Signature Café & Catering

No matter how good the food is, bad customer service never will make the restaurant great. We were unimpressed with this place for so many reasons. The lunch menu was standard sandwiches. .and while they were good we still found the experience to be disappointing. Most of our meal we could hear a baby crying from upstairs. The server had a cast on so he moved quite slow and he was not engaging at all. The restaurant was also very quiet. I found the lack of music and other tables disturbing. When i went to pay the bill we had a Groupon and the server was downright rude about it. I felt like i was being scolded for not having made our reservation 24 hours in advance. Apparently that is part of the Groupon stipulation. It was a Tuesday and the place had 3 tables TOTAL. It was off putting to say the least.
This restaurant is advertised as farm to table. Not one mention of a locally sourced item was made on a chalkboard or the menu.
The rest room was dirty and made me question what the kitchen looked like. The tables outside were dirty and not swept from tree debris.
I would never dine hear again and would encourage others who want farm to table and friendly clean atmosphere to go elsewhere.

YUM! and the backyard patio is Napa Valley vibe

Came here with a groupon and we were glad we did. First experience with a farm to table restaurant and it won’t be the last. The only disappointing factor was that I didn’t know it was Gluten Free menu on Tuesdays. Therefore I couldn’t have the crab cake according to the menu details :(. Other than that the soup of the day was q chicken white bean. It was fresh tasting, well seasoned and piping hot. I chose the salmon for my new and was surprised to be asked how I wanted it done. I chose medium and it was perfect. The risotto of the day included tomatoes and artichoke hearts. It was just the right creaminess and was very savory. The roasted potatoes were also well seasoned and tasty. I highly recommend this restaurant. The ambiance was also welcoming which involves a warm greeting upon entry.

We catered our wedding with Signature Café and everything was amazing! From our initial meeting with Derek right up to the wedding day, he made everything so easy. For food we had pot roast, chicken, roasted potatoes, root vegetables, vegetarian pasta, a salad and dinner rolls. Everyone was making comments on how good everything was, and I couldn’t agree more.
The staff was also so nice to ask the kids who went through the line if they wanted chicken strips (which they held back so that everyone else didn’t grab them).
Everything was perfect, I would definitely recommend Signature Café for your catering.

This review is on their lunch menu only as we have had wonderful dinners at Signature Café.
Lunch was uninspiring, with lackluster presentation.
Totally disappointed.

I have read some of these reviews and I have no idea what they are talking about. I reserved my Groupon and checked the email to make sure it was the right time. It was a wonderful experience! The food was delicious and the portions were perfect for my partner and I.
The waiter was wonderful and very professional. I really enjoyed this experience. It was a nice way to unwind after a long week. The crab cake was delicious and tasted like crab not fishy. The roasted carrots I had with the entrée were firm and tasted fresh. I also had sweet potato fries which tasted stronger and more delicious than most sweet potato fries I have tried.
I loved this place! Maybe these other people got there on bad days but I thought it was a wonderful experience. I forgot to mention that the dressing on their spinach salad was sweet and tangy but a perfect mix. We had a nice cabernet that was delicious with dinner.
Be prepared to spend more than your Groupon but it was still worth it. We wanted to try dessert so we split the bread pudding which was firm and served with a rich cream sauce that was delicious. Overall, I am confused what experience these other reviewers had but listening to some of the other customers I think some people have grown far too entitled and use Unilocal to lash out.

My experience pretty much matched that of Julie G. of Denver so I don’t see much need to repeat the description in my review. When we arrived there was one other couple there. We ate outside which is the only way the place would have bearable. It was much too hot inside and they do not have air conditioning.
The waiter was very good until three other people showed up for a table. At that point, with three tables he was overwhelmed. Read Julie G.‘s review. Her description of the food was is right on the mark. What they were calling French toast was what I would call bread pudding with maple syrup on it.
Since most of the residence in the neighborhood park on the street I wounder where customers find parking when the place is busy. If that ever happens.

What a perfect place to go on a wonderful evening. Sitting outside is just a perfect under the twinkle lights with great food. The scallops and duck are both great and the servers are delightful, they have date night on Monday also!

The food here was very average and certainly overpriced. The prices for my pot roast were comparable to what you might pay at Manny’s and the quality was comparable to a crock pot. My girlfriend’s scallops were ok but not great and she didn’t love the risotto. We had a groupon which made the value reasonable, but I wouldn’t recommend. We did have brunch there one other time and that was pretty good as long as you don’t mind not getting to order, but just getting what they give you.

