S&S has good deli food at reasonable prices.
Written: Apr 17 '03 (Updated Aug 08 '05)
|
Product Rating:
|
|
| Food and Presentation: |
 |
|
| Ambiance and Decor: |
 |
|
| Quality of Service: |
|
|
|
Pros: Good food, large menu, reasonable prices
Cons: Parking, but hey, this is Cambridge
The Bottom Line: Nice deli, good ambiance, delicious food, parking can be a problem in Cambridge
|
|
|
| modernmarvel's Full Review: S & S Restaurant |
S&S Restaurant has been around for a long time. It offers an extensive menu of deli food and other American dishes.
MENU
S&S markets itself as a deli so expect lots of deli-style food on the menu. They are not kosher and, in fact, many breakfast dishes are served with bacon unless you request otherwise. The menu includes lots of $6-10 entrees that include burgers, sandwiches, salads and other casual fare. They serve breakfast all day and the brunch, which features lots of omelets, is popular.
On my last visit, I had blueberry pancakes ($7.95) that were too big to finish and came with bacon (I substituted home fries) and a small amount of fresh fruit. There were lots of berries in the pancakes and more warm berries sprinkled on top. The pancakes were delicious. A friend ordered the steak and eggs ($10.95) and got a similarly large and delicious portion. All of the dishes at my table arrived hot, attractively arranged and yummy. The quality of the food was consistently high.
My only gripe about the menu is that they don't offer no-fat milk. The closest they could come was 2% milk. Coffee was served with those itty-bitty creamers that have a chemical aftertaste to them. Fresh milk was not an option.
You know a place is large and commercial when they have a web site. S&S's full menu is posted at www.sandsrestaurant.com.
SERVICE
There was a brief wait when we arrived and we had to have all members of our party before we were seated. The hostess was more hurried and efficient than friendly. Once she confirmed that all members of the party had arrived, she hurriedly took us to a table. She later appeared in the middle of our meal to take an extra chair from our table to set up another table. She barely said "excuse me" and was far more focused on turning tables than whether she was bothering guests.
Once we were seated, the waiter was more welcoming. He took our orders in a friendly and efficient manner. He took a few special requests and followed-through perfectly. The food was delivered at the right time and hot. Six people got their entrees at the same time. I would give the service an A+ for efficiency but only a B for friendliness.
DECOR
The restaurant is large but is divided into different rooms which gives it a more intimate feel. The overall feeling is bright and sunny. There are tables and booths that are fairly close together but not horribly on top of each other. Vintage pictures decorate the walls. There is a large deli case for take-out near the queue to get a table. The dining room was very clean.
PATRONS AND AMBIANCE
S&S is definitely a casual place and it is fine to dress down and wear jeans. Most, maybe even all, of the other patrons will also be casually-dressed.
There were lots of families at the S&S for brunch. I didn't notice if there was a kid's menu, however many entree items are as cheap as the kid's menu in other restaurants so a separate menu for children is probably not necessary.
LOCATION AND PHONE
S&S Restaurant
Inman Square
1334 Cambridge Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-354-0777
Inman Square is a vibrant neighborhood full of restaurants, shops and lots of people watching. It is also a neighborhood of confusing one-way streets and scarce parking. S&S maintains its own small parking lots, however they are often full and you may be stuck either cruising the neighborhood looking for street parking on meters or more expensive private lots.
MORE INFORMATION
The restaurant has a web site with directions, menus that can be downloaded and lots of other information. The web site address is: www.sandsrestaurant.com
They have a full bar.
They have function rooms and catering.
They accept all major credit cards.
They are open 7 days a week. Here are the hours from their web site:
• Breakfast: Mon - Fri 7am to 11am (breakfast is served all day)
• Lunch: Mon - Fri 11am to 4pm
• Dinner: Mon - Wed 4pm to 11pm, Thu and Fri 4pm to midnight, Sat 4pm to midnight, Sun 4pm to 10pm
• Brunch: Sat 8am-4pm, Sun 8am-4pm
• Lunch Take-out: Mon - Sat 11am to 4pm, delivery available Mon - Fri 11am to 3pm
• Dinner Take-out: Mon - Wed 4pm to 11pm, Thu and Fri 4pm to midnight, Sat 4pm to midnight, Sun 4pm to 10pm
FINAL RECOMMENDATION
S&S Restaurant is a deli-style American restaurant that serves reasonably cheap, large portions of decent food. There is no edginess, it is just a reliable, neighborhood restaurant.
HUNGRY FOR MORE? TRY THESE BOSTON-AREA RESTAURANTS:
BOSTON: Radius; Caffe Vitoria; Excelsior; Jacob Wirth; Cottonwood Cafe; Imperial Seafood House.
BROOKLINE: Mr. Sushi; Fugakyu; Takeshima; Tsunami; Anna's Taqueria; Zaftigs Delicatessen; Bangkok Bistro; Golden Temple.
NEWTON: Appetito; India Paradise; Blue Ribbon Barbeque; Ice Cream Works; Baker's Best; Bill’s Pizzeria; Cafe Nicolas; Union Street; O’Hara’s; Yeradi’s; Johnny’s Luchonette.
CAMBRIDGE: The Japanese Mall; Jasper White’s Summer Shack.
WEST ROXBURY: Cafe Misono.
BRIGHTON: Tasca.
ESSEX: Woodman’s.
SAUGUS: Kowloon.
CHAIN RESTAURANTS: Not Your Average Joe’s; Bertucci’s; Legal Sea Foods; Cheesecake Factory; Rainforest Cafe; Fire & Ice; Bugaboo Creek Steakhouse; Friendly’s.
COFFEE, BAGELS AND DONUTS: Bruegger’s Bagels; Finagle a Bagel; Dunkin Donuts.
Recommended:
Yes
Kid Friendliness: Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: Yes
Notes, Tips or Menu Recommendations All of the food is great. I loved my blueberry pancakes.
Best Suited For: Friends
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
modernmarvel
|
 - Top 50 |
|
Location: Basking in the Sun
Reviews written: 504
Trusted by: 340 members
About Me:
Can anyone recommend a western family dude ranch for a vacation this summer?
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.