We travel and eat at high end restaurants a lot, and the food here compares most favorably. Both my duck a l’orange and my husband’s filet Eric’s style were excellent, and my portion was twice as large as what you would usually expect. The atmosphere was extremely pleasant, and even the live music, which I’m usually not a fan of, was wonderful. My only regret is that we didn’t discover this place until the last day of the trip - we would’ve eaten here every night. Can’t wait to come back!
Itstravelingash
I am confident to say this is a gem of Idyllwild. Charming, elegant with a sprinkle of mountain charm. This isn't just dinner, it's an experience that dances with that rustic and refined mountain charm. If you are up for a weekend getaway, make a reservation, truly it's worth planning ahead. We were lucky enough to snag a later table, and every minute of the wait was worth it. The food was pure artistry. Each of our pasta dishes (chicken marsala and chicken cordon bleu) had a depth of flavor, rich and aromatic. The dinner bread a lone deserves it's own spot light. Their is a small parking lot dedicated to the restaurant, with additional parking along the road. Again this is part of that mountain charm, that makes time slow down and has us rethinking "normal". The ambiance of the entire experience was cozy, charming and elegant. Made even better by a staff that sets the bar high for friendly, caring and attentive. This mountain gem deserves every bit of a 5-star nod.
Ron Fitzgerald
Service was good and will definitely return!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Fantastech
Perfect dinner spot. Great waitstaff. Nice location. Good ambiance. Food was exceptional and worthy of a return trip when we next head back to Idyllwild. (It was a better meal than we had the following night at another restaurant in town. And even that meal was pretty good!)
Rhonda Higdon
I absolutely loved this place! We were looking for gourmet vegan food to celebrate my birthday. We enjoyed their Red Rock Tofu was superb, baked and covered in vegetables, peppers, and with just a bit of heat to it. We also loved the Vegan Queso dip; it was a bit too hot for me but my friend adored it. And we couldn't stop filling up on their delicious fresh bread and olive oil! There was also a wonderful ambiance, dark but warm with low lighting, and a singer-guitarist strumming the space with tones & tunes that added to the festive feeling of community, of a warm gathering of friends in the forest. I live in the lower desert but this place was so good it's worth making the trip up the mountain just to try it! It was excellent and I will definitely dine there again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Lisa West
Having been making day trips to Idyllwild for decades we decided to stay a weekend. Honestly, it might have been a one and done but then there was Cafe Aroma. ✨️ We seriously thought this was a coffee café and never made it up the road that far on previous visits. But after walking by on a Friday night and seeing how popular this place was we investigated 🔎. Daniel squeezed us in at the bar on a Saturday (sold out seating). The service was 10/10. Drinks were fabulous and the food was delicious. We had the Jacob Filet and Trout. It's a cute quaint upscale (but not pretentious) atmosphere with staff who are super friendly and inviting. Special stars for Daniel! 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 The IS the best restaurant in Idyllwild... hands down. We would consider another trip up the hill for an overnight with a Cafe Aroma reservation.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
566briana
Great restaurant, & Great service, food fantastic I would not hesitate to recommend this restaurant to anyone.we are regularly visitors from England.
Abby Miller
One of the best dining experiences I’ve had. 10/10. (So good that it compelled me to write this review!)
Walked in without knowing much and ended up booking another reservation the next night. I’ve got plans for many more meals here with the insanely high quality of food, service, ambiance and cocktails. This restaurant alone has changed my perspective on dining in Idyllwild. (By the way, if there’s a Chef’s Special of any kind…order it!! The staff and owners are super knowledgeable with cocktails, wine and food pairings and overall menu creativeness.)
Shout out to Riley on her 1st day - unbelievably natural and skilled with customer experience and good energy. (Kendall was a great teacher!)
Shout out to Jacob who was our awesome server on our second night back. So knowledgeable and gave great recs.
And the biggest shoutout of all - the dream team - the owners Eric and Addy!! You’ve created a gem and you should be very proud.
