Iron Bird Cafe

Come on, Fresno, don’t be haters. I’m giving 5 stars to try and give some balance. People are quick to judge and slow to compliment. I loved the fruit parfait and the grilled breakfast sandwich. The Aztec and the Borgia are both delicious coffee creations. This is the best coffee in town! I don’t even live in the Central Valley anymore, but whenever I visit, I make sure to go to IBC.

A great SF style café in Fresno!
Great ambience and good coffee!

Great service & locally owned

Coffee was magnificent.
Lunch was above Applebee’s quality and just below Max’s Bistro. The cook knows food. Great sauces on the sandwiches, and very nice cinnamon bread pudding for dessert.
Everyone in our party said they would go back again. I think IBC has begun to figure itself out.

First of all, this is a crappy a** place of business. The Baristsa’s tried to be bougie and important. Hello! it’s Fresno! They seemed like they didn’t want to help me at first, then when I started pulling money out of my wallet, then all of a sudden my service was wanted. I will not be coming back to this crappy place they call a coffee shop :{ BTW Iron Bird Café owner: Hire Barista’s with friendly and upbeat personalities.

Prices a little high not original feel of iron bird café but still a great place

coffee made by that special brewing machine thingy was pretty smooth. friendly service. 4 stars mostly for atmosphere — the best in fresno as far as im concerned. new, clean, large, bright, plenty of comfy seating indoor and out. cool art and people watching. not the best wifi, but at least they have it. not a bad way to spend a lazy sunday afternoon.

The cashier was way too slow. I stood in line for what seemed to be eternity while I had to listen to her lisp. I finally was able to purchase a sandwich in a box from their display at which time I asked for some mustard and mayo. The cashier looked at me confused. A gentleman dressed up as a chef came out to inform me they had a huge menu. Standing there with my sandwich in hand that I already paid for, he began explaining this whole menu that’s not even displayed very well or posted (it was printed and hidden). Finally after a while of him babbling on, I finally asked for my damn mustard and mayo. I wanted to leave.
The sandwich (turkey) was bland and forgettable. This place is as bad as everyone warned me about.

I like the new Iron Bird Café better than the old one. The food is much better, IMO, and the menu expanded. I like the tapas menu the best. They also serve hot sandwiches (and pre-​made cold ones), and breakfast. The seating is much more private and intimate than the prior arrangement. They have no problem with large groups. I meet there with a group once a month, and they always take good care of us.

While I was visiting a friend in the Fresno area, she suggested we try Iron Bird Café. What a cute, delicious little find!
We got a cheese and fruit plate (assorted cheeses, strawberries with balsamic glaze, and bread) and the three-​cheese panini. Delicious… and we’re both lactose intolerant. I would have liked to have tried the coffee, but it was a warm day.
Overall, a cute, hipstery hang-​out in Fresno. I’d love to go back when I visit the area.

Since the reopening, my coworkers and I have been here 4 times and will no longer visit.
In February, two of my coworkers scheduled an evening planning meeting here over dessert and coffee since it’s so close to our work. We brought our kids, knowing they could use their iPads there, and my 8-​yr-​old brought a craft to keep her busy.
Initially, I ordered a pot of tea from a very nice waitress. I thought I’d wait to order food for myself and kids until the rest showed up. When my colleagues arrived, we immediately delved into planning mode. Not wanting to be distracted, my coworkers politely told the waitress they’d order in a little while. About 20 minutes after they arrived, the owner explained that although she felt awkward asking, she must insist we purchase food because they were a new business trying to make it. This could’ve been a reasonable request on its own; the problem was she continued to lecture us in a reprimanding way for 10 minutes without letting us provide any input. By the end, she rudely demanded that we purchase something within 5 minutes. She obviously assumed that we were there to camp out on her tables for free which was completely wrong. If she had showed even a bit of consideration and taken 2 minutes to ask us our dining plans or a response to her accusations, she would’ve learned that we were about to order dessert, that we ate dinner there for our last 2 meetings, and that we were regular diners under the previous owners. Also, two of us were in restaurant families, so we knew better than to camp out. The only snippet I was able to squeeze in before she walked away was a reassurance that we were major PBID supporters who make it a point to promote downtown businesses, and that was the reason we chose Iron Bird.
After she left, we sat there stunned and speechless. Even our kids were surprised by her rudeness. Still, to show our support, we ordered desserts and coffees as planned. The dessert options were limited, but we ordered one for each of us and our kids. The food turned out to be unappealing, dry and bland. And, upon leaving an hour later, we found out the owner left. She apparently was more concerned with addressing greed than quality and customer service.

