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Microsoft Cafe 16

4.1 (26 reviews)
InexpensiveCafeteria
Open 7:00 am - 5:00 pm

Microsoft Cafe 16 Photos

Business Info

MICROSOFT CAFE 16 ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Good for groups
Good for kids

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Recommended Reviews - Microsoft Cafe 16

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Salad from the custom salad station
Ankit S.

This is my daily lunch cafe. In my 10 years at Microsoft, this is the best cafe ever. This cafe boasts of some fixed stations and some rotating stations: Fixed stations: 1. Salad Bar : Boooring 2. Custom Salads/Poke/Potato Spud thingy - This is usually good. The Poke is expensive at $12.5 + tax(I would prefer just poke at this price). The custom salads are good. 3. Pizza - Nice whole wheat pizzas 4. Grill - The grill usually has specials which are great Rotating: THURSDAYS is where its at! Himalaya is the bomb, I have been eating Himalaya for the last 100 Thursdays, no exaggeration. The Lamb Vindaloo and Butter Chicken are my favorites. chef's table - this is a special counter where in-house and guest chefs showcase their skills and make special dishes.

Outside Seating.
Ting A.

One of the more popular Microsoft cafeterias with a broad selection of food choices. Although this place does become extremely loud and crowded with long lines. I chose Chef's Table as they whip up a new dish everyday and seemed the most unique. Today was Braised Oxtail, with roasted root vegetables, braised reduction sauce, wilted bitter greens, and fresh mint cream ($9.99). It was tasty, and they even plated the dish! Have to say the dish wasn't super filling, but oxtail is an expensive meat. The oxtail would have been even better had it been braised longer to the point the meat easily fell off of the bone. Outdoor seating is perfect when the weather is nice too! Lots of tables to sit next to the fountains and, depending on the season, cherry blossoms, blooming flowers, or trees with changing leaves in the fall.

Chicken Carbonara - On An Actual Plate
Jon L.

Microsoft Café 16 is stellar. Arguably, this is the best cafeteria on campus. There was a recent renovation done on this spot that has done wonders. The makeover was so good that the site, Business Insider ran an article of their tour of this facility that spread to other web outlets. I had not been to this café in a long time. I did work across the street a number of years ago and recall the look of the old café. Seating was not an issue, but the food stations were. It always got to be super crowded during lunch time. The lines that formed made it difficult to maneuver to the station that you wanted to go. The café itself did also feel a bit old and like you were eating in a company cafeteria. I am glad that the renovation took these issues into account when making changes. The new look of the space makes me feel like I am in a dining hall or food court. There is noticeably better lighting and it feels a lot more open. The food stations now operate like they are its own separate restaurants. There is an exhibition kitchen in front along with a pizza place that makes authentic Naples-style pizzas (for under $6 BTW!). To the sides are the salad bar, a coffee shop that makes fresh baked goods, a burger place and a local restaurant space. The local restaurant spot is a rotating space in which a popular restaurant brings their food to the Microsoft campus. Notable restaurants that participate in this program include Bitterroot BBQ and Oma Bap. Being a tech company, there were also technological improvements. Some of the food stations have a self-service kiosk in which you submit your food order and pay. This system kind of reminds me of eating in Japan in which you buy a ticket from a machine first. This allows staff to focus instead on preparing the food. I am not sure how paying by cash works here though. It seemed like paying by credit cards (recent addition at MS), meal card or by badge were the only options. After paying, you will get a receipt and your order number will show up on a video screen above in which you can track when your meal is ready. It is like a restaurant version of those gate stand-by passenger screens at the airport. The last thing I will mention is that you have the option of eating on a real plate here if dining in. At all of the other cafés that I have been to, this is not an option. This is good because it makes you feel like you are eating in a nice restaurant instead. The plates do not come with any real silverware though. A little weird eating food on a plate with a plastic fork, but it is better than eating on a paper plate like before. I hope MS will use the template of this café when making upgrades to other campus cafés. If I worked nearby here, I would feel less inclined to eat off campus since this café is so awesome.

Look at that spread!
Alice W.

Yasss. Shoutout to Chefs Austin and Jackie for a super fun evening of teaching our UCI group how to make fluffy potato gnocchis! Thanks y'all! Before our custom cooking class even began, we were delighted to help ourselves to the beautiful spread of appetizers set out for us. They had prepared: baked brie with bread, garlic knots, cinnamon knots, and warm and huge chocolate chip cookies, all of which complemented the refreshing italian soda perfectly. During our cooking lesson, they were both so patient and explained each step of the preparation with grace and humor. And, at the end, we had the best brown butter and sage potato gnocchis and alfredo gnocchis, all made from scratch. Although this cafe is farther than others from where I work, I will be back to try it out. I also heard there are top secret daily specials, so I am so ready to try that!

This purchasing is pay first, get a #, they call the # and then you tell them what you want.  This is a cash-less.
Gary W.

Microsoft is entering the modern age of feeding the masses more than pizza and cheetoes. It's a nice pleasure to have a cafe on campus that is putting out some quality food and service in a building cafe. I came over and had the steak to check out the cafe and it was really good for a 6-8 oz steak; see my photo. They cooked it to order and I got a couple of side vegetables. This place was packed during the lunch period and definitely getting business.

BYO Salad bar.  With salmon today!

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11 years ago

Great for a work campus. Fresh, above any corporate cafeteria.

