Haven't been here in many years, since it was Jimmy Beans, a little tasty food oasis in the industrial area of Gilman. Now as Llama Beans, it has expanded to another room next door, almost doubling the seating, but still has great food and still a 3 course dinner special. This place is Uber popular for weekend brunch, so come early! Yum! read more

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This is my favorite breakfast spot in Berkeley. My favorite thing to get here is the corn beef hash because it is filling and delicious. The silver dollar pancakes are also always a good option, especially when with a group. This trip I decided to try something new and got the mediterranean platter which was also delicious with fresh ingredients and the best falafel I have ever had. I also got a side of potatoes covered in cheese and bacon. The service is great here and I don't think there are any dishes that will ever disappoint. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - potatoes - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Had the stuffed French toast. I'd suggest not getting the syrup with it. It's already sweet enough. Nice display of food. Nice environment and amazing staff friendly and informed. Waitress was kind and even volunteered to turn on the volume for the game. Food came out quick and the places was empty around 9am on a Saturday. My family had the steak (very fatty and the steak sauce was runny and sweet for some reason) the potatoes and eggs were average. Bacon was delicious and crispy. Overall it's a decent spot to go, food is about par. The two women waitressing, cleanliness and atmosphere make this place. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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One of my best friends moved to Berkeley so we've been looking for the best places to hit while we are in the are! We almost drove right pasrt Lama Beans Cafe as it seems to sit on a corner surrounded by a bunch of warehouses. We were starving after doing a ton of shopping and decided to stop by this place around 3 pm. I ordered the leg of lamb sandwich which def did not disappoint. The lamb was perfectly cooked although I wish the cut was more quality as I was stringing along chunks of fat as I ate. The mustard was delicious on the sandwich to really pull it together! Got a side salad (huge deal for me as fries were an option) which had a delish dressing on it. We parked along the front of the store, which is a street lined with warehouses. Parking was pretty easy to find as we came at a strange hour. The store was relatively clean, although there were flies at the front of the store that flew around the whole time we were there. The server was awesome and came out with our food promptly. They start wait service at 5pm. Anytime before that you just order and seat yourself. There are a ton of different menu items you can order so its great for large groups! read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Leg of lamb sandwich with a side salad - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

I seriously thought this was just a coffee shop / breakfast place, so I had never visited here, but wow, what a find. A friend of mine came into town, so a group of us ventured here for dinner when our first option was closed. Menu was great, lots of options including vegetarian options. I totally recommend the roasted Brussel sprouts and pear salad. Sooo good. Burger was great (not greasy or soggy), and the fish and chips were perfectly cooked....only complaint was there were only 2 pieces. The wait staff were really friendly and attentive to our large party. I'll go back here and check out breakfast, too. read more

Went here for the first time last week for a business meeting. I had the beet salad with goat cheese, walnuts, and grilled chicken. It was delicious! The salad was pre-dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette. It might have been too much dressing for some, but it was perfect for me! Colleague had the Mediterranean Sampler Plate. She loved it. The rest of my party all loved their food, ranging from a breakfast plate to burgers to fish n chips. We sat outside. The weather was nice, but since it's on a busy intersection, it was pretty loud. I would recommend this restaurant for lunch and will be back myself. read more

Came in for brunch today and the two ladies taking care of us were beyond amazing!! Would 100% come back just for them. They made the whole brunch experience perfect, thank you Cielo and Kelly. Plus the eggs benedict was off the chart!! read more

Absolutely love this place. My Mom and I go here often for brunch and its always a phenomenal experience, not once has it ever been subpar. We always order the same menu items every time, I always get the stuffed french toast. The french toast is always amazing and full of nutella and often has a mix of seasonal fruit. That said, the food is very inconsistent, my meal has been different every time; different portion size, different fruit, and so on. If you have allergies make sure to ask what the fruit will be as its not always what you expect. Service is always quick, but not so fast that you feel rushed. Has indoor and outdoor dining, we always eat inside though. The atmosphere really depends on where you're seated, some spots are quieter than others but not as pretty. read more

Food was fantastic. Service was impeccable. Really enjoyed our Saturday afternoon brunch.

