I came to Shelby's for a team dinner last night. Trouble was I battled traffic and got there a half hour late. When I took a seat at the table the waiter asked if I would like to look at a menu. About 10 minutes later he finally took my order for the chicken with ravioli. I mentioned that I wanted no garlic on the dish. About 5 minutes later I flagged down another waiter for some iced tea while I waited. Even though the iced tea was preflavored it was actually quite good ... would have been better if I was able to get a refill on the drink. A half hour later we had to go get ready for our game and I was still waiting for my to-go order. Most places I've been to they bring the to-go order to your table so you can take it and go. Not this place. The to-go order was waiting on the counter by the cash register and by the time I was ready to eat my dinner the dish was stone cold. Oh, by the way, they O.D.'d on the garlic and oil so you couldn't even taste the chicken or the pasta. If you come here be prepared because there is only one single-occupancy unisex restroom outside the facility ... no restrooms in the restaurant. We are never ever ever getting back together ... like, ever :( read more

Best restaurant in Orinda and one of the best in the East Bay. We came here again recently for our anniversary (and have been coming here for years for special occasions.) The bread pudding is always to die for (and different each time). The cream caramel type special was fabulous. Fillet mignon was perfect (oven roasted with its accompanying vegetables after a brief grilling) and the old standby of the short ribs (which my husband orders almost every time) hit the spot on on a rainy day! There is often a seafood risotto dish on the menu that is really tasty as well as filling--portions here are generous. The principal chef, Arno, will also prepare food to order if he has the ingredients. He will also come out for a chat if it is not too busy and he doesn't need to be in back supervising too much. The staff is always friendly and attentive. read more

If you like bread pudding with bourbon sauce, their's is amazing!!! They also have an amazingly great soy house salad dressing and do a great job of grilling vegies We used to go there a lot, but my girlfriend and I are watching our cholesterol. We suggested preparing fish, meat and pasta dishes with a less buttery touch, but (are you listening Arno?) the menu doesn't seem to have changed. We're a bit sad because they also have nice jazz and are close by. read more

One of purr favorites, a fantastic lunch spot. The mango chicken salad is something i often think of and nearly almost eat!!! Great menu, perfect for a lunch meeting as you can actually hear one another. read more

Very nice upgrades from several years ago when it was just ok. Very good food, freshly prepared, delivered hot, nice service.

Shelby's is, by far, the best restaurant in Orinda! It is always our go to spot for a GOOD meal in our hometown. Sure... The other restaurants might seem more trendy or kid friendly but none serve such consistently top notch food as Shelby's. And as for being kid friendly... Shelby's has a fantastic kids menu....burgers, pizza, pasta...and crayons to color with. Their menu has standards that are great but also has seasonally changing specials that are amazing. The Mexican Sea Bass is my new current favorite! read more

Great restaurant. They are open during that weekend afternoon lull when we always seem to be searching for food (at 3pm everything else seems to be closed between lunch and dinner); they have a decent kids' menu and good hamburgers and chefly creations as mentioned by other reviewers; and if something is wrong they will make it right. Definitely recommended! read more

My wife and I go to Shelby's quite often. Never been disappointed and often very impressed. The owner/chef typically greets us and seats us and makes small chat. We dine out often and have tried all of Orinda's dining spots. Shelby's is Orinda's best restaurant. read more

Love love LOVE Shelbys in Orinda! My whole family has been going to Shelbys for many years now. it has always been a beautiful place to spend time- the cooking is great and changes often enough that if you are a regular you can try new things. Its great for families too, and dogs are welcome outside under the umbrellas. I have seen eateries come and go at Theatre Square, but Shelbys has become a mainstay. Its because the owners are there and welcoming, the food is varied and tasty, and the atmosphere is always fresh and beautiful. Two thumbs up! read more

