Fifi’s Bistro Cafe

While the food was OK, the restaurant is now controlled by a nasty bully. I questioned a charge on the bill, and he went ballistic. Not only did he insult me, he turned on my dinner partner as well, yelling at her for no reason. All heads turned as he insulted me by saying, «We don’t want people to come here who worry about saving $ 3. As a matter of fact, don’t ever come back.» No problem.

Fifis Bistro Café is an excellent place to celebrate or dine any day of the week. The hosts Calvin and Michelle are extremely kind and warm hearted.
I see a lot of bad reviews on here that simply don’t do Fifi’s justice so I had to speak up. On the other side of the service coin I appreciate a place where the waiters do not pester you every 5 minutes with water and questions. If you need a waiter they come instantly, you simply have to ask. The pricing is fair for the amount of food you get per portion. The atmosphere is of another country and you feel relaxed sitting down for a meal here at any service time.
Top 3 from Fifis
1. French Onion Soup (CHEESY, just the way I like it)
2. Poulet Champignon au Chèvre (Free-​Range Chicken Breast stuffed with Goat Cheese. Served with Mushroom Sauce & Roasted Potatoes)
3. Eggs Benedict with Smoked Salmon (had this 3 times, egg was poached perfectly every time)
Give this place a try if you love savory healthy food and good wine.

We’ve been eating at Fifi’s for almost as long as the restaurant has been open (and eating the pastries). Special event — so we went with a place that rarely disappoints We had the sand dabs and the duck. One of the best places in Monterey for duck (breast) — tender — perfectly cooked. The wife enjoyed the fish (cleaned the plate). Panna Cotta for desert — sublime. (but I want to try the walnut cake next time — it looked wonderful).
Noting some of the comments — wine has become a big part of this restaurant (since Calvin came on board). Don’t bring your own…

I had the worst experience eating here. I paid $ 50 for a chicken I could’ve had at Olive Garden for $ 12 and a piece of steak that was chopped in 3 pieces so that they can feed 3 people. The garnish was a joke. Overall was not pleased with the food and appalled at their prices. Maybe if they served quality food with real flavors I wouldn’t mind the price, but they don’t. Overpriced and horrible.

Fifi’s was awesome. It’s in an unlikely location, and once you get inside it’s absolutely adorable. My son and I went there based on Unilocal reviews, and we were not disappointed. We both had French onion soup, and it was as good as any I’ve ever tasted. He had the fillet mignon and it was delectable. I had escargot and a Caesar salad, both of which were perfect. The service was very French. They want you to take your time and enjoy the food and ambience, so it’s not a great place to go if you’re in a hurry. We will definitely go back when we are in the area.

Dined in with my girlfriend about a month ago. We were looking for somewhere nice to eat dinner and this place had a nice ambiance. Steak Frites sounded good, but they don’t have a gluten free dedicated fryer, therefore I substituted fries for mashed potatoes. I ordered my steak medium rare and it wasn’t. Instead it was covered with sauce to cover the fact that it was overcooked. I cook for a living, I can spot these mistakes very easily. I’m not one to return food, I was hungry, i didn’t want to wait for the steak to be re-​fired. What really got to me, was the stingy portion of mashed potatoes, really? the cook behind there could of added a bit more of mashed potatoes than the ice cream scoop of a portion I got. Overall, food was ok. I just don’t see my self returning again.

4+
What a lovely place! You enter the restaurant and you are immediately transfered to a seemingly authentic cozy little French restaurant. In short, great atmosphere, food, wine selection, and excellent service. Loved the french onion soup! Highly recommend!

Great prices, amazing food, lovely people (Fifi and her husband are amazing). Walkable to cannery row, a really fun night. Also, the create a proper French style fillet

I am revising my «star» and adding one final note to this review (I’ve simply got to let it go) of Fifi’s.
I wanted to add that my husband and I realized, of course, we would be charged the corkage fee. No dispute there. Just the fact that the owner unnecessarily asked us what we paid for champagne and that he would have sold it to us for the same price had we ordered it from him and not asked to have it corked!
Again, food good, our server EXCELLENT!