Chicken & waffles were delightful for Sunday morning brunch. The outdoor seating was ideal for sunny summer weather. There wasn't a wait for our group of 5 at 10:30am on a Sunday - one of the perks of dining out in the outskirts of Berkeley I guess. Will definitely be back next time I'm home visiting the parents :) read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Chicken and waffles - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

Accessibility/parking: on a weekday morning there was no street parking to be found, it was close enough to home that I was able to walk though so that wasn't so bad Ambiance: adorable cafe, kind and helpful staff Food: This is why I'm only rating this place 2 stars... Yikes. I ordered the tofu scramble and couldn't even get it down. The potatoes were mediocre at best. The toast was my favorite part of my meal The tofu was in big, soft and unseasoned chunks (except for the pesto-like sauce covering everything) it wasn't good. Had the tofu been either prepared with a crispier outside OR possibly crumbled further to resemble scrambled eggs it could have been better? read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Tofu scramble, skip it - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

We are here for our breakfast while waiting for our car to be repaired. Food is delicious and service is nice. Highly recommended.

Since we've tried so many spots in Berkeley by campus already, we decided we needed to try new spots especially for brunch. This place was new to us so we decided to stop by and try some great food. I ended up getting the crab cake benedict which was a special on the day we stopped by. Always down for a good benedict. Nice service. Lots of seating and some great food. Protip: brunch read more

Lama Beans Cafe - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

We were looking for something to eat and stumbled across this gem Service was excellent, and the chicken and waffles were the best we've ever had. read more

Great food and great service! This is one of my office's go to places when we need a quick delicious meal door dashed. They have a good variety of food that suits everyone's tastes and their food has always been consistently good. It wasn't until recently that we dined in for the first time, we were celebrating a graduation, and wanted to have a 10+ group meal before the ceremony. The day was already packed so it was important that we were timely with lunch. The staff here knocked it completely out of the park, they were incredibly accommodating to our large party. We sent in our orders ahead of time, and they brought them out as soon as we arrived, and even said the orders by name so there was no confusion. They were extremely flexible with last minute order changes and additional people. This was one of the best group dining experiences I've ever had. Highly reccomend this place! read more

Absolutely love this place. Do yourself a favor and skip all the ridiculous long lines and come here and grab a stuffed French toast with strawberries or the eggs Benedict with their green sauce :) read more

I have been wanting to try this place for so long. Why did they disappoint me? Why? Service: sucked! The girls behind the counter were sleepy. Not interested in working but more interested in how they looked. Order at the counter get a number. Food: blueberry pancakes tasted like rubber. It came with 2 drops of syrup. Really? 3 rubbery cakes needed a bottle of syrup if not more. My egg Benedict was hard. I don't get it!! How difficult it is to poach an egg? The scramble eggs came with a single piece of toast!!! For $12 give me enough toast to make a single sandwich people! Price: high for the portion and quality. Also the place looked dirty. I don't mind rundown places but this place was not clean. We had to wipe the table. The jams on the tables looked old. Like leftovers. They didn't bother to at least clean the jars. So disappointed. read more

Love this place! Seating inside and outside, self-service house coffee with refills, courteous staff, all the food I've tried has been delicious: corned beef hash, breakfast burritos, eggs Benedict, steak and eggs, omelette, silver dollar pancakes, blueberry pancake, latte, and still more on the menu to try! Will be trying out their lunch and dinner service in the future, but right now, this is my go to neighborhood breakfast spot! read more

This is one of our family's go to place. Amazing food, even more amazing staff and service.

Margarita pizza tasted like store bought Trader Joe's pizza. $28 rib eye steak was the smallest saddest beef I've ever had. Ribs not seasoned well. BBQ sauce tasted like bottled and bland. Tiny Cesar salad. Tiny peach pie. Tiny portions. Expensive prices. Flies everywhere. read more

PROS: cosy setting, good home fries, poached eggs were pleasingly round and perfectly cooked -- not too much, not too little -- cheap coffee, unlike most bruncherias. CONS: hollandaise was pretty tasteless -- that is unforgivable for eggs benedict!-- the ham slice too, I've had much better benedict elsewhere in the Bay. Service was lackluster, servers hardworking but no eye contact, no smiles, just mechanically doing their jobs. Exception: one lovely latina (?)female who was very helpful. Wifi password didn't work, asked one server, he said he was "100% sure" that was it. Asked aforesaid female server, she took the trouble to ask the boss. Guess what? No wifi on weekends! That's bad for solo diners, and a ploy to get people in and out quickly on busy days. All right, biut shouldn't the servers know that?? VERDICT: They're cutting corners. For $15 for eggs benedict, I expect good food and friendly service. And wifi! Didn't get any of those. Lots of better places. Give this one a pass. read more

Cute little spot. Fell in love with their pancakes. Omg, that thing was infused with mounds of fresh blueberries. Sooo chewy. I'm in love! Their omelets were mediocre. The goat cheese one is literally one bite. I'll be back to try other things. Who am I kidding...I'm going back for them pancakes. Took forever to find parking. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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My favorite little cafe near my office. Always quick, great, and friendly service. Really amazing diverse and full menu. Reasonably priced.

