Odd Fellows Café

It causes me physical discomfort to revisit this experience.
We were in search of a place for brunch in downtown Philly when we came across oddfellows and went in. The hostess whispered to us that we could sit at the only available table. After a few minuets a waiter came by and took our coffee order and quickly brought some bitter coffee to our table. The waiter then took our order and and left us to listen to SCREAMING child next to us. Why are parents so ignorant to the diners around them as their child wails like a tornado siren? It was at that time we checked in on Unilocal and left our tip.
The hostess came by about 10 min later to make sure someone took our order, we said yes, and waited for the next outburst from the loud child. Another few minutes went by and the hostess told us they were out of French Toast. It wasn’t a big deal until we thought the LOUD child had the last order. Once we began a broader survey of the small restaurant and noticed tables that sat down after us were receiving their meals (yes, including French Toast) our patience grew thin. Finally my husband lost all sanity and told the hostess that we had ordered over 25 minutes ago and told her, «We want our food or we are leaving. » She seemed surprised that we would be upset by waiting nearly 30 minutes and tried to appease us by bringing napkins and silverware. When 2 more tables got their food who came in at least 15 minutes after us we paid for our coffee and left.
We did not receive an apology or anything resembling one. We wasted close to 40 hungry minutes at this poorly designed dump. Because we were out of strength and power we ended up eating at the hotel which was another poor experience for another review. To sum up, Oddfellows is a frustrating experience that will ruin the rest of your day. Stay far far away if you don’t want a major case of the moodies and crankies.

Adiós, amigos míos.
Buena suerte en todo y todas las aventuras venideras.
Nos vemos pronto espero.
Te echaré de menos.

In going by the Unilocal parlance of a 2-​star review, when I was asked about how I felt about my meal at Odd Fellows, I honestly answered «meh». Since that correlates to 2-​stars on here, that’s where I’m keeping it.
The inside looked nice enough but we opted for outside because when it’s not sweltering, 12^th street can be pretty nice for outdoor dining. After hearing the rundown of Taco Tuesday, we both opted for it with guacamole to start.
Personally, I was underwhelmed by their guacamole. It was more creamy than I anticipated and I didn’t get the level of cilantro or lime that I look for in this dish. Also, the chips really could have used some salt.
The tacos were decent, but really nothing to go crazy about. I believe that mine were the pork and the beef or at least that’s what I was lead to believe. There was some confusion with our waitress’s description and she apologized for having to fill in for table service since their normal staff was absent. I appreciated the honesty. My gripe with the dish was that it was just two tacos on a plate. Not even a lime wedge to squeeze over them. When it arrived, it just looked bare. The beef taco had more flavor than the pork and at least had a little sour cream on it.
Perhaps I’ll stop back in for some coffee. It’s hard not to notice the very stocked coffee bar right when you walk in this place.

I regrettably did not enjoy my experience here tonight.
Odd Fellows has been teasing me the entire summer with the promise of an all-​you-​can-​eat taco night on Tuesdays. After months of missing it, we finally made it here for dinner.
The dinner started out with guac, which was kind of underwhelming. The tacos that they served for the dinner option were nowhere to be found on the actual menu, so we tried asking the waitress about what kinds of tacos they had. She first told us it was a beef taco and a mushroom taco, but when we went to order she mentioned beef and pork. The final product that came out to us was a beef taco and possibly a chicken taco? I couldn’t tell. I felt bad for the waitress because she admitted that she’s usually the counter worker, but she was asked to serve tonight because staff was missing. I get that they obviously needed to cover the position, but you could tell that she wasn’t confident about the menu items. When the tacos finally arrived, they were both okay, but they were pretty plain. I was expecting them to at least be topped with lettuce and tomato.
I hate being the mean Unilocaler that gives poor reviews, but I have to be honest: the all-​you-​can-​eat taco option just isn’t worth it. There are better tacos to be had around our city. And I think our time and money would have been better spent trying food from their actual menu instead of going for the special.
Please heed my advice and go for a different dish at Odd Fellows, particularly on Tuesday nights.

