LACMA Cafe Reviews

Our family, including 4 generations, visited LACMA for the rain room exhibit. After an awesome time in the museum our hungry group showed up at the LACMA Cafe. We were placed at an odd assortment of chairs and tables in the lounge area, doubtful it would meet our needs--wrong! The food and environment were perfect: the end of an amazing morning.

Beautiful L.A. weather, a dance floor, great bands, good music and last but certainly not least, it's FREE!!! You can't beat that!

The food is pretty good, but it is also expensive, also, make sure you closely read the item descriptions. I really enjoyed my ruben sandwich, but my teen age son who ordered a 4 cheese pizza was not expecting spinach, Gorgonzola, and goat cheese. They also charged $2 for a small fountain drink that included no refills.

The LACMA requires at least a 4 hours visit You will find a great place at the Café to reload your batteries Excellent healthy salad bar and of course the staples of American food ( burgers and Pizza)

Kids meal plus a pair of sandwiches with fries and drinks, $37.50. Which would be acceptable given the prime location, but the food was seriously inferior to most art museums I have eaten at in other large cities. The burger I had was allegedly Angus, but had less flavor than a turkey burger without seasoning. My wife's chicken sandwich was under cooked and rubbery. There are other places not too far away to eat, but it was raining the day we visited the museum and we didn't want to move the car and pay parking fees twice. If we had to do it over again, we would have gone without even if we ended up hungry, and held-out for something far more satisfying elsewhere.

What a great location to have a sneaky wine in the afternoon and people watch outside LACMA. Ensure you have your photo taken in amongst the restored street lamps.

The flow is confusing. When entering from the La Brea Tar Pits side (not sure if there is another entrance) it is necessary to squeeze past the check out island. Then there is an area to make selections that looks like a buffet line, but instead employees approach and take orders. They were very nice, but didn't know what some items were when I asked. Sandwich a pastry were tasty.

I took my fiancée here after dinner during Valentine's Day and it was an unforgettable experience. We dined at a restaurant nearby the LACMA lights and I took her here since I heard good things about the place. This cafe has a good vibe to it and awesome couches to chill in. We bought drinks and sat down at one of the long couches and just absorbed the presence of the night. It was a bit cold during night time but luckily there were heaters in certain areas of the cafe. There weren't many people either, even on Valentine's Day, which is a good thing. After we finished our drinks, we went over to the Urban Lights, which were just a few steps away from the cafe. The romantic atmosphere of the lights combined with the vibe of the cafe on Valentine's Day is amazing. I would suggest anyone to take their dates here on any occasion for an awesome night.

We had the pizza, hot dog, and kids chicken fingers and fruit. All was just okay but at least there were tables to sit at as opposed to eating from the food trucks nearby.

Like the LACMA museum, this is a great place to bring your kids. No, not only because they have kids' menus, but have an innovative "create your meal" deals for kids. Good, healthy food (one of the healthiest meals we had in the states), with good service. Nicely complements the great museum!

Very surprised by the quality of this Museum food. Had the grilled lamb skewers (excellent) and seared fish, and pasta in tomato sauce. All the dishes were well done with fresh ingredients.

Exhibits were fun. Seeing Picasso, and surrealism and cubism exhibits were neat. The 3D exhibit had us wear special glasses. There was stereo pictures and 3D videos Highly recommended when in Los Angeles.

Nice place to grab a bite while you are visiting LACMA or La Brea tar pits museums. They have a good spread of "hot meals" as well as a nice salad bar

An excellent cafe adding to the brilliant experience at the museum - very good food and service - highly recommended.

Ordering and gathering food was easy. Table availability was not a hassle. Nicely located near the art buildings. Variety of vegan, veggie and omnivore options.

Make a reservation when you arrive at the museum for two to 2 and a half hours after your arrival. It is a pleasant way to rest, stave off the hunger pangs and enjoy the alfresco dining with a glass of wine and a salad. Avoid the sunny spots unless you are a sun worshiper.

What a treat to have some very delicious coffee, a pastry after a day at the museum. All senses sated with this outing. I welcome going to the café . especially on this rainy afternoon. Lovely spot airy pen and perfect for topping off the visit to LSACMA- don't miss it .

