American Bistro

Jacquelyn Pruet

Perfect for what it is. The service here is amazing: thoughtful, kind, and attentive. The variety of food is impressive for a small park bistro, and the quality truly stands out. You can tell the staff cares about both the food and the experience. The parking here is free and plentiful, which makes visiting easy. A good rule of thumb is that if there is parking available, there will be space for you at the bistro. If the lot is full, the place is packed and it is worth coming back at another time. My children loved their bagels, and I loved my tuna. We all had a wonderful time sitting by the lake. I have dietary restrictions, and the staff took them seriously without ever making me feel like a burden. My children can be picky eaters, but every request was met with care and attention, as though it was a pleasure to accommodate us. They wanted us to feel welcome, comfortable, and happy. And we did. In fact, it was some of the best service we had on our entire trip, which made this tiny spot by the lake so memorable. Most of the time when you eat at a park, you do not expect this level of service or this caliber of food. When I first saw the prices online, I rolled my eyes, but after experiencing it firsthand, I can say they are completely warranted. An excellent spot. I cannot wait to come back.

gabeincal

This place honestly never disappoints! I usually take bike rides on the trail and end up grabbing a healthy salad and coffee on the way and the quality of the food always impresses me! Today I’ve got a flan and it was one of the best I’ve ever had! Absolutely recommended!

M. S.

The location of this restaurant is unbeatable. If you enjoy Lakeview dining, do not miss coming here. The food is delicious. We came here after a nice boating session on shoreline lake and ordered avocado toast, chicken asian salad and washed it all down with ginger ale. The staff here is very friendly and welcoming. There is plenty of free parking on site.

Yodaman Solo

I love coming here for breakfast. It’s in a great location inside the Shoreline Park area. The menu items are superb and what better way to fuel up before heading out on a nice long hike. 👍😎

Jeff Meyer

A nice spot to have lunch or a drink and watch folks out on the small lake. My wine country chicken and Brie toasted sandwich was quite good. Prices seem reasonable given the location.

Virginia Huffman

Great location with a lake view. We stop by during our bike rides along the Bay Trail Good cafe menu. Busy on the weekends and holidays. So to avoid crowds come on other days. Can be windy. But they have a wind guard up. Recently added more outdoor tables with umbrellas to accommodate more people.

Arthur Kiyanovski

Food was good, not expensive, place is very nice. In terms of service I felt like I needed to come to ask for things instead of waiters coming to us. However communication with waiters was good.

Burak Efecan Carucci

Great spot for a meal with a view. The food at Shoreline Lake American Bistro was fresh and tasty, and the outdoor seating made it even better. Perfect place to unwind after a walk by the lake.

Bei Yang

We love here for hiking, boating and riding. The restaurant has a good location. The food has a large portion and delicious. You can order breakfast and lunch all day.

The food was decent and perfectly edible, but I came here for more than just a meal — I needed a place to get some work done. Working here with a view of the lake was an absolute pleasure. The surrounding nature is stunning, peaceful, and truly inspiring. A great spot if you want to combine light work with a beautiful, relaxing environment.

A cosy cafe with an awesome view and ambience! Just by the lake side. The food wasn’t great though. We had a turkey club sandwich which was a little dry. Eggs Benedict was good. Chilli scramble wasn’t as tasty either.

We happen to be around on a gloomy misty day and landed here. It’s a family run place by the lake. There is enough space for you to be cosy indoors or sip a cappuccino/ beer with a mesmerizing view of paddle boarders on a chilly evening. We also got an everything pie. It was warm and sweet with a pinch of cinnamon baked with custard and croissants. VIEW FRIENDLY. A great find in the area.

I came to try the cheeseburger after reading Henri's review that they gave undercooked food and didn't ask for how it should be cooked at all. I was expecting a terrible burger and was utterly disappointed. This burger is fine for a cafe. It's a little closer to well done but it's certainly not burnt or raw. However the server also didn't ask me how I would have liked it cooked so I'm dinging a star there. The view is great and I encourage anyone stopping by for the food to enjoy the lake as well.

Nice place to have a cup of coffee. It has good view and coffee tastes good. Great place to have a business meeting too. I’ll come back to try their breakfast / brunch menu next time.

