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    Ubuntu

    4.4 (114 reviews)
    Open 7:00 am - 3:00 pm
    Updated 3 months ago

    Ubuntu Photos

    UBUNTU ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Outdoor seating
    Happy hour specials
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - Ubuntu

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    Reviews With Photos

    MaDonna W.

    The avocado toast is everything! They actually put everything bagel seasoning on top and makes it slightly crunchy and delicious with the radishes, perfectly seasoned avocado . The Chilaquiles is also very good .. as well as their delicious lattes. This place was packed today very dog friendly. They do have blankets for your laps if you get chilly. Their system is you order and then you sit down we did the opposite. We grabbed a table and then we ordered. It seems to be the perfect way to do it.

    3 eggs served very runny and some bread that's as hard as rocks and some potatoes with no flavor
    Jonathon Q.

    This review is a hard one to make because there is some good...yet not enough good to make it higher than a 3 star rating and comes from it being just an odd experience. 1st the Good. Millionaire's bacon is amazing. Worth the $11 - thick cut and tender, it's a must try. Wait, that's about it that I can remember. Everything else was bleh. THE BLEH: -the Menu - they have multiple locations and the website has only one version of the menu but does not indicate which location it is referring to. Unknowingly, when we tried ordering some food from the website version of the menu, the order taker informed us that they don't serve it (talking about the bread pudding shown online). -Staff Knowledge - this bread pudding that we ordered...well it actually WAS available on the backside of the in house menu...so the staff didn't know they serve that? Also, when we pointed it out to her on the in store menu, she then changed her answer to "oh we ran out of that". -Availability - we went for Sunday brunch...and they told us that 4 of the things we tried to order were out of stock. -Seating format - when you walk in, your order and pay and then seat yourself. I noticed that there was a jug with water and glasses next to it so I assumed I would be allowed to serve myself a glass of water and take it to my table. Nope. I was informed (in a very dry, awkward way) by one of the staff that I shouldn't be using that and there is water at our table. It was a very weird interaction. -Food preparation and delivery: When the food arrived (going back to staff knowledge), our orders were not what we expected. Many of the items on the menu have bolded add ons underneath and apparently when you order one of the add ons, it comes out with your food but on a separate plate and not prepared in the dish as you would expect. For example: we ordered an omelette and added Portuguese sausage on. Since it's an omelette, you would expect the sausage to be mixed in, right? wrong - it comes on the side, uncut...just sitting there...so odd Also "famous scrambled eggs" were very wet and runny...is that why they're famous? The two pieces of bread that came with it were also hard as rocks so that was slightly unpleasant. Finally, the fingerling potatoes that came with it were ultra bland. -Outside seating - they have staff wandering around ready to fill water and clear plates which is nice but how are we supposed to tip them if we already paid before we sat down. I am just confused about this aspect. Do I want to go back? Not really....

    Madeline S.

    I'd never been to Ubuntu before and my friend and I decided to stop by for a bite, while shopping. I was so impressed. At first I thought it was just a cute coffee shop, and then come to find out, they have a whole, delicious menu. They have an indoor space and super cute outdoor space too - tons of seating areas! I loved all the decor and florals! I especially love that they have blankets on the patio for breezy nights. That is so thoughtful. The food we ordered was plated with care and didn't just look visually appealing, it tasted so amazing as well. The grilled zucchini came with this delicious pistachio cream spread that was bursting with flavor. The cheese board had a fantastic selection and the goat cheese balls with apple slices and hot honey were a dream. Only thing I'd add would be a lot more bread! Our service was fantastic too! I'm coming back soon for sure!

    French toast latte
    Linda L.

    There's plenty of seating outside. I especially love the beautiful flowers set on every table. Absolutely my highlight with this little detail! We got the Lobster Omelette and Brazilian Cheese Bread. We shared amongst the 4 of us and it was surprisingly filling, especially with the bread. I particularly enjoyed the bread. It was warm and cheesy, the guava jam and butter just added so much. The staff were very friendly and the food came out relatively quickly.

    Pastries display
    Grace N.

    At this point, I should start a fan club for Ubuntu and I will proudly be the first member of the club! This is the third location of Ubuntu and I've dined here yesterday with my family and hence I have been to all of their three locations! SJC Ubuntu is located at the River Street market plaza/Los Rios Historic area. This location is their latest addition and I think they really took the other two locations into consideration when they designed and opened this one. I think the layout is the best out of three. There are tons of food choices and restaurants in the area and I've decided to still go to Ubuntu instead for our lunch. Here, you order at the counter and then grab your seats. You can still order service at your table once you've seated and placed your order at the counter. But I like this concept it makes me feel like I'm dining at my neighbor's backyard! The pastries display here is big and you have a big view of it when you enter. If you haven't had any of their pastries I really commend just any of it because they are all so good, but my favs are any of their croissants. For food, few of my favs are their toast variations, the millionaires bacon or million dollar bacon, the grilled/roasted veggies sandwich, the grilled salmon salad, short ribs chilaquiles, breakfast croissant sandwiches, and the omelettes. They also make their pistachio milk in-house so I often get a latte with pistachio milk. One think I noticed is the chilaquiles here, the tortillas chips were super soaked and soggy though. I think they might've accidentally poured too much juice of the pickled onion or something in there that the tortilla chips were like wet bread. However flavor and taste were still good so I forgot to mention it to the staff. John helped us at the counter and also at our table here and there and he was super friendly and knowledgeable about the restaurants, its visions and plans. Overall, I love Ubuntu! I think few of their signatures is the fresh beautiful flowers that is the center piece on every table, their yummy pastries, the Millionaire bacon, and the super friendly staff and environment you get here. I read some not so great reviews posted here and I don't understand if you actually talk to any of the staff here, how would some misunderstanding would take place? I've witnessed they really went out of their way to make sure their customers are actually happy and satisfied with their food and drinks, even when they are in Togo cups! So, in conclusion, highly check them out if youre in the area! Either morning lunch or night, stop by and you won't regret!