Had a very good turkey sandwich and an iced tea here, a bit pricey but not unexpected at a museum cafe!

We went to LACMA after spending some time at the La Brea Tar Pits & Museum. My friends and family had a large salad, 2 cokes in a bottle, 3 sprites in a cup, 2 chicken sandwiches, small pizza (which wasn't that great), chicken fingers and a hamburger. Please understand, we ordered food for 3 adults and 3 kids (all under 8 years old). And the bill came out to 107 USD. Wow...way way way over priced. A bottle of cheap water came out to 3.28 USD (something you get in a grocery store for about 50 cents !) Do I want to go there again ? Nope...It was Disneyland prices in a cafe next to the tar pits and LA art museum... Ordering food was fairly quick and straight-forward...the girl taking the orders was patient given the fact that I had 3 kids who were starving to death and wanting to eat everything in the restaurant :) The cashier was taking her time adding up all the food ...very slowly so as not to damage her 3 inch gold fingernails...they were pretty gross.

Stopped here for dinks and apps after visiting the LACMA. My wife and I really enjoyed the offerings. Our server, Marissa, enhanced our experience measurably.

LACMA cafe is a good option, maybe the only one, if you're visiting the museum and you do not want to go out. They offer a good variety of cold and warm meals and drinks. The service is professional but improvable. Reasonable prices. A little bit busy in peak hours. Enjoy!!!

The food was excellent. We shared a salad with roasted cauliflower and a beef short ribs sandwich. Both were delish! Wait time was a little long but it was a weekend and quite busy. The server did keep checking back with us. Altogether it was a fine lunch and gave us time to recover so we could go to two more exhibits!

I think a lot of course on what you choose, but overall it's pretty average for the most part and overpriced even for museums.

I ordered the barbecue meat (pork) and really enjoyed it. I had it with fries which was a good accompaniment. It was a generous serving so I took my time to try to finish my food. Price wise, it's a bit pricey but it's convenient when in LACMA, so it's pretty OK.

Really tasty noshes in between looking at art. Stylish, comfortable chairs, interesting beverages and artful dishes.

The LACMA cafe is to be avoided. There are 10 really good food trucks just across the street with fresher, tastier, cheaper food and better service. The cafe was really disappointing. You get in line and their are multiple options: Pizza, hot entree, salad bar sandwiches etc. But, first you must place your order with a roaming food order ticket writer - dumb, inefficient waste of staff. This is required because the service is so SLOW their would be a log-jam if you actually waited for the food. Next you select a drink, pay and seat yourself. 10 - 15 minutes your food arrives - COLD. I ordered a reuben and they "heated" it up for me… it was ICE COLD in the center. I got up and walked back to the grill area and handed it to the chef and told him to stick it int he oven at 400 for 5 - 10 minutes. My friends sandwich was a bit better. So much potential for this space and such a waste. Let one of the food truck vendors take the space over - or better yet rotate the truck vendor through the space for variety. Take the staff to the Getty for lessons! And… it's not cheap. Eat at the other restaurant by the BCAM if you must sit down - it's noisy and expensive - but at least the food over there is palatable.

Only the 4th time we've eaten there and noticed a dropoff in quality and perceived service. Ok, but not great. Monopolistic situation that needs better supervision.

We enjoyed our trip to LACMA. The rain room is one of a kind. All the exhibits were great to check out and informative. I think the Japanese building could get better. Entrance fees + rain room fees is kind of steep but it was worth it. It would be really pricey for a family to visit LACMA. Consider reducing the entrance and other fees.

Tangata provides excellent selection, high quality and fair prices for museum goers. Always a pleasure to dine on the patio rather than indoors.

This cafe offers a variety of interesting food choices in a cafeteria style. You can view the various food as is you were choosing in a cafeteria, but a "waitperson" takes your order and brings your food to the table. I had a caprese panini that was tasty and reasonably priced. Prices here are about 1/2 of the other LACMA eating place called Ray's and Stark.