food kinda sucked. service sucked. atmosphere better but not best.
like the other Unilocalers said. the atmosphere was weird. i wasn’t sure what it was?: café or restaurant? when i ordered my food, it was up at a counter. i ordered a sandwich, salad and soup combo for around 10 bucks. when i told the cashier what i wanted they rung me up 16 bucks! wth? i asked if i ordered the combo… they said «yea, a cali. turkey sandwich, house salad, and chicken tortilla soup.» me:” isn’t it suppose to be like $ 10???” they looked at me puzzled «oh.» and got a manager to fix it. uhmm shouldn’t you hire people who know the menu? i was feeling a bit embarrassed as line started to grow behind me. when my food was delivered, i was equally embarrassed. sandwich and salad were just items you could buy at the deli in save mart. boo. chicken tortilla soup was the worst i ever had. just gross… sorry guys! as much as i wanted to like this place… i didn’t –_​_​_​-​.

This is my third time at the new Iron Bird for lunch. Although service the first two times were slow, today it was great. I had a nice, fresh green salad, homemade veggie soup and a frozen, blended mocha. I’ll definitely be back.

The place has an identity crisis on it’s hands.
Fresno, the city that brings you restaurants that offer both Chinese food and hamburgers under one roof comes a relaxed sit down internet café with an uptight business lunch feel.
You can’t be both a sit down restaurant and a café. If their focus is on coffee, like the Jan article in the Fresno Bee states then why are they trying so hard to be something other than a coffee shop?
The place just feels awkward. It’s weird to have to order coffee from a waitress. That type of service does not add value to my experience — it’s an annoyance.
Sorry I don’t want to wait for a waitress to run my card or to check up on me like at regular restaurants when all I want is great coffee and a cool vibe. Of both Iron Bird has neither.
I was not amazed by the coffee for the cost. Business that charge $ 3.50 for a cup of coffee typically roast their own coffee. This is why Blue Bottle Coffee can get away with this.
When it comes right down to it. Iron Bird is not going to rewrite the Café business model. Inventing a market is incredibly difficult. Unless they streamline the experience to meet one target market they are going to continue to alienate all markets.

We ended up here after the Mardi Gras parade in the Tower District… starving, but didn’t want to deal with the crowds at the places on Olive. Drove downtown and saw this place… actually the ONLY place… as we circled around and around. Checked Unilocal… but it said only 2 stars… so we were reluctant but coffee/​food crave was getting serious.
Not crowded on a Sunday… so as «out-​of-​towners» we blissfully walked up to the counter placed our orders… and sat down… not knowing wait staff was part of the deal. Oh well… no big whoop.
Coffee (large double shot iced latte and an espresso con panna) were excellent!
The sandwiches in the case were in plastic clam-​shells. They looked good for the price… but turned out to be nothing special even with the dressings fancy on the side.
I’m sure they’ll get it worked out.
Prices for drinks not that bad (coming from living in Seattle), atmosphere really nice, great art on the walls. My kind of place if it was a little bit more relaxed.
Don’t get to Fresno ever, but will stop by again if I need a good espresso and a place to get out of the heat.

It’s not the old Iron Bird; if you go in expecting the old coffee shop you’ll be disappointed. It’s more bougie than most cafes in Fresno, and I don’t think that’s a problem. Sorry if I don’t feel like sitting next to bros being loudly bro-​y or old dudes yelling racist shit while smoking and neglecting their dogs (I’m looking at you, Revue). Sometimes, you just want a spot of bougie in a city where the ghetto bird is your evening soundtrack.
Onto IBC’s offerings: I had a pot of good tea and the waitress brought out 3 different sized cups for me to choose from, which was sweet. I also had a bangin’ veggie quiche and a salad. The total, with tip, was $ 18, which is insane for a coffee shop, but isn’t insane for a restaurant that lets you sit there for 3 hours and use their internet and pee several times in their bathroom.
That said, I miss the old Iron Bird. It did feel more relaxed. Maybe, with time, this café will shift a tiny bit towards a relaxed vibe.
One criticism: get rid of the grandma curtain. Keep the fabulous art.

It felt like a restaurant when it shouldn’t be. Being waited to be seated in a café didn’t make me feel as relaxed as cafes normally do. I think one should be able to order, then sit and wait until its prepared and not have a waitress. I know they just opened, but they didn’t have iced coffee for some reason. We had quiche which was very mediocre. The waitress also needed help because it was pretty busy in there.