Les ([info]tenacious_snail) wrote in [info]mountain_view,
@ 2008-10-23 14:01:00
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Bodrum Cafe, California and Castro
I went to lunch at Bodrum Cafe today, and had an utterly yummy swordfish kebab. I hope to go back there before they close.

My lunch companion has lived in Mountain View for more years than I, and we were discussing the number of restaurants that have been in that location-- Castro Point, an oyster bar, a sports bar, a bakery/pastry place, and Weinerschnitzl. I've often heard the restaurant referred to as "the place that used to be the Weinerschnitzl." When WAS it a Weinerschnitzl, and for how long? Was it another restaurant before that? Did it have columns back when it was a Weinerschnitzl?

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[info]mizcrank
2008-10-23 09:05 pm UTC (link)
it changed over from Weinersnitzel early this decade, can't remember the year for sure.

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[info]therobbergirl
2008-10-23 09:07 pm UTC (link)
Oh gosh, I remember getting fries at that Weinerschnitzl when my husband worked at Best Internet!

*thinking* That would've been 1995. The restaurant looked old then so I assume it had been there for quite awhile before then.

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[info]sarahnade
2008-10-23 09:17 pm UTC (link)
It was a Weinershnitzl until... gosh, I wanna say 2002 or 3? (I moved here in 2001, so I don't know what it was before that.) Then it sat vacant for a long time (like 2 years) before they remodeled it and it became the sports bar, which is when they added the columns. Then I think at an Art and Wine festival soon after they opened, they were allowing patrons to walk around with alcohol, which is a big no-no. So I think they got fined and switched owners to the oyster bar. I don't recall it being a bakery/pastry place. I stopped paying attention after it turned int othe oyster bar.

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[info]si_anenome
2008-10-23 09:58 pm UTC (link)
I have lived here 40 years & don't remember it being anything but a hot dog place (and yes, the decor was pretty much the same). It closed within the last 5 years or so... haven't been to it since. If you throw a penny on Castro you'll hit at least one Mediterranean place. The street goes in cycles, and Mediterranean is the current trend.

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[info]tenacious_snail
2008-10-23 10:06 pm UTC (link)
Yeah, Mediterranean does seem to be quite the trend. But the recently place next to the Mongolian BBQ has already come and gone, I believe. Bodrum Cafe was a LOT nicer than the Mediterrean Grill that I went to closer to Amici's.

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[info]si_anenome
2008-10-23 10:26 pm UTC (link)
Interesting. I like the Mediterranean Grill (near Amici's/Starbucks) and also like the place at the other end of the street (where Double Rainbow used to be). Never tried Bodrum.

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[info]tenacious_snail
2008-10-23 10:29 pm UTC (link)
I liked Mediterranean Grill, in the "its tasty and I'd go back there" kind of way. This was more of the "nice decor, tablecloths, waiters refilling our water" sort of place, more posh.

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[info]brooksmoses
2008-10-24 06:11 pm UTC (link)
The Diyar Bistro & Wine Bar (on Castro near Dana, IIRC) is also quite tasty for Mediterranean food; I've eaten there a couple of times and been quite pleased with it.

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[info]zardra
2008-10-23 10:55 pm UTC (link)
The columns were added a few years ago when it became an active restaurant again. That's also when they painted the yellow Weinerschnitzl roof white.

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[info]abigailvr
2008-10-24 05:57 am UTC (link)
Funny thing was, the columns came up long before it actually became a restaurant again.

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[info]elainegrey
2008-10-23 11:13 pm UTC (link)
I hope to go back there before they close.

I LOL! Too true!

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[info]elainegrey
2008-10-23 11:34 pm UTC (link)
Wienerschnitzel Listed Since: 1985 with a 2001 unhappy review http://dine.com/p/dine/info.cgi?RID=5158

There was a large gap when it was closed -- i'm pretty sure it was closed by 2003 -- and the renovations with the columns, fountains, and the rest of the architectural fusion ... effect happened, and then there seemed to be another pause. (I've wondered if the renovations were for a restaurant that never opened.)

1st and Goal aka First and Goal http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/345034 -- Nov 22, 2006; this PDF says it opened Labor Day 2006 in an article on a new cuisine scene on Castro.

3eight3 aka 383 Cafe http://www.yelp.com/biz/383-cafe-and-oyster-bar-mountain-view -- 05/06/2007 review says "this place apparently opened a few weeks ago" (a June 1, 2007 article in the Voice references 3eight3's nonsensical name)

Castro Pointe http://www.mv-voice.com/news/show_story.php?id=753 -- July 25, 2008

and now Bodrum Cafe.

I think that's exhaustive but the folks at http://mv-hours.easilyamused.org/ might know even better.

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might've missed a few ;)
[info]robstoppable
2008-10-24 10:21 am UTC (link)
The Wienerschnitzel was definitely there at some point in the past 6 years, but yeah, could have closed around 2003.

I confess that I never really kept up on the details of 1st&Goal or 3eight3 b/c they both seemed like they'd be short-lived.

fwiw, 3eight3's name wasn't that nonsensical -- just the address. in the same vein as Cascal's not-so-clever name ;)

y'know what'd be really great? if we could convince the Peninsula Creamery folks to open one on (or just off of) Castro St. If they have enough business in Palo Alto to support both one on University and one at the Stanford Shopping Center then it seems like Downtown MV is a a good bet. Anyone know them?

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[info]nephandijukebox
2008-10-24 08:33 pm UTC (link)
Actually, it was a Wienerschnitzel long before 1985, as I have early childhood memories of the old fashioned peaked roof eat to go only Wienerschintzel on that corner. They tore the old time Wienerschnitzel down in the early 1980s, renamed it the "Original Hamburger Stand" that sold hamburgers AND stuff from the Wienerschitzel menu (go figure, same group owns both chains). It went back to being a "Wienerschnitzel" when I was in Middle School. I used to stop there every day for like 7 years on my way home from Graham and MVHS. I think it closed for good in 2004, I remember it being there before I moved to SF. I'm bummed, now I have to go to Saratoga or Fremont to get Wienerschnitzel.

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[info]warsop
2008-10-24 04:41 am UTC (link)
The Mountain View restaurant guide has a fairly comprehensive list of former restaurants. It's a little bit out-of-date now (Castro Point isn't listed on the former restaurants list yet), but it's usually updated reasonably quickly.

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