The Nest

Very quick service, friendly staff. Went two nights in a row for dinner and ordered the fish tacos and the smashburger. Both dishes were exceptional; however, they were VERY expensive for what they were. $18 for two tacos is crazy!!!

Lemon pizza is new and tasty. The extra cost hot honey is worth it but it was just coming from a sealed plastic cup. Crispy rice is good too

The Tico salad had only 6 beans, about 5 or 6 pieces of meat and the huge whole leafs of butter lettuce were why the food got 3 stars. I really expected more beans & meat for the price & also think the meat was unflavored. It would be better if they chopped the lettuce even a little as if out on a date there's zero chance of eating that gracefully. It became messy and hard to eat due to the whole leaves. Their Songbird was delicious and the ale my date had was good too according to him. There's no rating spot for the drinks but 5 out of 5 on the drinks at least. This will be a stop in the future when in Ojai looking for a quick drink. The seating area is seat yourself, which is nice, you can choose where you'd like to eat. There's fans above the area and I believe I saw heaters for when the weather is colder. Cute area on the corner faces their main street. Parking on the street is probably easier than in the Plaza they're at as it's rather small for a lot of businesses to share. Clean eatery, nice healthy options, kid friendly environment, give them a try.

Super cute window service eatery serving up delicious, super fresh and healthy dishes. On this trip, I tried the salmon tacos and they were phenomenal! Highly recommend if you’re ever in Ojai to stop by, order some tacos and dine outdoors on their beautiful patio and soak up the California ☀️!

Nice place for comfort food. They have approximately 6 beers on tap and very knowledgeable and helpful selecting a beverage. Plenty of wines to choose from by the glass. During the week they closed at 4pm. I just made it before closing. I had the two fish tacos. The fish was perfectly fried. I definitely will return to try a different dish. No indoor/seating. Approximately 20 covered seats when it rain. Fun place to eat.

What a steal of a meal! I loved this spot. It was a great post Ojai hike meal. The smash burger was INSANE. I love when restaurants have a nice shaded and garden vibe outdoor seating area. Highly recommend for families or couples traveling to Ojai. I even saw the waitress pouring a cocktail with Sparkling bottled Ouachita water...so you know they use the best ingredients possible here! :)

The food and service was good! I got the Gyro burger which was really tasty and the Elote fries which was really flavorful but I couldn’t finish cuz it was a bit much for one person, good for sharing or as a meal itself. My date got the Poke Burrito which I tried and was good as well. I will be back to try their Korean wings next time!

SOOOO delicious! The wait is definitely worth the wait. The brisket tacos were AMAZING. I was left craving round two! Fries were perfectly cooked. The drinks were yum! The seasonal lemonade. The Moody Blue was just like candy. This a a MUST TRY spot. Seriously, worth the long lines!

Ojai's got plenty of great food options, but somehow, we always end up at The Nest. And honestly, we've never regretted it. The open-air patio is a vibe. It's dog-friendly, grapevines are crawling up the walls and a chill playlist matches the easygoing crowd. The food? A little on the pricey side, but you feel the love. Even the fish tacos feel elevated. They're perfectly battered flaky fish, crisp shredded cabbage, and ripe cherry tomatoes that pop. There's real care in every detail. It all just hits. That's why we keep coming back every time we're in town.

The Nest is a very cute spot in downtown Ojai with a terrific healthy Brunch type menu. It's partially self serve and very dog friendly on their cute grapevine covered outdoor patio. To start we ordered a couple of cocktails because hey, it's brunch and we're on vacation . Tried the mai tai and the moody blue. Both cocktails were not only pretty to look at, but very tasty, particularly the mai tai. Then we feasted on the delicious Smashburger, which was Wagyu beef, American cheese, grilled onions, pickles, and their delicious nesty sauce. I really wanted to go for their great looking fries, but instead, I opted for the healthier option of the wonderful arugula side salad. Hubs ordered the Philly cheesesteak sandwich and sadly was not impressed however as it was drowning in a heavy mayonnaise based sauce and not enough, onions and peppers. The fries he had, though were excellent! The menu overall is just awesome, I would love to go back because there are so many more things I would've liked to have tried including their root beer float.....Next time.

