Specialty’s Cafe & Bakery

I have stopped off here 3 times. I once had a Denver Omelet, very good, had house coffee, the omelet was very good and big enough that I took some home, the coffee however I didn’t like, too bitter even after adding milk and sugar, The second time I ordered the Peanut Butter stuff sammi, delicious, the coffee again was too bitter, the third time I got a ham and cheese croissant to go and coffee, again the coffee is too bitter. I am a rabid coffee lover and do not like flavored coffees so I am disappointed that the food is really good but the coffee is not. Will still go for food but if I want coffee with my food I will have to go elsewhere

Restaurant opens at 6:00am. I walk in at 6:02am to order a Ham and Cheese croissant. Manager tells me they are sold out already!!!
It’s food. Not Beanie Babies. They’re not collectibles. You shouldn’t be running out 2 minutes after the store opens.

I have been a regular customer of the San Mateo location ever since it opened. I have always liked the food & the service. But, my last three visits have been very disappointing. There appears to be different staff, non of the regulars who were friendly & greeted you.
The service was chaotic & disorganized on one visit. The second time they forgot my order. This time I asked for an iced latte & got a VERY watered down coffee & had to ask a second time for my cookie. And the person who retrieved the cookie from the rack had been cleaning & never put on gloves.
I was actually on my way to Starbucks when I was driving by & decided to stop here. That was a mistake. I hope that whatever is going on at Specialty changes. I miss the old place!!!

Stopped in here while running errands looking for a quick something to tide me over until dinner. Girl at the counter (sorry I didn’t get her name) was upbeat and greeted me with a smile, suggested a soup since I didn’t want to wait long, and gave me the lowdown on each of the soups. I chose the Thai chicken in coconut milk soup which was very good. It came with a complementary piece of rosemary foccaccia bread. This really hit the spot and was relatively inexpensive ($ 5.45 for large soup). Will probably be back again.

Lately they have been very late on their online orders. After you make your order online and you receive a text saying that your «your order is Ready to be Picked Up» they still don’t have the order ready when you arrive.
I used to be a very regular and loyal customer but for some reason the past couple weeks they have been extremely slow and inaccurate on their online order pick up times.

I thought this was a Panera bread place. Guess I was wrong Ordered a Chinese chicken salad and got about a tablespoon of chicken on a paper plate and with a plastic spoon. For $ 9.00 you would hope you would not be hungry an hour later. Won’t be back

I used to come here quite often. Their sandwiches are great and they fill you up, and their ingredients are fresh.
The salads, however, are a little bit too cheesy to my liking.
I enjoyed the salad for the most part, but I suppose I came in during a busy time, which was why my salad was more cheese than croûton and lettuce.
The service was good, open seating.

Specialty’s is an oasis of yummy goodness whether you want sweets, soup, sandwiches or salads. Their system in expediting orders is state of the art too which equals saving time. Staff is also friendly and enthusiastic.
Their online system for ordering is easy peasy complete with visuals of how you’d like your sandwich, salad or whatever else your little heart desires! They even have these kiosks inside to order inside if you’d rather not at the counter. Needless to say, I’m quite impressed with the efficiency here in addition to the quality of food. It’s serious fast gourmet. I’ve had their Southwestern Chicken Salad which is loaded with a variety of fresh ingredients and very tasty. Their Turkey Pesto sandwich is also one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever had. The glutton within can easily be unleashed here. Thank goodness for self control!
You have not lived if you’ve never eaten at Specialities! Yup, I’m looking forward to my next meal or sweet tooth craving here!

I used to love Specialty’s. Years ago would go there often in the SF financial district. I used to always think the sandwiches were so good and a good value. My mom and I had sandwiches today and were disappointed. My sandwich was OK, but not the «really good» I was used to. My mom’s ham sandwich was disappointing to her… one folded over piece of ham and a thin slice of cheese. I hate to say, but I’m going to have to think twice about going there again… It’s ironic because I was so thrilled when they first came to San Mateo… What a shame. If they are open to suggestions: I would make your sandwiches meatier, even if you have to increase your prices. On a good note, we got chocolate chip cookies and thought they were divine.

