Flames Coffee Shop & Bakery

Warning do not enter this restaurant !!! Totally gross, should have walked out when we saw the filthy floors and only one other family eating in this huge restaurant. You have to ask to put tomatoes on your salad, the menus were so sticky, only recieved two pieces of bacon when the menu said 4 peices and then to find out it was not real bacon!!! It was turkey bacon, at least that I’d what they said when questioned, if I would have known I would not have ordered it, I can go on and on but just want to warn you, don’t give this business a single penny!

This place deserves negative stars. I only went here because of the reviews I’ve read and how my friends would talk about this place.
Walking into this place, no one greeted us when we walked in. I was beginning to think that we had to seat ourselves. When someone finally came to seat us, we had already grabbed our own menus, plus crayons and place mat for our daughter.
We asked for a booster seat for our daughter but he never came back with one. We had to ask the bus boy for a high chair which he brought right away and then also asked us if we wanted any drinks… isn’t that the waiter’s job?!?
Now time to order, when we asked about the different entrees on the menu, our waiter could not even describe how it tasted. I pointed to a dish and he even described the dish to be «hella good» so I ordered it. We actually ordered all his recommendations. You would think the waiter would know what is good or not, right?!
You can tell he never tried any of the food there. Just thinking about the food again makes me want to vomit. The closest thing to «fresh» in that place was the salad I ate. Everything else tasted like it was frozen, reheated or came from a can. I had to spit out my steak twice because it was too chewy. The greek salad was nasty. The fettuchini was gross. My daughter’s fish and chips were still cold in the middle. I was afraid that she would get food poisoning. The waiter did mention that they serve breakfast… I think that is what we should of ordered cause who can mess up on eggs and sausage right?
This place sucks… big donkey balls. So much for trying new things.

So hurt how this place has went down hill. We have come here with a party of 10 and was seated right away. We never use to see this. On Sundays this place use to be packed. Sad, sad, sad. As we were sitting I started to read the reviews and was like oh no, but our server told us the menu is still the same, just added a buffet of Asian fussion and removed a few items that didn’t sell to well.
Needless to say our server was a a nice guy but some of our orders did not get delivered as ordered. And as a previous reviewer said Gordon Ramsey needs to rip the kitchen a new one. The food hash browns are mushy in the middle even with asking for crispy. And one of the waffles had plastic like tupperware melted in it.

I eat at this restaurant on a regular basis and usually have nothing but good things to say, but I’m really disappointed today.
While the food Is always good quality, generous portions and a very reasonable price tag to go with it… just about everything has gone wrong today. Our server seems as though she had a chip on her shoulder, no refills on our drinks, my to-​go order was the wrong item, and never even got the toast that was supposed to come with my omelette.
It’s a real shame too since I brought my friend with me and now I’m pretty embarrassed. I doubt he’ll be coming back. I this turns into a trend, I won’t either.

Skip it. After recently trying a new menu, they’ve dropped innovation and quality and also stopped cleaning the place. Windows and doors are filthy.
Worse and most damning, the food seems as if prepared by someone (s) unfamilar with how the food should look and taste. Hash browns raw, omelet thin and rubbery, bbq burger, dry with cheese forgotten, fries initially over cooked to a reddish brown then re-​heated, no soup available, toast on turkey sandwich just barely there, only made it seem a little dried out — but not toasted

Few servers means that when your meal is improperly prepared there is no one to fix it for you.

I haven’t been to Flames in quite sometime and I wish I would’ve read the reviews before I sat down and ordered this morning. But, I should’ve realized from the lack of cars in the parking lot that something was wrong. This placed used to be PACKED for breakfast! It’s sad because I used to go here a lot when it was under different ownership. There were only 3 tables seated and one waitress working at 9:10AM!!! The parking lot was like a deserted island, that my sister and I thought it was closed!
I ordered an iced tea and the crab cakes benedict. When I got my iced tea, it was filled to the top with ice! I tasted it and I swear they must’ve used toilet water! It tasted that bad!!! How do you fuck up iced tea!!! I asked for a diet coke instead and it barely had any carbonation in it! Oh well right?
The only breakfast item I ever order from Flames is the crab cakes benedict. Today’s order was a big mistake. I’ve never seen eggs that small!!! It was like they were the size of quail eggs!!! The hollandaise sauce was NOT homemade!!! You can tell it’s from a packet or can because it was runny, grainy, and disgusting! The hash browns are frozen and not fresh. You can tell they use the cheapest ingredients. How can you screw up breakfast that bad?
I honestly don’t know how long this place will last. It really sucks now. I’t’s sad because this place used to be hoppin’ for breakfast! Seriously, don’t waste your time or money!!! I would take McDonald’s breakfast over this place! It’s THAT B AD! Keep driving down the street and go to Black Bear. I’m sure this place will close soon and hopefully something better will move in. Funny thing is, when we were leaving, we noticed there was an application for a liquor license on the front door.
The service was abysmal! The quality of food is WAY DOWN for the price.
IF YOU REALLY WANT FLAMES, GO TO THE SAN JOSE DOWNTOWN ONE OR WINCHESTER ONE.

