Cafetal Social Club

“Love, love, love this place, especially for brunch – they are open on weekends a lot earlier than anyplace else in the neighborhood.”

“I feel incredibly lucky to have stumbled by this quaint spot on one of my jaunts through SoHo.”

“There are a ton of great coffee places in Nolita, but this place hands down is my favorite.”

Cafetal Social Club

Takes Reservations: Yes
Delivery: Yes
Take-out: Yes
Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
Bike Parking: Yes
Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
Good for Kids: Yes
Good for Groups: Yes
Outdoor Seating: Yes
Waiter Service: Yes
Caters: Yes

Price range.

$$ Price range $11-30

8 reviews

  1. Unprofessional staff.. nonstop chit chats behind the counter while customers are waiting.  worst of all, giving wrong orders to customers.  I felt disrespected.

    Ice cream is soso. nothing special. pricey. place is shabby.

    Will not return.

  2. Oh this place was such a nice surprise! When I walked in, I initially thought I accidentally walked into a deli due to the glass encasement at the register, but it was filled with various flavors of sherbet mostly. Small space but a lot of tables. I ordered chicken with red peppers & onions in a balsamic glaze sauce. It's on the menu as chicken and sausage, but I asked for them to hold the sausage. It was so good -I had to keep myself from *shhhh* licking the plate. Yum. The mango sherbet was a nice choice for dessert before leaving.

  3. I celebrated my New Years Eve here with cousins. I would say I was thrilled with the amazing hospitality we recieved. We ordered few meat and cheese plates and pastas for dinner. we drank wine and rum and coke and champagne. It was a pleasant experience.
    I would reccomend this place to you if you are looking for some casual cafe like place with good Italian food and warm hospitality to hangout.

  4. Great neighborhood joint! I can't believe I lived directly across the street for 6 months and never ventured into this small family owned Italian eatery.

    I ordered a chicken and sausage dish and although it was listed under the pasta section it was served with only peppers and onions, which I didn't totally mind given I ate every last bite (just wish I had read the description more closely on the menu). They slightly overdid it with the balsamic sauce but nothing too too over the top.

    I definitely plan to return to check out more of their pasta entrees and work this Italian cafe into my go to rotation.

  5. My body was in desperate need of some greens after 2 weeks in the BBQ capital of Texas, and the line at Grey Dog was literally out the door. I was on my way up to Lite Delights for a smoothie when I passed by this place. It looked affordable, comfortable, and most importantly – like it could get me food in less than half an hour. I got a Lola Salad – Italian tuna, red onions (I know, I'm sorry co-workers), tomatoes, and arugula. It was $10, which is sadly about par for SoHo, and it was great. It didn't have any more random things than what it listed, wasn't drowned in terrible overflavored dressing (just  light balsamic vinaigrette/olive oil), and came with two little slices of fresh bread as a nice palate cleanser. I felt healthier after eating it already.

    Service is nice and unintrusive. It looked like the kind of place where they would have happily let me sit there for the rest of the afternoon. Plenty of seating for people watching or people interacting. I'd totally come back for a nice break from work!

  6. This is a great cafe to stop by in that reminds me a little bit of western Europe.  The chef is this super gregarious man who makes sure you're happy.  I went at noon on a Saturday and it was completely empty, but as soon as I ordered my homemade meatball sandwich and broccoli rabe as a side (off the menu, and bf got an egg white omelette), the place started filling up with locals who were grabbing coffee or pastries, or hunkering down to some work or reading.  The clientele seemed eclectic for soho.

    It was a bit cumbersome for them to bring me water (the servers were these 2 teenage boys) but my panini was delicious and the chef made the hot sauce we requested himself.  It was a mix of herbs in a chalula type of sauce, and it was really tasty.  They didn't have broccoli rabe on the spot so one of the boys ran to whole foods to get some, and the chef threw in a bunch of garlic and spinach, which I love.

    The place seemed like a regular spot for a lot of people so definitely stop by for some coffee, gelatto, or a panini!

  7. Born and raised in NYC, this is exactly the type of shop we fantasize about when we hear about the "good old days."  I love the no-frills warmth of the staff here, which I got to observe while awaiting the panini we ordered.  I was not ready for the perfection I was about to be served.  I can never eat what we traditionally accept as "panini" these days–the overscorched, processed mess that other places including major chains generate–without feeling like I am doing a culinary disservice.  

    The panini here are made of simple components, and yet each one (including the bread) is delicious and absolutely top-quality, and they are brought together with a touch of warmth into this perfect blend of flavor and textures.  For example, I have never seen a better rendering of fresh mozzarella in a sandwich; gently heated so it was slightly melted, you could taste the creamy milk contained therein, in thick velvet bites.  Top it off with gelato and an espresso and you're good to go; we had an early lunch and left full yet not weighed down, but did not need to eat dinner until very late.

    I cannot stress enough the quality of the ingredients they use here, and how perfectly they are combined.

    Oh, and these guys have great customer service.  Go to Starbucks if you need someone to rattle out "enjoy your drink" and hand you a spill stopper.  Come here if you want real coffee and real food.

  8. The European wicker chairs and neighbourhood communal spirit of conversation and warmth cinched this cafe as a pretheater wine stop over the other nearby Italian bistros in this section of Nolita.

    The charm and ambiance was fifth gear – a casual bistro with no pretense, with old world charm and a promising menu of arrancini, pizzas, panninis, pastas and a good sample of East coast immigrant italian.

    $8 wines were listed only by grape on the menu – but my sangiovese was smooth with fruit.  Not very hungry i had to by pass the eggplant rolitini, the Sunday dinner with meatballs and gravy, and the chicken parm.

    I took the young man's suggestion of calamari which were disappointingly chewy and overcooked.  They were almost very good, but the spicy marinara was excellent, and made me lament not just getting eggplant parmesan, or anything with red sauce.

    A group of Italian men fratenized outside, while inside, the feeling of being in the sincere company of family dominated.

    This cafe gets 5 stars for its wonderful ambiance.
    It's casual not fancy.  My food was a miss, but I'm sure I just ordered the wrong thing.

Rate and write a review

Monday, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Tuesday, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Wednesday, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Thursday, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm
Friday, 8:00 am - 11:30 pm
Saturday, 8:00 am - 11:30 pm
Sunday, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm