STORICO Cafe — Restaurant in Tustin

Safe to say we’re not coming back. TLDR; owners, staff super rude and ruin our experience every time. — We were thrilled to discover this restaurant through a friend and were blown away by the incredible food. Excited to share our new favorite spot, we convinced a group of friends to join us on our next visit.

We had a great time until we asked the woman who was serving us (maybe the owner?) if we could split the bill. She told us it would be a big hassle for her if we did that, which made us feel pretty awkward. She suggested we Venmo each other instead, and we couldn't help but feel like an inconvenience. The interaction left a sour taste in our mouths, which was unfortunate after an otherwise great meal.

After that, we didn't go back for a while, but we decided to give it another shot because the pasta is just too good. — This time, my wife accidentally ordered the wrong dish because all the menu items are in Italian. We told the server about the mix-up and he said he'd see what he could do, but he didn't take the wrong dish away.

When he brought us the new dish, he asked if we wanted the old pasta boxed up, which was kind of confusing. If he had just told us they couldn't take it off the bill, we would have just eaten it. But when the manager (probably the owner's son) came over and started arguing with us, it was very confrontational. He bit his tongue and offered to give us half off the old dish but we declined because we didn't want to pay for three dishes. He stormed away.

The thing is, we felt like the whole situation could have been avoided if they had just been upfront with us about their policy. We weren't trying to cause any trouble, but it seemed like they were being difficult on purpose. It reminded us of another review on here where someones wife accidentally spilled her coffee near the trash and the manager started yelling at her and being really rude, even though she was just trying to explain it was an accident. — All in all, even though the food is amazing, we just can't justify going back to a place where we feel like we're being...

A couple years ago I started a little tradition of taking my kids to this cafe for their birthday. It started out as a cute morning routine where I would let them get a chocolate milk with whipped cream and sprinkles and share a pastry with them like a cinnamon roll. It's been a couple of years now and they have come to LOVE this little birthday daddy date. This past trip was particularly special. Our favorite spot on the couch was wide open and a short line was starting to form behind us so I had my son and daughter rush over to save the spot. They performed their job perfectly! Then I had them take turns standing next to me choosing what they wanted. They passed on the chocolate milk this time and went with gelato. It was 9:15 am and they wanted ice cream?! Man, you can never underestimate a child's capacity for sugar first thing in the morning... I got myself a vanilla latte and it was exactly what I needed to start my day off right!

As I was checking out, Marissa asked me whose birthday it was and gave both my kids special discounts before they were turning 6 and 8! As a single income household in Orange County, special discounts are always well received haha. That extra layer of consideration and generosity made the experience all the more personal. Thanks Marissa! You and your family bring "family-feel" to local, family-business.

There are so many wonderful spots out here but what makes this location uniquely special is their story of overcoming. They opened shortly before COVID. It was all hands on deck between Daniella and the family. They persevered and now they are one of the favorited spots in all of Old Town Tustin. On top of their adorable cafe corner, they have a fantastic restaurant attached, Storico Spaghetteria! Their reviews and pictures say it all--they are BELOVED! If you haven't been, you're missing out if you haven't checked out this wonderful spot. This family is killing it in Old Town Tustin, go and...

First our family ordered drinks and waited for the kitchen to open for dinner. We were severed a milky latte and a peach tea that tasted like pure sugar and no tea. We opted out of sitting for dinner service as we wanted to have a quick meal, so we ordered a salad and a pasta dish for takeout. Unfortunately, we could have sat for dinner service and been provided with a whole meal before our takeout order was made. We do not like to be rude or rush food service and workers, but multiple plates were served for dinner service and two people with to go orders (who ordered after us) were provided meals before ours. When I checked to get an eta on our order, i was told it was still being made and no estimated time was provided. The person who took our order went on a break and returned and realized we were still waiting.

After about 50 minutes and the help from a guy who said “they are still waiting for their order,” we finally received our pasta dish. I had to go to the counter to ask for the salad in our order. The pasta was cold when we opened it in the car and lacked sauce. The salad was average and the cheese it came with was minimal.No napkins were provided.

The kitchen seems to lack an organization for receiving or completing orders based on our experience of watching them fumble with order receipts from their open kitchen and as stated by someone else’s review that the chef does as he pleases. The restaurant is very cute and the coffee is usually good, must have been...