Galeria Cafe — Restaurant in Jersey City

I love this family shop. The new owners are very warm and welcoming. I have missed the taste of Yucca soup for many years since I lived in Ecuador and finally had some of their healthy home made yucca with beef soup today. It was perfect! I was actually waiting for chicken soup day, but I waited too late to get it and missed my chance that time. Don’t miss your chance! Come before 3pm or it’s all gone!

I have only a small allowance for lunch so I have been coming to get something each day until I have no more in my pocket. The coffee is not “cheap” as other reviewers said — it is inexpensive yet much better than any other place in town. I think the coffee costs less than the electricity to make it! But the love that the beautiful woman who makes the coffee puts into your cup is rare and priceless.

The chairs are comfortable and the treats are filling and nice. The owner will tell you exactly how many seconds to warm up their cheese bread in the microwave. Empanadas, cookies, arepas, buñelos, and more. Sometimes they have sausages for sale or other limited edition items.

They also have an extensive breakfast and sandwich offering which adds more savory items to the menu than what most coffee shops have. Whether you’re avoiding carbs, if you’re vegetarian or paleo, or if you want a straight sugar hit, this place has great options. Flavors are balanced and not too salty, probably on the less salty and healthier side.

This is a wonderful community place where you can feel comfortable and safe from the cold outdoors while your neighbors gather throughout the day. Also, the son is...

I went to Galeria Cafe with my friend today. Once we got there, my friend went to order an empanada and requested the dipping sauce that comes with it. The owner told her there is no dipping sauce. She explained to him which one it was and he apparently still didn’t know so they had a little back and forth. Something to note is she is a regular. He then told her they close at 5 multiple times it was like 3:50 and the hours online say 7, very odd. He was very rude to my friend. I went to take a call and sat outside and then went back inside and was about to order something but decided against it once he said, “we close at 5.” I said, I know because you’ve mentioned it to my friend multiple times already. I asked him if he was the owner and he said yes. I was like ok, interesting. Since you want to close at 5 so badly, I’m not ordering anything so you can make it 4:30. I’ve never met an owner that wanted to close so early before to the level of making people feel like they weren’t welcome. It’s empty in there and doesn’t seem like it’s making money so might as well change his hours. He needs to understand that well there are a ton of coffee shops in the area that are way better so he should step it up, hire more people, and act like an owner. I won’t be back and I’ll be telling everyone I know about this. We went to Griot Cafe after and it’s a lot more spacious there, friendly, and laid back. I feel bad because my friend felt so uncomfortable and while I was taking my call, she didn’t want to be in there alone with the owner. Anyway, he ended up...

I am surprised I never gave them a review. Bumped into this place since the beginning of Covid.

The service is wonderful and it is a true local spot, they serve some amazing empanadas! The best I ever had. Amazingly crispy and the inside is always tasty.

Latte: I love their method. They use a blender to crush the ice and the mix of coffee and milk is perfect, very strong, but not diluted. Love it.

Cheese and Ham Empanada: Very good chese to ham ratio. Nice quality ingredients and my favorite. I love that they freshy fry it when I order.

Chicken Empanada: With a nice sauce on the side. It is packed with chicken! Nice meaty taste. with the same quality flaky crust. Gramat for chicken lovers and one or two is more than enough to fill you up.

Guava Empanada: Sweet and different than the meaty variety. Very smooth taste with a mixture of cheese. I recommend trying this yourself as the taste is hard to describe, unless you ate Gauva before!

Pandebono: My favorite little cheese snacks! Warm and favorful! The size is also great, as just a few balls will fill you up. At $1 a pop, they are worth it.

Overall, I recommend this place, amazing service, nice owners and staff. Extremely affordable at like 1.50 average empanada. When I am in town, I always stop by here! I usually eat it too quick to take...