We were in Ojai for the day and wanted something refreshing so we shared a CRISPY RICE SALAD ($24) (tamari chicken, crispy rice, cabbage, carrot, snap peas, cilantro, mint, peanuts + yuzu chili dressing). It was alot of chewing involved but the place is nice and they have self-serving water and cups available. There was outdoor and indoor seating and we opened for indoor seating to avoid the heat. Service was quick.

Solid spot for a casual lunch in Ojai. They have a great outdoor seating area as well as a few booths inside. You order at the counter and they bring you your food along with napkins and silverware. There's also a self serve water station. I ordered the kale caesar salad and the french fries. The caesar salad was delicious, especially for having vegan dressing! I added grilled chicken to it and loved the extra crunch from the chickpeas - nice touch. The french fries were a lovely shoestring consistency and super crispy. My brother had been here before and mentioned that he remembers the fries being different in the past but these were even better, so perhaps they made some changes to their menu recently. Either way, I'd recommend checking out The Nest if you're in the area!

Ok let me get this out the way before I continue with the review, the chicken is amazing When I came here on October 15th with my Baby Nephew to try it out because of Tony, I NEVER expected to be begging for more pocket money to buy some more of that chicken. Genuinely one of the best chicken I've EVER tasted, my condolences go to the chef also the nest is very pretty. With much love, Andy

Had a great time visiting Ojai for the first time and stumbled on this restaurant on Yelp. We got the sausage fennel pizza($25) and chicken sammy($24) with the vegan cesar. The pizza had tomato sauce, fennel sausage, mozzarella, ricotta, castelvetrano olives + cremini mushrooms. I loved all the toppings on the pizza but thought the ricotta didn't pair as well with the pizza. It was a well made pizza and definitely shareable between two people. The chicken sandwich was so good!!! The chicken was tender and juicy and I loved the well crispy well seasoned breading. The aioli paired perfectly with the bacon jam with onions which brought out an amazing sweetness. One thing I would change is that I would use pickled red onions instead of the regular red onions they put on the sandwich as well as add some arugula to cut out the heaviness. I would come back to ojai just for the chicken sandwich. I wasn't expecting much from the side salad but I really loved it. The vegan cashew cheese added a salty taste with the well dressed greens. The service was quick and I love how the food came out freshly made and quickly. I loved the outdoor seating which had a lot of plants and greeny.

Love their fish tacos and smash burger. Great spot for a nice lunch. Clean and in the middle of downtown Ojai. Good service. We will be back here for sure.

First time here and I am IN LOVE! The service was okay, not overly friendly but the food and value made me look past that. The fried artichoke hearts were the absolute best that I have ever had. I also had the cauliflower tacos, they were great but even better with their homemade salsa. The dining area was very clean and staff were quick to turn tables. I can not wait to go again.

Visited downtown Ojai and stopped by The Nest for lunch. Cute little restaurant with plenty of outdoor seating in their patio area. So how it works here is you line up to order and pay at the window, and you're given a pager that will buzz once your food is ready for pick up. The girl working the register was super friendly. Unfortunately they ran out of pizza dough right when I stepped up to order. So we ended up ordering: * side house salad - for a side salad, the portion was pretty big! * jalapeno bacon smash burger - the patty was so juicy but a little too salty. The fries were nice and crispy. * calamari tacos - avocado was not ripe. The calamari was good though. * el sully mexican style lager beer They can get pretty busy so I would suggest coming early or later. It got a little uncomfortable towards the end when I had a family of 4 stand next to my table waiting for me to finish eating so they can take over my table...

This was such a fun surprise. We ordered at the window , prices were very reasonable and didn't expect the food to be so good. It was really good, like mouthwatering good. Staff was friendly also. Only negative was that we had to wait for a group to leave to get their table. Normally it may not be an issue but some tables were pulled to set up for a private event in a different area.

This place is no longer enjoyable. They got rid of the little shop. The staff isn't friendly like they deigned deal with the interruption. The food wasn't great and took forever even though it wasn't very busy.