Pretty great new spot. Good location, really nice to sit on spruce street outdoors, the indoor ambience is bright. The food is a cool mix of american and mexican brunch/​dinner options. The coffee is great. It’s a little expensive but sort of what you’d expect for this kind of place.
The only thing is that they don’t do coffee refills…

I will say the few times I have eaten here the food has been delicious. There a few things that need to change if they want to continue to be of service to a neighborhood that loves eating out on a regular basis.
The wait staff is never consistent — Constant turn over and I think I now know why.
The chef seems to be extremely temperamental. We had gone once for the «all you can eat «dinner. it was advertised in their window from 5 – 8. We were comfortably seated at 7:45. We placed our first order and waited approximately 15 minutes to be served. We then ordered the next round and the waiter came back after taking our order and told us «The chef said you have to order all your food before 8PM. So I guess we could have placed 3 orders and let it sit on the table and get cold and possibly not even eat it.
If they are going to run special to attract customers, they need to explain the RULES. This was not told to us when we were seated nor was it on their advertisement.
A week later the specials were off the window and then a few days later reappeared with different times and again no rules.
This past week I went in for a late dinner. I walked in at 8:50. There were about 8 folks sitting inside eating and a few outside on the sidewalk. I asked the waitress if I could just sit anywhere and she came back and told me the chef has decided to close the kitchen early since it was a slow night. This seemed odd since there were people still eating and the signage on the front door clearly stated they serve until 10PM .
I guess this is why it is called «ODD» Fellow Café —

When I stumble out of my apartment on Sunday morning, hunger the only incentive to consider standing upright, the idea of walking to brunch much less WAITING to sit/​order/​eat/​gobacktobed is an unfathomable concept. Luckily, not only is Oddfellows a mere block from me — I have never had to wait for a table. It almost feels wrong to write a positive review about this place since I selfishly want to keep it a secret.
Don’t be scared off by the menu with it’s fancy words like «Ceviche» and «Papusa» — the food is phenomenal — and once you understand what it is, I guarantee it’s not that scary.
The best Ceviche I’ve ever had, and I ate a lot of it in Peru, against my will since I don’t really like Ceviche. The Huarache Ranchera is delicious, I can’t stop myself from ordering it, and only get to try new things by stealing bites from my unassuming innocent friends that will likely stop brunching with me.
Keeping it from 5 stars are: No wifi (can you even serve coffee without having wifi in 2012??) and the price /​portion size. Sometimes (always) my hangover needs to be fed. It doesn’t want a reasonable, less than 4000 calorie brunch. It wants to eat eat eat until my body insists I go into a food coma and go back to bed. Will definitely keep dining here and hope it gets it’s a well-​deserved crowd without me ever having to wait for a table.
And of course, BYO.

Went for brunch with a friend. love the décor, need to give another chance with the food.
Pupusa Eggs Benedict:
Interesting twist to the standard eggs benedict by substituting english muffin with house pupusa (loved it). Unfortunately, that’s where the love ends. The chipotle hollandaise and smoked salmon were both on the salty side, and made it difficult to eat (might have to get the hollandaise on the side next time). Eggs were poached perfectly. Just wish the saltiness of the dish didn’t overwhelm the original concept of eggs benedict.
Since other reviews rave about the taco, looking forward to the AYCE Taco Tuesday bonanza. Reviews to come…

Ambience: very quaint and unique setting
Wifi: NO WIFI
Food: good enough portion size if you are not too hungry, however if you like to eat a lot, you may leave wanting a slice of pizza afterwards. I got the pulled pork sandwich and the meat was really tender and moist and the breath was warm and toasty. The quality is 4 stars.
Drinks: The coffee was nice and strong, but they never came around to refill it. Not sure if this place is a non-​refill type of restaurant. Seeing they have no outlets for laptops or wifi, no free refill coffee may not surprise me.
Service: fast and attentive, that said, this restaurant is the size of a large living room so the server is almost always within your line of sight.
Overall: even though, I live across the street, I won’t be a regular at this place due to the lack of electric outlets/​wifi and no free coffee refills. The food is very good, but there are dozens of other options in the midtown area with better deals.

