The Liberty Cafe - Cortland Avenue - Bernal Heights - San Francisco - CA

The Liberty Cafe, 410 Cortland Avenue, San Francisco, CA 94110, (415) 695-8777

Friendly neighbourhood feel, Toasty Aromas, Superb Eggs Florentine, On-site Bakery.	< Upsides	No reservations. You may have to wait for a table. Some staff seem friendlier & more competent than others.
	Downsides >

Does Liberty Cafe serve the Best Eggs Florentine in San Francisco?


On Saturday I stumbled across a little gem of a Cafe in somebody else's hood, situated on Cortland Avenue, at the heart of Bernal Heights in the outskirts of San Francisco. This a popular place as you can see from the crowds waiting for a table.


If the truth was told, it was really too hot for an eggy brunch dish, but fate intervened when my friend, P and I decided we should should share the Eggs Florentine (like a Benedict but with spinach instead of bacon). Boy, are we glad we did. This was the best version of my favourite brunch dish I have had in a long, long time.
Everything was perfectly balanced and cooked just right. The spinach still had some vibrancy, the sauce didn't overpower, the egg had just the desired amount of gloopy yolk, the muffin wasn't soggy at all. It was a rendition of a rich dish that seemed to taste much lighter than usual. I'd definitely go back to The Liberty Cafe just for these little beauties. Perfect! I am already dreaming of them. Next time, no sharing.


The soup, a puree of red pepper topped with creme fraiche, was served chilled which suited the weather, uncharacteristically hot for a San Francisco summer. It looked pretty and it was ok, if a little bitter. The creme fraiche, that might have mellowed it out, was too thick to blend with the soup. Just fine, but by no means spectacular.
Tucked behind at the back of the Liberty Cafe, is the Cottage Bakery where you can buy bread. All the bread served in the Cafe is baked here too. (With the exception of the English Muffins which are by Thomas')


In the Cafe you can try a selection of their bread by ordering a basket of it with butter and a sharp but sweet strawberry jam. For $5 you could fill quite a few bellies. You are given a basket packed with six huge slices of toasted homemade bread. Challa, wholemeal, walnut, currant, raisin-orange and corn. It's a great way of sampling the goodies before heading to the bakery at the back of the Cafe for a take-home loaf.

Liberty Cafe - smells overwhelmingly of toast and makes great Eggs Florentine. I'll definitely be back!



PS. This review was First Impression If you think you know of another Bay Area brunch spot that you think can outdo Liberty's Eggs Florentine then please share with a comment.

Other bloggers visit The Liberty Cafe but none of them say much about the food: Le blog d'une voyageuse de femme - Boing Boing - Rabbit Blog

So here are some other views of dining at the Liberty Cafe Citysearch - Yelp - SF Survey - Chowhound

Tagged in Food Restaurants Review San Francisco First+Impressions

The Liberty Cafe - Cortland Avenue - Bernal Heights - San Francisco - CA