Great service food and experience would def recommend to visit for happy hour or brunch

My friend and I were wine tasting in downtown Ojai and started to get hungry so we looked into restaurants to try. My friend had been to the Nest previously and recommended that we give them a try. I was happy as they had been on my to try list for a while so we walked over for an early dinner. I've heard that this spot gets pretty busy but for such an early dinner around 3pm it was pretty much dead here which worked out to our advantage. Plenty of seating to choose from and the food came out within 5 minutes. Worked out just great as we were starving. This spot you actually order up at a counter and then they give you a pager for you to pickup your food once ready. The gal working the register was nice and quick. She also made our cocktails to order in front of us which I appreciated. The menu here is pretty big to be honest. Lots of tasting looking options and I also loved that they had 5 cocktails on their wall to choose from. I think this restaurant has a good variety of options for any type of eater. Sitting outside was pretty nice and the vibe was very casual and relaxed. The cocktails overall were more like a 3/5. Happy to have tried one but the flavors to me were just okay. I tried their Pear Necessities (cute name). It was fine, nothing special - could have honestly had more of a hint of pear vs what tasted like a lot of lemon. I also think the price point was too steep for them. Cute glass though, so despite being a counter service bar I appreciate that they do serve the drinks in nice glassware. While the cocktails were mid the food was very very good! My favorite bite of the night were the calamari tacos and side of fries. My friend and I devoured these dishes. The fried calamari had a wonderful batter and I loved the chipotle cream. Topped with plenty of cabbage and avocado, it was a great taco. The fries were cooked to perfection and salty so good, loved the aioli dipping sauce. Both the tacos and fries were a 5/5. Another honorable mention was the ahi poke bowl 4/5 in my books. Super fresh and generous portion of ahi tuna. Visually appealing and very tasty, another good dish. Happy to report the food is pretty dang good. I docked one star just because the cocktails seemed pretty mid (at least speaking for mine) my friend did like hers more I think so that's good. Also the price point kind of had me shook. Like other reviews noted I do think it's too pricey for what it is here. When you dine somewhere that is counter service and you aren't waited on, I guess I expect the price point to reflect that. For example two cocktails and the one ahi bowl came to $58. How?! That's almost $20 an item. I still left a generous tip but did feel a bit surprised at what they are charging. Was I happy with my meal? Yes! Service was friendly and the relaxed casual atmosphere was much needed after a long day. But I do think there are other more reasonably priced spots in the area. I think the Nest is a good spot to dine or to sample some smaller bites with friends. Again, really loved the tacos and fries. Also think it's cute that they have an attached grocery / gift store. The findings in there were cute and some reasonable prices. Also clean bathrooms. No issues there.

I love Ojai and I love The Nest! Beautiful patio seating and incredible service, coupled with delicious and fresh food and the most amazing drinks I think we have ever had! The ahi poke bowl is outstanding and the tacos are so good too! Go to The Nest!

The Nest is a great casual brunch spot in Ojai. You place an order at the counter (no Apple pay currently accepted) and just choose a table in the outside seating area. For appetizers, I ordered the spicy shrimp + crispy rice. They have two options- 3 piece or 6 piece but it's a great twist to the usual spicy tuna crispy rice (but with shrimp instead obviously). I would definitely recommend as a shared appetizer for the table! I ordered the Tico salad which is a taco in a salad version- it has all the same ingredients as a taco like ground beef, beans, cheese, tomato and instead of the taco shell, they top the salad with fritos chips. I really liked the added crunch from the fritos chips. The salad dressing they use is thousand island which I thought was the perfect dressing to tie all the flavors together!