I was really impressed by this place when we went to LACMA for the Samurai exhibit. They have a really impressive spread for a museum cafe. I had a really tasty carbonara and my wife had a great burger(not a paper thin institutional frozen patty, actual meat that was made into an actual patty by an actual human!). They also had a whole pork loin in a carving station, which I don't think I've seen before at a casual restaurant. Also, they had one of every drink on the planet. Service was quick, less than ten minutes for our food, and the staff was super friendly.

After visiting the museum we decided to stay for a glass of wine, which turned into ordering a superb margarita pizza & lil' bites. The sun chokes were served in a mini cast iron skillet, incredibly delicious! The turnips with pine nuts, garlic & mint, oh so yum! Skipped desert and decided to finish with a super yummy tequila cocktail, "Lucky Day". The mixologists really know what they are doing here!

What a great spot for a beer and a sandwich! The toasted panini was delicious, with plenty of filling - I had the bacon, tomato and avocado one. Washed down with a cold Corona ... Lovely!

This was just what we needed for a refreshing break whilst making our way around the delights of the wonderful LACMA. We had tea and lemon cake and continued our perusing reinvigorated. 

We were passing on the starline red route and heard about this place. Curious to see what it was about we jumped off. We ordered a coffee and the barrister did a good job. The coffee tasted nice and even though we didn't have any the pasteries looked tempting.

One of the best and economical cafes to go to if you are near LACMA. They have almost everything you might require... tea, coffee, drinks, candy, salads, sandwiches, fries and other sides, meals, etc... This was my go to place when I visited the LACMA.

The café is much too small. I had to wait even for a chance to share a table. It was a cold day, and I almost blew away every time someone opened the door. I ordered Dover Sole. Sounds good. It was not. The two tiniest and most tasteless bits of fish I ever saw. Nothing else. If an item on the menu is too small even to pass for an appetizer, this should be made clear to the guest.

We were visiting LACMA and before visiting the Petersen car museum, we had food from the salad bar, which was fresh and inviting. Although we both had the same amount of ingredients, because my husband had potato salad and I had tuna you weigh your salad and get charged by weight. So mine was half the price of my husbands. Not logical. It reminds me of a canteen. We sat outside in the Sun and it is moderately priced.

We took the family to LACMA to see Metropolis II. It was a beautiful day and we walked down to the cafe for lunch. The food was decent and they had a gray selection. It was a bit pricey for what we paid for, but that's life!

What a delightful cafe. Really nicer than a cafe. Great place to eat when at LACMA. Much care and thought goes into the food choices and preparation at LACMA Cafe. Menu changes daily. Try; a panini, the salad bar, a personal pizza, or the entre of the day. When at LACMA, or any museum on Museum Row in Mid-Wilshire, you cannot go wrong eating at the LACMA Cafe!

They have a nice restaurant they you can seat in side or outside to and the cafe inside sitting and out to good food and drinks to

Yes, the prices are typical for a museum but they do have a nice variety at their salad bar and their grilled food. Had a nice panini and a beer to take a break from walking around the museum. When it's not too hot and sunny, you can sit outside above the sculpture garden.

The main museum building in La Bria does not have a cafeteria so LACMA gets sometimes extra crowded. It is a pleasant place to grab a bite and relax while exploring the museums.

There seem to be several restaurant areas at the museum that fall under the rubric of Lacma cafe. I did not go to the sit down reservation restaurant. I went to the cafeteria section. There were several food stations making hot and cold sandwiches and other fare. I chose the well-stocked salad bar. In addition to a terrific variety of fresh vegetables, there were also marinated vegetable salads, artichoke hearts and more. There were hard cooked eggs, beets that tasted fresh cooked, and a variety of seeds and croutons. There were also plenty of meat selections, including a chicken salad that had large chunks of tender chicken, ham cubes, a tasty tuna salad, and real bacon pieces. It was sold by weight and I ended up with a huge stack of food for about $10. You can avoid the expensive drinks by getting their free tap water. That is better for you anyway than carbonated flavored sugar water. My colleague tried a panini which she declared was delicious. We especially liked being able to grab a table outside and enjoy the mild LA winter. As museum restaurants go, this was good quality, good variety and a reasonable price, considering LA prices in general are high.

