We had no plans for dinner and happened to see on Instagram that Cafe 51 in Lakeland now serves beer and wine, instant decision made. We both agreed a cold beer with dinner sounded perfect, and it absolutely was! We started with Modelo beers and an order of their cheese garlic bread, made with the signature Segreto 51 cheese blend and Italian spices. This was so good. Warm, cheesy, and the perfect pairing with a cold beer. For dinner, I ordered the special: Chicken Nunzio with a side of mixed carrots. It was grilled chicken topped with a white wine lemon cream sauce, provolone cheese, and artichokes. Absolutely delicious and full of flavor. My husband went with the Cafe 51 Charbroiled Chicken with sweet potato fries, which came highly recommended by our server and it did not disappoint. The chicken was marinated, lightly breaded, served on skewers, and was incredibly juicy and tender. We finished with a slice of Chocolate Dubai Pie, and honestly... I don't even have the words. It was the perfect ending to an already amazing meal. Great food, great service, and now beer and wine? We'll definitely be back! read more

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Nice, cozy little place. I met one of the owners, Bill, who was very friendly, as was the rest of the staff. The service was excellent, and the food was delicious. I had the Chicken Bacon Ranch sandwich with homemade chips. Both were flavorful and more filling than I expected. I'm looking forward to going back. read more

Cafe 51 - Chicken Bacon Ranch sandwich. - American Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

Café 51 is a welcome addition to the Lakeland food scene. I visited for lunch yesterday and had a nice experience. I started with the Toasted Ravioli appetizer. The raviolis were crisp with a nice bite and filled with seasoned beef. They paired perfectly with a sweet and flavorful marinara sauce for dipping. For my entrée I had the Charbroiled Chicken which also came with a Café 51 House Salad and a side of Sweet Potato Fries. The chicken was super tender and juicy with a light smoky char and a flavorful lemoniness. The salad had nicely crisp lettuce and onion, juicy tomatoes and was topped in a creamy Italian dressing. The fries were perfectly crisp and sweet. Overall, Café 51 is a nice stop for a quality meal. read more

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Amazing addition to Lakeland. Everything is super fresh and good quality! Amazing sandwiches and salads

We enjoyed lunch. Nice menu of family favorites. Can't call them Italian due to Italian pizza joint next door (which is silly but not their fault). We felt prices were higher than the food was fabulous. It was good, just not "good value". Example $23 for a lunch grilled chicken. Returning will be occasional rather than regular. They have some nice twists on meals. They make a big deal about their blend of cheese (over-mentioning it in the menu), but we didn't taste a difference. We wish them well. read more

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Good service, great food, great atmosphere. Great owner. We sat down to a small table but the service was huge! Our server was upbeat and a joy to work with. The owner, Kathy, was a joy to talk with. read more

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We've now eaten here twice. The food is excellent. it is worth the wait... if you get there late. The place is fresh, bright, and clean. The owners are present and interested in the customer experience. That's important to us. They have a salad with chicken and peaches in it, you might not think that would be awesome but look out. The chef is an artist. We will be there weekly and no, we are not relatives. We found it accidently one day. read more

Delicious hidden gem! Highly recommend! Go with the chefs suggestions for an outstanding experience. I almost hate to recommend since it will just be hard to get a table! read more

Wow! This was our first time here and this was the BEST prime steak sandwich that I have ever had! Everything was perfect from the seasoning, cheese, bread, au jus...perfection! Fries were hot and perfectly seasoned. Sophie was our server and she was incredible as well. My husband had the smash burger with the onion rings and it was huge! We will be back for sure!!! read more

Cafe 51 - Prime Dip Sandwich - American Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

What an amazing restaurant and the food is amazing. And the staff are very friendly and welcoming.

Wife and I visited for lunch. She had the grilled cheese melt (3 kinds of cheese, bacon & tomato on sourdough) and I had the pork tenderloin sandwich & upgraded to onion rings. Both were tasty & filling. I was expecting a very thin twice the size of the bun tenderloin as popular in Central IL. The St. Louis style was thicker and had a different batter. I would order again. We will visit for dinner at a later date. $43 w/tax, 20% tip, 1 iced tea and 1 ice water. read more

Cafe 51 - Pork tenderloin w/upgrade to onion rings - American Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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Cafe 51 is the place to go!!! My husband and I went for lunch during their soft opening and we were blown away! The menu has such great options and variety. We shared the "burger 51" and the "turkey club" and couldn't decide which one we liked better since both were 51/10! Everything tasted so fresh and the flavors were top notch. Everyone needs to try Cafe 51 for their incredible service, delicious menu, and amazing owners/staff!! (You NEED to try the creamy Italian dressing with your fries. And you NEED to try the house salad- it has the best cheese I've ever had! And you need to just try it for yourself and see what I'm talking about!!) read more

Cafe 51 - Turkey Club with beef tallow fries - American Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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The food at cafe 51 is absolutely amazing. You can tell these are family recipes and each dish is made with love. I had the chicken seeding with a cafe 51 side salad and pasta with meat sauce. We also tried the onion rings and my husband had the Cafe 51 Burger. The twisted plates section looks so good! The portion sizes are perfect and the prices are great too. The service was prompt and we were well taken care of for any additional things we needed and our drinks were always full! The whole place is so cozy and inviting. I'm excited to come back and try more dishes! read more

Cafe 51 - Chicken spiedini and pasta with meat sauce - American Near Me - Lakeland, Florida

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I enjoyed eating here and we are planning on coming back with a group of 16 in March. The food was great. read more

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Service and food was awesome New to the area and off to a fantastic start. Staff very friendly and helpful. We will be back

We have been here quite a few times. The food NEVER disappoints!! Staff is very knowledgeable and friendly. Definitely recommend this locally owned restaurant!!!! read more

Please go try Cafe 51 in Lakeland!!! Such a wonderful family owned place with such DELICIOUS food! We tried the St. Louis Toasted Ravs & garlic bread with marinara and it took us right back to The Hill in St. Louis! We also had their Cafe 51 Salad with a lightly breaded chicken breast (honestly I would go back for the salad alone)! The Chicken Bacon Ranch Sandwich with homemade chips was also a big win! Our server, Ashley was another reason we will keep going back! Thank you for opening up a lovely new restaurant in Lakeland...we are so happy to have found our new favorite place! read more

Service was good, chx buff wrap was huge and good! Home made chips a must with BC dressing, mmm also FF looked great! I'll be back for lunch. read more

We have been 3 times and have enjoyed it every time. The food was delicious, and the staff was friendly. Service was excellent.

We had dinner on the first night of American Cafe 51's soft opening, and it was fantastic! The food, service, and atmosphere were all excellent. Our family tried the Lakeland Burger, the Grilled Cheeseburger, and the signature Cafe 51 salad--everything was delicious and well done. We're already telling our friends about Cafe 51 and will definitely be back soon! read more

What a cute cafe with an amazing weight staff and the best homemade food and desserts, including gluten free items as well. They were very helpful with my daughter's celiac issues. We will definitely be back!!! read more

The service was excellent and the food was absolutely delicious! This restaurant is very clean and the staff is very friendly. We had the chicken Alfredo, cheeseburger, bacon chicken ranch sandwich and cheese bread. will definitely be returning!! read more