Pavilion Cafe

Reviews

• Regan T.

  star star star star star_border 12 July 2026

  My praise for UCDMC's Pavilion Cafe comes primarily from its convenience. It's located right in the main hospital and is open 20 hours a day, making it a great choice for hospital employees and anyone who lives in the immediate area. Does it absolutely provide the highest quality meals I've ever had? No, of course not. It is very much a cafeteria (everything with the exception of the hot grill pre-cooked and prepped). But for hospital food, which tends to have a bad rap, it's pretty delicious. In particular I'm a fan of the Rotisserie options, especially the Nourish menu that features fresh entrees with a farm-to-fork vibe. The Wok and Grill are also ok depending on what's on the menu. The Rotisserie and Wok are only open on weekdays. Everything else, including the salad bar (you pay to fill your box, not by weight; the box has to close before you pay), Grill, and Deli is open daily.
  
  Please note the following menu items are subject to change. For example, Tuesdays used to feature tacos (the pork belly were my fav) but they changed it and currently they only have burrito bowls.
  
  ROTISSERIE: Menu rotates on a daily basis. My favorites are the adobo pork with larb and pancit on Wednesdays. Close seconds would be the cavatappi alfredo and baked ziti on Thursdays and burrito bowls on Tuesdays. There's always a variety of side dishes (salads, mac & cheese, roasted vegetables, etc.) that are interesting and varied. This section usually features some sort of vegetarian/vegan entree option as well, which is amazing. I would stay away from the roast chicken (VERY tough and dry; I couldn't finish it). The Al Pastor burrito bowl is also meh (it tastes like BBQ sauce, so if you are a fan, you might like it... but if you're like me and don't, stick with the Carne Asada or Tofu Chorizo).
  
  WOK: Usually some sort of Asian-inspired dish like orange chicken or beef with broccoli. Not as tasty as Panda Express, but similar in style. I find mostly it is over salted or too too sweet, rather than more balanced. The noodles are bland. The only time I visit this station is on Thursdays when they have falafel pita and feta fries! I haven't tried the lamb because I didn't like it when they used to have Indian curries at the rotisserie. But that is also an option if you need meat.
  
  GRILL: There's a variety of things that are made to order like burgers, fries, patty melts (my personal favorite on sourdough!), grilled cheese, etc. This menu is relatively stable, I haven't seen it change in a while. If you come in before 9:30am, I think, they have breakfast items like pancakes, scrambled eggs, and sausage. The breakfast is just ok, I wouldn't get it again. The grill usually has the longest wait because there's only one line cook and orders get backed up. I only come here if there's absolutely nothing else to get that day.
  
  DELI: The menu does change supposedly every day, but they are rather unmemorable. I like the Broadway Sandwich which is essentially a bacon turkey sandwich. Some of the grab & go boxes are good (like the hummus one) but insanely overpriced--$6 I think? For that, you can get a hot entree from the rotisserie...
  
  SOUP: Offered 7 days a week and changes every day. They are mostly unexceptional, but a great price ($2.15 after tax). The bread you might be tempted to get, situated right next to the soup pots, is $0.65 extra; not worth it for the quality. The only time I get soup is on Chicken Gumbo on Tuesdays or Clam Chowder on Fridays. Everything else is a pass.
  
  SALAD BAR: Extensive, and options rotate depending on what they have. Some protein options also available, like cubed chicken breast, tofu, edadame. I love their noodle salad with the sesame dressing but it's only available sometimes. It's pricey for what it is. The boxes are pretty small and don't fit much, but if you really pack your ingredients in there, you might get your money's worth.
  
  DESSERT: Array of lemon bars, brownies, cookies (the custom frosted sugar cookies are adorable! They are usually seasonal so they often have Easter shapes, Valentine's Day hearts, Halloween, etc.). Some packaged muffins and cakes as well. They have refrigerated puddings and Jello in the fridge.
  