Fabulous latte and cookie after lunch, enjoyed a break after a wonderful afternoon of viewing the exhibits. Very nice people working in the cafe. A real treat in a beautiful museum.

nothing special here.......pizza,salad,sandwiches,drinks......all as expected and all ok..just your usual uninspired selection.....service was quick and friendly

They have 2 cafe, one es just beside the ticket office with baguetes, paninis and some other fast options, but they have a bigger space with a very nice view, some steps accros in front of the Chinese Building, you can chose your meal, your sides and mix as you prefer, they have good deals and nice food. Great service too!

Often museum food can be uninspired and pricey. This cafe serves very good food at fair prices and even has a lovely salad bar. Made to order. Both indoor and outdoor seating.

a great place to meet your friends prior to going into the museum. traditional "high" museum prices. Our group of over 100 people met here for lunch. Sorry to all the other folks who couldn't find an empty seat at lunchtime. recommended if you don't want to walk outside to the food trucks. MeuterMedia

We came over the LACMA after visiting the Tar Pits and had a good do-it-yourself salad, with a nice variety of options. We had a four-year old with us and she enjoyed the quinoa and fruit, among other things. It's a pleasant space and very convenient to eat here before exploring LACMA.

Museum cafés can be overpriced 'wannabes', catering to a captive crowd, but this cafe was really very good. Wide variety of sandwiches, hot meals and pay by the weight salads. Best feature was very friendly fellow taking orders from the cafeteria style line so we could then sit, and our food was brought to us. Plenty for all ages on the menu, too, eat inside or out, looking over the Calder pieces below!

This is a really nice place to have a glass of wine with a plate of cheese on a warm summer afternoon. Specially when there is some Jazz being played just in front of you on summer Fridays. Every time I come to LA I go there.

The menu was incomprehensible - full of far-fetched names. The actual food was appalling. Absurdly salty and far too little of it. Could have been cooked by a 5-year-old. On top of that they even had the nerve to short-change me. The worst kind of American rip-off. They claim they have a 4.5 rating on Trip Advisor, which appears to have been taken from the museum's rating. Beyond belief.

There's plenty of outdoor seating and if you order anything hot, they'll bring it to your table. Good choice of food. I had a panini and it arrived almost as soon as I sat down. There's a good view and peaceful atmosphere at the outdoor seating. Indoor can be a bit noisy because of the sound echoing round. Clean place and friendly staff. Suitable for kids.

The cafe at LACMA is a nice way to have a lite lunch while visiting the museum. The food is really good, and the prices are typical for the area.

Was in a hurry and need a bite so I went here and was well pleased. Good selection of prepacked or they can make it. Prices were OK for where you are at. Inside seating. Families OK.

I always enjoy a salad bar and this one is good - they weigh it at the till, there was a good choice. Seating was inside and out, not posh but pleasant and clean. I visited a second time when I went to the Petersen across the road because they did not do just plain salads there. N.B. you can get into the cafe without paying the entrance to LACMA so it is also convenient from the park next door & the 'tar pits'.

Waited 45 minutes for a box of French fries. Skip the hot mess and head across the street to the food trucks. Terrible.

We went to see a specific showing at LacaMa It was convenient to eat there. I would say the food was OK and the service was very slow.

If you are visiting the many galleries of the museum, the café is great for a break or even a central meet-up spot in case someone wanders off!

You almost can't go wrong with any choice you make. I favor the brownies, but then, that's me. Others love the salad bar.

The food at the Museum was wonderful. I really enjoyed eating outside. The food was excellent. The service was great!

Although the prices are average ($10 per person or more), the food is good and the paninis are relatively large. The pay by the ounce salad bar looked yummy too.

We had lunch here while visiting the museum.The staff were very friendly and helpful.There was a great selection of cooked and salad meals.The food was delicious if a little bit pricey but worth it.It gets very busy at times but with patience I think everyone gets seated.You can sit inside or outside.

