Recently had our engagement party at The Depot Restaurant, and we truly cannot thank Chef Shafer and the staff enough for such an amazing experience. They went above and beyond to make sure we felt cared for and taken care of throughout the entire event. The setup in the Kimono Room was beautiful, and the professionalism and kindness from the staff were exceptional. They checked in on me and my fiance many times, while also giving me the space to enjoy hosting our guests, which I really appreciated. The food was absolutely delicious as well, from the hors d'oeuvres to the salad and main course, everything was wonderful. The people here genuinely care about their guests and the community. Will definitely be back to dine at the main restaurant soon! read more

The Depot had been on my list for a long time, and I finally got to try it for Happy Hour! HH is the way to go, as dishes are half-off; otherwise, it gets pretty pricey. Service was slow, but all right. The BFD cheeseburger we ordered for HH was tasty, like a larger In-N-Out burger with the Russian dressing inside. Fries were extra crispy, yet tender inside, which is the perfect fry, in my opinion. Also had a bite of the kimchee fried rice, which was pretty good, albeit a tad too oily. Overall, decent food at a historic establishment in Old Torrance. Definitely go for Happy Hour for the best deals! read more

Depot Restaurant - BFD cheese burger with fries - New American Near Me - Torrance, California

No air conditioning on September 9th, but they seated guests anyway. The HVAC was out for about a week and the South Bay was having a heat wave. Surprisingly food was remarkably bad, but served in large portions. There were many fried offerings (so much for "fine dining"), and much of it overcooked. The chef walked around like a celebrity, seemingly to feed his own ego. Apparently the AC worked fine in the kitchen, which only made our muggy, hot experience worse. We hear you are closing soon. Hang it up now, because what we experienced was an embarrassment. read more

I tried this place out mainly cause of a company holiday party. When I first stepped inside there is a pretty rustic feel to the place. There are many tables for both larger and smaller parties. Majority of the guests seemed to be here for similar reasons. Staff was friendly but it did take awhile after placing orders for anything to come out of the kitchen. The bread basket we got within the first 10-20mins was nice. It had banana bread, dinner rolls and crisps which came with pesto butter. However, the rest of our food did take a while (almost 45mins) to come out which our party was pretty big so I guess I would say contributed to the wait. When the food did come out some of our party didn't get their order at the same time, which I will have to say takes away from the overall experience. I ordered the Pene Pasta with bolognese from the daily plates which I hoped would have been good and a bowl of soup (pumpkin soup was the soup of the day). However, there wasn't a lot of flavor to the overall dish and I found the meat bits in the sauce were crunchy for some reason. The few veggie bits in the dish were decent. The soup was good but overall nothing mind blowing. Overall the experience was a mixed bag. I don't know if I would come back unless it's another company function mainly due to the overall experience. There is plenty of parking in the back but also street parking is available. read more

See all

Finally crossed this one off the long standing list and it didn't disappoint. Others have taken accurate pics so I'll just post ones of my favorite part of the meal, dessert! Portions were generous and service was nice but not overwhelming. We'll definitely be back again to try other dishes since I have my eye on the tuna avocado stack appetizer and scallop pasta next time. read more

Depot Restaurant - Chocolate bento box with hidden custard - New American Near Me - Torrance, California

See all

This place omg. The menu, it's chef curated. It's small. It's perfect. There is something for everyone. The decor is amazing. Our server Rachel was an angel. My friend goes here and has his own table..... he suggested I get the NY with the crusted fig and Gorgonzola. I was skeptical because I am very picky about my Gorgonzola, it has to be of good verity or it tastes fake like blue cheese dressing. I am even more picky about my steak, I only like salt and pepper. To my surprise the bread basket had flat breads, yeast breads annnndd BANANA BREAD?! What?! It was amazing! Back to the steak. It was cooked perfectly. The fig and Gorgonzola crust was addictive and did not take away from the quality of the meat. I cannot wait to come back! Thanks for having me. read more