Fudge! Food is great but NOT consistent taste!!! I've been patient with this place. If you do go, just make sure you repeat your orders slowly. Today was not the same woman who usually take my orders but a younger one and she still got my orders wrong. Nothing was done to correct it. So Disappointing. read more

Had a wonderful brunch! This is my favorite breakfast spot because of their delicious silver dollar pancakes. The portions are large! I really love the cilantro salsa. The only reason why it didn't get five stars was because when I got a box to take home leftovers, the containers had black mold. When we returned the containers for the cashiers to see they gave us another one with black mold, and got even more frustrated as though we were in the wrong. read more

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Lama Beans (previously Jimmy Beans) is one of my favorite places to have breakfast. Its a seat yourself, order at the register, type of restaurant. The service is always friendly. They are commuted to using local and organic sources. They have a consistent menu and daily specials. Their corned beef hash is one of my favorites and is consistently excellent when I get it. It's my brother-in-law's favorite as well, in fact, he won't order anything else it's so good. They have a selection of scrambles and omelets and other breakfast items, such as pancakes. My favorite breakfast special is their chilequiles verde. It comes with carne asada, received black beans, guacamole, chipotle sour cream and Queso fresco. Needless to say, I'll be back with new recruits. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Chilequiles Verde - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Love this corner spot and I absolutely love the food here! I've been here PLENTY of times. If you're looking for a good place after a run, for some AWESOME salads, seriously delicious and crispy fries, tasty breakfast options to satisfy your cravings , try lama bean out :) I still haven't tried anything off the dinner menu, which is surprising to me, but I will soon! So far, based on their breakfast and lunch - good sized portions & food doesn't taste heavy at all. I love the name of this place also!!! Used to be called Jimmy Beans, but the new owner has taken over for awhile now, Lama, and he is very nice and welcoming! Thanks for the great service always! read more

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Great food !!! Jose Leon , the best worker there !!! Awesome service he provides, 10/10 for him and the food !!! Best service !! Better food !! read more

I love this place (not to sure about the new name though). It used to be called Jimmy Beans and has the same great food and fantastic staff. Parking can be a bit unruly at times but we'll worth it. I've brought my kids here so often, they know us by name. For breakfast I usually go with the specials, often chilaquiles or crab benedict. For lunch I'll do the lamb burger when available. If not, fried chicken sandwich or Falafel wrap which is amazing. The one thing I can say about this place is the food is consistently good and the staff is very nice. Be warned that breakfast and lunch is not table-side ordering as you order at the counter, but dinner is. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Image from Jimmy Beans (now Lama Beans) website - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

I came here one day for breakfast and I noticed it wasn't Jimmy Beans anymore. It was Lama Beans! The interior/ decor/ menu/ staff hasn't change much, which is always nice to see. Service: Nice, friendly, professional service. No complaints here! Food: The food here is decent. French Toast - It changed a little bit. It's not as crispy as I remember it. It looks like I can actually make a better french toast at home. =/ Corn Beef Hash - This is one of the better tasting corn beef hash I've had in berkeley. Although I'm not sure if it comes from a can since it kind of looks similar. It's served with a delicious trio of sauces, which is always my favorite part of the meal! Also, I really enjoy their coffee, or whatever caffeinated drink I feel like ordering. Overall: I would definitely recommend this place! read more

People are nice from crew to chefs, love how the set up you seeing what they're preparing for their costumers. The food are delish very homey. Try the mini pancakes and it's good. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - I love this place..you can see people prepping and all...the baby pancakes is good. Delish - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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What a surprise! My friend was walking in the Berkeley Hills with her dog when an elderly man approached to admire her pooch. They struck up a conversation and at one point the fellow recommended that she try Lama Beans. With that in mind we just happened to be passing by and hungry and decided to give it a try. We had the Saturday 3 course special Seafood Paella for $15, an amazing dish and a real deal, and the wild mushroom pasta. Both were well presented, fresh and flavorful. The waitstaff were wonderful. Thank you elderly man, we can't wait to come back! read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Saturday's special. Yummmm! - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I called in the day before looking to place a large order and they were able to. After heading over to pick up 30 omelets, the staff was generous enough to help bring the trays of food & condiments to my car in the pouring rain. The food was great, and everyone at the office loved it. From what I heard from our employees, the mushroom & goat cheese was the popular choice between the other two omelets. Happy to order from them again! read more

