A classic cafe for UC Berkeley undergrads to frequent. It's honestly just okay, but the convenience and location is unparalleled. I've tried their coffee, smoothies, and paninis. Drinks are just okay, but the paninis are surprisingly solid as a lunch choice. Comes out piping hot and it's a decent size (see below). We've tried the chicken panini and the ham and cheese croissant. Strawberry smoothie is very much - you can make this at home, but it is freshly made. Mocha java chiller was okay, reminiscent of a frappe. Overall, it's not a bad choice but they do get very busy and backed up! While there are a decent number of tables, it's always full of people studying/working on their computer inside. read more

This review is based on a catering order that was picked up for a catered breakfast. We have ordered from Yali's several times and this review reflects what we have consistently experienced with their food. We ordered the 20 piece bagel tray with tomatoes, cream cheese and assorted bagels. We ordered a small fruit platter. We needed to feed 20 people and we had food leftover. The cost for $209 with tax. read more

Yalis is a nice little cafe on the corner of Oxford with a reliable menu if you're in a pinch. Coffee is standard, but absolutely nothing special. The food menu is limited to sandwiches and salads. I often grab a bagel and a coffee when I'm in a rush to school. The breakfast bagel is a good deal and comes with veggies and cream cheese. The service is pretty quick and staff is always pleasant. It's not the greatest cafe, but it'll do the job. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Breakfast bagel and iced coffee - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Quick service and friendly staff. Super close to campus which is great. The smoothie is extremely underrated!! read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Chocolate Banana Smoothie - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Yali's is easy to get to from Campus and very reliable staff. I want to express sincere appreciation for Yali's Café and its ongoing commitment to the Berkeley community. Over time, it has remained a steady and familiar space for residents--welcoming students, workers, and neighbors alike. In a city known for constant change, it's meaningful to have places that feel dependable and grounded. Yali's is more than just a café; it functions as a quiet social hub where people can pause, meet, study, or simply feel part of the neighborhood. That kind of consistency helps sustain a sense of belonging and everyday connection that is easy to overlook but deeply important. Thank you for continuing to serve Berkeley with care, accessibility, and a genuine community spirit read more

Great if you want a quick bite or coffee. As someone said before, this place is a very "no frills" spot if you need a place to hang out and do work. It's within walking distance to campus, and there's free wifi. All in all decent, but not super memorable. The best part about Yali's is it's within walking distance to campus, free wifi, and plenty of chairs. read more

A nice cafe with a convenient location. Cozy atmosphere with lots of indoor seating and tables. Great place to study! I just wish they were open for more hours/weekends. read more

I loved the salad I got from here- very healthy and tasty. My partner regularly gets coffee here, I'm personally not as big of a fan of it but it's not bad read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Garden Salad Lunch - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Reasonably priced drinks and good, free wifi, no frills service, lots of seating, close to campus -- perfect for a quick lunch or coffee break. Not much "ambience" wise but Yali's is definitely convenient. The inside can get pretty loud so not the best place for hardcore studying, but if you need a seat and some decent food/coffee, this is the place! I'd recommend getting here earlier in the day if you want a greater pick of food options. Most of the pastries are sold out by 12pm-1pm ish, and they stop offering breakfast options (e.g. bagels, oatmeal) at 11am I think which is a little disappointing. Wish they continued offering bagels throughout the day. Their sandwiches are pretty good but small and will run you $10+. A coffee will run you $4-6 which I feel like is normal for Berkeley; again, coffee is decent but not mind blowing. My wait time around the noon rush is about 10-15 minutes. A great spot for quick food and coffee. Service and food options could be better, but otherwise, Yali's is great for the location and convenience. read more

Came here to grab a quick lunch and get some work done. I ordered a chicken club sandwich for $10; it was just kind of okay and fairly small imo. There's a lot of seating available, but the vibes are kind of meh and a lot of the tables were dirty when I went. I think there's other places I'd rather go for studying around Berkeley. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Chicken Club Sandwich Lunch - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

The tomato mozzarella was soooooo good, the balsamic was amazing and they used acme bread (always a win). I'd highly recommend. Their smoothies are also really good read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Tomato Mozzarella Sandwich Lunch - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Though they're not known for their bagels, their plain bagels for the breakfast bagel are my absolute favorite! Not too large and not too expensive (5.50). Super crunchy exterior, love it read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Breakfast bagel and Black Coffee - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