Excellent food matched with an extensive wine list in an intimate setting.
If you’re a wino like I am you will appreciate the extensive list of wines, not to mention the wine displayed abundantly all around this charming bistro. One of the owners, Calvin, really knows his wine. REALLY! Michelle, the other owner, really brings that old world charm to this neck of the woods.
Trés charmant!

We went out last dinner for my birthday dinner there that our son invited us to. We have been going to this restaurant for the 30 years it has existed now, with family, friends and colleagues from work, and had another wonderful experience. I had the pork loin with red cabbage and my husband the Filet mignon with potatoes and veggies, and two small plates. We also had some wine that we selected from an extensive list they have… The food was great and little rose pedals were on our table plus an extra treat of a raspberry desert with a candle.
Lovely as always! a gem!

OMG – the food was so good, the fact that they didn’t offer us fresh-​ground black pepper was moot! She got one of the lunch specials: Grilled Boneless Idaho Trout with Lemon Dill Beurre Blanc, Potatoes au Gratin and Sautéed Mixed Vegetables). I had the sand dabs («grilled with white wine-​lemon sauce and served with au gratin potatoes & fresh vegetables»). We usually take home leftovers when we go out to eat, but we couldn’t stop eating. The starters (French onion soup and a special, zucchini curry soup) were equally amazing.

I’m gonna start saying by saying that a few years ago, my review would have been 5 stars. Service that knows the loyal locals, a chef that takes allergies into consideration, and food that was delightfully worth a nice night out. Regrettably, I feel like food (dinner at least) has fallen to a level where I know my family and I won’t be back.
We started last night with escargot. Which is the saving grace here (a little salty but that was a first). I ordered a caprese and a duck salad to split with my partner. Which barely happened considering the caprese was literally 3 half slices of tomato, one small heirloom and 5 cubes of mozzarella. I know how technical julienned basil can be, but the come on guys! 6 strips? Long story short, it made me sad.
The stuffed chicken is always yummy, but apart from that, the escargot, and the filet mignon itself it’s just not worth the money anymore. Which makes me REALLY SAD, considering the amount of birthdays I’ve had at fifis is getting up there.

I don’t understand all the glowing reviews. The staff and owners are delightful, I will certainly agree, but the food is forgettable. Rice and overlooked veggies is French? Who knew?

Lunch was a level higher than before – in fact, so good we came back the next for dinner. And THAT was so good, we came back again for the third time in three days, for our last lunch, canceling other reservations!
Fifi’s makes only one quiche and it’s only available weekends. If you have had quiche elsewhere, including the bakery down the street that for some unfathomable reason gets a high rating, try it here and you will never, ever go back to cheap crap like that. This is what butter pastry, properly baked custard, fine quality Gruyère and ham, SHOULD taste like. Of the many quiches we have eaten, only Parker-​Lusseau/​Monterey and Bouchon Restaurant/​Yountville surpass Fifi’s. It’s served with a small salad, very simple, with a lovely Champagne vinaigrette. Perfect, casual, satisfying!
Lamb Chops Greek style were excellent. Bouillabaise was very good although the mirepoix could have been cooked longer.
Foie Gras Torchon with dried figs and balsamic vinegar. So good we asked if they could save one for us for lunch the next day, which they very kindly did. A wonderful combination, perfectly balanced between savory and sweet.
Salmon Piccata. We love piccata sauce, a beurre blanc variant that is surprisingly hard to balance and breaks easily if mishandled. Fifi’s was flawless, as was the salmon — the catch has been poor this year but the quality/​flavor is exceptional.
Walnut cake. Fifi’s desserts aren’t the best, but I liked this quite a bit. It was surprisingly large, however, and is best shared by two people. Their best dessert is the Floating Island, but it needs to be pre-​ordered.
Overall: Fifi’s is well off the tourist path and caters to locals. The menu might sound standard, but this is what true French bistro food should be, can be, but so very seldom is. If you have never tried French food, do yourself a favor and make a reservation here.
One tip: don’t come in with an attitude, to this or ANY good French restaurant. The French are rightfully touchy about ugly Americans. Their service ethic is efficient and professional but not that fake friendly «Hi, my name is blah blah and let me tell you, everything we make is just so fabulous! blah blah…» If you want tourist-​style service, please dine on Cannery Row.