I would LIKE to write a really positive review of Shelby's. But I have to tell you what DOESN'T work... Here's what DOES work: the food is delicious! And their menu actually changes. We always find something we like to order. Here's what DOESN'T work....They list 2 Chardonnays by the glass: one for $9 and one for $14. But they have been out of the $9 a glass wine for weeks. When you go to order it, they shuffle their feet and say: "Oh, sorry, but we are out of that," as if it just happened. They try to get you to order the $14 a glass wine. So we said: "Well, how about if you open this other bottle of wine (that was on the menu for the identical per bottle price) and offer that to us for $9 a glass." (DUHHH). The new Mexican waitress then went back and asked if they could do that and the wine person agreed and she brought us two of the new $9 a glass wine but she giggled and said: "Of course I did not want to ask for that because it is not right...giggle." NOT RIGHT??? They SHOULD have offered the more expensive bottle of Chardonnay for $9 a glass. That's what's right! The fact that we had to suggest a very obvious switch which they themselves should have done is astounding...Two weeks later the same situation came up! #2 Problem. We ordered their house salad which is very good and always huge and said we were going to split it. They had no problem with that, as it is often done, but they bring it in one huge salad bowl only with no side plate. Most restaurants split it in the kitchen and bring out 2 medium plates. When we asked them to return it to the kitchen and split it onto two plates, they said that they would have to charge us extra. Charge extra for what most restaurants do normally? Helloooo? Instead he sneakily brought us two bread plates and made us do it ourselves at the table. Ridiculous! Also the service is really slow. We had to ask for bread. Personally I really like their twisted cheese table bread but my husband doesn't. Hubby does not want to go back so i guess we will take a breather. If their service was a tad faster and they corrected these 2 problems (No decent normally priced white wine by the glass) and charging for splitting the salad...we would be eating here each and every single week... read more

I have lived in Oinda for 22 years , and when we want a great lunch or dinner, Shelby,s is always at the top of our list. Our waiter that we always look for is Carlo, and what a terrific waiter he is . Short , sweet and to the point, we give it 5 stars read more

Just had dinner at Shelby's restaurant in Orinda Friday night. Four of us arrived at 6:30. Left after 9PM. Ordered appetizers, wine and dinner. Received the appetizers and wine. Finished appetizers and bottle of wine. 45 minutes later we were informed that they were out of mashed potatoes and that the fish my wife and friend ordered was "no good" and to order something else. Wife ordered steak medium rare. Steak was served very rare. I changed my order to a hamburger. Basket of French fries came half full and under cooked. After dinner we had problem with the bill. Manager, owner was very arrogant and out of line questioning us rather than apoligizing for their horrible service and food. Horrible experience, will not go back. read more

Everything was perfection, hence the five stars! We were greeted immediately and service continued to be friendly and attentive. The restaurant space isn't fancy (contemporary and minimal), but what counts is that it was clean, it had ambient light from windows on several sides, and the tables were arranged so you could enjoy your own conversation, but not those of the other diners. The menu offered a good selection of American cuisine. For the quantity and quality of food the moderate price (most are $18) is an excellent value. We remarked that restaurants in Walnut Creek and Lafayette would charge several dollars more for the same sort of entree and not necessarily be as well crafted and presented. We had the lamb stew --- paired innovatively with apricots and avocados. We also had the braised short ribs with carrots, pearl onions, mushrooms, fingerling potatoes and bacon. Like the lamb, the meat was fall-off-the-bone tender and the flavors sublime. No seasoning was so pronounced that it distracted from the whole. We were filled eating just half the portions and saved room to try a dessert. The fresh-from-the-oven molten chocolate cake was one of the best we've had anywhere ---- edges of the cake had a little bit of crust, the center oozed chocolate goodness, a fruit sauce provided a tangy yin, and a small scoop of vanilla ice cream topped it off --- yum! We would definitely return --- there were several other dinner entrees that intrigued us, like the seafod risotto! And, how convenient for us, taking BART into the City to see a matinee of "Wicked", to find such a quality restaurant nearby. read more

Dinner was a disaster. Walked in off the street,got seated but waited five minutes before anyone came around. Lacerated my fnger on something sharp along the under edge of the chair as I was pulling it in. Mentioned it to the gruff waiter who could have cared less that I was bleeding. Ordered the baked halibut and the special salad for my wife. After 15 minutes no food until the waiter appeared with two "free" salads saying the kitchen was backed up. Finaly dinner arrived. The salad was good but the halibut was overcooked and mushy and with many small bones. Mentioned it to the waiter who grabbed it away and a minute later came back, and slamed down the bill while my wife was only part way through her dinner. Would never recommend Selbys to anyone. read more

This is the first time I've written a review for a favorite restaurant. I'm writing this review because both my husband and I have enjoyed our dining experiences at Shelby's. Our meals have always been delicious - as well as creatively paired and presented. We've enjoyed meeting and talking with Chef Arno Kober about his cuisine. Since the menu can change, it's a fun treat to order a new dish. From the Caesar Salad to the Shrimp and Chorizo starter, to the Beef Short Ribs to the Steak Frites (as well as several other dishes), the meals have been consistently excellent. The staff are professional and friendly. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Shelby's for lunch, bunch or dinner. My husband and I enjoy having a movie date at Orinda Theatre, followed by a delicious dinner at Shelby's - it's just around the corner in Theatre Square. Lunch together is just as fun. Bon Appetite! read more