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9 years ago

One of the better cafes on campus. Good variety of food - has a couple more vendors than other cafes. But it's usually always packed.

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Ask the Community - Microsoft Cafe 16

Can I eat here if I'm not a Microsoft employee? I'm working on one of the many construction job sites here.

There is a daily food truck just outside Cafe 16 and a lot of sitting area outside but to sit & eat inside the cafe, you do need an access card.

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Review Highlights - Microsoft Cafe 16

They have a better salad bar than most cafes (in terms of options and freshness).

Mentioned in 8 reviews

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Microsoft Studio H Cafe - Cookies

Microsoft Studio H Cafe

(8 reviews)

$

Where else can you get this quality chicken piccata for $7 with an awesome service and of course…read morefree drinks?

The cafeteria at Studio H was recently renovated. I had recently moved into an office nearby and…read morebegun to regularly eat on campus . While this is not the closest cafe location, I walk the extra half block to eat here instead of at Cafe 112 or The Commons. The upgrade in rating has very much to do with the renovation in which a complete overhaul of the cafe was done. The new café is similar to the one at the upgraded Café 16. Café H consists of numerous food stations focused on providing restaurant quality food in a cafeteria setting and prices. Generally topping off at $7 for a full plate. Some of the offerings here include Neapolitan style pizzas, fresh pasta bar and a gourmet burger station. My favorites are the Neapolitan pizzas, burgers and sandwiches. The pizzas here are really restaurant quality. Up there in comparison to a Serious Pie. There seems to be a rotating list of pizzas so there is some variety, which I appreciate. The burgers are a good deal. My favorite burgers are the lamb ($5) and tofu ($3). The lamb one particularly since it has this nice garlic aioli and eggplant. And The tofu burger because it is huge. While there is not a whole lot of flavor alone in the tofu, once I top it with one of the house made sauces it is terrific and filling. Also, the onion rings here are pretty good and worth getting if you want to pair something with your burger. As for sandwiches, there is absolutely no reason to go off campus to Subway since the ones here are so good and comparatively priced. A 6-inch prime rib sandwich on your choice of house made bread with complimentary chips or fruit for $3.50! I am there. I like the technology that is used at the café too. It is nice to have a screen to give you an idea of when you can expect your order to be ready. If you see that there are a lot of pending orders, it helps you to decide whether to wait or try a different station that is quicker. Also, the café does not have any cashiers so payment is done by credit card payment or via badge only here. Easier than having to take out cash. Really like this cafeteria. The food is great and reasonably priced. The only thing is that it is quite crowded. Be prepared for a wait during the 12 o'clock lunch rush.

Microsoft Cafe 112 - Korean beef stew

Microsoft Cafe 112

(10 reviews)

$

There are 3 rotating stations of food to choose from: burger, grill, salad…read more Food is decent and so are the prices.

Cafe 112 reopened after a renovation about three months ago. It has brought life back to a cafe…read morethat looked tired and small previously. This cafe has more food offerings now than before. In the front, there is a coffee bar which serves Stumptown coffee and has FROST doughnuts among its assortment of pastries. Further inside the cafe, you will find offerings including specialty deli sandwiches, NY pizza by the slice, Memphis style BBQ, a decent size salad bar and a burger bar. There is also a different local restaurant vendor in the cafe daily if you are in the mood for Indian, Mexican, etc. instead of the usual assortment. Everything here is done by computer including ordering and payment. It is a cashless cafe so you have to pay with a card. Prices are reasonable and it is closer to venture here than drive down the street to get something for lunch. Your receipt has a ticket number appears up on the video screen so you can tell when it will be ready by seeing how many other tickets are in the queue. This cafe has improved immensely. While I prefer the cafe in Studio H because of the Neapolitan pizza and fresh pasta offerings they have there, this location is no longer on my list of cafes to avoid on campus. It is smaller than other cafes, but the close proximity to my office makes it worth visiting.

Microsoft Cafe 83 - Entrance 2023

Microsoft Cafe 83

(3 reviews)

$

This is a new Microsoft cafe that opened several months back in Building 83 which just opened up…read morejust last year and is the most recent new building on the MS campus. It is on property that was once owned by Safeco until Microsoft bought it. The cafe is located on the ground level of this forward-design building. The offerings at the cafe are rather standard, but not cookie cutter. Here you will find food stations serving burgers, chicken sandwiches/fried chicken, Neapolitan pizza, open faced sandwiches, salads, seafood, soups and teriyaki. Like other cafes on campus, this is a cashless cafe so only card payments and meal balance badge deductions are available. Though the concepts at this cafe aren't as eclectic, I like the food here. The chicken station reminds me of a MS version of Chick-fil-A and the seafood station is a credible on-campus alternative to Ivar's. The food prices here are cheaper or comparable to outside eateries. As for crowds, it didn't seem as busy as other cafes. Perhaps because it is further away from the main part of campus where a large portion of employees work. If you are looking for a less crowded cafe on campus with good food, I would recommend Cafe 83.

One of my favorite Microsoft cafes. It has a good rotating selection of local food such as pho and…read moreIndian cuisine. There's a decent Chick-fil-A clone, a sub shop, pizza, a salad bar, a Mexican place, and a great seafood cafe. Prices are all exceptional as to be expected for a subsided corporate eatery. At the end of the day, it's probably just as good as any other place you were going to go out to lunch at, except half of the price. What's to complain about??

Microsoft Cafe 16 - cafeteria - Updated May 2026

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