Fambrini's Cafe

About Fambrini's Cafe

Fambrini's Cafe is a daytime restaurant on El Camino Real near the California Avenue district. It has been part of the neighborhood since 2011, according to the cafe, which signs its welcome note from owners Nick and Galia. The idea, in the cafe's words, is to capture the feel of eating outdoors: a place to share a meal with friends, coworkers or family on a quiet weekday or a busy weekend morning.

The kitchen makes a point of cooking its own proteins. The cafe says it grills and marinates its chicken breast, tri tip and seafood on site for its salads, bowls and sandwiches. Everything runs on daytime hours. The cafe closes at 3 p.m. every day, so think breakfast, brunch or lunch rather than dinner.

What is on the menu

The menu is long and split into breakfast, salads and bowls, sandwiches, drinks and desserts. Breakfast is served all day. Weekend brunch adds dishes such as a waffle tower and a waffle sandwich.

Breakfast and brunch

Toasts include avocado toast, smoked salmon toast and fresh burrata with basil. There is a croque madame, a lox and bagel board and a Monte Cristo sandwich. Sweet plates cover French toast, buttermilk pancakes and Lotus Biscoff pancakes, along with coconut yogurt and granola. Egg dishes include a goat cheese and asparagus scramble, a smoked salmon scramble, a Rancho steak omelette and a classic Fambrini's breakfast.

Salads, bowls and sandwiches

Salads are built on organic greens. Names on the menu include the vegan Good Vibe, baked pear with prosciutto and gorgonzola, the Carlton chicken, kale Caesar, Cobb, salmon niçoise and caprese with avocado. A section called A Different Approach adds a warm quinoa, kale and asparagus bowl and pasta con pesto.

The sandwich list runs to about twenty choices. Examples include a grilled chicken breast club, turkey pesto, a Hawaiian barbecue turkey, the Parisian, curry chicken salad and Buffalo chicken. A few are served hot, such as the Hell and Paradise, the Cajun and the Jalapeño Bomb.

Drinks and desserts

The coffee bar covers espresso drinks, matcha and chai lattes, a Greek frappé, a matcha rose iced latte and La Colombe cold brew, plus Rishi organic tea and fresh fruit smoothies. Desserts lean toward cheesecakes and Japanese-style crepe cakes in flavors like black sesame, Hokkaido milk, pistachio and matcha. A chocolate-dipped macaroon is marked gluten free.

Menus change, so use these names as a guide and check the website for the current version.

The patio and the room

Outdoor seating is central to the cafe's identity. It describes a garden patio and invites guests to bring their dogs, which makes it one of the easier brunch spots in town for dog owners. The cafe pitches itself for group get-togethers, business meetings and lunch breaks from nearby offices. For parties of eight or more it asks you to call ahead and reserve.

Ordering and catering

Pickup and delivery orders can be placed online through links on the cafe's home page. Catering needs 48 hours of notice. The catering menu offers family-style sandwich boxes with 12 full sandwiches cut in half, which the cafe says feeds roughly 12 to 20 people, plus a deli box with simpler fillings. Family-style salad trays come in two sizes for about 10 to 12 or 15 to 18 people. Orders go to the catering coordinator by phone or to the cafe's email address.

Tips for visiting

The cafe opens a little later on Saturday and Sunday. The site lists 10:30 a.m. in its hours box, though another line on the same page says 10 a.m., so call if timing matters. Weekdays from 9:30 a.m. are calmer.

The cafe is a short walk from the shops and restaurants of California Avenue. The California Avenue Caltrain station is close by too. For more weekend ideas, see our brunch guide. If you are out with a dog, our guide to dog parks and dog-friendly places lists other spots that welcome pets.

Location and getting there

Fambrini's Cafe is at 2500 El Camino Real, Suite 105, Palo Alto, CA 94306, in the California Avenue area of Palo Alto. Our California Avenue guide covers what else is around.

The nearest train stop is the California Avenue Caltrain station, about 0.4 miles away. That is roughly a 9 minute walk.

Parking: street spaces and city garages with posted limits (see parking in Palo Alto).

Hours

Hours from the business's own website, checked October 30, 2026.

What is nearby

• BMO Palo Alto, service business, under 0.1 mi
• Starbird, restaurant, under 0.1 mi
• WilmerHale, firm, under 0.1 mi
• Wells Fargo California Avenue, service business, under 0.1 mi
• Citibank El Camino Real, service business, under 0.1 mi
• College Terrace Library, 0.2 mi
• Bowden Park, 0.4 mi
• Peers Park, 0.5 mi

Other cafes and coffee shops nearby: SIGNAL Coffee (Sunday Pop Up) (under 0.1 mi); UMe Tea (0.1 mi); Backyard Brew (0.1 mi); ZombieRunner Coffee (0.2 mi). Browse the full cafes and coffee shops list.

Before you go

• Weekday mornings bring a rush of commuters and students, so expect a line between about 8 and 9:30 a.m.
• Some cafes limit laptop use at busy times or have few outlets. Ask before settling in for a long work session.
• Hours often change with the school calendar and holidays. Check the cafe's site or map listing before a special trip.

About this listing

Checked October 30, 2026 against Fambrini's Cafe official website; About Us; Breakfast and brunch menu; Catering. How our listings work. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

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