Due to upcoming construction, the Cafe has been replaced with Airstream Café, a fast casual dining experience, opening April 2, 2019 on the Smidt Welcome Plaza, just north of Ray’s. The Airstream Café will be serving a variety of menu options that marry California-fresh ingredients with a familiar diner-inspired fare, including gourmet burgers with Martins famous Potato Rolls, plant-based Beyond Meat vegetarian burgers, salads made from local ingredients, nostalgic desserts, and hand-scooped ice cream floats. The Airstream Café will provide similar fare to offerings that were at the LACMA Café. The Airstream Café will be open Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 11 am to 5 pm; Friday from 11 am to 7 pm; and Saturday and Sunday from 11 am to 6 pm. Visitors are welcome to continue using the tables and chairs in the LACMA Café dining area. A more robust grab-and-go selection that includes sandwiches and salads will now be available at C+M as well as at convenient cart locations throughout the museum.

A great cafe with excellent coffees, two types of hot chocolate and beautiful baked sweets. Comfortable and accommodating! We were happy to step out of the cold and yet be able to see the goings on in the museum courtyard because of the glass walls.

Lots to choose from on the gourmet side. Interesting drinks and dishes. You place your order and pay for it, then get a number to take to your table. A server brings you food out nice and hot.

Eat at the food trucks across the street for better food and value. the only thing the cafe offers is convenience.

Large choice of food but layout was confusing. The food was tasty and for the most part very healthy. However it was crowded even mid afternoon.

Went here as one of the touristy stops to go see the lights, the restaurant seeting isn't in direct view to the lights but its close enough. Its the Los Angeles movie experience most people want to have when they go visit such as city!

Expecting a museum cafe to be MacDonald's pricing is foolish, but sometimes the theory that a hungry visitor will pay whatever the going rate because they have no other options is plain robbery. I had a chicken sandwich, chips, and a sparkling water which I would have expected to pay around $8-10 for since it was a museum cafe. But $15? And every bit of it was prepackaged, not made there. Tip to museum visitors, brown-bag it!

Kids starving, few more exhibits to go - what's a mom to do? Stop off at the LACMA Cafe of course. The kids burger (served by itself on a large plate) is $7.50 - which seems expensive. My bottle of iced tea = $5. My squishy, soggy tuna sandwich = $6.75 - all in for two kids and one adult was about $40. Not outrageous, but not very reasonable either. Still, you pay for location, it was convenient and it was quick so the LACMA Cafe will do in a pinch.

Decided to grab a quick dinner here on our way to a concert down the street at El Ray Theater. The museum was having some sort of Friday night event with live music outside, so there were lots of people. We got in right way without a wait, our waitress was wonderful and friendly. We shared a thin crust pizza and salad and enjoyed everything. Fun to walk through the lampposts after dark as we left.

Had a prosciutto and arugula pizza for lunch. Freshly made to order, with quality ingredients, but frankly, left us still somewhat hungry.

We were hoping the museum would have somewhere nice to eat. It had very little to choose from, employees were extremely unpleasant, and the prices are absurdly unreasonable for the gas-station-style food you get.

They have a large menu, and it is cooked as ordered. I had 1/2 sandwhich and beef/barley soup. It was ok, the salads and pizza looked good. you can eat inside or on the terrace.

It's possible I loved the LACMA Café just because it's located in the middle of a museum that's so friendly to ordinary human beings. But that's not the whole story: the food in this small and well organized place was superbly delicious. I had a Maragarita pizza as good as any since my happy days living in Nice, France a few years ago. The salads and dessert possibilities are just as fresh and interesting as the "main" courses. This isn't a major, full-on dining establishment, but the LACMA Café is exactly what I had hoped for in a great public institution. I'd go back at least once a month if I lived in L.A.

A good place to get some food or drink in between viewing one of their special exhibits and checking out their regular collection of art.

First, you have to wait around to find a server to talk to. Then you have to wait for a table. Then you wait for a menu. Then you ask if they have anything gluten free. Well, they have salads, but not, it seems, at the time you happen to be there. Just plan on going across the street in one direction or the other for food.