Delicious food, nice ambiance, and fast service! The trifecta. Came here to celebrate my birthday. To drink, got the moscow mule and the fat cat wine. Both were great. The bread basket they bring has some yummy rolls and butter to start. To eat, we got the filet (with fries and green beans) which was 10/10 and the rib eye (with garlic mashers and zucchini/mushrooms) which was 9.5/10. For dessert, we ordered the creme brulee which was large enough to share. Huge portions, so we had leftovers for the next day. Love this local spot and have already come back since! read more

As soon as I walked in I walked right out. Place smelled like a dirty toilet bowl. Like dirty v smell even. I literally lost my appetite. I'm surprised this place has made it all these years. Glad they're closing. Maybe they'll put a nice chained restaurant here like El Torrito or something well managed. read more

Depot is always a great lunch. Service is excellent, restaurant is comfortable and the food is always a treat! I departed from my usual sand dabs and tried the TBLT Sandwich, nicely done, a bit much but once in a while ok. Give them a try, they won't disappoint! read more

My review is about Depot's Happy Hour which is limited to the bar area - but it's a comfortable bar area but might be difficult with more than 3 folks to easily chat. The menu for HH is quite extensive and delightful. My HH companions and I enjoyed several drinks: Old Fashioned, Spicy Dirty Martini, and an Expresso Martini. All well-done by bartender, Tara. We started off with the Fig Jam and Gorgonzola Flat Bread. Gorgonzola is one of my favorite cheeses and sadly too many places avoid it, because it can be a bit strong. But this is one of my favorite combinations and it did not disappoint! We then went onto Fish Tacos and a Grilled Cheese Sandwich (with bacon as recommended by Tara). All were delicious. The fish was fresh and plentiful and the bread used for the sandwich was perfect....and perfectly grilled. Yes, the bacon option was a good recommendation. We also ordered (but hardly needed more food) Kimchee Fried Rice which was also good! The Depot has special events and cooking classes! I've attached pictures. I have a feeling any would be fun! Although I did not dine in the restaurant section, I must say it looked inviting. Warm decor with a modern touch. There is parking adjacent to the restaurant as well as free parking in the building across the street. The restaurant seems 'dark' from the outside but it is open! Check it out! read more

See all

Dropped in for a Tuesday afternoon lunch. The service was definitely 5 star, fast and nice. My overall rating is based on my food and not the rest of the party. I ordered the salmon and romaine salad. Unfortunately the salmon was overcooked and on the dry side. They went for a blackened effect, problem is it was too blackened with charred bits and charred aftertaste. The salad had the same effect. Everyone else got the burgers and raved about them. Overall with the salmon I rate this a 3 but the burger came recommend. read more

Depot Restaurant - New American Near Me - Torrance, California

See all

The Depot is the best and has the best staff. It's a super friendly environment with a lot of regulars. Happy hour is my fave but their dinner is also very worth it. Can't beat their bread basket or desserts. The events are always super fun too. The peak highlight is that have amazing dirty martinis with blue cheese olives, and not enough places have blue cheese olives. Delicious and hand filled. The perfect olives for your martini. read more

Depot Restaurant - Martini with blue cheese olives - New American Near Me - Torrance, California

If you are here, then chances are you are here for a business casual lunch or a company holiday gathering. The restaurant first opened in October 1991 and Chef/Owner Michael Shafer has built a strong local reputation for his charitable work by raising millions of dollars for various nonprofit organizations. [Parking]: There's a free private parking lot with plenty of space to park. [Service]: The service wasn't super efficient as our party waited over 30 minutes just to receive a cup of soup and nearly an hour for our main dishes to arrive. *** Family-Style Lunch *** Bread Bowl (including banana bread + rolls + pesto butter that looks like wasabi + giant tostito chips): Definitely one of the standout items, but please don't make the same mistake as I did because I ate too much of the delicious bread and didn't leave enough room for the entrées. Chef's Homemade Soup of the Day: Decent soup. Field Greens with Tomatoes, Two Color Beets and Citrus Oil: Took few bites and it was not too bad. Sonoran Roasted Sirloin of Beef with Garlic Mashers & Merlot Sauce: It was the best entrée of the meal with delicious & flavorful roasted beef and garlic mashed potatoes. Bowtie Pasta with House Smoked Chicken, Sweet Corn & Chipotle Sauce: Mediocre dish. Apple Cobbler: An excellent dessert with not-too-sweet apples and a crisp crust. *** Overall, the food was a solid 3.5-star but I had to take half a star due to the slow service. As long as I am not paying the bill then I wouldn't mind coming back to this restaurant again. However if you are willing to drive outside of Old Town Torrance, then I do think there are better options for semi-modern American cuisine. read more

