Bartonville Diner — Restaurant in Bartonville

Diners. The very word is evocative of delicious food, friendly staff and cheap food. Does Bartonville Diner, after trying to come here for the better part of a decade strike those notes?

Yes!

My dad and I wanted to grab food and I was tired of our usual stomping grounds so I suggested we both try something new. We rolled in at 7am on a Sunday to try and beat the church crowds. The first thing we ordered was some coffee and water while we half-looked at the menu while cracking jokes and catching up on recent events.

On my way here, I knew I wanted some french toast. It’s been a long time since I had any and nothing was going to stop me from getting it. My dad perused the menu online and knew what he wanted ahead of time, too. We quickly placed our orders and got back to chatting up a storm.

My dad ordered the Country Fried Steak Skillet and I got the Thick French Toast. The food took a bit longer than expected to come out despite how quiet it was there but that wasn’t a problem as we were busy telling each other terrible jokes and sipping decent coffee.

Once the food came out, we dug in. The french toast was pretty plain, no real sprinkling of powdered sugar or that soft buttery dollop on top. No biggie as it was still good and it had a nice crisp crunch on the edges that I love and can’t replicate at home at all. My dad’s skillet looked good but also kind of goofy with a slice of cheese just slapped on top and only half melted.

The food was really good and the coffee was decent. Not the best diner coffee I’ve had but after two cups, I can say it was serviceable without any sugar or cream added in. My dad said he enjoyed his meal but has a preference for a certain style of country fried steak and this wasn’t quite it. But we both left with empty plates and full bellies with smiles on our faces. Not a bad way to spend a Sunday morning.

When I started my travel list, Bartonville Diner was added around 2014 or 2015. Well, after 8-9 years, I finally got to cross it off my list as many failed attempts to try it out. The time it took to try it out wasn’t due to the lack of trying. Many plans were made to come here but life happens and plans can go sideways. I’m finally happy to have tried it out and hope I can drop in with my friends that live nearby...

Great neighborhood restaurant that was very busy when my wife and I visited it. That's a good thing. We weren't disappointed one bit. Coffee is only a buck fifty nine and always filled. Eggs, potatoes, etc were outstanding. Servings we're very large. I would recommend it to anyone.

Update: Stopped by the afternoon of St Pats Day for corned beef and cabbage. Nice meal and great service. The cabbage was a bit soggy/overcooked and the beef was too bland for my taste. I understand that everyone has different tastes, etc. and you can't please everyone. It was in the afternoon and once something like cabbage sets around it tends to get soggy. The potatoes and carrots were just fine, but the meal overall was too bland for my taste. This will not keep me from patronizing this restaurant at all. It continues to be a favorite of mine and loads of other's. God willing I'll continue to eat here from time to time as I always do. I had some of the cream of potato soup as an appetizer. Huge bowl of very rich thick soup with lots of potatoes. Very good soup. The meal was very filling and priced affordably. Stopped in this morning for some breakfast after a doctor's appointment in the area. Very nice as always. Would like to see some sausage in the gravy that goes over the biscuits. Restaurants need to quit calling it sausage gravy unless they step it up to real sausage gravy as Bob Evans or Cracker Barrel...

It's been a long time since I ate at a diner that just kind of felt like home. As I observed people coming in to have lunch I noticed that a lot of people knew each other, it was nice to see them all talking to each other, and seeing the regulars meet up in the corner booth. We got there around noon and they were quite busy, every table was filled but we didn't have to wait at all for a seat. It was really nice to see the workers working together as a team. I watched three separate individuals bust a table. Somebody wiped it off, somebody straightened out the chairs, and somebody brought the menus and silverware for the next people to sit down. The customer service from every employee that I noticed was top-notch, it looked to me like they appreciated seeing the regulars that came in there too. This is our first time eating here and I decided to try the country fried steak, it was fantastic and definitely a lot of food so worth the money! My son got the cheeseburger and my husband got a breakfast skillet. Everybody seemed to really enjoy their meal and we all agreed that we would come back again! They have limited parking but it seems like maybe there's always just that one last parking spot that's open just for you. Would be really cool to see this restaurant be able to expand to a bigger building and a bigger parking lot in the future! Keep up the great work you guys and God...