Went here for breakfast, I got the smoked salmon scramble. It was decent. Not bad but also nothing about it that stood out or was amazing. It came with choice of bread and country potatoes. My husband got the 2 egg with English muffin and 2 strips of bacon. I think his was a good deal, they didn't charge extra for the English muffin as most places do. Across the way there was a couple that ordered this really good looking fried chicken. Will go back to try that! Also, there seems to be a lot of homeless people around there, we sat outside on the sidewalk and about 5 homeless people walked by during the 35 mins we were sitting there. read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Smoked salmon scramble with potatoes and wheat toast. Comes with a trio of sauces, which were ok. But I used hot sauce instead. - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

Just has delicious brisket hash with poached eggs this morning --- wow! So flavorful! Delish!!

Lama Beans (formerly known as Jimmy Beans) has changed in name only-and this place by any other name still tastes as yummy! You would never think that the building lacking in pretense generated the best pancakes in the bay. It is a sucker punch with hidden menu jewels like the tasty kale salad (must have), falafel lavash, pita with hummus, various pasta, pizzas, and daily 3 course dinner specials for $15 ($20 steak dinner Sundays). Espressos and cappuccinos are tasty and although I don't drink drip coffee myself, I've heard from trusted sources that the regular coffee is tasty as well. They also bake their own pastries which usually sell out before dinner. Morning buns and croissants are favorites. The breakfast staples here usually have a team of people waiting in line (tends to line up out the door on weekends and during weekday lunch times). Items such as tofu scrambles, egg croissant sandwiches, egg benedicts (florentine, Black Forest ham, and original) have generated a community following. My morning habit is the egg whites scrambled with fresh homemade pico de gallo. Don't be fooled by the name change- all of the cooks, waiters, and other staff remain the same. The new owner was basically acting as a partner for more than 6 years and as far as I can tell nothing has changed aside from ownership details, I.e. reapplication for liquor license (since I've been coming the last 6-7 years at least). Give Lama Beans a try if you were a fan of Jimmy Beans or if you want to try a cozy local spot with fresh food options. read more

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Great brunch place. A little of everything you want Try the silverdollar pancakes or a pizza or a falafel wrap. The opportunities are endless. I mean the little grandma on my right is downing her wrap with a beer. Nothing goes wrong here, my dears! read more

Lama Beans Cafe - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

3.5 stars Got the eggs Benedict with a side of bacon and bacon cheddar home fries through UberEATS for breakfast in bed. My food arrived hot and and early. The eggs Benedict were pretty good. I didn't use the trio of sauces (chipotle sour cream, cilantro pesto, and tomato salsa) because the hollandaise was on point. The bacon was on the crispier side like I prefer. The bacon cheddar home fries were disappointing. They weren't fries but grilled potatoes bites. The cheddar and bacon were barely visible. read more

A group of us stopped here for breakfast and we were blown away! The corned beef hash is so good! We sat outside and enjoyed some Bloody Mary's as well. The service was great. The staff were all so friendly. We will definitely come back! read more

Lama Beans Cafe - Housemade Corned Beef Hash sooo good!! - New American Near Me - Berkeley, California

Maybe we went at the wrong time. Went a couple of rainy, Sundays ago for dinner. Our kitchen is under renovation so we've been trying out many restaurants in the area. The fixed price, multi-course meal seems appealing. Had the ribeye. Had to send it back because it was undercooked for Medium. Our 4-year old had chicken fingers. Meh. Our 6 year old son had a cheeseburger. I think his meal was the best of the worst, but it can't be that hard to cook a cheeseburger. Husband had the grilled pork chop. Ok. I could've cooked it at home. Service was super slow especially since it wast busy but they were nice. It feels like one of those restaurants that should be on Restaurant Impossible. It needs a decor update - it feel more like a coffee shop versus a restaurant. Overall it was like eating cafeteria food in a coffee shop. read more