Vadym Pinchuk

The food was decent and perfectly edible, but I came here for more than just a meal — I needed a place to get some work done. Working here with a view of the lake was an absolute pleasure. The surrounding nature is stunning, peaceful, and truly inspiring. A great spot if you want to combine light work with a beautiful, relaxing environment.

Ashwini J

A cosy cafe with an awesome view and ambience! Just by the lake side. The food wasn’t great though. We had a turkey club sandwich which was a little dry. Eggs Benedict was good. Chilli scramble wasn’t as tasty either.

P Who

We happen to be around on a gloomy misty day and landed here. It’s a family run place by the lake. There is enough space for you to be cosy indoors or sip a cappuccino/ beer with a mesmerizing view of paddle boarders on a chilly evening. We also got an everything pie. It was warm and sweet with a pinch of cinnamon baked with custard and croissants. VIEW FRIENDLY. A great find in the area.

Anthony Wolf

I came to try the cheeseburger after reading Henri's review that they gave undercooked food and didn't ask for how it should be cooked at all. I was expecting a terrible burger and was utterly disappointed. This burger is fine for a cafe. It's a little closer to well done but it's certainly not burnt or raw. However the server also didn't ask me how I would have liked it cooked so I'm dinging a star there. The view is great and I encourage anyone stopping by for the food to enjoy the lake as well.

☕ Coffee & Pastries: I only had tea during my visit, but they do have a selection of pastries available. 🏞️ Spacious Seating: The coffee shop offers quite a bit of seating, both indoors and outdoors, which is nice for spreading out and relaxing. 🌊 Lakeside Location: Its location right by Shoreline Lake is a definite plus. It offers a pleasant view and is conveniently next door to the lake rental facilities. 💰 Value: I found the prices to be slightly on the higher side. While this is somewhat understandable given the prime lakeside location, it feels a bit overpriced for what you get. 🚨 Service & Awareness: This was a notable point of concern. While waiting, the door swung open and hit us, and there was no immediate reaction or apology from any staff member. This lack of awareness and regard for customers was quite disappointing. 🤔 Overall: American Bistro has a great location and ample seating, making it a good spot if you're looking for a convenient place near Shoreline Lake. However, the slightly high prices and the concerning lack of staff awareness during the door incident made the experience just "okay" for me.

atmosphere was lovely, there was some workplace having a bbq kind of social event nearby so they were playing fleetwood mac non stop which I adored. the service was lovely. but the bread was rock hard with mine and my friends food like genuinely hurt our gums. BUT the rest of the food was gorg and the service was incredible <333 love from england

Beautiful area to walk around and to sit and look at. That’s the main highlight of this bistro is sitting snd looking at the water and planes fly by. Food was priced at what you’d expect but the overall taste was not too impressive. My double decker club was average. Meat was a little dry. My friend had Eggs Benedict and one egg was done right and the other was over done. I would recommend the Brussels sprouts with the gochujang sauce, but I think it was seasonal so might not be there if you go. Service was semi friendly taking our order but then they don’t attend to you after that. Regular drip coffee is about $4 (3.75 I think) but no free refills. I’d go back for a coffee and maybe a pastry but might pass on food.

Sohrob H

☕ Coffee & Pastries: I only had tea during my visit, but they do have a selection of pastries available. 🏞️ Spacious Seating: The coffee shop offers quite a bit of seating, both indoors and outdoors, which is nice for spreading out and relaxing. 🌊 Lakeside Location: Its location right by Shoreline Lake is a definite plus. It offers a pleasant view and is conveniently next door to the lake rental facilities. 💰 Value: I found the prices to be slightly on the higher side. While this is somewhat understandable given the prime lakeside location, it feels a bit overpriced for what you get. 🚨 Service & Awareness: This was a notable point of concern. While waiting, the door swung open and hit us, and there was no immediate reaction or apology from any staff member. This lack of awareness and regard for customers was quite disappointing. 🤔 Overall: American Bistro has a great location and ample seating, making it a good spot if you're looking for a convenient place near Shoreline Lake. However, the slightly high prices and the concerning lack of staff awareness during the door incident made the experience just "okay" for me.