A bit out of the way and far from main campus, but honestly a really nice spot! I ordered through Snackpass for pickup, but definitely want to try studying here sometime. There are plenty of seats available and the ambiance is quite nice as well. I ordered an iced vanilla latte and cranberry cornmeal scone. The vanilla latte was probably one of the better ones I've had around here -- even when the ice melted, it still tasted great! It did surprise me that they didn't fill it all the way to the top, though. The scone was also amazing. I feel like scones are usually hit or miss, but I really enjoyed this one especially the cornmeal part. It's also huge so keep that in mind. Like I said, I definitely want to come back to study and try more of their menu options! read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Iced vanilla latte - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

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I ordered coffee in my tumbler, and they charged me for a large and filled it 3/4s to the top. WiFi also wouldn't connect, and cafe was just dirty. read more

I came here 20 minutes before 9 am and the only bagels they had left was plain and poppyseed bagels. That was disappointing because it wasn't even that late in the morning to be running out of bagels. The shop was pretty full but I don't think there was enough people for the service to be efficient. In fact, for my toasted poppyseed bagel with cream cheese it took over 10 minutes to get to me. I was going to have the bagel there but it ended up taking too long. If you do eat there, you get a number and wait for your order to be brought out. The bagel itself was kind of small and there was too much cream cheese. There was also a tipping option on the register. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Sesame seed bagel and cream cheese - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Now if I was still a struggling Cal undergrad, I'd probably be a regular here in between my psych classes at Tolman Hall or maybe skip those classes altogether, buy the Black Lightning notes, and just hang out here for hours until I was ready to get a slice of Blondie's Pizza on the other end of campus. There actually isn't much atmosphere in here, just a convenient location which I don't underestimate and of course, a lot of outlets for the perpetual laptoppers. They have the standard sammies and salads, but I just came in here for a $4 Vanilla Latte (photo: http://bit.ly/2PL4YzZ) which took quite a while to brew and pour. It was satisfying, but man, I'll be late for class now. Later. COFFEE - 3 stars...satisfying but not a particularly rich brew AMBIANCE - 2.5 stars...not that much to speak of. SERVICE - 2.5 stars...a bit slow and impersonal TOTAL - 3 stars...location, location, location RELATED - If you're looking for dining options in Berkeley, here's a list of places I've tried and reviewed: http://bit.ly/2N4anQA read more

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love yali's- so close to my apt. great service- literally the time between ordering and receiving is maybe max 4 min. everything tastes so yummy and the large is thankfully not 8 dollars like all these other coffee shops- i think large is 6 dollars or something. everyone is very smiley and it's just an overall good time there whenever i order. come early morning for peak quietness read more

Yo I've tried to give this place a chance so many times, but it's just not good. Their espresso has a really odd aftertaste, and everything else there I've tried is exceptionally bad too (smoothies, brownies, orange juice). The only thing that is good is their bagels with cream cheese those are amazing. It's a nice little cafe and usually not too busy, but none of the outlets work. Also a few times they've forgotten to make my order or given it to someone else and then when I've asked them where it was they look at me like they've never seen me before/like I'm trying to get free stuff. read more

I'm so impressed with my nice iced tea, served on a metal tray. Outside and inside socially distanced seating, with a big old bottle of hand sanitizer on offer at the entrance. Friendly service! read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Iced tea, served on a tray - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Delightful. Looked the coffee, staff, and atmosphere. Reasonably priced for Berkeley. Haven't tried the food yet, though. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Mocha Caramel Latte - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

I always go to the Yali's in Stanley Hall or micro Yali's in VLSB because of their convenient location in the Berkely campus. I came here for the first time after two years because I had a morning class in Tolman hall and arrived at Yali's at 8:53. I was third in line and made it to my class right at 9:10. I was able to get my caffeine fix and get to class on time, thank you Yali's! At all three Yali's cafes, the baristas are insanely friendly and greet you with a smile. Yali's lattes never disappoint because they're not bitter or acidic. I also like the blueberry danish and pumpkin cake. This cafe is spacious and has many tables, would be a great place to study. Excited to come back here again! read more

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I come here once a while for quick breakfast. I never stay because I live very close. Drink: I have tried few drink here and all tastes pretty good. My go to drink is soy latte and they do nice latte art on them. My boyfriend usually get americano. It is pretty strong and tastes good however he didn't like ice coffee at all. Service is pretty good. I never had any problem with it. They service many kinds of sandwiches but I never tried them other than salami sandwich that is already made. It is pretty ok sandwich. Only thing that have to be aware is size. Their small is pretty small. I usually go to places and get small and when I order small it is tiny cup so I recommend ordering medium or large. Overall decent place for drinks. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