See all

This place has sort of an old school feel to it, but the food and service is solid. We enjoyed both of our entrees (fig Gorgonzola steak and three little pigs). Dessert stole the show though. I might come back just for the chocolate bento box. My only complaint really is that the menu is hard to read! read more

See all

A few people at work went here after visiting a few bars and they were very friendly and stayed open late for us. Excellent service at the bar as well as food next time I'll have to try some of their main courses in the main restaurant. Highly recommend recommended very fun place that night they had a magic show so that was really cool.!! read more

Great food with some updates needed. The first thing I noticed when I entered was the smell, which is a bit like entering grandma's house and, while nothing looked dusty, it smelled that way. While the restaurant was mostly empty for dinner, they seated a large party in the booth immediately next to us despite so much available space which made it hard to hear. While the food borders on elegant cuisine, the wine list by the glass was highly disappointing, with limited, mass store-bought selections. Limited beers on draught also. The food came out in generous portions. The presentation wasn't elegant, but the taste was great. The service was friendly if not a little slow considering how empty it was on the Tuesday we were there. read more

The atmosphere is great and service was fantastic. Good menu and chef is great. Bread basket is perfect! I had a "Killer meatloaf" which is humongous and veggie stew on top was phenomenal. However, the meatloaf and mash was more on a side of the shapperd's pie rather than "mom's meatloaf"... Grinded cooked meat does not represent the meatloaf... otherwise everything is great! read more

Good place for a business lunch ; not loud; so easy to talk. Service & food very good. Glad to see this place is still In business it has been there a long time in down town Torrance. read more

Went with 10 of my coworkers and I think everyone enjoyed their meal! I got the Big Cat Mix, holy moly EVERYTHING was delicious. The filet was perfectly cooked, the lamb chops-outstanding, the breading was so yummy. Don't even get me started on the shrimp sausage-I've never eaten anything like it in my life and dipped in the red wine sauce was simply incredible. I got garlic mash instead of the fries and it was sooo good. 10/10 on the free bread bowls! Cute atmosphere, def will go back. read more

I hadn't been to The Depot in months and was delighted to go back. The food was delicious and the service impeccable. We ordered 2 desserts to share between 4 people and they were fabulous. HUGE portions- will be back- read more

I had high hopes for this restaurant because of the reviews but I was somewhat disappointed. Let me start by saying the service was awesome and the restaurant itself is very elegant. I appreciate that it's tucked away in old town Torrance making it very quiet and private as well. The food however was lacking. The ribeye was very very tough to cut and chew (ordered it medium). The flavor was also a bit bland. My plate was "wet" from all the juices from maybe the steak and potatoes which made the sides soggy. The potatoes were over boiled or so wet from whatever liquids were on the plate that most of them disintegrated, which was unfortunate because the flavor was tasty. The broccoli was pretty good though. I think the sides should have been on a separate dish. And the steak was just too wet. Friends had the potato crusted salmon and bow tie pasta which they liked - thank goodness. But another friend had the scallops with pasta and it was very salty. We all liked the banana bread but the rest of the bread offerings (crispy flat and rolls) were ok. The crime brûlée was good but the lemon one had too much whipped cream and sauce on the plate (making everything soggy again). The chocolate bailey coffee was delicious though. I would not recommend the Red Truck wine. Ask for the Oregon one if they have it. As the menu is limited I probably won't return as the meat which is what makes it or breaks it for me was not good. But if you like seafood, this may be a good spot for you. And many people seem to like this place so I would say give it a go and decide for yourself. read more