Wow. Just wow. Red flags everywhere, but I was too late to leave.
We went here and…
1^st red flag: Almost empty parking lot. Hmm, that’s interesting. Usually Flames has some decent biz for breakfast. Despite the Memorial holiday, woulda thought peeps wanted to hang out with their fams and have some grub.
2^nd red flag: Noticed signs that were pimping «lunch buffet» and «dinner buffet». WTF? When did that start?
3^rd red flag: Half-​assed redecorated interior of the restaurant AND the counter space was gone. Geez, has it been that long since I’d last been to Flames? Apparently, so.
4^th red flag: Only 3 tables with guests, one waitress and one cook. Oh, geezus. WTF is up???
5^th red flag: Some changes in the menu. Hmmm… start looking on Unilocal,and then I realize, Flames is under new ownership and that we’ve made a dreadful mistake to come here. Shit. Neither of us wants to get up and leave.
6^th red flag: Ordered sausage and eggs and asked for the «country sausage». Was told, well it’s a chicken sausage patty. Ok, I don’t recall them ever having chicken sausage patties, and I LOVED their country sausage. I opt for the pork sausage links. We figure, how badly can they fuck up breakfast, right?
At this point, we are feeling not so good to have stayed. Wish we’d done something by fifth red flag, but we still didn’t.
7^th red flag: Sis’ iced tea comes, and it tastes like SHIT. Now we’re looking at each other like, «Oh, damn. Our breakfast is so not gonna be good.»
Waitress comes with food. Sis’ crabcakes Benedict is chintzy! The Hollandaise sauce clearly looks different – thin, runny and not very appetizing. The eggs were SMALL. The crabcakes and hashbrowns looked and tasted like they were frozen and cooked.
My order of eggs and pork sausage links wasn’t much better. The sausage links were also of the Jimmy Dean frozen bullshit stuff, small eggs and hashbrowns that were probably frozen and then cooked. So admittedly, I was hungry and ate the eggs and sausage, but not all of the hashbrowns. Sis didn’t finish hers like she normally would, had they been the crabcakes Benedict from the previous ownership.
8^th red flag: Waitress’ services was meh, with very few people even ordering.
Whomever owns this Flames has really taken huge shortcuts to make the food as cheaply as possible. And it shows. The quality is shit. You can go to an IHOP or Denny’s and get something slightly better for a lower price.
Sadly, under this new management, I can’t see this Flames surviving unless they’re planning to change its name and rehaul its entire menu and cater to a different crowd. It’s shit now.
If you want the Flames experience that everyone knows and remembers, go the one in Downtown SJ or on Winchester!
Stay away from Flames in Milpitas.

Horrible. Signs that we should have gone to another place would’ve been that no car was out there when we arrived, no one was there to greet us, and no one was here besides the workers.
Ordered nachos and the cheese literally stuck to the nachos. If you picked a nacho up, you picked a whole bunch of nachos stuck together. Was NOT appetizing.
Ordered chili garlic noodles, tasted plain and did not finish. My boyfriend had ordered a regular hamburger and fries, the pickle looked old. He also didn’t finish his food because «it wouldnt go down right.»
Im literally standing in the restaurant and writing this review which is my first review! My advice would be NOT to come here. I’ve been standing here and no one has came and asked us what was wrong. If I had the balls to, I would walk out of this place.
Do. Not. Come. Here. They didn’t even have any drinks for happy hour besides beer and another drink I wasn’t interested in. I’m sad that this restaurant shares the same name as Flames because this place is really disappointing, I will have to go get a Starbucks to make me feel better. Luckily there’s one walking distance from the restaurant.
Oh yea, the server was really nice and gave us a discount for the nachos, but I will never come back here again.

The worst Breakfast ever, not so sure my eggs were actually eggs, waffle would not go down it was so dry. I should have known since it was nearly empty… Gordon Ramsey couldn’t help this food!
YUCH!!!

