Polaris Cafe - Emeryville, California

Paola G.

Polaris Cafe is like a big oasis in the middle of a city. This is my new favorite spot to decompress and study. It is very inviting and relaxing. The staff are very nice and accommodating. The prices are reasonable. The vegetarian, breakfast, lunch, pastry and dessert options are a lot. The specials for today are butter chicken and tandoori chicken over basmati rice. I got my drink for $6. I am very glad to see that it is not packed. I can literally just sleep here. It look so peaceful with all the plants and granite tables + the beautiful fountain and scenery out the floor to ceiling windows. I’ll go the extra 20 miles to study here. I really love the concept and would love to have my own like this in the future.

siobhan R.

Love this little cafe! They turn out some delicious flavors. I get the breakfast burrito and it’s fire every time. So many yummy options for lunch too!
The order ahead option is great too. Overall really cool atmosphere too with small little nick nacks and sauces to purchase.

catlover99

One of the best breakfast burritos of my life. Lots of eggs and veggies and they didn't skimp on the sausage. $16 is pricey but so are most things in California. Come here if you get a chance- you won't regret it.

Michael R.

Curb your attitude

This place was close enough to the Amtrak station that I could run in and grab food before going back to board… I had a bit of time but I also had bags i needed to put down. When I realized the door was open about 7 minutes into opening I walked in and pit my bags on the bench on the lefthand side and was immediately asked by the woman with the glasses “we’re not open yet. You can wait with your bags in the lobby.” I didn’t see why that was an issue, but complied anyway.

When I made my order, it was fairly fast and painless, but then, upon picking up and coming back to the station, I actually sat down while waiting for my delayed train and started eating this mess. I ordered the Sunrise, with the plain bagel scooped out and here are the major issues that I found with my order:
- Bagel wasn’t toasted—nor was I asked if I wanted it toasted, which resulted in a soggy bagel
- The mess of the avocado shmear was limey, which made me question if there’s a difference between avocado shmear and avo-lime on the menu
- the egg was over-easy (runny) and not fried like the menu suggested
- there was zero spinach in my bagel
- there was no napkins included with my order, but I’m guessing it was on the side somewhere, just wasn’t communicated to me—that’s considering this was a much messier bagel to eat than I originally expected.

Overall, it tasted great! However the attitude and the miscommunication and getting my order wrong didn’t seem worth the $16.58 I paid for my breakfast. My advice? Be sure to have questions and get answers before you order here if you’re not in a rush to hop on the train.

Martin A. T.

Hong Kong Milk Tea = too sweet and the flavor just isn't right. Large for $6.50 = no bueno. Staff are friendly.

Ashley M.

This place is right across from Amtrak. We were looking for a muffin or something of that sort and a cup of coffee. A quick search in the Waze app landed us here. We were greeted with a very chipper and welcoming staff and a calming atmosphere. You can sit at the tables outside in a lobby type area. I gave the Leeche tea a try. They make and sweeten it over night. It was delicious. There is some type of fruit in the drink as well. Very refreshing fruity sweet tea. But onto the bacon breakfast burrito. I’m not a breakfast person but this was hands down the BEST breakfast burrito/dish I have ever had. My husband said the same. Highly recommended!!!!

Xiaowei W.

Cute, affordable little cafe! It's nice to buy a high quality lunch and not go broke. Great drinks too.

Juniper M.

This is my FAVORITE cafe, any time I can make it over is a special treat. They have such uniquely crafted drinks, and such kind workers. They also have really cool art and tea-esque things for sale in-store!!!! I've gotten yummy syrups from there.