We stopped here for lunch! The line was pretty long but it goes by fast! Their food was very good , we got the fried chicken sandwich, it only had bacon not pickles as someone who loves pickles I was not a huge fan but it's a pretty good fried chicken sandwich. Our favorite item on the menu Meza platter which had hummus and some pistachio flavored dip, and. Garlic dip. That was very good. Their smash burger was 10/10! It's a very nice lunch spot we ate outdoors and it was beautiful summary and cozy! 100% recommend

I was in town visiting in-laws and was very much excited to try this place for a late lunch. We arrived a little before 2pm and the line wasn't too long - 5 people ahead of me. I thought it wouldn't be long before I could place my order. I waited in line for 40 minutes to place my order! Quick tip! Call in your food order if you're not ordering any alcohol mixed drinks. I didn't know that when you place a food order, they are also making your mixed drinks on the spot. This created a longer line! I'm starving, my kid is starving, we get the food and it's such a small portion! It's way overpriced! I ordered the crispy rice chicken salad and the chicken were tiny bite size pieces for a toddler. The sauces were overwhelming while the entire entree was underwhelming. We won't be coming back.

One of our favorite places in Ojai. Their food has never disappointed and you get to enjoy a nice view of the mountains of Ojai sitting in their outdoor dining area. I've enjoyed various pizzas and the fried chicken sammy and all have been great. It is slightly spendy, but they are clearly using quality ingredients, so that will cost what it costs. Atmosphere is nice and casual, appropriate for both a date night or a post-beach dinner.

If heaven was in a burger and drink it would be these two. Oh my god I am still reveling over this meal. A friend recommended it to me a while back and I have been itching to go ever since she told me about this burger. It was worth her hype up. Quite easily the best burger I've ever had in my life, no joke. And the horchata... it was out of this world. The flavor, presentation, and concept were so thought out and it was wonderful . Amazing experience at the nest!! If you're in Ojai you have to check it out!

Saw the reviews of this place and I had to come try it myself. The brisket tacos and corn fries were delicious. Will definitely be coming back. Service was fast and easy.

The Beet & Burrata Salad was a *major* glow up for The Nest. While I'd thought of it as a serviceable option for healthy-ish outdoor dining, this meal has turned it into an Ojai destination. The generous helping of Burrata interacted perfectly with the sweetness of the beets and the balsamic. Furthermore, they're adding indoor dining so it will be an option for evenings as well. My only hang up is that you pay an awful lot for what you get. Lunch for two was well over $50 after tip, untenable for a regular spot in the rotation.

Great food selection from pizza, sandwiches, tacos and toast. My favorite is the spicy tuna and fried rice. A delicious coconut margarita and Oaxaca are two drinks I highly recommend. It's pricey here but the food and the views are great. Wonderful and friendly service.

Just delicious. Indoor and outdoor seating, good drinks. Had the steak bites on mashed potatoes and green beans and was blown away from just a small dish. Sage in the mash? Great gravy, just enough. Margarita pizza was so good.

The place is a little pricy. They have an interesting menu. I got the cauliflower tacos and they were probably the best ones I've ever had. At $18 for 2 tacos I'm glad they were. Service was fine and it was a beautiful day so the patio was nice.

Food was delish, sat outside on a hot day but had a nice breeze and service was stellar! Thank you for the birthday candle!

Every single thing that we've had here has been absolutely delicious! They recently-ish, added a smash gyro. Chef's kiss. We take every visitor here and it's never been a miss.

This is a lovely spot for lunch. We rode bikes from Ventura and wanted a refreshing place to dine with healthy food and they delivered. Everything we ordered was delicious: nectarine and burrata salad, watermelon stack with feta, and those unique eliote fries with corn. They have a nice variety of fare: sandwiches, burgers, salads, tacos, pizza. There's also lots to choose from to drink: beer, wine, cocktails, and refreshing drinks (like the lavender lemon). The shaded outdoor patio was nice and made for good people watching. There can be a line, so be prepared. Next door is a cute little store full of interesting knick knacks. Definitely worth a visit.

Unfriendly service when we arrived there at 10 AM because Yelp has it listed as open on their listing. When we mentioned that to the employee, she said defensively "We don't control Yelp." Really? I thought they did. We were just letting them know they might want to make an update to their profile.

Food was good! I had the Avocado toast and an Earl grey honey lemonade. They have patio seating that is partially covered by trees and tables woth umbrellas. My friend had the watermelon stack and said it was good but had too much cheese.