See all

In my opinion, The Depot is the finest restaurant in the South Bay!! The ambience is reminiscent of a Chicago steakhouse with a bit of a modern flair. The food is absolutely amazing. The restaurant is owned and operated by Chef Shafer, who is a culinary genius! Let's start with the service. From the moment you enter the restaurant, you are greeted by incredibly friendly staff. Brett, who is the manger has a terrific sense of humor and makes you feel like you are family. During your meal, you can expect a visit from Chef Shafer himself, who is hilarious. Be prepared for a few one liners and some laughs. However, it's evidently clear that while Chef Shafer is a really funny guy, his passion for his food is no joking matter. Our server, Candise was very sweet and super attentive. We never had to ask for anything as she was on top of everything. Anytime our drinks were half empty, Candise was there to refill; there was never an empty plate on the table for more than 5 minutes before it was cleared by Candise. She was simply fantastic!! Ok let's get to the meat n' potatoes (pun intended). The food! As I mentioned in the beginning of my review, the food here is far superior to any restaurant in the South Bay and possibly anywhere in Los Angeles. Chef Shafer's creations are well thought out, flavorful, creative and SPECTACULAR!! The Depot offers a vast array of eclectic dishes that offers something for everyone. From surf to turf, Chef Shafer has created his signature dishes that would even bring Wolfgang Puck to his knees! Tonight we were celebrating my Dad's 80th Birthday. No better place to celebrate than with Chef Shafer's Thai Dyed Chicken! Imagine a healthy portion of boneless chicken breast with skin on, smothered in Shafer's sweet and savory Thai sauce. Served over creamy mashed potatoes and along side of fresh lightly sautéed string beans. Wait, there is more... the dish is flanked with two large and lightly tempura'd shrimp. I think I could eat this every day. All day. We also got The Big Cat Mix. This dish is fit for a king. This feast consists of two lamb chops, a petite filet minion, a shrimp sausage and served with spinach and potatoes. Like most of the dishes at The Depot, the portions here are very generous and absolutely delicious! My stepmom ordered the Scallops on the small plate menu, which was served with plentiful blanket of warm and freshly fried crispy onion strings. She loves scallops and asserted that these were the BEST scallops she had ever had! Lastly, we ordered for dessert the chocolate bento box for the table to share. The bento box itself is made of real chocolate and constructed in the Depot kitchen. Each of the bento compartments are filled with decadent treats, such as chocolate gnash, fudge, variety of ice creams and fresh strawberries. It is a choc-o-holics dream... Honestly, I couldn't think of a more fitting dessert to end such a superb meal. In case you couldn't tell by my review, I REALLY liked this place! read more

See all

I have not been here in many years. My wife and I went in for the happy hour and wow was I impressed the fish tacos were probably the best fish tacos I have ever had perfectly breaded crispy fresh, light mustard sauce with pickled cabbage or onions was freaking fantastic. Also had the fried macaroni and cheese balls and flatbread will definitely be back. Good job guys. read more

The food and service is top tier!!!!! A must try, we have been going for over 25+years the food is great and so flavorful. Chef Shafer is iconic and came out personally to check on us!!!! My personal favorite is salmon crusted hash brown dish is super yummy and unique!!!! Rachel our server was so sweet, professional and attentive! A great night indeed with amazing friends. read more

See all

This has been my favorite restaurant in the Southbay for 30 years. The food is always excellent, the service has always been spectacular, the restaurant is beautiful with standards playing as the backdrop for a beautiful dining experience. I usually come for lunch and have the famous Depot Caesar salad With shrimp and grilled chicken breast. The chef usually drops in and visits folks, which is a very nice touch as well. And may I add that they have the very best bread basket in America, which has an assortment of flatbread, banana bread and rolls accompanied by regular and pesto butter, which is absolutely incredible. This place remains at the top of my list! read more

See all

Food and service was amazing . The owner and chef came out to our table and greeted all of us . I will definitely be going back

The chef has a reputation for being extremely rude. I would not recommend anyone patronizing this restaurant