I’ve had Specialty’s on numerous occasions both at this location and in San Francisco.
The salads have been weak to OK (ie. 2 — 3 stars) for the times I’ve tried them. Most recently, I had the spinach, berry, and goat cheese salad, which I did not enjoy, unfortunately.
The sandwiches step it up a notch slightly (3 — 4 stars). My particular favorites are Peanut Butter & Stuff (apples & banana) and Turkey Cranberry (Reminds me of Thanksgiving).
The cookies though! (5 stars!) These cookies easily bring up the overall rating for being among, if not the best dang cookies I’ve ever had.
Not only do they taste ridiculously good, the portion size is very generous. I certainly don’t bite into this cookie in the traditional manner. Instead, I break off one small bite-​sized piece at a time to taste and repeat.
The Black and White cookie is by far my favorite because of its unique look, its flavor/​taste, and its name being one coordinating conjunction away from the title of Michael Jackson’s 1991 Hit Record «Black Or White». Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip (Both Semi Sweet and Milk Chocolate) are excellent as well.
My rough average gets me to an overall of 4 stars.

Meh — this place is alright. We stopped in to grab a dozen cookies for our client meeting. The cookies were okay — I think a lot of them had been sitting out for quite a while so they lost their «fresh baked» goodness.

I finally found this place to actually visit and order. You see, I always got these as a delivery for long work meetings that involved a working lunch, so many times it was a crapshoot as to what I would get — and I’m not a cold sandwich type of person, so I normally opted out.
Then I finally got a chance to order from the menu and noticed a «peanut butter and stuff» sandwich, and that intrigued me, since I never get to eat peanut butter at home due to allergic kids.
So it’s this peanut butter and jelly sandwich with sliced bananas and green apples — Lord have mercy, it’s something I would never make at home (wouldn’t get that kind of bread and it would probably end up squishy if I made it) but damn, that’s one hell of a sandwich.
I’d been craving it ever since. And I finally saw a locale in San Mateo that I generally pass through, so I got here to order, and then took home a couple of their mini cheese quiches. Just heat those up for like 30 seconds instead of 10, unless you like them refrigerator cold.
This is a type of pregnancy craving I would be happy to indulge in even when I’m not pregnant.

I’ve never been to the place itself, but we order them for work pretty often.
First, they always delivery on time. Granted, they give themselves a half hour window to delivery, but they always make it between those times.
Some of the food I’ve had:
Make your own sandwiches: the bread is so good! The meat is pretty good too and they give you 3 choices of meat, cheese and a huge assortment of veggies (including pepperchini and pickles)!
Salads: even though they’re packaged, they’re still pretty good. It’s mostly lettuce, but combined with the dressing, it’s good. The chicken is really good in the salads as well. Still hungry after an hour though… salads are just hard to have as a meal for me.
Breakfast sandwiches: yum! better than McDonalds for sure. I’m pretty sure it’s the bread though…
And the chocolate chip cookies: don’t even get me started on those! Just do yourself a favor and get one!
Overall, I really like this place. Everything is good and anything they bake is delicious.

This place is average at best to me. Just OK. I went here because it’s right next to my work building and I figured I could get some work done by ordering my sandwich online and picking it up since it’s only a 5 minute walk away.
I got the BLT and added avocado. It was not spectacular, special, or filling. It was eh.
I’m big on places such as Freshly Baked Eatery and California Sourdough. I might just be really picky and particular with sandwiches, but oh well. I figured I might as well do a pros and cons list for this place.
Pros:
1. Online ordering
2. They have a shelf where you can pick up your orders
Cons:
1. Pricey
2. Small sandwiches
3. A bit slow
4. Sandwiches aren’t all that special or tasty — nothing that you can’t make at home yourself.
Eh, I might as well just stick to La’s Café in my work building. It’s cheaper, faster, and I’m supporting a Mom and Pop business.