They had run out of matcha, so I ordered a honey lavender cold brew and Riley did an amazing job making it super delicious! I recommend coming here. Satisfied 100%

Amazing burgers and salads. Great place to go for lunch. Lovely outside eating area. There was a spot inside to eat, but it was under renovation. Family owned with amazing service.

My over all experience here was below mid. First, the service was mid because there is no wait staff. You get the same kind of service at a sporting venue or at Six Flags that you do here. You grab a paper menu as you enter, which is very limited, and you place your order at one of three windows. Our meals and drinks were very simple and cost $70 for a lunch for two. You would think that with the meal costing that much, you would get refills, but not. I got a chicken sandwich and fries and my guest got a pasta with shrimp. The chicken sandwich didn't come with much condiments, just some kind of mayonnaise style sauce, some purple onions and pickles. The fries are your basic shoestring potatoes. The pasta sauce and seasoning was delicious, but the pasta itself was very undercooked. I love my pasta al dente, but these noodles were 2 steps away from that. The pasta dish was a shrimp dish and it came with only 7 medium sized shrimp. I ordered their version of and Arnold Palmer, and while the drink looked pretty, there was more ice than drink in the slim, tall glass. I'd say if someone comes here, you should come here more for ambiance and conversation with someone, like a date, that the food or service itself. The setting is beautiful, the outdoor seating was perfect. The tables come with motorized insect propellers to keep the flies away from your food which is an awesome idea. I was even more disappointed to find that many of the food items that people posted on Yelp and gave good reviews on, is not served anymore. The pictures were from an old Brunch menu that they no longer provide. I enjoyed sitting there in conversation with my guest, more than the food or service. I guess, I was just expecting more from a location that is rated more than 4-Stars This is more of a "Tourist Trap" location more than it is for locals, with the price of their menu items.

The food here was DELICIOUS! And we loved the outdoor atmosphere. It was easy to bring young kids.

Smash burger, skinny fries, and the coconut margarita was a perfect combo after our drive from LA. Great portions, cute overall vibe, and very tasty.

The food at the Nest is very hipster unique there were four in our party! You stand in line and then get to a window and order! Seating is outside in a spacious patio like setting. After you order your food they give you a remote signal and when it's ready you pick it up. Our order consisted of GYRO SMASH BURGER SMOKED SALMON CAESAR SALAD FRIED CHICKEN SAMMY The TICO SALAD Large portions very well put together!

food was delicious so was the coconut margarita. Except there's one hair i find in my third taco.... additionally, the ambiance is great here.

Delicious food Great service good fun atmosphere Shaded patio Close to everything !

Visited this place after zipline. Long line and good taste. Mocktail was a great option to me.

The cauliflower tacos were some of the best I've ever had. The flavors were summery and fresh. The Oaxaca cocktail with mezcal went perfectly with the tacos. And the vegan Caesar salad was delish too. Service was excellent and the weather was perfect on the patio.

Came here after my mother in law kept nudging us to come. I hadn't seen any reviews. It kept popping up on my mother in laws account. It was pretty busy when we came. Parking lot was full which was a bummer. We did find parking near by. It is first come first serve seating and all outdoors. We got lucky a couple didn't need the full table so we sat on the other side. There's an order window. Area those get pretty tight as more people go to order. I ordered their watermelon + arugula salad. My hubby got their fried chicken sandwich My mother in law got their ahi poke bowl. My salad was good. I always find arugula overpowering. The vinaigrette they use helps with that. Would have loved more watermelon. My husband enjoyed his chicken sandwich. I tried my mother in laws bowl and I was sad I hadn't seen that before I ordered. It was delicious. I loved everything about it. I was glad when she didn't want to finish it because I took it and finished it. Overall, we enjoyed going. I would go back for that ahi tuna bowl again.

Great fine! Outdoor seating only 3 stars due to the amount of flies, otherwise I would give them four star. Food was fresh and tasty Walk up counter - order food Pick up food. Very informal, but good. Has a cute storefront with cute items inside- Will go again!

