Ella Cafe

Service was very lame the food was bland and they need to hire a busboy. the salmon wrap was like cardboard and had absolutely no flavor

Ella is a solid brunch place. Pretty darn consistent with their offerings and good size portions. I love how the brunch on the weekends comes with coffee or tea plus a lil shot of orange juice in the price. Speaking of price I think they are pretty reasonable too. The place kind of has a scandinavian feel and boasts wood finishes in the dining area, high ceilings, and even a open air patio in the back, great for warmer weather.
I usually order the Eggs Benedict (which are only available on the weekend brunch menu) — norwegian style. They have really good smoked salmon here. Breakfasts also come with potatoes and salad. Both are delicious… sometimes I even ask for the potatoes ‘well done’ so they are extra crunchy.
Ive also order the skillets here which are delish and very filling as well as straight bacon and eggs. The eggs are organic which I think makes them taste better. Whenever I order the bacon they totally give me a a seriously good size portion which is awesome.
Im submitting this review even though they are currently closed which recovering from a fire that happened in a building next door. Really unfortunate and hope they don’t close permanently! I love Ellas for weekend brunch :)

Bedford Avenue is one of my favorite streets in Brooklyn. One late afternoon after doing some shopping, I realized that I had not done my research and therefore I did not know what restaurants were good in the area. I tried to find a restaurant or coffee shop with WiFi but to no avail. So I randomly chose a restaurant and found myself at Ella Café.
Unfortunately they did not have WiFi and that really annoyed me. I could have asked before sitting if they had internet access, but I did not, so I decided to stay anyway. What restaurant does not have WiFi these days? After perusing the menu, I decided to get the grilled salmon with 2 sides (you choose the 2 sides from a list). For the sides I chose grilled asparagus and macaroni and cheese. Odd combination, I know, but it totally worked.
When I received my meal I was excited by the size of the macaroni and cheese. It looked delicious. As I began to eat my meal, I noticed that the asparagus was perfectly cooked; not to soft and not too hard. The skin on the salmon was nice and crispy, but sadly the salmon itself was overcooked. You can usually tell in advance when salmon is overcooked because you can see the white fat on the salmon. The macaroni and cheese was just right. It had the right amount of cheese, the pasta was perfectly firm and not overcooked and it paired great with the grilled salmon and asparagus.
Ella Café was a pleasant surprise. If the salmon had been cooked for one minute less, it would have been a near perfect meal.

Didn’t eat here. Just got a quick tea.
People seemed nice and I dug the décor.

Good cappuccino and home style food. Had a salad, soup and sandwich there. Pricey, but hits the spot. Oh, and it’s all organic.
The space is really nice as well. Front end is more coffee shop type feel and towards the back you get a brunchy/​restaurant feel.

I stopped in here while waiting to meet up with a friend, intending on just grabbing a cup of coffee and hiding in a corner.
Like anyplace else in BillyBurg, this place gets packed on the weekends. They have a sit-​down area in the back, so a lot of people come in here for organic brunch items.
My café au lait was pretty tasty and I got to eavesdrop on these people talking about their slutty friend. Caffiene and gossip, all in one breath? Thank you.

Sunday night: I popped into Ella with my partner to get some work done. I don’t know what the food is like here, but the coffee/​tea was mmmehh.
Cons:
–latte was lukewarm – clearly used cold milk
–chai latte did not taste like it contained tea –_​_​– it seemed to me like sugar and chai flavored syrup added to milk
–why did both these drinks cost me 3.50 each ???
Pros:
–decent service
–swanky interior… kinda

Ok, reliable
A bit pricey for what it is

Consistently high-​quality and tasty. I’m constantly thanking the delivery gods that Ella reaches me in Greenpoint.
Every restaurant that serves it should offer breakfast all day. Ella’s famed Meat Skillet w/​eggs, bacon, & kielbasa is a perfect protein-​packed meal any time of day. And it comes with rosemary taters, ‘shrooms, onions, swiss, roasted peppers, and choice of toast. What more could you want? Breakfast all day, bitches!
Oh, how about the best damned Grilled Salmon you’ve ever had for under $ 15? Simple, fresh, crispy, savory, it’s probably my favorite to-​go dinner in Williamsburg. They even give you two sides. I prefer the Grilled Zucchini and heaping Mashed Potatoes. Though the Mustard Spaetzle, Ratatouille, Asparagus are all tastebud-​pleasers in their own right.
I’ve had their chicken too, but found it a tad dry for my taste. But Ella can cook a mean burger, as most of my coworkers can attest. Their salads are decent too.
One day, I’ll actually hoof down there to dine in, but for now, I look forward to trying their whole delivery menu.