This was the first runner up in our quest for Sunday Brunch. Glad that our first choice fell thru due to a 50 minute wait and we ended up here. I’m not from Philly, but one thing I noticed instantly was the the most attractive gay men seem to congregate here, and this includes the staff.
The ambiance here is great. Gorgeous fresh flowers abound, good music and a very interesting menu. I had the capirotada (bread pudidng) french toast with guava sauce and the pupusa eggs benedict. Both were interesting and good. Though I’m not certain I’d order them again. I had a latte and orange juice with my breakfast and the latte was very good and pretty. I appreciate the latin-​spin on the menu, but I’m not sure it translates to the kitchen. Maybe I was expecting something more authentic? I’d definitely recommend checking this place out for brunch or lunch, just don’t expect Abuela to be in the kitchen.

Started off with a counter-​culture red eye coffee served with cinnamon cookies… awesome! The mushroom coca flatbread with caramelized onion and truffle oil and Peruvian shrimp ceviche with aji limon and avocado served with baked tortilla ships were amazing. The ceviche was a perfect blend of citrus and spice. For entrée I had the tilapia fish tacos served with cabbage-​jalapeño slaw and ginger aioli. Simply amazing. Will definitely be back to this café.

I want to love you, but you don’t have wifi. If you had wifi I’d move in!
I love the outdoor seating, there is a lovely breeze out on 13^th street as well. The bathroom is also very clean which is great!
They offer free margaritas and all you can eat dinner? I haven’t been yet, but I’m definitely interested.
The actual café is so gorgeous!

I really have enjoyed this place! I came once for coffee and once for brunch. It is beautifully air conditioned in this place, and the employees are extremely friendly.
For brunch, there were 5 of us. We sat outside. I got the huevos rancheros something of that sort. It was delicious, and the portions were reasonable (not so big that you feel sick when you are done). The prices may be a tad on the higher side, but the food is worth it!
This is a wonderful use of the old boarded up building that was here before.

Had an awesome boozy brunch here with some of my fav Unilocal peeps this past Sunday. When I arrived my posse had procured the oh so coveted gayboorhood outdoor seating and the champs was already flowing. I think everyone except me decided to order the ranchero breakfast. I opted for the omelet and was not disappointed. The star of the show was the potato cake log that was overflowing with caramelized onions and peppers it was very good. I would most definitely come back the breakfast pupusa intrigued me very much…
Come here with your friends and mad bottles of champs guaranteed to be a great way to start your Sunday Funday

So I think I’m cool with the whole café/​restaurant thing going on here. I mean how can you go wrong with fine cuisine alongside a wide array of loose leaf teas?
I came back yesterday for the Odd Fellows salad (proving once again that watermelon & feta cheese were MADE FOR EACH OTHER). We also tried the mushroom coca flatbread (caramelized onion, mixed cheeses, truffle oil). A perfectly satisfying lunch.
Service is friendly, casual and efficient. They have lots of outdoor seating (including umbrellas — key for a girl who carelessly burned her face off last weekend).
Anddd they accept plastic. I can’t wait to come back to try the brunch!

So I think I might have indulged in the best latte of my life on a sunny Saturday afternoon.
This place puts a lot of love into what they do. Odd Fellows is a perfect accessory to the trendiest neighborhood in Philadelphia. Minimal and simple looking with big flavor. What a wonderful place to do some people watching and have a pick-​me-​up coffee.
The kicker.overpriced. But it’s simply because «they can».
I have to say, though. I am slightly confused as to how this place makes much money, aside from their pricey cappaccino. Every time I pass by, there are always a few tables indulging in a bottle of wine (the place is BYO) without anything else. Are these people just. using the seats? Is that even kosher? If anyone understands this concept please inform me.