I eat here often and enjoy the salads and sandwiches. The prices are moderate. Cafeteria style service. Cooked to order food is brought to your table. Outside seating has views of park and outside art. Only negative is no refills on tea and soda, but if you are a visitor you will want to get back to the art anyway.

We had lunch here after visiting the tar pits. Quick and easy. Usual lunch food. Clean and plenty of tables.

This was my second visit to the cafe and once again I loved the food. The same could not be said for the service, which is inconsistent and always angled towards the tips. No interest to our needs, except when it came to the bill. This is such a pity as the chef deserves a better platform to accompany his clear talent.

The best thing about the LACMA Cafe is the salad bar. Nice fresh salad ingredients; take a plate, pile them and check out. You pay by weight. Only fault I could find was that there was no bread; breadsticks and lavosh are ok, but what's wrong with bread rolls? Good selection of juices (all bottled of course). And there was hot food as well. That didn't look quite as appetising as the gorgeous fresh green asparagus spears,baby tomatoes and other ingredients. Dressings were a bit limited; ranch and caesar only as far as I could see. Sit inside or outdoors

Not sure I'd make a special trip to the cafe at LACMA, but if you're already there it's a nice enough place to have a beverage or a bite to eat. I'd recommend it, for sure.

The layout is counter intuitive- people are bumping into each other. The food choices are ok, but the food is not very tasty and it's over priced. On our recent visit we asked for a piece of bread to go with our salad (there was none at the salad bar). We had to place an order and wait for someone to bring it to a table and were charged $1 extra! I think this is a bit excessive. To top it off the cashier was very unfriendly which added to the aggravation. Not your best choice , maybe last resort if you are starving.

Good variety of offerings including beer and wine. Service was excellent with both indoor and outdoor seating

You’ve seen this before at many museums: one area for prepackaged sandwiches and wraps, another for the salad bar, and lines of people waiting for hot food. I have lunch here as a respite from cruising the big galleries (I get burn-out after a couple hours) and if the weather is nice I sit outside (views of the grounds). In order to save time I prefer the salad bar. The cost is based on weight, and my most recent not-so-big salad cost me nine bucks. Poor value, oh well, but I was back in the galleries quickly without too much extraneous walking around. I would recommend this café for convenience only. Also, go way outside of the standard lunch hours or it might be tough to find seating.

Small cafe with a salad bar, some drinks, and pre-prepared, packaged items. We picked up chicken caesar salads, drinks, and headed to an outdoor table. The salad was surprisingly fresh and good. The lettuce was crispy and the chicken was tasty. We didn't waste valuable art viewing time waiting to be served. Suited our purposes very well!

From the salads, wine offerings and pizza selections- a good place to have a bite and drink after seeing the exhibits.

A nice place to visit and spend some time. Lots of art. Some galleries allows public to take pictures.

Friday nights in the summer, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art puts on a jazz concert to go along with their great food offerings. My kid thought this might be a treat. And it sure was. Great jazz started at 6. Our reservations were for 7:30. We got there at 6:30, met some friends and we were served unique hand-crafted drinks by my son. The drinks are a little pricey, but delicious, and almost worth the experience. We were seated at our table at a few minutes past 7:30. Waiter was right on us, asking not if we wanted more drinks, but rather what type of water we would like! Service was great. Food was incredibly good. An overall excellent experienc, and among the best meals I've had in L.A.

We had a delightful lunch after going through LACMA. Service was excellent, wine was delicious and our meal (I had a salad with lobster meat). delightful.

Came here because there is no cafe in the Page Museum. Food was decent. It was a little confusing as there really is no line to order or pay. Sodas - not refillable. Well, they are but they charge you slightly less than the first cup. The kids ordered pizza and it must have been good as they ate the whole thing. About 4 pieces. It was decent for cafe food. You have to go downstairs and through the cafe to get to the bathrooms. Convenient as you would have to walk across the street and a ways to get anything else to eat.

The LACMA cafe is convenient for the hungry visitor and offers a good selection of meal choices. Whilst we enjoyed what we chose we did think it was a bit pricey. Trading on its position?