  DRINKS: Bubly (sparkling water), bottled water, a soda fountain, and some other bottled drinks like juice.
  
  MISCELLANEOUS: As with any cafeteria, they also have a variety of packaged snacks (nuts, jerky, chips), fresh fruit (apples and bananas and whatever's in season like peaches sometimes), yogurt, cheese sticks, and so on. It's quite extensive.
  
  The reason I'm docking a star is because sometimes the employees are extremely uninformed. Don't get me wrong, they are mostly nice and call you sweetie, but once I overheard a server tell someone the pork al pastor was chicken--which could be bad for allergy/religious reasons. One person at checkout overcharged me because I had both a salad and entree, but the combo was supposed to be cheaper. Then they argued with me so I just paid...

• Troy T.

  star star star star_border star_border 2 July 2026

  I often visit here during lunch hours.  I do understand that during that time, I can expect this (or any cafe) to be busy.  You have a mixture of different people here for different reasons....  Nurses, doctors, visitors, and maybe some random people that wants to eat there.  
  
  The food is pretty consistent, like the burgers, fries, salad bar, soups, pizzas, etc.....  And for the most part, all the food they make is pretty good as far as taste and quality.  
  
  What is a hit or miss is the food workers behind there.  Some, though they have worked there for a long time, still can't manage their time.  There are some cooks that are slow and MOVE slow.  Really nothing to do with safety, or under/over cooked food.  It seems like their soul is not in their body at work.  Example: I'm in line and I order just regular fries, the 7 people ahead of me orders burgers (and burgers are being cooked), there is fries readily available for you to serve, PLEASE give me my fries!  It'll cut my time to pay and eat, rather than watching you watch the burgers being cooked and standing there for minutes on end.  Do something, multi-task!

• Arnel E.

  star star star star star 30 June 2026

  this is UCDMC's cafeteria.
  
  i am only going to mention the overnight schedule as that's what I'm familiar with.
  
  the cafeteria closes at 8PM and re-opens briefly from 11PM until 12AM serving cold sandwiches,  freshly baked pizza,  soup of the day,  a salad bar, drinks (bottled, canned & soda fountain) including coffee & tea and other packaged food items.  
  
  they open the doors again from 1AM to 4AM but this time the grill is open for items such as burgers, omelets, fries & breakfast fare. they also serve hot food of the day near the salad bar. i know for sure they always have Taco Tuesdays and they serve lamb shawarma and lamb curry on other days.

• Amanda R.

  star star_border star_border star_border star_border 27 June 2026

  Wouldn't have given any stars but Yelp requires at least one. The Grilled Cheese was disgusting and had way too much butter on it. The man who made it around 1:00 pm today was the rudest person I've ever experienced with in customer service.
  
  When I first placed my order, I just wanted french fries. As I was waiting I noticed that Grilled Cheese sandwiches were being made so I asked the guy who was making the french fries if it was too late to order a Grilled Cheese. The guy told me - let me check with the guy on the grill. When he asked the guy on the grill he flat out ignored him. Then turns to me and says - didn't you just order french fries? I said yes, but I'd like a grilled cheese if it's not too late, I can move back to end of the line if you'd like me to. He didn't even answer me, just turned back around toward the grill!!! The man making my french fries told me - don't worry we will make you one.
  
  Finally when the guy at the grill called - Grilled Cheese, the man behind me who was waiting for his Grilled Cheese said - please give it to her (me). I told the man I didn't mind waiting until the end of the line and he said - no, please take it. That man at the grill was so rude to you!! That made me feel better, I'm not at the hospital to eat by choice, I'm here because a loved one is ill so the last thing I need is a horrible attitude from the grill chef and a nasty sandwich.

• Amelia M.

  star star star_border star_border star_border 22 June 2026

  This place is always packed seems under staffed. Food is okay. Kinda pricey. I'm writing this review based on today. I ordered the cheeseburger and fries and it was good until I found a black hair about a inch long in it. I had to spit it out and throw it away.