Humaira H

atmosphere was lovely, there was some workplace having a bbq kind of social event nearby so they were playing fleetwood mac non stop which I adored. the service was lovely. but the bread was rock hard with mine and my friends food like genuinely hurt our gums. BUT the rest of the food was gorg and the service was incredible <333 love from england

Alyssa M

Beautiful area to walk around and to sit and look at. That’s the main highlight of this bistro is sitting snd looking at the water and planes fly by. Food was priced at what you’d expect but the overall taste was not too impressive. My double decker club was average. Meat was a little dry. My friend had Eggs Benedict and one egg was done right and the other was over done. I would recommend the Brussels sprouts with the gochujang sauce, but I think it was seasonal so might not be there if you go. Service was semi friendly taking our order but then they don’t attend to you after that. Regular drip coffee is about $4 (3.75 I think) but no free refills. I’d go back for a coffee and maybe a pastry but might pass on food.

Monique Clark

Found this little gem in Mountain View. It was quiet, relaxing and lots of kite sailing, pedal boating, paddle boarding. The food was ok, a nice, lite lunch menu.

Nikhil Kedia

It’s an expensive yet nice place but I was quite disappointed given the price of everything. I ordered a Shakshouka and a Cortado. The Shakshouka was served as a single slice of Sourdough Bread with Tomato curry on top like an Avocado Toast, with a Paneer slices and potatoes. This is the 1st I’ve seen Shakshouka being served this way. The bread was soggy for obvious reasons. The Cortado was basically a latte since their machine doesn’t make Ristretto. My problem wasn’t the taste of the item or the spin they put on it. But their spin doesn’t justify the price, specially when it’s half service. The staff were nice. Quite disappointed overall. I hope the owner read this. I can see myself frequenting this place.

The food tastes like airplane food. I understand this place offers a nice view by the lake, but its main product is still the food — and they seem to have forgotten that. I ordered the bistro breakfast: the scrambled eggs were completely bland and overcooked, without even a pinch of salt. The potatoes tasted like they were made yesterday, and the bacon was cold and hard. The food was so bad it ruined my mood to enjoy the view.

Anna Z

The food tastes like airplane food. I understand this place offers a nice view by the lake, but its main product is still the food — and they seem to have forgotten that. I ordered the bistro breakfast: the scrambled eggs were completely bland and overcooked, without even a pinch of salt. The potatoes tasted like they were made yesterday, and the bacon was cold and hard. The food was so bad it ruined my mood to enjoy the view.

I hadn't been here since my kids were little (about 10 years ago) and we paddled on the lake and had some forgettable food at the cafe - which at the time was to be expected as it wasn't positioned as "fine dining" or "good food." But after reading the recent article in SF Gate I had lunch here with a friend. We chose to order salmon cakes and carrots harissa, but were told they were no longer on the menu. OK, then we ordered a non alcoholic beer - the cashier had to search for one and we saw her restock the fridge to hand us a warm beer. (Not OK, she should've just said she didn't have any cold ones....) So three strikes so far. Then I settled on a steak frites because it looked delicious in the article. Mine looked absolutely nothing like the photos in the article. It was not the same cut of meat. It was not served with a drizzle of sauce on a beautiful plate....Mine was a sloppy mess of a very thin piece of steak with a strange texture (was wondering if they repurposed veal from the schnitzel sandwich special because it was that thin of a cut) and about a cup of cream peppercorn sauce dumped on top. It was honestly awful. The food was terrible. The service we experienced at the cashier also terrible. The ambiance was however great at the tables outside looking over the lake. I won't be back.

Loni Austin

I hadn't been here since my kids were little (about 10 years ago) and we paddled on the lake and had some forgettable food at the cafe - which at the time was to be expected as it wasn't positioned as "fine dining" or "good food." But after reading the recent article in SF Gate I had lunch here with a friend. We chose to order salmon cakes and carrots harissa, but were told they were no longer on the menu. OK, then we ordered a non alcoholic beer - the cashier had to search for one and we saw her restock the fridge to hand us a warm beer. (Not OK, she should've just said she didn't have any cold ones....) So three strikes so far. Then I settled on a steak frites because it looked delicious in the article. Mine looked absolutely nothing like the photos in the article. It was not the same cut of meat. It was not served with a drizzle of sauce on a beautiful plate....Mine was a sloppy mess of a very thin piece of steak with a strange texture (was wondering if they repurposed veal from the schnitzel sandwich special because it was that thin of a cut) and about a cup of cream peppercorn sauce dumped on top. It was honestly awful. The food was terrible. The service we experienced at the cashier also terrible. The ambiance was however great at the tables outside looking over the lake. I won't be back.