I love Specialty’s. It’s been a long-​standing affair, since they opened their Redwood Shores location several years ago. I used to go there multiple times a week.
This one hasn’t gotten quite as much love from me just yet, but the quality is on par with every other Specialty’s I’ve visited. You can order online, pick your grub up with minimal wait time, enjoy fresh-​baked bread and/​or cookies that will blow your mind, their soups and breakfast options are also super tasty, etc., etc.
I think I go here less because the size of most things are just BIG (particularly the sandwiches and baked goods) and I don’t gorge the way I used to these days. It works out better to rock a small salad or split a sandwich, at least for my appetite. Also, a sandwich/​salad, drink and cookie (the most common order from what I’ve seen) will set you back around $ 15. I think the cookies and baked goods are the most overpriced thing on the menu, which they can get away with since it’s all so fucking delicious.

I stand by my previous admiration of the spectacular service and products of Speciality’s. Karen and Mickey have been wonderfully kind, intuitive, and always providing new creations for my taste.
Stick around, Bravo.

I accidentally happened across Specialty while on an office supply run for work. I was hit with a massive hunger pang due to lack of my morning coffee. Luckily this was in the same plaza as office depot and I stopped by for a croissant.
This was SUCH a delicious croissant. Larger than my hands and it’s stuffed with meat and cheese. Warm gooey deliciousness. Not sure how else to describe it.
Came back another time on the lunch break. BOY does this place get a substantial line. I’d advise coming here a little bit before noon.
The sandwiches range from $ 7 – 10 and they’re pretty tasty.
Overall it’s a decent place to pick up a food if you’re looking for a quick lunch.

We just got some specialty’s sandwiches for a work lunch. The «Cheesy Steak» sounds appealing, so I take one… little did I know that this was the biggest mistake of the day.
First off, «Steak»? At best it was roast beef. Bland, boring, untasty roast beef. Then, as the cheese of choice, they for some reason choose Cream Cheese mixed with other junk. The taste of the sandwich varied between disgusting and sickening. I somehow managed to get it down because I was hungry and I don’t like cranberry on my turkey sandwich.

Once Again — Specialty’s Disappoints.
UPPER MANAGEMENT … PLEASE HELP!
I always tell myself I’m never going to Specialty’s again… but I end up going because its really close.
Last week: I watch the short-​haired girl preparing food reach into her back pocket and PULL OUT HER CELL PHONE, TEXT SOMEONE, AND THEN PUT IT BACK IN HER POCKET! Do you know how many germs are on cell phones? GROOOOOOSSSSSS!
The woman standing next to me actually said something to the «Manager» girl in the orange sweatshirt, and I watched the «Manager» go laugh it off with the employee.
HELLO? You are in the FOOD SERVICE INDUSTRY. I’M GOING TO BE EATING THIS FOOD. Sick ass.
Needless to say I tossed my meal when I left.
Today: I ordered the Dawn’s Vegan — because I’m on a special diet as of yesterday. OMG– the artichoke hearts taste like VINEGAR, and only vinegar. The $ 10 salad is basically ALL lettuce sprinkled with *some* of the toppings I ordered. I spent about 4 minutes picking through the toppings and then decided to toss it too. Nasty.
There are GREAT places to go for sandwiches and salads near here…
Try:
Mr. Pickles Sandwich Shop
Americano Deli
The Sandwich Spot

So the secret for this location is ordering from their website.
I’m doing a low –carb lifestyle now and this how I do it: Get online, click the Order Tools, select a salad of your choice, edit the ingredients (i.e. hold the croutons, focaccia, chow mein noodles, etc. add this, change the dressing – you get the idea).
Then name your fabulous creation and check out online, paying for it, selecting when you want to pick up this order (ASAP-​15 minutes, or select your pick-​up time).
Then, instead of driving there and waiting in a massive, slow line, you simply park, waltz in (or skip, mosey or Zumba) and look for your bagged masterpiece of a creation waiting for you on your left in a low brown wall of shelves containing many bags, including one with your name and your creation’s name.
Simply pick-​up and waltz back out and chow down, feeling smug and ever so efficient for planning ahead.
The quality and size of the salads are more than decent for the price and the convenience and customization could not be better for me.