AJ's Diner Restaurant & Bar — Restaurant in Havant

First visit after a recommendation, tucked away in Havant near the station. old enough to remember the motorway service chain “AJ’s” so was a little dubious what to expect. We were served by the friendly owner, service was great and nothing was too much trouble. We ordered coffee which came in a mug with free refills brought to us throughout our stay, adding to the American diner experience! The burger I ordered was unreal.. comparable to a proper home cooked burger, chargrilled in a quality brioche bun, stuffed with good “proper” cheese, chunky pickles and topped with pulled pork in the most amazing sauce.. I could go on but it was gone so quickly! Daughter had the chicken burger topped with Macaroni Cheese - equally as delicious, mum had the Chicken Burger - 2 crispy chicken breasts in such a nice coating we thought tasted like stuffing.. really tasty, so much better than any where else we’ve had that are all pretty much the same old crispy chicken. All served with a good portion of fries, hard to explain but really good substantial fries.. cooked perfectly not too crispy and not too soft - another tasty mystery light seasoning on them but so so good (says a lot when you are impressed by a chip right - you will know when you try them!) Then the home made coleslaw- no tiny ramekins here - a huge serving of fresh perfect slaw. The deserts we saw looked huge and so delicious, from French toast, pancakes to pies.. if only we left room! The chef is the co owner, also friendly and cheerful.. and is clearly on to a winner with his twist on classic favourites. This is not your average American Diner chain style grub.. we were all so suprised and will definitely be back, perhaps on the train next time so we can try the boozy shakes! Wishing you a long and well deserved run with this family business guys....

We went to the diner over the weekend and as you go through the door you feel that vintage american diner style through and through. The music is playing and the booths look very authentic too. It went downhill from then. We ordered some cheese bites for starters (mozzarella ones I believe) and they were hollow. As you bit in there was no cheese and you could see through them. For the portion of 3 for the price it's at and the clear quality issue, it was rather a let down. One of our drinks didn't arrive and we had to ask another waitress for it. The milkshake was nice, however serving it in a plastic cup defeats the purpose of having chocolate on top of whipped cream - most of mine went down the cup and I found eating it out with a spoon to be of bad taste therefore left it how it was. The mains came and we both agreed that the best part was the fries which was disappointing as its the easiest part of the meal. I've ordered a burger and the burger was fine however no fireworks there. My partner ordered steak and eggs that come with hash browns as its from breakfast menu, yet he got fries and nobody even told him that was going to happen. He also ordered medium rare for the steak, but it could not have been any more well done - there was no pink visible in sight. For the price of over £40, the meal was underwhelming and left us decisive on not...

Went here yesterday with my other half, our little boy and my mate and what can I say….. Absolutely loved it!!! Great to have something different in Havant. Owners and staff are so friendly and really lovely, in my opinion they go the extra mile and make such an effort, and it certainly makes the experience top notch. Food was absolutely delicious, I had the clucking cheesy chicken burger and it was soooooo good, and who doesn’t love Mac n cheese in a chicken burger. The kids meals are great value and really good portions, my little boy had the smash burger and I ended up eating half of it, also delicious so I can definitely vouch for the burgers aswell :). Also like that the place was really clean.

Would 100000000% recommend going here as you won’t be disappointed!! I’d go as so far as saying you have to go here, lovely people, great food and as it’s a small independent business it’s great to support local, so get yourself down. We will be back very soon and looking forward to also trying to breakfast offering.

Thank you for a great meal...