Nice little spot in the downtown Santa Cruz area. I was actually asking random people on the street where I could sit down and have a nice brunch and after asking 3 different groups, someone was nice enough to recommend Firefly Tavern (as well as other places). Totally glad me and my cousin decided on this place (Yelp helped too). We walk up to the place and notice they have outdoor seating. We opted for Inside and I noticed some cool decor, good choice of music, and a pleasant greeter. We sit down and look over the menu which was a double sided maybe 11x8.5 and my cousin looked over a double sided drink menu. Honestly everything sounded great and looked great when I looked over the photos on Yelp. We got a couple of waters, I got a coffee, and my cousin ordered an IPA. I was really digging the glassware my beverages came in, but can't say as much for the actual coffee. I decided on the blueberry pancakes with lemon curd and a side of bacon and my cousin got the truffle fries. Neither of us were disappointed with our choice - my cousins fries came in a huge bowl and he had to take a lot home. My pancakes were just added to my top 5 - the slices of bacon were thick cut and the pancakes were made with fresh fruit. Something about this cali fruit and it's so refreshing. Waitresses and hostess were super friendly and although service was a little slow, we didn't mind. I'll definitely come back the next time I visit the bay area and you should too if you like a nice spot downtown with some awesome brunch

As Ariel from the classic Disney Princess animations, "What's a fire?! Why does it burn?" Finally, after 33 long years FireFly Tavern has answered our question with great food, and friendly service. It took me hat felt like a year to finally have the opportunity to dine in this trendy spot. If you're familiar with the Firefly Cafe which serves the BEST Bagels. In this Solar System that I couldn't ignore the French fries that were calling my name on their yelp page. With such a hearty and successful first establishment The Tavern had a lot to live up to. Next to the beloved and always poppin breakfast/bruh restaurant The Walnut Ave. Cafe the pressure was on. During my visit early in the evening throughout our dine in experience we unfortunately remained the only customers. However, since we were the only ones that were eating the owner was able to give us more attention. And gave great recommendations and accommodations to what we wanted based off of pictures of their dishes through yelp. Unfortunately one of the items that we wanted was discontinued but were guided to a few modifications and additions to the regular appetizer making it pretty much identical to what we originally wanted which was so sweet of the owner. Exploring the restaurant there's a large bar area and lots of seating arrangements in and outside. The entrees leaned towards a spin of your traditional hearty foods with an Asian Korean-like fusion twist. Everything that was ordered was phenomenal really capturing and taking advantage of the simplicity of and creative Korean elements was well thought out. However, the way this was achieved was through adding sauces that evoked Korean-like-flavors such as similar gochujan, Kalbi , and sesame oil was too overpowering and really really salty for some reason. Portions of food here are huge, so order with caution and remember that it's almost out girl Sumer! Ordering one appetizers and two entrees was way too much for me and my friend which caught us ooff guard because we usually eat a lot and finish what we order leaving no leftovers for the turtles (Save the Turtles). Overall i enjoyed my experience and. Would definitely recommend that you call up Adel as you'll be "Setting Fire to the Rain"

Cool spot, Stopped here on my not cal trip. Check out my visit at: https://www.instagram.com/reel/C7k_hKlNKJe/?igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Follow for more 805 and beyond spots to check out.

Visited this gem in downtown San Jose for a second time. Had dinner around 6:30 and all the booths were taken. They have a few tables outside too which is nice during summer. Last time here I tried the pork shoulder tacos. This time around I ordered their soba noodles. They are served warm in a small bowl for $23. The combination of heat and sweetness was amazing and the chicken and brussel sprouts really nicely complement each other. My only complaint is that the dish was too oily and it doesn't need to be. They can use 50% less oil as otherwise it's an amazing dish. Even though the bowl seemed small for a hungry guy, I left feeling full.

Located in the heart of the busy downtown Santa Cruz. Many restaurants & shops off Pacific Avenue. Nice to be near the parking garage. Friendly staff. Food is made fresh & took some time.

So attentive service. Accommodating our midsize dog outside. Bunch of local beer. Unfortunately the menu was not updated and I had to pivot and pivot. Came here for a quick drink and small bite. Will be back to try larger dishes.

First of all I recommend parking in the parking structure nearby on Soquel at $2 per hour, as street parking is tricky and limited. Firefly Tavern is in a cool walkable part of downtown. Welcoming vibe with attentive, friendly staff and comfortable booth or small table seating. Love the wallpaper both in the dining area and in the clean bathrooms. I tried the $6 POG mimosa which was tasty but not impressive. We ordered the chicken and waffles (4/5-waffle was yummy with fresh berries, fried chicken was also good but dark meat preferred), chilaquiles (4/5 with delicious chile verde sauce and soft fried egg, pickled carrots and onions), and lemon curd blueberry pancakes (5/5-the lemony flavor really came through). We'd definitely come back next time we're visiting the area.

Ambiance: trendy bar restaurant, not very spacious bar table or dining area, good for small groups to hang out, and they have an upstair space for special event Service: friendly and welcoming, served food and water fairly fast Food & Drink: plenty choices on the menu for food, although they ran out quite a few draft beer for the day Arugula Burrata Salad - **** Confit cherry tomatoes, arugula, EVO, lemon, toast, fresh and tasty, recommend Beer Braised Pork Shoulder Tacos - **** Shredded cabbage, Arbol salsa, cotija, red onion, cilantro, flavorful combination, recommend Korean Fried Rice w/House Brisket - **** Fried rice, house-braised brisket, pickled veggies, sesame seeds, gochujang, cilantro, egg, sweet and spicy, recommend Firefly Buttermilk Fried Chicken - **** Mixed spring salad, orange balsamic vinegar, so thin and crispy, recommend Almanac Love Hazy IPA 6.1% - *** light Alvarado St Mai Tai, IPA 6.5% - *** light Big Love Hazy DIPA 9% - **** easy to drink, recommend Fuller's London Pride 4.7% - *** average Ghost Town Cone Goblin 8.5% ABV DIPA - *** strong, not on the menu, a substitute for a ran out draft beer Price: affordable prices and decent food quality, expect $30~$40 per person