I came here on literally a empty stomach, so I really didn’t care what kind of food they sold. Walking into the place I noticed that the menu was mostly organic and I haven’t really experienced organic food before. The word organic is known to be boring and bland but actually the food was full of life and seasoning! I had a breakfast sandwich with organic orange juice. I really was not a fan of the OJ but I forced it down (Hey!!! It’s good for you) If I am ever in the Williamsburg area againI would love to stop by her e to get a quick bit.
Side note: The service was great but maybe they should hire just one more cause the poor girl looked like she was drowning with how many tables she had to look after. She basically served all of the tables!!!
Just became a semi fan of organic food!

I happened to stumble upon this place one day roaming bedford looking for a dinner spot.
In the 2 – 3 times I’ve been there, I had the steak. It’s actually really good for a generally vegan/​veggie spot. Their mashed potatoes are really flavorful too.
The steak is cooked perfectly, you ask for medium, you get some good pink in the middle.
Prices are decent, and décor is minimalist wood style, with a backyard.
The only thing that turns me off is really the lack of a waitstaff. The place is quite simple, but the waiters are very hard to get a hold of. Also, room temperature water? Really?

My friend and I were looking for a place to duck out of the rain and stumbled across this little gem. I liked that we were able to grab a seat anywhere we’d like and they had a cute outdoor seating area in the back that was covered by a flimsy tarp… not the best protection against a typhoon, but good thing we still haven’t experienced one of those here in NYC!
The food was great. We ordered 2 drinks and shared a portobello sammich as a snack. Super delish and the portion was huge! Hit the LIKE button! I also had the fruit cocktail juice which consists of apples, pears, and oranges… only ok, maybe the fruits weren’t so fresh… We were bummed because we both originally ordered the acai smoothie, but the blender broke just in time for our visit, womp womp, too bad.
So why only 3 stars, you’re wondering? The service… it’s all about the service! It was slow like molasses, albeit super friendly. There were about 3 – 4 other tables that were occupied in our area and it took what felt like a half a hour to get our food. I wouldn’t have minded as much if we weren’t in a bit of a rush. What started out as a quick snack while the rain passed, turned out to take much longer than expected… but I’d still recommend this place and would return to try the brunch one day.
Do try!

You take the good with the bad, right? The food is pretty much amazing but the service leaves something to be desired.
The place is really cute, especially on a sunny, Sunday afternoon. The staff is nice and friendly and smiley but I had to ask twice for my coffee and then ask again for milk. That’s a little annoying. In fact, all my friends were constantly asking and re-​asking for things until the food came, when we found our mouths in taste-​heaven. Also, the food is pretty affordable.
So yeah. You take the good with the bad.

It’s nice to have a restaurant in the neighborhood to get a healthier meal, made with mostly organic ingredients (especially in the meat department). It’s doubly nice that they are more responsible about waste and offer containers and flatware made of biodegradable materials.
I’m not sure why I find it somewhat lacking, then. Maybe it’s that thier preparation is not particularly inspiring. Maybe it’s the spotty, stange service. Or maybe it’s the fact that they don’t acknowledge or specifically offer any Gluten Free options in thier menu, even though they indicate Vegan and Vegetarian options. Being a healthier restaurant, it seems they should get with the times on this. Whatever it is, I don’t frequent this place as often as I probably should.
The greatest item on the menu is the «Mediterranean» Salad, which consists of organic lentils, arugula, goat cheese and olives. This is good and is delicate, though sometimes the lentils can be slightly underdone and it could use a touch of citrus. Many of the other salads are too sweet for my taste, but I have not tried the Ceasar or the Cobb. Just note that these salads do not contain the organic chicken, so you’d have to ask them to substitute for $ 3 if that’s what you want (Why is the organic on the sandwiches and not on the salads? Annoying).
The grilled salmon is decent. The organic roasted chicken is just ok. You pick your sides. I’ve tried the mashed potatoes (watery), the grilled zucchini (good), the grilled asparagus (good), the organic greens side salad and the ratatouille (the very best of the bunch).
Tomato soup is good…
Just recently tried an Avacado and Tomato Omlette, and I thought it was really quite delicious, and the potatoes were nice and crispy-​skinned. I’ll need to come for brunch some time.
I do very much appreciate being able to get an organic cup of coffee with organic hormone-​free milk (though I’d prefer an unsweetened nut milk option).
All in all I am glad this place exists, but it’s not always my first choice.

Not wildly impressed with this place. I grabbed a drip coffee as the espresso machine didn’t look heavily used. I should probably stop back for some food to make my final call on it. There’s a garden out back, but at this point it seems kinda de rigueur anyplace in Brooklyn.
More of a food place, so probably steer elsewhere if you’re a real coffee snob like some of us.