Omg what happened to this place! We had come in the past and it was decent but there must be new owners because now this place is Awful now! First we walk in and theres a nasty melting ice sculpture right in front with buckets catching the yellow water. You’re instantly hit with the smell of burnt toast and the place is SO smokey, I had to ask them to open a window because my baby and I were choking! My food was the worst! Pieces of deep fried frozen potatoes with gross overcooked egg on top and a cold hard biscuit. This is the worst of all the flames restaurants in the area. The quality of food is disgusting and nothing short of frozen food that has been deep fried and thrown onto a plate. I give it a few more months before its closed, we should’ve walked out when we got there and the place was empty, filthy, smokey and stinky. drive up the road to Black Bear Diner instead!

This was the second time we have tried this place out, hey at least I gave it another shot before giving it a one star. Our order was simple but it took forever to show up with an order of French toast scramble eggs and a sausage patty and my other half got a turkey pesto sandwich thingy that looked ok except having nicely thinned turkey he got a huge cut of turkey which he was not found of and returned it for an OK hamburger just to tie over his hunger. Which I think in all honesty the fries had to do it. There was a ladder in the kitchen and it just gave you this not so clean feeling, as well as the bathroom was gross and smelled like old baby diapers I think I will pass on this place again and say I’ve been there done that!

My friends and I came here on a late night just because we were craving dessert. We had no idea where else to go because the only places we could think of were closed already. So I remembered that this place sold cakes so we came here.
So we didn’t order cake, but ordered this waffle with a bunch of mixed fruits and whipped cream and ice cream, pretty good but it costs 10 bucks! And it didn’t come with syrup, what kinda waffle doesn’t come with a waffle? So I asked the waiter for a side of maple syrup.
My friend wanted a rootbeer float, but they ran out of rootbeer ha. So she asked for an orange soda float. Yea fail, it sounded like a good idea, but didn’t taste that great ha. That’s what happens when you try to be innovative haha.
Anyways, we had fun here we thought the décor was so funny. The waiters wear tropical shirts, and there’s animal/​jungle wallpaper and animals everywhere. But they play 50’s music, and the place is called Flames; very confusing restaurant theme hahaha.

It’s so sad to see a neighborhood joint like this going down the tubes. I’ve been going to Flames for over 10 years. However, after some poor experiences, I have been going very infrequently, only once every few years or whenever my memory of the last bad experience has faded.
Today, I had a hankering for brunch after church. As with everybody else, I headed straight for IHOPs. But, by the time I arrived at 11:15am, the outside was already packed with people waiting to get in. So, I turned around and headed to Flames.
When I arrived, parking was plenty and there was no wait. I was pleased by that minor convenience, but it went straight downhill from there. I know Flames tries to capture the old 70s diner feel, but that doesn’t mean they should have kept everything original from the 70s. Three years since my last visit, not a single thing has been improved or replaced.
Ok, we got seated quickly by the owner/​hostess. Like others have mentioned, I got a distinct sense that my presence was an inconvenience to her. Maybe it’s because I’m Chinese and not one of her regulars. Who knows.
Once we sat down, I took in the deliriously depressing surroundings. Our wicker chairs were painted within an inch of the absurd as the chair covers cracked and peeled pathetically. A green piece of paper served as the lamp shade over the counter top while dust balls copiously peppered the ceiling. Every other detail which celebrates a diner’s charm was left to deteriorate unattended. Our table, thankfully, was clean, but that was about the limits of our creature comforts.
To top off the offense, the owners somehow saw it fit to keep four big jars of what must have been sliced preserved fruit on display in the middle of the diner. They were singularly repulsive, being so far past the limits of preservation as to become featureless vessels of swirling brown pus. Normally, these jars can remain presentable in their quiescent state for years, so it beggars the imagination to wonder how long they’ve been there. Almost as inconceivable, all the patrons were just as able to overlook them as the owner and workers.
When it came to the food prices on the menu, it was another shock. One would have expected that such dilapidated surroundings would translate into great values. However, their prices would only be appropriate at far more lavish surroundings, perhaps the Fairmont. $ 9 – 11 for 2 egg omelettes or a single croissant. $ 7 – 9 for a single waffle. I asked my waiter if there were options for two or more waffles and he answered, «well, you can place as many orders as you want.»
So, we ordered a cinnamon toast and their French toast croissant, which was a featured item and described as «a huge croissant» made into a French toast. It came with two eggs and your unavoidable choice of rubbery bacon or scatological sausages.
When our entrees arrived, even my waiter was confused by their non-​descript nature. We figured out which was mine and my croissant was just two limp 4-​inch slivers. The 3-​inch square of cinnamon toast was just as disappointing. Dejected, I washed down my croissant with maple syrup in just 5 annoyed bites.
As I sat prickly contemplating my review of the abortive brunch experience, my waiter brought by a complementary waffle. Apparently, my deep dismay was palpable, even in this place. He apologetically commiserated with me that the croissant was quite small and underwhelming. For that singular gesture, I’m giving Flames an extra star.
We polished off the waffle and it genuinely restored some of my mood. Then again, it could have also been the sugar rush coming off the maple syrup. In any case, I recognized his gesture with a 25% tip and tabbed out at $ 26. I guess I’ll give Flames another try in 3 years time.