VeganInPHX
Cafe Aroma offers several vegan options. Although I was unfortunately unable to eat my meal at the restaurant, I was able to order takeout (heads up: they said they do not offer takeout when really busy). I really enjoyed the Cashew Fauxfredo. Very flavorful! The portion size was perfect, too.
Lynn Strong
If all you want is atmosphere, this is the place for you. It’s a gorgeous setting; beautiful patio dining and the indoor seating has character and charm but it pretty much ends there. The cocktails were trendy and weak. The trout was an over cooked and salt bomb and our server was curt and low on friendliness. For the price we paid I expect ambience, good food, and welcoming, friendly service. We won’t be going back.
Stumbled upon this gem passing through town. Amazing food, cocktails, service and ambience. A classy but not stuffy nice restaurant in a cabin nestled in the woods. Highly recommend!
gaea woods
Loved it. So cute and such great vegetarian tofu dish. Went for a bachelorette dinner. So fun.
Naomi Carmona Morshead
We sat on the patio with live dogs. One came over, sniffed and started to attempt to lick our food. We were not told we were sitting on the patio; it is covered and indoors. Food is great, but we'll never choose the patio again.
Adrian Twombley
Amazing resturaunt, great menu, the owners and staff are remarkable and the cozy setting is priceless!!!
Willie Garcia
I’ve read so many positive things about this restaurant but unfortunately my experience was different. We waited until our last day in Idyllwild to have dinner here. I ordered a ribeye steak medium rare and when I received it, it looked promising. Unfortunately when I cut into it, it was cooked well done. It must have been a busy night because it took quite some time for someone to come and ask us how our food was. Eventually I was able to tell them that the steak was overcooked and they offered a replacement. The unfortunate part is that my wife basically ate alone as I was waiting for my replacement steak. If she had waited for my new steak to come out then her food would have been cold. When you order a premium item from the menu, you expect them to get it right the first time. Having to wait for a replacement ribeye definitely killed the mood for us. It would have been nice for a slight discount due to our inconvenience, or at least an apology from the manager, however we got neither. Out of my 4 day stay in Idyllwild this was definitely the only bad experience. I’ll definitely be coming back to this beautiful town but not to eat at this establishment.
We travel and eat at high end restaurants a lot, and the food here compares most favorably. Both my duck a l’orange and my husband’s filet Eric’s style were excellent, and my portion was twice as large as what you would usually expect. The atmosphere was extremely pleasant, and even the live music, which I’m usually not a fan of, was wonderful. My only regret is that we didn’t discover this place until the last day of the trip - we would’ve eaten here every night. Can’t wait to come back!
I am confident to say this is a gem of Idyllwild. Charming, elegant with a sprinkle of mountain charm. This isn't just dinner, it's an experience that dances with that rustic and refined mountain charm. If you are up for a weekend getaway, make a reservation, truly it's worth planning ahead. We were lucky enough to snag a later table, and every minute of the wait was worth it. The food was pure artistry. Each of our pasta dishes (chicken marsala and chicken cordon bleu) had a depth of flavor, rich and aromatic. The dinner bread a lone deserves it's own spot light. Their is a small parking lot dedicated to the restaurant, with additional parking along the road. Again this is part of that mountain charm, that makes time slow down and has us rethinking "normal". The ambiance of the entire experience was cozy, charming and elegant. Made even better by a staff that sets the bar high for friendly, caring and attentive. This mountain gem deserves every bit of a 5-star nod.
Service was good and will definitely return!!
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 5
Perfect dinner spot. Great waitstaff. Nice location. Good ambiance. Food was exceptional and worthy of a return trip when we next head back to Idyllwild. (It was a better meal than we had the following night at another restaurant in town. And even that meal was pretty good!)