Really good. I see what people recommend it. The service was great. The ambiance was a little different vibe from the town but still nice people and delicious food.

The service was great and the food was good. I especially enjoyed the fries. Everything was very fresh. My wife and kids had burgers and they could tell that is was fresh meet. I had the fried chicken sandwich and it was a tad bit dry but I didn't leave any of it on plate...the only downside was that my phone died before I could capture a picture of their food!

I had the jalapeño burger with the Cesar salad. It was really delicious. Only thing is be warned it's about $20-30 per person not including a drink lol plan to spend $40 for lunch almost $30 no drinks. Service was good ambiance was good.

I'll keep this brief. I felt extremely ripped off after dining here. The positive is that the food is very fresh and delicious. But unfortunately the negatives outweigh this. Parking is pretty bad and sparse. Long wait time. Only a few tables available. The worst are the prices. I ordered the gyro smashburger which tasted good but cost $22!! No side , no drink included. Photo shows what I received for $22. If you enjoy spending your money this way I do not judge. You've been warned.

Located in the middle of downtown Ojai, The Nest is an outdoor restaurant that serves fresh ingredient comfort food. I ordered the Fried Chicken Sammy. It has a take on chicken and waffles with crispy coating and delicious jam as a topping. I definitely recommend and it's complimented with crispy French fries. The service is good and mellow. You order at the window and pick up the food when your order is ready. The place has a small town feel with it's open air, table seating that fits the vibe of Ojai. The price point for the food is a little higher than the value but it's still delicious. Definitely a place to check out and if I'm ever in the area The Nest would be a spot to potentially stop by for lunch.

Delicious food, nice and cozy place. It's kinda self serving, but they have a huge area so choose a table and sit.

So this visit wasn't as memorable as prior visit. We made a stopped as the line wasn't as long as it used to be. And prior visit, the food was great. Well this time wasn't the same. You order at the window. Which if it's busy, there's going to be a wait as there's only one window for food order. We went with the Sunday brunch menu of the hot fried chicken and waffles, as well as the smoked salmon toast with an added fried egg and a side of fries. Drinks, the Bloody Mary and Oaxaca. First off, everything beside the fries was so salty. The Bloody Mary, which was the reddest I've even seen was very salty. With the added pickle veggies, salt on salt. But the veggies condiment was good though. The smoked salmon toast, wow was SALTY.... Each bite, and the sour dough toast was quite tough. A struggle to cut even with the knife. The fried egg was good though. Overall, the only thing that was quite enjoyable was the fires and the Oaxaca drink. Compared to prior visit, which we all enjoyed. This time was a major bust.

The Nest was a random place I chose to dine at on a whim, and I was not left disappointed. Despite the gloomy weather on a Saturday afternoon, it sure didn't stop people from venturing out and choosing this place to dine at. It was pretty busy, but we didn't have to wait too long to order and for our food to arrive. Customer service is fast and friendly here. I appreciate their hard work trying to tend to everyone on a crazy busy afternoon. Seating was a little tricky and tight! It's mainly outdoor seating with a long community table, bar like seating and some tables. I was worried we wouldn't find a spot, but luckily we found one! We ordered the Harvest Pizza, Pear & Fennel salad, and Focaccia & Dip Trio. The pizza was simple yet so flavorful. It was topped with butternut squash, roasted garlic, crispy sage, mozzarella, parmesan cheese, and rosemary. My favorite part had to be the crispy sage! It was delicate, crispy and complimented the butternut squash. The dough was soft, thin and slightly charred. The Pear & Fennel salad is definitely a shareable one and enough to serve 2-3 people. It was very fresh and I loved the combination of flavors, but I recommend asking for the salad dressing on the side just in case you have leftovers and don't want a soggy salad to go. The Focaccia & Dip trio was my favorite! The pistachio golden raisin pesto dip was amazing. I've never had anything like it, and topping it off with the honey just took it to another level. The focaccia bread was light, fluffy and delicious. Overall, we had a great experience here and the food was great. Looking forward to coming back to try other items on the menu and their yummy looking drinks!