After seeing the sign pointing down Warwick avenue from Franklin, I thought that this place could either be a hidden gem or off the beaten path for a reason. I am happy to report that this little storefront in the middle of a residential neighborhood is a rare and wondrous treat nestled and tucked away.
We were warmly greeted by a knowledgeable and friendly server. She explained the specials with knowledge and passion, and I was hungry just listening to the descriptions! I hemmed and hawed over a few decisions, and she was right there to articulate the differences between this wine or that or to offer suggestions on which entrée to choose, without missing a beat! The staff is clearly very knowledgeable and very passionate about not only their food and wine, but food and wine in general.
I ended up with a lovely pairing of a Sauvignon Blanc and the Scottish salmon with sauteed greens and the risotto of the day for sides. The wine was exactly as described, and one of the most complex Sauv Blancs that I have ever had! It is nice that they offer the daily risotto as an option as a side, so I was able to try it without getting a whole portion. My mother had the seared scallop with the choice of orange ginger glaze, which is a nice touch to be able to choose a sauce for the scallops. Speaking of the scallops, they were perfectly cooked, just tender without being over or under, and the glaze paired nicely. For sides, she had the sauteed vegetables and potato cakes.
This place is clearly there for the customer and diner. They are very knowledgeable and accommodating. Yes they offer gluten-​free, but what that means is that they have a real understanding of what ingredients are in which dish. When I inquired about dairy in the risotto, the server knew not only what went into the prepration of the risotto, but also the ingredients that went into the various components, such as the stock. It doesn’t come off as mere «food sensativity» pandering, but a sincere knowledge and respect of how their food is made.
The atmosphere is similarly clean, crisp, and comfortable. There are small tables partitioned off from the seating counter by a glass and wood wall, and there is an area in back that was occupied by a sizable group clearly enjoying a comfortable dinner party.
I will definitely be back to try their tasting menus, as well as beer and wine dinners. They offer «Gluten Free Tuesdays» and «Monday Night Date Nights.»
This business clearly knows food and how to be welcoming to all. Three cheers to an utter lack of food snobbery while retaining knowledge, passion, and care!

It’s a really small place in a residential area. Don’t come here if you’re looking for some private, quality time with anyone! You’re practically sharing a table with the people next to you since the tables are so close together! I have been here for breakfast and dinner and both times left me feeling unfulfilled. The food is just mediocre and service was really mediocre as well. Did not get any water refills until asked! Just left feeling unsatisfied. Don’t think i’ll be coming back here again!

There is nothing to recommend about the Signature Café, except not to go. I checked with Unilocal customer service and there is currently no way to give a negative rating, otherwise I would give this place a negative 10. It was so bad it was comical. Kudos to them for completing the trifecta though: bad food, bad service, HORRIBLE VALUE. My date and I split a spinach salad that cost $ 11. I kid you not when I say I think it was one of those salads in a bag poured on a plate straight from the farm fields of Cub Foods. My chicken risotto was wonderfully bland and the boneless, skinless, flavorless chicken breast was microwaved to perfection. At least it was only $ 22… I’m being sarcastic now. In all honesty, my meal (including salad) was worth $ 10. I would have been happier grabbing a Gatorade and a couple hotdogs off the rollers at SA (SA is a gas station for any out of towners). With all the new chef driven restaurants popping up around town featuring fun, creative and tasty dishes at a good price; it would be a shame to waste your time and money on a place like this. The only reason to go there is to have a reference point by which to measure other terrible dining experiences.

We purchase many Groupons and other similar deals, which usually turns us into regulars at the restaurants we try. Unfortunately, Signature Café is the only place where I was made to feel like a second class citizen because I had the Groupon. That treatment outweighed any positives this restaurant may have.

I have lived in the area for two years and I never knew this place existed. I saw a sign on Franklin as I was driving home that was advertising for the place, and I was a little intrigued.
My first impression was that it was quiet and business was slow, but then I perked up a bit when I saw the wine and espresso bar to the right of me. Business picked up at about 6pm, (1800,) and so did the noise level. There is a nice wine selection, the décor is pleasant, the server was attentive, and the cheese and olive platter that I ordered to go with my wine was delightful.
Thank heaven that I did not come here in the middle of Winter though, because I can understand what an earlier reviewer was saying about the temperature! The windows in the front look outdated and prone to a lot of heat loss, and the server intimated as much. Hopefully, this will change before next winter. That being said, it would have been my only complaint. Come here and decide for yourself if it is worth the trip, and leave some more reviews in your wake.