Its rare for me to say this and I will be writing an additional letter to the manager/​owner.
my experience was AWFUL!
here the deal :
its a little after 1 pm I wanted breakfast since the boyfriend and I woke up late.
I had a great experience at the flames downtown by SJSU (since i go there i went one Thursday night with school mates)
the experience at this location was just awful! When we walked in it took nearly 1 min for someone to greet us and escort us to a table. I know it doesn’t sound very long but the place was dead. Only 4 tables were sat and I would soon learn why.
I noticed at the counter everyone was lounging around, including a chef.
once we sat a bus boy took our drink order. But he literally made no eye contact and when i ordered my coffee he looked left as if he was waiting for his Hot date to arrive or something?
i let it slide and read the menu. we were hungry so it took us 3 min to decide. ordering it would take another 15 min.
We were almost ready to walk out, at this point they didn’t deserve our money. It was not busy at all! and all the workers were hanging out. I even saw one girl on he laptop.
When the busboy brought us our drinks he didn’t even ask if we were ready to order or state our waiter would be with us. We were actually confused who our waiter was. As 15 min passed we tracked down a waiter who was helping the table next to us.
We asked if he was our waiter and he scrambled to decide if he want to help us. He then took a pad out and took our order.
The food came out a little quick. I ordered an omelet with hashbrowns and my boyfriend ordered scrambled eggs breakfast with sausage hashbrowns and biscuits and gravy. all his food was warm to cold and not hot. his eggs looked like leftover scrapping of rejected eggs. But since we waited so long he just ate it.
I will NEVER! GO BACK

3 Stars
Came by for brunch today. The hostess was friendly and there was no wait.
The place felt like someone’s grandparents decorated it
2 flat screens playing Maury Povich (!!!)
OJ was huge, but didn’t taste as fresh as Bill’s or Stacks
Country Breakfast Special looked like a bigger version of something you’d get at Denny’s, but tasted a lot better
— Biscuits and Gravy were very good — up there w/​the ones at Bill’s Café
Chorizo Skillet w/​tortillas and a side of sour cream was very good, but a little greasy (but chorizo is supposed to be greasy)
Service was friendly, but one of the orders came out wrong (he did fix it w/​in a minute though)
We didn’t have their cakes/​desserts, but they all looked really good, especially the giant eclairs (see pic) and the chocolate cake
Good sized portions too… neither of us could finish our food

This has always been my Flames and I’ve been coming here since I can remember.
This time it was just plain terrible, TERRIBLE i say!
Let’s begin from the start.
The wait wasn’t too long, 5 – 10 minutes.
When we were finally getting seated, our host walked us to a dirty table where she cleaned it in front of us. I sat down, put my hand out, placed on a nice spot full of syrup. great. I start to search for the napkins. Hold on, no utensils and napkins. I decided to go to the bathroom since no one had helped us yet, no even for our drinks.
When I got back, we waited a little longer. A girl passes by «they haven’t gotten your drink orders yet?». «No», I ordered a coffee and water.
When she brought the coffee, by this time I forgot about not having a spoon. She left and I had to wait for her to pass by again. Asked for them.
When we got our food, they had put them on those tiny pancake plates. My entire, two eggs, hash, and corned beef on this tiny little plate. I don’t know if they didn’t give all my food or just piled it on top of each other. It was just plain annoying to me.
My friend ordered this plate that came with bacon, when she got it, it didn’t have bacon. We then had to wait for our waitress to bring bacon for her.
When we finally got settled in and began to eat, we realized there was no more ketchup in the bottle. I wanted more coffee and I still hadn’t gotten my water. We started to find it amusing after a while. It was that bad.
When we got our bill, we waited at the register for a good 5 minutes, waiting for someone to even ring us up! we left a $ 20 and left. Yes, it was short the coffee I got, but honestly. They freakin’ should buy my coffee.