I absolutely loved this place! We were looking for gourmet vegan food to celebrate my birthday. We enjoyed their Red Rock Tofu was superb, baked and covered in vegetables, peppers, and with just a bit of heat to it. We also loved the Vegan Queso dip; it was a bit too hot for me but my friend adored it. And we couldn't stop filling up on their delicious fresh bread and olive oil! There was also a wonderful ambiance, dark but warm with low lighting, and a singer-guitarist strumming the space with tones & tunes that added to the festive feeling of community, of a warm gathering of friends in the forest. I live in the lower desert but this place was so good it's worth making the trip up the mountain just to try it! It was excellent and I will definitely dine there again!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Having been making day trips to Idyllwild for decades we decided to stay a weekend. Honestly, it might have been a one and done but then there was Cafe Aroma. ✨️ We seriously thought this was a coffee café and never made it up the road that far on previous visits. But after walking by on a Friday night and seeing how popular this place was we investigated 🔎. Daniel squeezed us in at the bar on a Saturday (sold out seating). The service was 10/10. Drinks were fabulous and the food was delicious. We had the Jacob Filet and Trout. It's a cute quaint upscale (but not pretentious) atmosphere with staff who are super friendly and inviting. Special stars for Daniel! 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 The IS the best restaurant in Idyllwild... hands down. We would consider another trip up the hill for an overnight with a Cafe Aroma reservation.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Great restaurant, & Great service, food fantastic I would not hesitate to recommend this restaurant to anyone.we are regularly visitors from England.
One of the best dining experiences I’ve had. 10/10. (So good that it compelled me to write this review!)
Walked in without knowing much and ended up booking another reservation the next night. I’ve got plans for many more meals here with the insanely high quality of food, service, ambiance and cocktails. This restaurant alone has changed my perspective on dining in Idyllwild. (By the way, if there’s a Chef’s Special of any kind…order it!! The staff and owners are super knowledgeable with cocktails, wine and food pairings and overall menu creativeness.)
Shout out to Riley on her 1st day - unbelievably natural and skilled with customer experience and good energy. (Kendall was a great teacher!)
Shout out to Jacob who was our awesome server on our second night back. So knowledgeable and gave great recs.
And the biggest shoutout of all - the dream team - the owners Eric and Addy!! You’ve created a gem and you should be very proud.
Cafe Aroma offers several vegan options. Although I was unfortunately unable to eat my meal at the restaurant, I was able to order takeout (heads up: they said they do not offer takeout when really busy). I really enjoyed the Cashew Fauxfredo. Very flavorful! The portion size was perfect, too.
If all you want is atmosphere, this is the place for you. It’s a gorgeous setting; beautiful patio dining and the indoor seating has character and charm but it pretty much ends there. The cocktails were trendy and weak. The trout was an over cooked and salt bomb and our server was curt and low on friendliness. For the price we paid I expect ambience, good food, and welcoming, friendly service. We won’t be going back.
Restaurantji Recommends
Stumbled upon this gem passing through town. Amazing food, cocktails, service and ambience. A classy but not stuffy nice restaurant in a cabin nestled in the woods. Highly recommend!
Loved it. So cute and such great vegetarian tofu dish. Went for a bachelorette dinner. So fun.
We sat on the patio with live dogs. One came over, sniffed and started to attempt to lick our food. We were not told we were sitting on the patio; it is covered and indoors. Food is great, but we'll never choose the patio again.
Amazing resturaunt, great menu, the owners and staff are remarkable and the cozy setting is priceless!!!
I’ve read so many positive things about this restaurant but unfortunately my experience was different. We waited until our last day in Idyllwild to have dinner here. I ordered a ribeye steak medium rare and when I received it, it looked promising. Unfortunately when I cut into it, it was cooked well done. It must have been a busy night because it took quite some time for someone to come and ask us how our food was. Eventually I was able to tell them that the steak was overcooked and they offered a replacement. The unfortunate part is that my wife basically ate alone as I was waiting for my replacement steak. If she had waited for my new steak to come out then her food would have been cold. When you order a premium item from the menu, you expect them to get it right the first time. Having to wait for a replacement ribeye definitely killed the mood for us. It would have been nice for a slight discount due to our inconvenience, or at least an apology from the manager, however we got neither. Out of my 4 day stay in Idyllwild this was definitely the only bad experience. I’ll definitely be coming back to this beautiful town but not to eat at this establishment.
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