Top notch Orinda Restaurant! The Bistro Salmon is done to perfection thanks to co-owner Chef Arno's creativity. They also have a nice wine list with wine tasting on Tuesday evenings. Co-owner Carlos has made sure that being involved in the community is a top priority, as Sheby's is a supporter and participant of many local Orinda events. Their signature salad is the Chinese Chicken Salad, which is sure to impress! read more

The menu looked outstanding and we aren't that picky but everything from the food to service was a huge disappointment.The waiter didn't now anything about the ingredients for the beet salad. When he said he didn't know what came on it I asked if he could find out.My friends omelet was dry,crispy brown & over cooked. She sent it back and ordered eggs benedict which was served on un-toasted, cold wet english muffins.The coffee cups held about 4 oz so I had to sit what seemed like 20 minutes between each refill.These are such simple fixes! Provide bigger coffee cups, toast the bread and brief all the waiters about the menu BEFORE you open the doors.I know the owner didn't open the restaurant so he could go out of business...when someone sends an entree back, you'd think that the manager or chef would come out and find out from the customer what went wrong. If people say this is the best food in Orinda then I feel bad for Orindains. read more

This is a great little restaurant. I had an absolutely delicious, perfect hamburger on a Saturday night. This is my third visit to Shelby's in the last couple of months because I live in Orinda. I've taken my kids, my parents and my brother. This particular evening my brother had the steak. The steak was a bit pricey, I think it was $26, but it was a generous filet and came with perfect mashed potatoes and asparagus. My hamburger was $9.50 and the meat was juicy and perfectly medium rare as I had requested. The Caesar salad was excellent. There was a great live jazz trio the evening we were there. The lighting is subtle and flattering, maybe a little dark, but then it was a Saturday night and we were listening to jazz, so that's okay. I think they've read reviews about the service, because we had great service that evening. The way the restaurant is set up you can bring your kids. There's an appealing kids' menu. If anything the service was over-attentive. The server even brought a new candle the minute after ours had burned out. I haven't had dessert here. There is art from local artists on the walls. Some people arrived late, just to have a bottle of wine and listen to jazz. It's a great evening, although the place wasn't filled. There are some outdoor tables, and Shelby's has just started breakfast service. read more

We have been eating at Shelby's for years. We have gotten to know the owners quite well and have recommended they to our friends and family. We have had several large parties for big occasions and also have brought clients there to dine. In a nut shell we were very happy until our son's graduation night. We planned a dinner at Shelby's for entire family, We made a reservation and spoke to the owner/chef and planned the meal, and I thought we were set. Just the opposite, I called after the graduation to have the chef we let them know we were on our way, I was told they were ready for us and they would start the meal. When we got there it was packed and no table was ever reserved for us but what really made me angry was that, besides setting this up ahead of time, is that I had my parents with me, and my father is disable and has a difficult time walking. My poor father had to walk pretty far to get to the restaurant just to find out that there was no room for us. My husband spoke to the owner, who couldn't care less, and snubbed us. After all the money we have spent there over the years and then be treated like dirt. We will NEVER eat there again or recommend them!!!!! read more

My wife and I have gone to Shelby's numerous times and love it. We just got back from a terrific vacation in Spain and Italy where we ate at very fine restaurants in Barcelona, Milan, Florence, Rome, Tuscany and the Amalfi. However when we got home we realized that Shelby's cuisine was as good or better than the best we had eaten during that extended trip. Arno, the part owner and head chef does a great of putting together a diverse set of options that incorporate the best of European cuisine with the freshest California ingredients. Their presentation is terrific and the desserts are to die for. They change the menu regularly and vary it during the seasons to provide for hearty meals in the winter and lighter cuisine in the summer. Plus they have outside dining during the warmer months in the Theatre Square plaza that has the feeling of dining in a European Piazza. The wine list is good, not great, but they are constantly searching for good value wines and have had a number of evening wine tastings by Napa and Sonoma vineyards. Parking is easy under Theatre Square, just below the restaurant, and it is only a minute off the Rte 24 freeway in Orinda and around the corner from the historical Orinda Movie Theater. I know this sounds like a promo but we just love the food and atmosphere versus trekking into San Francisco to get good meals that are much more expensive and not as good. read more