Ambiance: old fashioned steakhouse, trendy and classic decorations, comfortable booth seats and tables setup in the middle of dining hall, this place also serves as a event venue for cooking classes Service: super friendly and patient with questions, the staff working here revealed the best hospitality, attentively refilledrefilled the water, cleaned the table, changed plates and served food, very good vibes! Food & Drink: numerous items on the menu with classic selections and seasonal items for holidays, the food cooking style is not so delicate but absolutely massive in a pleasing way Bread Basket - ***** served with butter, awesome selection for sorted bread and crackers, hard to believe for this quality and quantity, it's complimentary, highly recommend Crispy Calamari - ***** served with Homemade Tomato Chutney, so crispy and tasty with special sauce, highly recommend Big Cat Mix - **** Mustard-Crusted Lamb Chops, Petit Filet, Rock Shrimp Sausage, Fries and Red Wine Mushroom Sauce, lamb chops were great slightly overcooked, petit filet was okay meat was a bit dry, shrimp sausage was excellent, mushroom was so tasty, overall still recommend the sampler plate for its variety Fig Jam and Gorgonzola Crusted N.Y. Steak - **** serve with Garlic Shrimp, spinach, and Zucchini and Yam Fries, steak was a bit overcooked, recommend Japanese Chocolate Bento Box - **** Choco, Choco, Choco, Choco, Nuts & Berries, recommend for its variety of chocolate sweets Moscow Mule - *** Blue Ice Potato Vodka, Ginger Beer, Lime in a copper mug, very bold taste Price: humongous portions and I almost feel no one gets outside of here without leftover takeout, totally worth the price, about $80 per person read more

See all

Celebrated a birthday here tonight. Haven't been here in a long while. Such a lovely place! Tried 7 entrees and 3 appetizers and all of it was packed with flavor, beautiful, and delicious. Drinks, dessert, and service didn't disappoint either. read more

See all

A friend took me out to dinner to The Depot for my birthday recently. If you haven't been, or its been awhile, treat yourself! The food is incredible (I had a white fish with pesto fettuccine), which was recommended by our server. She was so nice, and has worked there for over 20 years. The owner/chef came thru the dining room, greeting/chatting with customers, he's a jovial guy. It's no wonder this restaurant has managed to stay open for 35 years. Recommend! read more

Delicious, reasonably priced appetizers during their happy hour. Friendly bartender. Great back room for hosting small parties. Romantic main dining area. Very talented chef/owner. read more

We just enjoyed a wonderful evening with our friends at the Depot. From beginning to end...perfection! The ambiance is great,clean,spacious. The staff/waitress are always welcoming and pleasant. Their menu always has amazing unique selections...a mix variety to suit everyone. You can tell their dishes are made with experienced culinary chefs. The dishes are not only well presented but delicious. They have a bar that serves drinks too. This is a spacious place, intimate and not overly crowded. Suitable for family/kids.They have their own parking lot. I would definitely suggest this place if you are hosting a special guest or for a special dining experience. The prices are also great too. ...I also noticed they have a schedule for cooking classes if interested. read more

See all

Food is excellent. Owner and chef came out and personally made sure everything was to our liking. Can recommend this restaurant any higher. Ambiance is incredible. read more

Depot Restaurant - Lambchops with sautéed broccoli and macaroni and cheese. - New American Near Me - Torrance, California

