Otto’s Uptown Kitchen Lobby Restaurant - (Near Oakland, CA)

2 /5 Cgailsmith15: I’m staying at the Hyatt Kissel and came downstairs for breakfast at the lobby restaurant, Otto’s Uptown Kitchen. I was told it was open seating, so I chose a window four-top. The dining room had about twenty tables, and only one of them was occupied — it was genuinely empty. A server came over, asked if it was “just me,” raised her eyebrows, and told me I had to move to a tiny table away from the windows because they were “expecting it to get busy.” I ate here yesterday at the same time and it wasn’t busy then either, so the explanation felt dismissive and unnecessary. This isn’t about the size of the table — it’s about how a paying hotel guest is treated. Prioritizing hypothetical future customers over someone who is actually seated and ready to dine sends the wrong message. Small moments define hospitality, especially in a hotel, and this one made me feel unwelcome instead of cared for. A simple “of course, sit wherever you’re comfortable” would have made my morning. Instead, it made me question returning again during my stay.

4 /5 Tansy Adelle: The arugula salad is hands down the best item on the menu, followed by the goat cheese ravioli, though the ravioli is very rich with a lot of leeks. the servers Emily and Tami are so friendly and kind. I would not recommend the Cobb salad or the grilled chicken however. I only wished the continuity of the food was better, as it will vary each day depending on which chef is working and the prices were more reasonable.

1 /5 Chester Chua: This was a complete disaster, especially the service. We arrived at past 10am on a Sunday. There were only three tables with a total of fewer than 10 guests. There was a sign indicating the maximum capacity of the restaurant, which I recall is 100-200, so you would expect much better service given that the restaurant was far from full. Yet we waited 10-15 minutes for a table. In the end, we just sat ourselves down. The menu has significantly shrunk since I visited a year ago. The popular chicken and waffles is no longer on the menu. What a shame. It took really long for the two servers to come take our orders. But it took even longer for the food to come, despite the server saying that the food was coming. We waited close to half an hour until we couldn’t wait anymore, so I went up to the server to check. He went into the kitchen and immediately brought out our food. I asked if that meant our food was just sitting in the kitchen this whole time waiting for service, and the server could only apologize. I noticed another table that arrived after us also struggling to get attention. Again, this was when the restaurant was almost empty. I can’t imagine what it would be like when full. Never coming back.

4 /5 Kelvin Jackson: This probably would’ve been amazing if I had remembered to change my egg from poached to anything not runny. Didn’t realize I forgot until it arrived. My mistake sooooooo I ate it.

5 /5 Gabriela Cadena: Enjoyed the sloppy joe sandwich, cobb salad and shishito peppers. The Blond Sangria and Mr. Otto cocktail were balanced and refreshing. Will return.