TRY: THE MOCHI MUFFIN. My go-to spot for a quick pastry on the way to work, or a long afternoon of relaxation spent in the cafe. The WiFi is speedy and reliable, and there are always plenty of seats open (during the summer; can't speak for during the school-year!). read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - My personal favorite-- the mochi muffin! - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

it's a really nice place to sit and eat, with good seating. the coffee is good. i enjoyed coming here

Overall, Yali's is a good place if you need something cheap and quick to eat, but it's not a stand-out. I normally stop at Yali's for a coffee, iced tea, or bagel, as the prices are very cheap and are all between $2-3. Compared to other restaurants and cafes, there are reasonable prices found here. Service is decent! One time my coffee didn't arrive, but one of the workers (non-cashier) didn't even question me and poured me my coffee right away when I let him know. The coffee itself wasn't bad, and the bagel and cream cheese was as expected. There aren't really many bagel flavors to choose from, and they seem to run out of flavors often (so I've heard). To summarize, Yali's is a decent place for quick eats. It has a good study space, so I'd recommend coming here if you want something quick and cheap. read more

Yali's is the place to be (if you're a student or professor and you want solid espresso drinks and tasty crossaints and also you don't want to walk more than a block off campus). I've come here many times over the years and can confirm that the board outside does in fact have clever coffee-related puns that change seasonally. The seating space inside is cozy but not too cozy. Their hours are optimal but not too optimal. Prices are a bit steeper than I'd like but the excellent service and omg so good location make up for it. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

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After some experimentation, I can definitively say that Yali's is my pre-work coffee spot. Even though I come in during the weekdays between 8 and 9am, there's never much of a line, and there's always somewhere to sit--kind of a surprise! I'd expect it to be regularly mobbed considering its close proximity to campus. But there's lots of tables for students to get work done (inside and outside), and while there's always plenty of people camped out with laptops and books, it's not noisy--it's a great study spot. The cashiers are friendly and accommodating. They have the usual suspects on the menu--a lineup of espresso drinks, bagels and pastries (including a one-day-old section), apples and bananas, even boiled eggs! I'm here to review one thing, though--their iced coffee. It is STRONG, and consistently GREAT. If you're looking for a punch of caffeine to wake you up in the morning, Yali's is the place to go, and iced coffee is your order. It's a little expensive--a large is (I think) only 16oz, it's $2.75, and I have to ask them to top it off (they leave a lot of room for cream)--but by god it does the job of waking me up in the morning and getting me focused on the day. I'm sure I'll try more of their menu out in their future, but you can't go wrong with that iced coffee. I haven't found stronger anywhere in downtown Berkeley yet. read more

Food 3/5. Service 4/5. Ambiance 3/5. Bang for your buck 3/5. With Yali Cafe being right next to the UC Berkeley campus, it's a great place to not only grab a tea or coffee to study (free wifi and also faster than other cafes) but it's also great for a quick lunch. However, I was surprised that the menu here differs from the menu from Stanley hall. The other cafe has other sandwiches that don't exists here. For example, I love the prosciutto sandwich on focaccia from the cafe in Stanley. I always recommend getting the smoothies here, and sandwiches are pretty solid. Don't expect anything mind blowing, but this cafe is always consistent and fast. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Everything bagel with cream cheese, onion, tomato, and lettuce. - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Always friendly and always good. They are usually busy but are fast and they have a nice atmosphere.

For all the praise bestowed on Yali's I expected their spouts to pour forth brown gold. Let's pop that balloon right now; run of the mill, I say! Sure, the wifi and outlets are certainly appreciated, the manager runs a tight ship, and the broad windows add a warmth to the ambiance, but it's just so sterile. Might the high markers have gone to Cal? Nostalgia is the culprit! Now I'm aware that there are different kinds of cafes: the ones with ratty sofas with bespectacled Moleskined patrons having ontological debates or reading Nietzsche in a corner, those of the hyper modern, Scandinavian-style ilk with yuppies sipping their ferned lattes listening to Postal Service in their headphones, the laptoppers heaven with loads of plugs and lots of single seats and shitty food because they can. And then there's this one, one that's sadly too nondescript to categorize. Walk on by, byeeeeee... read more

5 stars for consistently delicious latte/cappuccino on Saturday AM. 5 stars for their eco-friendliness!!!! (Cups made from fully renewable resources; plasticware is of the recyclable potato-starch thing, I'm told) 3 stars for their average food. They have lots of windows and natural lighting, a great place to read or study. Convenient location if you've got business on the west side of campus. My Saturday mornings (before a 5 hr class) is made SO MUCH better b/c their lattes, cappuccinos, and bianca have been very good to me. I've only gotten bagels, sandwich and a salad and it's alright. Nothing too exciting... there's one chef and one server, so they can get bogged down if a herd of classmates all enter at once. oops! The one and only restroom is standard, clean, and spacious (in the AM). SO glad we don't need keys that everyone and their germs have touched! Trashcan is strategically positioned near all necessities so that you can pull the knob and toss w/o missing (I don't know why I am sharing my strategy but this is huge people). I can see it being a good place to study if I were back in school again, but I miss warmly dim, cushiony, couch-filled, loungey cafes of my college days... read more