I would love to give this place a higher score because I've heard great things about the place. It's less than 5 minutes from my house and it's been around for a while. I was able to come here one night on a sponsored dinner and an invitation from a friend of mine. Since I didn't order, I'm not entirely sure what some items were so I'll do my best. 1) Beef with mashed potatoes- The mashed potatoes were good. The beef, however, was dry and tough. If you're going to serve me sliced pieces of beef, please give me a steak knife because the butter knives were not cutting it. Literally. That's how tough it was. I gave up after 2 bites. 2) Sand dab (fish)- Good! Not dry or overdone with a light sauce on top. I'd get this again. 3) Breaded chicken breast bites- Also very good. One of the few places that didn't dry out the chicken even though enrobed in a breaded meal and fried. 4) Mixed rice and veggie (side dish?)- I'm betting this was supposed to be a fried rice dish, but it sure didn't taste like any fried rice dish I'ver ever had. Still, it wasn't bad but it wasn't the worst thing I've ever had either. 5) Chocolate Banana Cream PIe- This dish is HUGE and very shareable unless you have a large appetite. Just dive in and forget your diet for the day. 6) Apple Crisp with vanilla ice cream- Not bad, but I think this would have done better as a galette. Apple lovers will like this one. 7) Brownies with strawberries: Fudgey and rich. Definitely eat this with tea or coffee because it's that rich and sweet. Summary: This is located on the corner of Torrance Blvd and Van Ness Avenue with a shared parking lot and street parking available. It's a neighborhood spot with the upscale pricing. Is it worth it? I'll have to come here again on another night and try a few dishes on my own to see how it goes. My dining companion said she was kind of disappointed as she had been here on previous visits and the food was better before. Not sure, but I guess my expectations were higher and I was let down. My luck with beef outside my family has never been stellar, so maybe it's just me. The other dishes were good, just not exceptional. Would I come back? Maybe. Would I bring others? Not until I have a better opinion. Should you try it? I would say, yes, just don't get the beef. Happy eating!! read more

See all

We walked into this special location for the first time and thought where have we been all this time! What a pretty restaurant inside! And the food was probably the best food I've had in a long time. This is what I would call maybe an upscale restaurant with a casual vibe. Worth every penny and tons of food they do not scrimp on the amount of food they give you and it's delicious.! The service is amazing and the chef is very funny. He is the owner as well. We enjoyed his visit to our table ! read more

Went back to try again and it was fantastic. The service was excellent and we enjoyed a great dinner. So happy I went back.

A year ago when the pandemic first hit and dine in was not allowed yet; my boyfriend surprised me with a lovely birthday dinner catered by The Depot. I absolutely loved everything! This 2021 when it came to celebrating my birthday; I was once again surprised with a birthday dinner via The Depot but this time via dine in at the actual restaurant. My boyfriend wanted me to experience the Depot restaurant in person and I sure in was for a treat. The moment we stepped into the restaurant and brought to our table; I was already very happy. The table was decorated with blue and white birthday ribbons. It was lovely, festive and very touching. Soon enough we were off to a great meal! Just like for takeout last year; I was once again quite pleased with the bread basket. The banana bread is definitely my favorite but the cheese rolls and crispy cracker bread topped with their garlic pesto is quite a delightful treat too. For my main course; I chose to get the Fig Jam and Gorgonzola Crusted NY Steak and Garlic Shrimp with Zucchini Yam Fries. Wow oh wow! This was so amazing. The fig jam and gorgonzola crust definitely brought the best flavoring to the steak! It was sweet fig mixed in with a little tart of the gorgonzola and was utter perfection. I may just be drooling just typing this as I recall how utterly decadent this whole dish was. It is no wonder the waiter who brought this out said "best dish of the restaurant." No steak will ever be the same again as I will definitely be wanting some fig and gorgonzola on steak. My boyfriend got the Pan Roasted Sand Dabs with Pesto Orzo and Lemon Caper Sauce and this was quite a big portion of good eats too. At the end of the night; I got one more amazing surprise as The Depot brought out (with an accompanying song) a chocolate lava dessert topped with ice cream and a birthday candle. The birthday dessert itself was rich, sweet and the perfect dessert to end an awesome birthday dinner. Birthday takeout dinner last year was great but birthday dinner dining in at The Depot was a whole another awesome. The service was great and food was excellent! Thank you! ⁣ read more

See all

I really emjoyed my dinner! Great flavor and well proportioned. Service was good. I will be back!

Depot is still the most consiconsistently good restaurants in this area for service, food and ambience. I have to let Michael know however that nearly a whole red pepper overwhelms a slice of meatloaf. Candace made up for it, however. read more

The food was great. I used to live in Torrance and used to come here a lot. I took my girlfriend out for a nice Friday night dinner since I haven't eaten here in years. Unfortunately I got charged twice for our meal. There was an additional $334.13 charged to my credit card. I called the restaurant to report their error. They looked into it and confirmed that it was indeed an error on their part. I'm still waiting for my refund. Other than that I would give the depot 5 stars. read more