Walked in for breakfast because I didn’t see a line going halfway down the block. Quickly realized why this was so. I think we stood next to the «Please wait to be seated» sign for a good couple of minutes, trying to politely make eye contact with anyone who would acknowledge us. Never happened. Didn’t even get a «Hello! Someone will be with you in just a moment.» Not willing to pay for a lack of service and wait for god-​knows-​how-​long to get it, I left and went somewhere else, across the street. Looking out the window 10 minutes later, I saw the people right behind me STILL waiting for someone to look at them.
Don’t waste your time.

This place has been ok when I go in to eat… delivery is more of a russian roulette: same order, different results…
First order– Thursday, Cali burger, cooked to order (medium) on soft foccacia, with salad (because the red cabbage slaw ran out, which, i had gotten a couple times before and it was devour worthy) — meal overall was great.
Second order — Saturday, Cali Burger, well done so much that there was a chewy salty crust on the burger and it was slapped on a dried out, crumbly potato bread bun with red cabbage slaw (that I was excited they had!!) that tasted of nothing but vinegar… in other words, crap.
Lesson — don’t order delivery here unless you really don’t care about specifics… or your food tasting good every time. Honestly, I think the food is too overpriced for the risk… your call though! Good Luck!

I work right around the corner from Ella and have given this place a try several times now. Every time has been a complete disappointment. The first few times was to simply get a sup of coffee and I was extremely put off by the lack of service. The people working behind the counter are aloof, barely make eye contact and seem generally unable to provide more than a grunt in response to any communication directed towards them.
My most recent experience was enough to keep me away for good. I walked in at 5:45pm. The place was empty sans three or four people drinking coffee in the front space. I ordered at grilled vegetable sandwich (complete with bad service noted above) and proceeded to wait 25 minutes for my food. No one else in the café was eating and there were no other food orders in the kitchen. I have no idea what they were doing. I was standing at the counter, milling around, waiting for my order. After 15 minutes, I asked if someone was making my sandwich and the woman said it would be just a few more minutes. An additional ten minutes later I finally got my food (which was overpriced and mediocre at best), at which point I had only five minutes to eat before I had to run to my next meeting.
I think it goes without saying that no one ever apologized or made any gesture of good will for the bad service. I doubt I’ll be giving Ella anymore tries.

I’m really conflicted about this place. I work in the neighborhood and I’ve had take-​out from them no less than 10 times, eaten almost everything besides the brunch menu, and the food is by and large pretty good. Their half and half lunch menu is nice. I like the burger a lot, just good meat cooked well, when the tomato soup is hot its amazing (esp. the meatballs) the salmon wrap is small but good. I used to crush that tomato bacon wrap all the time. But then I noticed when I’d ask for a side of dressing I’d get a side of sass (hey-​o!)
So yeah, the service, particularly the front counter service, really has been awful and dismissive here. Finally, I decided I’d just boycott them. It was that astoundingly bad. To the point where you’re about to cop them an attitude back, like you’re in an episode of Seinfeld with a maniacal cashier. Like why «hipsters» in a broad-​term are loathed by so many. Like acting indignant I have to place your order. It’s like why are you working here then? And shockingly there never seems to be a floor manager there reining in the brats. Ok calm.
Now I hesitate to overreact and moan endlessly about the service, there are already so many crazy Unilocal service tales in general, but at Ella it has been a total turn-​off in the past.
I will say though in Ella’s defense, recently, a few of the jerks I haven’t seen when going past the window and I’ve spoken to two employees (inside my work actually) who seemed very nice so I think I’d get good treatment if I went back and they were in.
My boycott isn’t over but maybe, maybe I’ll give it a try again one day.

I went this past weekend and really can’t wait to return. It is such a perfect place to go with your girlfriend for a breakfast/​lunch/​brunch. The prices are low and the environment is perfect.
I went for breakfast and was thinking about a normal omelette, but was swayed into getting the Kielbasa skillet with everything combined in a pan with scrambled eggs over the top. I am not a little baby eater, I can eat with the big boys, and this dish filled me for most of the day. I was very surprised. Everything was delicious.
Some people were complaining about the time for the food to come out or the wait service being slow, but when I was there, everything went very smoothly. The juicer actually was broken, so since I wasn’t able to get my REAL apple juice, they gave us a free cup of orange juice which was very nice. With your meal, you also get toast and a coffee. I chose to get the iced coffee and it was also very good for such a hot summer morning.
Definitely go to Ella Café, you will not be disappointed.