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Tappi's Cafe

4.5 (242 reviews)
Open 7:00 am - 3:00 pm

Waitlist - Tappi's Cafe

Live Current wait: 3 - 13 mins

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TAPPI'S CAFE ATMOSPHERE

What's the vibe?
Casual
Moderate noise
Outdoor seating
Dogs allowed

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Recommended Reviews - Tappi's Cafe

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Rose
Jackie B.

We have been driving by Tappi's Cafe for many years. It was always closed. We have never bother looking up the place and realizing its hours is like Broken Yolk; they close at 3pm. Anyways, when I finally got smart and looked up the menu, I was intrigued to see they have Japanese Soufflé. So we stopped by Saturday morning, and we were pleasantly impressed. When you walk in, you are greeted right away. It's a quaint spot with cute decor. They have a few 2 and 4 tops. They were pretty strict with not allowing a party of 2 to sit on a table for 4. This made the table cramped as we got our entrees and had our bottle of wine. Our servers name was Valentina. She was great I came in to order the Japanese soufflé but they had ran out, and they also didn't have German pancakes. I was bummed but decided on the same dish as Tim and we both ordered Steak & Eggs Benedict. As we were enjoying our mimosas and great conversation, either the staffer or the owner came in with bags of ingredients. Valentina came back to our table to let me know that I can order Japanese soufflé if I still wanted it. And of course I said YES! And let me tell you it was SOOO good. It doesn't have the same shape or texture on the top as you would expect. It had a light crust. It was sweet and so delicious. Since we were indulging we also ordered one of their specialty dessert - Biscoff Crepe Noodles. It was heavenly. If you haven't been here, you have got to stop by.

Carla O.

I finally had the chance to try Tappi's Café, a little spot I've always noticed but never had the opportunity to visit until now. I wanted to find a new breakfast place with quality food, and thought, why not Tappi's? I suggested it to my daughter, and she happily agreed. It's a smaller café, but cozy, charming, and simply chic, the kind of place that instantly feels welcoming. Their menu offers a nice variety of creative dishes, which made it hard to choose! I ordered the Egg Tacos, which sounded fun and different, along with a side of potatoes. My daughter went with the Steak and Egg Burrito. Our waitress was friendly, attentive, and efficient. Our food came out quickly and was beautifully presented. You can tell care goes into every plate. We both enjoyed our meals immensely! The flavors were fresh, balanced, and perfectly cooked. If I could make one small suggestion, it would be to serve a slightly larger portion of potatoes on the side; they were delicious but I wanted more! Overall, we had a wonderful experience. The service, ambiance, and food were all perfect. Tappi's Café truly is a little treasure in Rancho San Diego, and I can't wait to come back again soon.

Wag
Julie G.

Yes , we found a new Breakfast place .. Do make reservations as the place is a little small . Initial service was good . The coffee was delightful and plenty , I asked for a to go cup as I couldn't drink it all . We ordered our food and my son and I received our food . I was waiting for my husband to get his food but he insisted on me eating while it was hot . Good decision to do so . I finished my breakfast and he still was waiting for his food . I had to ask the waitress what was the status on his food and apologized it was taking awhile . It was way too long . The food was good , I would like to see a kids menu. The bacon is a little pricey , two strips for $7 . Overall service needs attention.

Shashuka w/egg added
Elizabeth V.

Tappi's Cafe located in Rancho San Diego in a shopping center located in the same parking lot as the car wash. It appears to be a fusion of Mediterranean and Asian cuisine. Extremely small venue that offers indoor and outdoor seating. They may be able to accommodate a party of 8 at the most but, it will be a tight fit. Customer service was amazing and so was the food! I did not care for their cherry latte at all. It had a very unpleasant flavor. We ordered: Shakshuka - Delish (Mediterranean) Menemen - Delish (Mediterranean) Japanese souffle - Light, fluffy, and delish Ube pancake - Delish We will definitely be back to try more dishes!

Japanese souffle 2pc
Shirley O.

Yum! The Japanese soufflé took about 20 minutes to arrive which is standard. These generally take longer to cook based on my experiences at other restaurants. When the pancakes finally arrived, they looked beautiful and were delightful to eat. They were light, fluffy, moist and not too sweet. They tasted slightly eggy, but still very good. I also had a Turkish coffee which was strong. The ambiance was casual and comfortable. Service was friendly. Overall, it was a 4.5 star experience. They have some interesting menu items and if I'm in the area again, I would consider returning.

Egg drop breakfast sandwich
Kim D.

What a great little Cafe! Our server was the sweetest, full of advice and insight. We had Turkish coffee for the first time. That was an interesting experience, I was a bit wired for the next 4 hours. The flavor was very different than anything I've ever had. Coffee that tastes like tea is how I would explain it We ordered a japanese fluffy egg sandwich with kafta, khachapuri with beef and cheese and the special. I loved both of the Mediterranean dishes. The cheese on the khachapuri was so delicious the bread was crispy but soft. The special came in a cast iron pan, sort of a breakfast pot pie with bread that tasted like Naan. The eggs were perfectly poached in a light but flavorful tomato sauce. I would probably pass on the breakfast sandwich next time. I love japanese fluffy eggs but the eggs were cooked in the grease of the kafta making it unappealing to me. Great brunch spot, don't sleep on this place!

Turkish Coffee  + Sugar Cube
Smurph P.