Having eaten here several times, I find this place to be hit or miss on the food and service.
Their ‘specials’ are usually pretty interesting. Their onion soup is very tasty — deep in flavor. Their duck confit is delicious. Recently, I ordered a bow tie pasta with chicken and a bleu cheese-​white wine broth, and found the flavor to be rather «flat». My dining companion tasted the dish and suggested I ask for more bleu cheese. So I did, and received more crumbles, which I sprinkled on top. While that addition perked things up, it was «bleu cheese out loud» in flavor. Maybe it was just an odd combination to begin with and would be best left «unserved».

After my first visit, I’m definitely interested in going back for more. This is a different dining experience — I would call it quirky and quaint. Somewhat oddly located in a residential area, this restaurant is more than just small. It is, at times, awkwardly intimate. Don’t go here if you’re in a big hurry, or without a reservation. There was only one server, so it moved somewhat slowly, from start to finish. Other negatives: the unisex restroom and lukewarm coffee.
So why would I go back? The menu is interesting and the food was good. Everyone was pleasant, and as I said if you’re ready for a different experience, this is a good choice. I suggest giving it a try. Good wine list. Excellent dessert. Daily chef specials are worth a try, but the regular menu items were good too.

Went for Valentine’s Day Brunch and utilized a Groupon. Our server was great. He was friendly and had personality. You do need a reservation typically to make sure you get a table. Seating is limited, quaint, and intimate. I love that they serve family style and in courses. You can take your time talking to your dining companion and just enjoy each and every item leisurely. We had fruit and yogurt for the first course which was vanilla yogurt in a cereal bowl and some chunks of melon and pineapple. Second course was baked french toast which was like a bread pudding french toast. Third some bacon and scrambled eggs with zucchini and onions and some rosemary potatoes. The last course was odd — it was a big piece of a chocolate chip bar cookie. We packaged it up and took it home. We ordered coffee and I think my Groupon was for 20.00…I ended up paying an additional 10 towards the meal and tip of course. We had a nice enough experience for the money.

Tried it for the first time with a Groupon on a date with my wife not too long ago. Had a great dinner experience and will probably come back for weekend brunch. The service was right-​on and the food was was delicious. I was surprised that there were recent bad reviews for this place. It was a relaxing dinner and we’ll probably bring my in-​laws for brunch next time they’re in town. I’d have no hesitation recommending it to another couple. specifically for a date-​night type meal. Don’t think it’d be good with kids. It is a unique experience. Feels like you’re having dinner at a friend’s house.

Went for brunch.
Their unique french toasts and duck bacons were both exceptional, but I will probably never go to this place again. Why? Despite their great food and service, the restaurant wasn’t a pleasant place to stay at all, as it was very cold and had no background music: meaning. super awkward. Many people don’t notice that 99.999% of restaurants (quiet or loud) have background music playing. Everyone is so used to it, you just don’t recognize/​appreciate it until you go to a place where there’s no music.
So if you don’t mind wearing a thick jacket in a awkwardly quiet place, this café is honestly a great place for you to have yummy brunch.

Pretty good, but I don’t think we’d go back without a Groupon. I did dig the neighborhood bistro vibe. There aren’t a lot of places like that around Minneapolis. And while the tables were a little cramped, the décor was inviting and cozy. Our server was fine, but certainly could have been more friendly.
We followed the advice of Unilocalers and ordered the crab cake. The inside was full of crab and tasty, but the outside was almost burnt. A disappointing start. The homemade bread was simple and tasty, and served in a cute pail.
For the entrée, I ordered the scallops. They were cooked very nicely and seasoned well, but I couldn’t really taste the orange-​ginger glaze. As a side I ordered the daily risotto, which came with smoked tomatoes and goat cheese. This was the most impressive thing we ordered. The risotto was just toothsome enough, and the flavors were unique and delicious. My dish also came with carrots, which were kind of a disaster. They were uncooked way beyond al dente, so I couldn’t even cut them with a knife, and they were cut into these huge chunks, so there was no way to eat them politely without nibbling at them off of my fork.
My date ordered the duck confit, which he liked. I was impressed by the crispy skin, but I thought it was really dry. He also got the greens, which had a frighteningly powerful lemon flavor and a stringy texture. His garlic mashed potatoes were excellent though.
We ended with the crème caramel, which he liked but I found uninspiring. The butterscotch and raspberry sauces on top were good, but the caramel itself was a flavorless blob.

