now it’s just a 3 to me…

I love Sophia Café– they have the BEST falafel in town! Their house made hummus, baba ganoush, and hot sauces are mouth-​watering!
The owner always makes her own soups, which are to die for. And I don’t mean those thick creamy soups that put you in a food coma. I mean, hearty, healthy, delectable soups. Perfect for cold weather. Did I forget to mention their french fries? OH YES. No, they are not frozen– they slice the potatoes in house! On the menu are regular, garlic, or sweet potato fries (I recommend the latter two) — so delicious! Let’s be honest, I’ve literally tried EVERYTHING on the menu, and it’s all wonderful.
On top of the immaculate food, the service is out of this world! I was just in this evening with my friend, and the server was so sweet! He was patient, helped us pick out things to order (it was my friend’s first time there), and he was a genuinely kind individual.
I have loved this place since my very first bite. Will I be back? Obviously.

Excellent customer service, fast service and good food.
A very clean «hole in the wall» joint.
I ordered a Felafel Pita «to-​go» and it was more than enough food for 2 people.
It came in 2 halves separately wrapped.
Soft, warm pita filled with well seasoned Falafel, cucumber salad, and 2 kinds of sauces.
I’ll def be back to try other things in their menu.

Great little family owned café. Small with limited seating but the quality of the food is hard to beat. Authentic, always fresh and consistent and very tasty!
Nice vegetarian selection and I like their hummus and eggplant better than the place around the corner on San Pablo or the other one at the top of Solano.

Café Sophia is a gem. The lady that served us was friendly and attentive, but not intrusive. My wife and I split a falafel platter and a sophia salad and both were delicious. The falafels are individually smaller than many other places and so they came out a bit crispier than most, yum! The spinach and feta boureka was wonderfully good — I may become a regular here for them alone.
And finally: the rose watered honey on the baklava is a real treat!
I’ll certainly be visiting again.

Teeny tiny spot on Solano that offers brilliant service and delicious food! I ordered appetizers from Sophia for a party of 75 and the owner was friendly and kind on the phone and had all my food ready to go the day of the party. Everyone loved the hummus and the spinach pastries!

So I went here once a few years ago and had a bad experience of some kind — I think I ended up getting something with an ingredient I was allergic to, despite repeatedly asking them if the food contained that ingredient. But I may have just had a bad tummy that day, ya know? Anyway, I was really craving Mediterranean food and it’s about two blocks from my house, so I decided to give it a second try.
Okay, I missed something decent staying away for 2 years. I had a lamb shawarma sandwich and it was pretty good — not quite as spiced up as I like it, but not bland either and they didn’t skimp at all on the tahini sauce as some places do. Actually, I’d prefer to give it three and a half stars since I’d say it was better than being just okay, but not quite a 4 star rave.
The service was really friendly and the people quite helpful and attentive. They made sure I had everything I wanted or needed and did so with smiles. My complain about the experience was nothing the restaurant could really have controlled — there was a work group having lunch together and some marketing person joined them and was obviously high or drunk and extremely loud and obnoxious. Like shouting, cussing a blue streak, misogynistic and very sure he was the most hilarious guy whose ever lived. It made it difficult to relax and enjoy my food — I ended up eating quickly to get away from the noise! So, unless that guy is a regular who eats there daily, it’s probably not a reflection on the general ambience.
Decent, flavorful Mediterranean food. A bit high priced, but everything is in this neighborhood since the rents are outrageous! If you want cheap, go down to San Pablo Avenue and grab fast food. Sophia’s food is prepared quickly, but it’s definitely homemade and fresh. I’ll be back next time the falafel bug bits me.

I like the messa platter, it is a fair price and a whole lot of food. the service is always very kind, considerate and polite. the dining area has a few well positioned tables, but there are a few tight spots which are nice as u feel a sense of privacy, but also a bit cramped.
this place is great for a fairly healthy meal that is also filling.

A little bit over-​priced, still a good place to try if you never had Middle East food before.

I thought this place was ok. First off the turkish coffee was spot on. Very good. I ordered the lamb shwarma plate. It came with rice, and a salad. Very tasty. I also ordered a side of the lentil soup. Tasted exactly like the lentil soup from Wally’s Café in Emeryville, except Wally’s gives his soup away free with each entrée.
I had a piece of the apple strudel. I thought it was going to be a little sweeter but the philo dough was a bit soggy and it was kinda tart. Didn’t live up to my expectations.

Adorable local Mediterranean-​style mom-​and-​pop restaurant with satisfying, home-​cooked cuisine. When you eat here, you feel like you’re being served by your yaya with her baba ganoush and roasted vegetables recipe passed down from the generations.
We wanted a shawarma platter, which doesn’t really exist on the menu but you can create it by combining the chicken and lamb shawarma appetizers. It comes on a very, very generous bed of hummus with sides of olive-​oil roasted eggplant (delish) and refreshing baba ganoush. Lemon water is complimentary. Pita bread comes with the order (I think wheat is available, but white is default.) Definitely some of the best shawarma we’ve had here in the East Bay.
Cozy, cute ambience and restaurant hours similar to the rest of Solano Ave (closed Mondays, open usu. 11−830p). Takes all major credit cards including AMEX. Can order food to go. Definitely affordable– the plate was about $ 14 including tip. We will be back! This is another neighborhood gem!
(As a side, the couple that was dining near us also ordered another entire meal to go– the food was that good! Plus, the owner is Hungarian, and serves some Hungarian-​inspired cuisine as well.)