My family and I were craving some soufflé pancakes. We used to go to Morning Glory, but Little Italy is a nightmare for parking- especially on a Saturday morning. (Not to mention the hour+ wait) I searched yelp for some soufflé pancakes and found Tappi's Cafe. Not only is it closer to us, but tons of parking! It was relaxing and cozy, not stuffy or pretentious. We got seated right away, and all the staff were very attentive. We loved our server Valentina, she was so sweet. She even asked me (quietly) if she could offer my toddler some candy, after our meal. All the food was delicious. My Turkish coffee was delightful and strong, exactly what I was looking for. We will absolutely be weekend morning regulars.

Menemen and Sausage
Lin J.

Cute place. Food was delish. Only downside is the time to wait. Waited a while for food to be served. Other than that it was good. I thought that the French toast was a bit dry.

Tokyo Sandwich
Samantha G.

The drinks we ordered were the chai latte and cappuccino which were delicious. There's seating available Tokyo Sandwich was okay tasting. The farm egg breakfast plate was good but felt like they didn't give enough food. The French toast Nutella tasted like Pinesol cleaning solution. It was not edible at all. Luckily they did remove that from our bill. The ube pancake was okay but they are very stingy when it comes to syrup. They give you a big old pancake with two small one inch tubes of syrup so the pancake just tasted very dry. Although the staff were very nice the food was not so great.

Wrongly priced menu
Jessica C.

Listed coffee prices are different than they actually are when rung up. A Tappi's latte is listed as $7 on their billboard menu but $8 at the register and then around $8.60 total after tax. They should look into changing their prices to reflect what they actually are; as it is clearly violating the Honest Pricing Law (SB 478) On another note, this coffee isn't good enough to be charging $8; it was pretty gross and tasted synthetic.

Cappuccino
Elizabeth R.

Food was good, we ordered eggs Benedict 3/5 Chipotle chilaquiles 4/5 Cappuccino good size cup They do not have any salsa made at the restaurant only bottles of salsas Waiter was so attentive. We may come back to order different plates. Overall is a good place to have a breakfast Ambience is good.

Nutella banana waffle (INSTAGRAM: @Angiela.Eats)
Angie C.

My daughter chose this spot for her bday waffles and it did not disappoint ! We stopped by on a Monday morning and we had the place all to ourselves . There's a huge parking lot with plenty of parking, the restaurant is clean, and customer service was inviting ! Here's what we ate: MENEMEN WITH SAUSAGE: Unique, tasty, and HUGE ! It gave me shakshuka vibes-- sweet grilled onions, sausage, in a tomato based sauce . The bread It was served with was sooo fresh, fluffy, and delicious . I prefer the sausage to be more golden or a bit more charred, but still good . This meal is pretty hearty, I would recommend sharing . (note: this takes longer to prepare-- came out about 15 minutes after the waffle) NUTELLA BANANA WAFFLE: everything my daughter wanted for her bday breakfast . Waffle was hot, crisp, and fresh . She loved the addition of the mini squeeze tube syrups . Potato cube fries were tasty-- my son devoured the entire plate lol Overall, this is a solid spot . I would love to be back to try the rest of their menu and recommend to family and friends (:

Tokyo Sandwich
Arielle C.

Tappi's seemed like a cool new brunch spot to try but it was a miss. I ordered the soufflé pancakes, Tokyo sandwich, Okinawa sandwich, American coffee, and dirty matcha ($65.76 total). Waited 45 minutes for soufflé pancakes that were very eggy, deflated, and similar to a Dutch pancake. The sandwich bread was extremely dry and texture that was almost like cornbread. I ended up only eating the inside of the sandwich and took the bread to go. The iced drinks are served in plastic to-go cups which took a bit away from the brunch ambiance. The dirty matcha was an extra $2 for espresso and tasted a little metallic. The Sunday brunch service was very busy with no more than 5-10 minute wait time but the service was poor. Our server forgot some of our requests and took our food order after ~30 minutes or being seated. Yes, it was busy but it hits a bit harder when you see everyone else getting their food when they sat down 30-60 minutes after you were seated. There is also only 1 bathroom in a crowded area by the kitchen, cashier, and food pick up so it was hard waiting in line for the bathroom.

Japanese soufflé pancakes

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7 months ago

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9 months ago

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9 months ago

Fantastic homemade food. A little restaurant in a strip mall with amazing dishes. We will return for sure!

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1 year ago

Hidden gem! Amazing food, great coffee, wonderful people!!! Shakshouka, a white mocha, and a peach mimosa every time!

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1 year ago

Truly one of my favorite breakfast spots in rancho! Authentic food and taste is amazing!

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7 months ago

Delicious food with kind and friendly staff. Definitely will be back and highly recommend!

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Page 2 of 7

Ask the Community - Tappi's Cafe

I see they have outdoor seating, do they also welcome pets?

I don't remember them having outdoor seating, the space doesn't really have room for it. I'd call to confirm, they're open now.

Don’t See Your Question? Ask Away!

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Ali Baba Family Restaurant - Feast for 4!

Feast for 4!

Ali Baba Family Restaurant - Pita Bread the Size of a Pizza

Pita Bread the Size of a Pizza

Ali Baba Family Restaurant - From the newly renovated parking lot =D

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From the newly renovated parking lot =D

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Shawarma Guys - Ordering counter

Ordering counter

Shawarma Guys - Wagyu beef and chicken shawarma plate, hummus and pita bread. All tasted so good!

Wagyu beef and chicken shawarma plate, hummus and pita bread. All tasted so good!

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The combo wagyu beef & chicken shawarma !

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Fantastic and delicious selection. Great food - nice music. Great for lunch or dinner.

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Tappi's Cafe - cafes - Updated May 2026

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