I met my colleague, Kristin, at Yali's today. It was my first time there. Very pleasant service with a big smile. In fact, I asked her if she was smiling because she knew a secret. "I have many secrets..." she panted. Well, a big tip for the college fund! The latte was really strong (but not burnt) and very creamy. It has that cool pattern on the top, only to be seen at another favorite coffee clutch, Mokka. $2.60 for a med cup was fair. Nice and clean with the requisite, well behaved Berkeley dogs in front. A good benign place to meet for business with plenty of table space. Upon leaving, the lovely barista didn't want to tell me her secret. But the Grilled Vegetable with eggplant, zucchini, red onion, and goat cheese spread looked yummy! I'll be back again with my own secrets. read more

The latte was really good, looked good and cost less than I was expecting. Service was prompt and nice. For a take-away experience, my impression was that this is a great little cafe on the corner. Lots of tables, lots of light, and right by the newly built BAMPFA. I'll come try their lunch sometime. read more

Good coffee, good pastries, and a great place to study and get some work done. Mostly dominated by grad students and postdocs as opposed to places like Milano or Strada, which overflow with undergrads. It sometimes can take awhile to get your drink, though. read more

Forgot to mention this earlier, but there's an iPad here with Perkville where you can sign up for an account and everytime you visit Yali's, you can get 10 points! When you hit 100 points, you get a free coffee :) This is a really sweet deal for a coffee-holic like me! I wish they had these at all coffee shops! Also, their soups and chicken pesto paninis always, ALWAYS, hit the spot! Yum. read more

Atmosphere is good, pretty big cafe and lots of seating which is nice compared to the Yali's on campus! As for food, got the poached egg Mediterranean style which came with toast, cucumber, tomato, red onion, and 2 eggs. Decent-nothing too special and it was a little bit pricier. The toast had a nice crunch on the outside and was very soft on the inside though. My internet doesn't connect - but that might just be my computer's fault. Otherwise, a decent study spot although it seems like the ambiance noise is slightly loud read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Poached eggs - Mediterranean plate - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Working from almost any coffee shop near the Berkeley campus is always inspirational because they're usually filled with smart people doing cool things and having insightful conversations. Anyway, I enjoyed working from Yali's. There is lots of light, lots of comfortable-enough seating, and decent free wifi. I got speeds of 10.72 downstream and .78 upstream. I had a tuna melt panini at a reasonable price that was "okay." I've had better, but it was more than edible. I will definitely visit again. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Chopped salad with scoop of tuna salad - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Your average cafe. The paninis are decent, the coffee is decent. It's a pretty good place to work, although outlets are a bit scarce.

I really enjoy this little cafe. It's the perfect stop to grab coffee and a small bite on the way to classes/work or even to grab a table to chat with a friend. It's location is spot on for students and faculty, being across the street from campus just below Li Ka Shing. It's also warm inside on a cold day, and despite its moderate size still maintains that small cafe feel. The wifi has always been decent, and there are a good smattering of outlets throughout the place. I've ordered almost all of their vegetarian offerings and here are the ones that stood out: -Grab n Go vegetarian sandwich: A+ It is pesto avocado cheddar heaven, and the seeded wheat bread they serve it on is perfect. -Breakfast Bagel with cream cheese: Great for a quick breakfast and inexpensive! -Mushroom Panini: Not recommended. It's boring, mushy, and the mushroom isn't seasoned. Service here has rarely been poor, and often is great. If you need a cafe by campus I would definitely give this one a shot. It's convenient, has coffee, decent food, and wifi, and is right next to campus. The only downside is it closes early (6pm). read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Breakfast bagel (cream cheese option) with no onions! - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California

Wifi password is yaliscafe. The tables are a nice size for studying. I ordered the chicken club sandwich, which consisted of avocado and bacon (a few of my favorite things)! It was great - the bread wasn't too hard to bite on, there was flavor in every bite, and I loved the side salad it came with. The dressing was so good I ended up dipping my sandwich in it as well. read more

Yali's Oxford Street Cafe - Chicken club sandwich - Cafes Near Me - Berkeley, California