Yes, maybe food is affordable there specially with groupon deal or dinner for $ 35 but the food is not that tasty there. Salmon with risotto and potato cakes were ordered and they were really really oily. I was having a lot of water to kill the taste of oil. Also they add sauces to everything so you won’t experience real taste of risotto. For dessert we have asked for espresso but the machine was broken so no luck even there.

I had never heard of Signature Café prior to my visit there. I saw that it had some pretty solid stars so was excited to try it out. We had a Groupon to use for brunch so we went on a Sunday morning at 11:30.
Bad sign number one: I thought the place was closed. There was no one there when I walked in the door, after stepping inside I saw four people way back in a corner that were sitting down for brunch. There is no music playing so it is eerily quiet in the restaurant.
Our server was very nice and attentive, but the brunch was really poorly done. The fruit cup and yogurt were sad, and not much for two people. The french toast was good but nothing worth noting. The egg bake… oh the egg bake. I should have read through the Unilocal reviews for brunch. The egg bake was bland and dense and had some sort of unidentifiable greenery in it (was it broccoli? spinach? green eggs?) The potatoes were tough and dry, like they had been precooked and then warmed up. I think that they are failing on the brunch aspect of their dining experience, since everyone seems to be impressed by their dinners. Maybe Signature should stop serving brunch-​after seeing only 8 people including us in there on a Sunday morning-​I don’t think it would be all that detrimental to their business.
I’ve seen good reviews for dinner, but I’m not sure I’d make the trip out again to give them another shot.

I found this place, via
, and went for a Saturday brunch. I was disappointed. The spot is cute (middle of a neighborhood) but my entire trip just wasn’t very enjoyable.
We were the only table and the server (assuming owner) was slightly awkward. Don’t get me wrong, he was very friendly but the conversation was off. Plus, it was so fricken quiet that we felt like we had to whisper to one another.
Food was good. I just love family style. First course was fruit/​yogurt and nothing worth noting except it was odd that we were given bread/​side plates to eat it on. Second course was the highlight, French toast with warmed syrup. it was just right, light yet dense and syrup wasn’t too sweet. Third was scrambled eggs, duck bacon and roasted potatoes. Again, good but nothing worth noting. Last course was apple crisp. The apples included the skin/​peel and it was more syrupy and didn’t have much crunch. I also thought it strange to have both French toast and apple crisp.
Total (with tip and $ 15 voucher) was about $ 50, including two adult brunches, one 9 year old brunch (charged for adult), latte, hot chocolate, and soda. I wouldn’t recommend brunch here.

I had the Crab Cake Sandwich today, and the crab flavor was robust and crabby, not unlike my 4 year old. The soup special of the day was cold Melon Mint, not a great rainy day soup, but still refreshing. And then the chocolate cake was quite good, but I can get a bigger piece just as good for less than $ 6 at a bakery.
Not many restaurants are in a totally residential neighborhood with no other businesses nearby, and I have to wonder what the neighbors think of the extra traffic they receive. Hopefully it more than makes up for it that they have such a cool little place nearby.
Service was great.

Cute café set-​up with an upscale menu. Not very crowded on a Saturday evening around 6pm. Service was a little quirky, but certainly tolerable.
This is one of the more delicious (non-​ethnic) meals that I have experienced in the Twin Cities. The chef pays real attention to the details to create truly flavorful dishes.
I particularly loved the crostini option of the night: red onion jam with melted gruyère cheese sprinkled with some unidentified herb on a thin, crispy crostini with a light garlicky, buttery taste. Perfect. 4 pieces/​$ 12.
I ordered the scallops with the aioli of the night (red pepper), which came with 2 sides. I choose the risotto special (sweet potato, truffle, and spinach) and the roasted veggie dish. The 4 plump scallops were cooked to perfection and not at all tough or chewy. The risotto was excellent, though the truffles did have a bit of that tough and chewy quality to them. Easy to overlook. $ 25.
BF ordered the pasta dish of the night, which was essentially pasta primavera. He had ordered chicken with the pasta, which they forgot. He didn’t realize this until he was about 75% through as he was too busy enjoying the dish. I tried his pasta. Nothing special. But to me, pasta is always pasta. BF and I did agree that the sauce was a little watery. $ 22.
While the food was overall very good with a strong attention to every ingredient that went into each dish, the prices should be cut back. Especially that pasta dish – $ 22 is outrageous for a bowl of veggie pasta. You cannot get away with a moderately priced dinner here. This would prevent me from returning.