    Dan R.

    "But don't tell me about the things you've heard Maybe I'm wrong, but I want to believe in humanity" (Carole King) Ubuntu is an ancient African word meaning 'humanity to others'. Three of us had lunch at their San Juan Capistrano location and sat at one of the outdoor tables. One odd thing I noticed was that every table had a red blanket draped over one of the chairs. My cousin that lives locally told us it gets chilly here at nights, so some restaurants provide blankets for their customers. OK, that's a new one on me. We ordered a tomato bisque ($13) - "fresh tomato soup - served with basil and toasted country bread", the Quiche Lorraine (22) - "ham & cheese served with organic field green lettuce salad", and a Roasted Veggie Sandwich ($19) - farm roasted butternut squash, fennel, arugula, crispy onions, goat cheese, house-made Calabrian chili jam spread on toasted ciabatta bread & organic field of greens lettuce salad. I added on sliced avocado for a $4.50 upcharge. My Veggie Sandwich was very good, a real nice blend of colors and textures and tastes on soft and fresh ciabatta. There are quite a few places to eat in the River Street Marketplace, and Ubuntu was a solid choice.

    Elisa G.

    I'm so excited that they are finally open! The owners are super sweet and they are from Brazil so of course they are the nicest people ever. They have a few gluten-free cheese, free options for me like scallops. They also have beautiful baked goods as well as coffee and overnight oats. I ordered the $37 scallops and they were rubbery and overcooked. My girlfriend had two glasses of wine and dog treats for her Frenchie and they charge five dollars for that. What a great idea for restaurants to charge for dog treats!!

    passion fruit margarita
    Emi O.

    Came for a quick drink and snack and ubuntu did not disappoint! The passion fruit margarita was sooo good and refreshing. Tequila was smooth and didn't taste like it was overpowering, which I enjoyed! The kouign amann was flaky, sweet and delicious! Their other pastries looked really good too and I'd love to try another time.

    Unicorn barf toast
    Elizabeth C.

    This is a cute little cafe in a fun and unique shopping center. The ambiance is relaxed with walk up ordering and then table service. I ordered my daughter the unicorn toast and while she thought it was cute, she didn't really like the taste and ate my omelette instead. I thought it was good though! I ordered the classic omelette which was decent, but for me the star was the roasted potatoes! My only issue was the baguette that came with it was so hard it was inedible. I also had a Spanish latte and it was yummy. I loved that the ice was frozen coffee which was flavorful and helped not to water down my beverage. There's a nice grassy area for kids to play so my daughter got some wiggles out after breakfast.

    Angry fried chicken sandwich, avocado toast, omelette, & lavender latte
    Kaitlyn A.

    Came here on a Sunday afternoon for my mom's birthday brunch and the food was delicious! Unfortunately the wait to order our food was almost an hour. I'm not sure if we caught them on a bad day or if it's always this slow, but the staff was extremely kind and apologetic, going above and beyond to make up for the wait time. The food came out very quickly after we ordered and everything was delicious. They also use coffee ice cubes in their iced coffee drinks which is a huge plus! This location at the Riverstreet Market is a great vibe and perfect to walk around after your meal- note they do not validate parking. After getting through the line to order, it was a great experience and I would consider coming back because of the customer service and fun location.

    "Adult Lemonade."  Highly recommended!
    Martie L.

    Back again at my happy place, sitting outside on another spectacular Southern California evening. Once again, the service was friendly and helpful. Our server was Will, and he took very good care of us, as have all of our servers previously. My grandson stayed busy looking at the collection of books they have available for their younger customers to read. We ordered our favorites-first the Adult Lemonade, a very refreshing starter. The potstickers were delicious as always, filled with peas, carrots, corn, broccoli, not that bean sprout concoction you might be used to. The crab cake had more crab than filler, and was served with a lovely side salad and the lemon vinaigrette was just the right accompaniment. They had sold out of the Short Rib Pappardelle, so we ordered a burger. It's served with lettuce, tomato, grilled onions, bacon, and aioli. It was perfectly cooked, and the brioche bun added lots of flavor. Don't miss the Brazilian Cheese Bread, and please don't leave out the guava jelly, it takes the little bread bubbles to a whole new level! Our favorite dessert is the Pot de Crème. Just order it-you won't be sorry.

    Chilaquiles $22
    Deanne L.

    Picked this restaurant during our day at River Street Marketplace and kinda wish I picked something else. Expensive for what it is. Ordered the chilaquiles. Just by looking at it, I was worried about the portion size and the lack of sauce and color. I was real surprised that it was pretty flavorful. Although good, it didn't blow me away. For $22, I expected more and this didn't even have any sides. The texture of some chips were hard and the avocado was not ripe. Couldn't even cut the avocado with my fork it was so hard. No complaints about service but nothing to rave about. Nice outdoor patio vibes on a beautiful day.

    Open- Faces Devil's Eggs on toast
    Susan O.

    Tried the scrambled eggs breakfast and also the Devil's eggs on toast. Both were just as good! Service is impeccable. Ambience is great and relaxing. Good for catching up with friends and private conversations.

    Lunch menu (March 2025)

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    Ask the Community - Ubuntu

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