The Original Mels Diner — Restaurant in California

Ice tea with lemon and an open faced hot turkey sandwich. Nothing extreme......

SERVICE: Ice tea served and the only sweetener on the table 3 different types of chemicals. So I waited 5 min for our server to come back. Asked for sugar. She pointed to an empty container and said oh ok be right back. 15 min later our food arrived. And she goes thru the list of condiments already on the table and when I asked for the sugar again I got a whiner of apologies....but no sugar. She spent the time speaking with the manager telling him I was unhappy about not having sugar....but no sugar. And 5 min later he the manager brings sugar. LOL. Yup that's right 25+ min waiting for sugar.

FOOD:. Hot turkey open faced sandwich. Barely warmed with Gravy. Mashed potatoes chunky and looked like mixed with stuffing. Stuffing so soggy it needed a spoon. And the turkey was on top of GARLIC BREAD. Picture that in your mouth.

So my first time and last time stopping at any MELS DINER. Ummm no thanks.

I do have to question with SO MANY 1 star reviews how a 4.5 is calculated.

This response is Franky. Insulting. If the sever had made ANY effort there would be no need for me to start writing the review.

And Garlic Toast for a hot turkey sandwich is a recipe you stand by? Hmmm maybe you should try it. It's horrible 😭. Potatoes with stuffing mashed in them? Horrible! But good to know. I will not be spending my cash at...

The staff was very kind and courteous. The staff alone could not save our experience. My wife and I don't like to be fussy or complain in person I'm sure the staff would have helped had we asked. My wife's side salad looked like it had been made and left in a fridge for at least 2 days prior to serving, no crispness wrinkled and blowing, one big red leaf lettuce was even half rotten and slimy. We set it aside entirely. Her fish and chips had an off taste to them but we couldnt place it, the big issue was the veggies particularly the carrots and and broccoli were clearly starting to break down. The carrots had soft slimy portions and the broccoli was dry and browning. We have been a number of times and have had a few similar experiences, ordinarily we chock it up to a bad night or bad luck. However, this has become a pattern with vegtables. Still a great place for families great desserts and good burgers and sandwiches. Still one of my dads favorite places to go for his birthday or Father's Day.

Side note that doesnt effect my rating just something worth noting. The overall restaurant needs some TLC. Booth seats are falling apart your either sitting on a 2x4 board or sitting in a unsupported section completely uncomfortable either way, grimmy wood sides with paint that is fadded and scuffed, seats have patches and ripps. This isn't the staffs fault but lack of investment in general maintenance from a the franchisee or...

Great food, wonderfully friendly service, and good

They have even managed to keep a great atmostphere even with all the pandemic precautions, a little taste of normalcy in a crazy world.

Saturday Dec 17th 2022 12:45pm I'm going to keep a 5 star review up, but Manager Jim was so Rude today to one of his own employees in front of customers. Grace was in full control of all patrons coming and going. A HUGE wave showed up right after I placed a to go order. And let me tell you Grace was full of grace. She acknowledged everyone, asked all the pertaining info. Then Jim came up and stared taking names of customers and apologized for making them wait. The people had not been waiting more than one minute, but they were all greeted upon entering. He then told the hostess that this a specific party needed to be seated and she had already grabbed all the menus for it and was actually in the process of calling that group up. Jim said well I'm doing this because this is supposed to be your job in front of a minimum of 10 guests. It was rude, it was condescending and I do not appreciate him as a manager. If that's how he is in front of customers I can only imagine how he is behind the scenes.

Everyone, and I mean everyone else I have met who works at Mel's is wonderful...