Lasting impression of Odd Fellows Café? WOW. Stopped in for brunch on a rainy Sunday, timid of the wait. Luckily, we walked in and were seated right away. The restaurant is small and modern.
They had a small but interesting lunch menu with sandwiches and apps as well as a brunch menu. I was sold the second I saw the corn pupusa smoked salmon eggs benedict with sauteed spinach and chipotle hollandaise. It did not disappoint. This probably wins out as the best brunch item Philadelphia has to offer (yes, I’m going to be that bold). Everything about it was perfect– portion size, how it was cooked, the combination of flavors. I also ordered a coffee which was above average. My fellow diners ordered brunch items as well– some sort of eggs, tortillas (perfect texture), beans, steak etc. All was thoroughly enjoyed.
The service was excellent. My fellow diner had been there earlier this week and the waitress had forgotten his tea. She remembered him and gave him a free cappuccino. Very sweet.
I can’t wait to return. I’m nervous that something so delicious is so close to my home.

Just got a discounted treat from Living Social. I ordered the Fish Tacos to go. First, the atmosphere was super chic and clean and minimalist. The staff was very friendly and nice, they welcomed me openly when I arrived and had my food ready to go.
I am def not a fan of Americanized Mexican food so I was pleasantly surprised by 1) the mexican cook in the kitchen (at least he looked mexican) and 2) the fresh delicious flavors of my taco. The portion size was perfect for lunch.
I will definitely be back!

After hearing lot of good things about this new café, I was finally able to try out their Sunday brunch. I’ll break down my review based on location, food, atmosphere and service — key things for a great brunch experience !!
Location: 12^th and Spruce is probably one of the most trendy and cool neighborhoods in this city, surrounded with well maintained historical residential houses and a large professional urban population makes this café a great hangout to experience this part of the city, of course a bright sunny day helps!
Food: Menu was very impressive with great specials for the day. I was leaning towards their Cuban sandwich but ended up ordering their pupusa eggs Benedict. The reason I ordered this was because this dish was unlike usual eggs Benedict. It had sweet corn pupusa layered with smoked salmon, poached eggs, sauteed spinach with chipotle hollandaise and it was delicious!!! Never tried a traditional Salvadoran, hand-​made corn tortillaa as a part of eggs Benedict before!
Atmosphere: Great atmosphere inside, very modern décor and trendy china. A family was sitting by the window and kids were enjoying the view. There were few couples and a group of friends having a great time in the café.
Service: One word — fantastic! Our hostess was the sweetest girl with the biggest smile ever. Our server was very patient and very attentive. Food was served as soon as we were half way through our tea. Overall feeling was very relaxed and friendly.
I would definitely recommend this place to enjoy a relaxed brunch and catch up with friends or just walk in for a coffee. I want to try out their lunch and dinner menus soon — Great job guys !!!

I went to oddfellows café for its opening day of brunch. As other reviewers mentioned, the coffee was great and the servers attentive. And, they were giving out free prosecco in honor of their inaugural brunch. Nice perk!
The food was good – the standout was the eggs with chicken riopa vieja. The smoked salmon benedict was also good.
However, in the end, I can only give this place 3 stars because the value just isn’t there – portions were too small. This is brunch, not tapas. You can get both quantity and quality for the same price at many other establishments in philly. I probably won’t be coming back to Oddfellows for brunch, but perhaps will try it for lunch or dinner another time.

Glad to see the space finally opening. Their motto is: coffee, latin cuisine, and top hats. The top hats had me stumped until the charity event they had last week prior to their official opening today, the wait staff wears them. Looks cool. Glad to have the old Odd Fellows building finally completely remodeled and with two new businesses in it, welcome to the neighborhood!