The wait wasn’t that terrible considering it was the morning of Mother’s Day. the hostess seemed unfriendly and I hate to say it but she is not professional. There is a huge wait. instead of grabbing a piece of paper to write down our names and stuff. she tore off a long ass piece of receipt paper and asked each of us to write down our name and our party. She never onced thanked or apologized. FAIL!
My daughter and I got seated. nobody checked on us and past 10 minutes, I was getting steamed. I grabbed a guy and asked. one guy came and apologized and took our order.
Finally when the meal came out, my order was wrong but since it was good and I don’t have time to wait another 20 minutes, I finished it. I grabbed the guy again and asked him to to-​go 2 slice of cakes and give me the check in advance. he did and he gave me one on the house due to the wait and apologized again. I think he apologized 6 times to me.
In the end. I got a slice of cake for free and because that server apologized. I tipped him 15% and will come back to give it another shot. Hopefully my order will come out right this time.

eh, so disappointed.
We ordered:
1) huevos rancheros {1/​5} (Two corn tortillas topped with two large eggs, rancheros sauce, jack cheese, refried beans and garnished with guacamole, sour cream, black olives and crunchy corn chips. OLE!)
*The tortilla was cold, the guacamole was disguisting, and there were 8 chips…
2) Artichoke Mushroom Pasta with Chicken {3/​5}- just what it sounds like in thick, rich cream sauce. I thought it was decent – way better that the huevos rancheros.
It also came with a BIG side of soup – choice of Chx soup or veggie soup – i picked the veggie soup – and it was DELICIOUS… until i found a piece of hair in my last bite=(!!!
I guess this is what I get if I don’t plan/​yelp a place before heading out – dining spontaneously doesn’t really work sometimes=(
IF I HAVE to come back, I will just eat dessert — u can’t mess up on dessert, right?

We used to be regulars here just because we love diners and live real close… But sadly they changed owners and this place has gone way way way downhill. The food is pretty much the same. Kind of expensive but only by a few dollars more, but WAY better than Denny’s or IHOP. Big huge omelettes, waffles, pancakes… Steak and eggs… French toast… And the cakes, yes, are HUGE.
But all that means nothing if the service is horrible. And, although the waiters/​waitresses are nice, the service is just really bad.
First of all, the host, who I think is the owner’s daughter, is always on her cell phone or looking at her nails and watching TV and doesn’t really care about maintaining her waitlist or seating guests in a pleasant way.
And the waiters are just too busy with too many tables, and then they go off and socialize with eachother, which I’m OK with, but they take forever to get you drinks, refills, and bring your food.
I hate to give this place a bad review but sadly I have seen it go downhill firsthand. The old manager was super nice, and their waitstaff seemed like a tight-​knit family that put a lot of effort into creating a repeat business clientele. The staff now just wants you to tip them and get out. I understand how the business works and I don’t expected to be treated like royalty when I go out but sadly these guys just don’t give a damn.
And for those wondering where the old manager went… Check out Bill’s Café on by the Rose Garden. The manager AND THE WAITSTAFF! (remember what I said about being a tightknit family? how many restaurants do you know where the waitstaff follows the management?) have all gone down there to open up that new Bill’s location. And it’s awesome!
All that being said, I still go to Flame’s once in a while… Because the food is good and I like the location. But, like I said, sadly, they have internal issues they need to resolve and need to treat their guests just a little better.
PS The flat screen TVs are pretty corny.
PPS — The support staff (bus boys) who bring the coffee/​OJ and clear the tables are always real nice and attentive, way more so than the waiters.
PPPS — This place is still way better than Denny’s and IHOP although sadly IHOP seems to have taken a majority of their Saturday & Sunday brunch crowd. No matter what I think of the service, I think NOBODY should eat at a chain instead of a locally owned diner!

I have been here once for breakfast and thought it was an average place. Now after going there for lunch, made me wish Unilocal had a 0 star rating. Everything was bad except for the fact that the waiter was very friendly. Food took 40 mts to come out. Come on, this is a diner and not a Michelin rated restaurant.
The burger meat was overcooked and too dry. The cake that we had dessert seemed old and dry too. Also they cleared our food that we were planning on taking home (I don’t like wasting food however bad it is) when we were not paying attention. To add insult to injury it was overpriced. 2 strip of bacon, 2 eggs with a little hash brown was like $ 9 and it was not even good. No wonder it was empty. I can only see people who live near by and don’t want to travel coming here. Pass!