Excellent customer service and DELICIOUS FOOD! My boyfriend and I came here on our birthday, but we both felt a little out of our element. The only issue that I had was the steak I ordered. I asked for my steak well done and received it bloody. It was still delicious, nonetheless. I was too scared to ask for them to cook it more from reading previous Unilocal about their steaks being bloody as well. The dessert is exquisite, I recommend the floating island desert. The décor is lovely and they even added rose petals to our table upon request. Definitely coming here every time I come to Pacific Grove.

Dude. What is up with the service at this place? Let me walk you through my recent experience at Fifi’s Bistro Café…
The other weekend I arrived with my family (there were 3 of us out of the 5 person party). Upon arrival, we waited awkwardly in the entryway with four other couples for around 15 minutes, then proceeded to flag someone down. Once we flagged someone down there was a lot of confusion over finding our reservation. We were finally seated. 30 minutes later we realized the other 2 members of our party were still not there. We asked the waiter to look out for them and upon checking it out ourselves realized the other 2 people had been waiting at the other side of the restaurant the entire time. The hostess had not connected the dots that we were the SAME PARTY.
Fine, maybe it’s not their fault. Whatever. But it gets worse. My uncle is very allergic to gluten and was very clear that he would like the French Onion Soup with no bread– they responded «no problem!». When they brought out the soups there was a layer of cheese over every bowl. My Uncle asked which was one was gluten-​free and the waiter arbitrarily picked one (which of course had gluten– they all did!). We had to send back the soup to get a fresh gluten-​free bowl.
Overall, the food was good but the service was a major bummer. Especially for Mother’s Day Brunch I wish they would have tried a lot harder…

It was on a Wednesday night that our family stumbled upon this place after spending the day in Carmel. Didn’t look so busy at a glance, but we quickly found out that the restaurant was totally booked!
We ended up occupying the entire bar of 4 spots that peaks into the kitchen. I like this place, compact, cozy, and decorated with thoughtful pieces of French themed items/​artworks and lots of wine, this place is also a wine shop.
The menu is simple, the options have been curated, and the decent wine list by the bottles are reasonably priced.
The Bouillabaisse ($ 29) is a plate of treasure from the ocean, Fish, Clams, Mussels & Prawns cooked with Saffron Broth that came with 2 garlicky toasts. The seafoods tasted savory and pure, the broth really elevates the ingredients and the bread are really helpful mopping up all that goodness at the end.
The Sand Dabs ($ 19) comes with 2 filets of fish, gently seared and served with just the most wonderful Potato au Gratin that I have tasted, creamy but still manage to have the texture for me to savor the layers of potato in every bite. The lemon sauce on the filet was very well done, not overpowering the delicate taste of the fish.
Prime Pork Tenderloin ($ 24) is a hard dish to prepare, and they delivered it spot-​on, with just a trace of pink in that generous steak-​sized piece grilled golden brown on the outside. The braised red cabbage had a bit of acidity to compliment the richness of the meat. The thick slice of crispy bacon added additional dimension to the dish, although I found it to be a bit overly salted, compromising the sweetness of the meat itself.
The desserts were wonderful, especially the «Floating Island,» it’s a tower of meringue floated on the silky vanilla custard. The meringue was firm but not overly whipped, dusted with fine sugar to gain that sparkling/​tasty crust that blends well with the flavorful custard, an overall delightful dessert.