Down Home Diner — Restaurant in Cheyenne

Down Home Diner Review - 8/11/24 - 10:00 AM

Upon arriving at the Down Home Diner on the west end of Cheyenne, I noticed the parking lot was full, which typically signals a popular local spot. A steady stream of patrons walking over from nearby hotels added to the impression that this might be a great place to start the day.

Once my husband and I entered, we seated ourselves and waited for some form of acknowledgment. However, it was about seven minutes before a waitress brought us menus. Despite this delay, we were ready to order our food by the time she returned five minutes later to take our drink order.

I opted for a breakfast burrito and coffee, while my husband ordered chopped steak and scrambled eggs with a side of cottage cheese and tomato slices. Simple orders, nothing too complicated.

However, 15 minutes later, I was still waiting for coffee. I found myself wondering how difficult it could be to pour a cup. It finally arrived after 17 minutes, only to be a disappointing, weak brew—more like brown tea than coffee. My husband admitted the coffee must be bad as he has NEVER known me to wave away refills. Meanwhile, we watched as two large parties came in, ordered, ate, and paid, while we were still waiting for our food.

I couldn’t help but notice the two female cooks in the back, neither of whom wore hairnets—a small detail, but it raised concerns about overall hygiene.

At the 35-minute mark, my breakfast burrito finally arrived, but my husband’s meal was nowhere to be seen. The waitress didn’t offer any explanation, nor did she seem to inquire of the cook staff about the missing food. I prefer to enjoy meals together, but my husband encouraged me to start eating. I did so reluctantly.

By the time I was halfway through my burrito, it had been 40 minutes since we placed our order, and only his cottage cheese had arrived—still no main course, and again, no explanation.

Fifty minutes into this experience, I was prepared to ask the server to remove my husband’s meal from the bill when, at the 58-minute mark, it finally arrived—piping hot, as if it had just been made. The fact that such a simple dish took so long suggested it was only prepared when the oversight was realized.

I’ve worked in the food industry in both the front and the back of the house so I know orders should be prepared in the order the ticket is presented to the kitchen crew. So I am super confused as to why our food came out piecemeal….its just makes no sense.

In total, it took an hour to receive everything we ordered, which we couldn’t even enjoy together. I would rate the food as mediocre, and the service as woefully subpar. I’m willing to give restaurants the benefit of the doubt. They could have been shortstaffed today but it’s also not the middle of CFD either when slow service and longer wait times can be expected.

I had high hopes for this experience, especially since I’m in the business of discovering hidden gems for my clients when they vacation in our beautiful state. Friends in law enforcement have told me they usually receive quick service here, leading me to wonder if preferential treatment is given to first responders. Regardless, Down Home Diner will not be making my Best of...

So my family and I were just passing through Cheyenne, Wyoming and decided to give Down Home Diner a try for dinner because it was either that or Outback Steakhouse or drive 20 more minutes for dinner chow. Let me just tell you, this place was perfect!

The waitress was beyond incredible as she not only talked with me and my wife but our kiddos too! She made everyone feel welcomed and struck up conversations with everyone in the diner! Giving the small town feel.

I decided to get the chili and it was a GRAND SLAM! The smokiness of the meat with the bold flavor of spices to sauce ratio and the thickness not being so thick that your spoon stood up and not so thin that it was soup, No! This was as perfect as one could imagine!

When asked about who made the chili, the waitress immediately went to find out and when I found out of the chef was 23 and used a recipe that his parents passed down to him and their parents passed down to them! It was spectacular! I’ve never had chili so perfect since leaving the southeastern part of the US!

I highly recommend that if you find yourself off Interstate 80 or I-25 to stop by “Down Home Diner” give it a taste and I can promise you that your heart, stomach, and taste buds will...

I have always liked this place, haven't been here in about 2 months though. My surprise its mostly different staff as it looks and they are absolutely worthless. I wasn't super pleased last time as the food was different. The fries used to be awesome. Last time they had the consistency of being re-warmed and half cooked I brushed it off didn't come for awhile. Well same thing today. Hot fries were still hard like flash cooked and served raw they were hard as rocks and I don't mean crispy neither. There was only one other table of 3 in the diner (around 1pm) the waitress never did come back. We ran out of drinks. She didn't ask for a box to take my daughter's chicken along I rolled it in a napkin! They kept wrapping silverware talking and stayed in back kitchen. After sitting and waiting when we were obviously done, she had gone back to other table 4x I got up walked toward the door. Then they wanted to talk to me. She never asked how everything was just stayed silent the whole time ringing me up. I still left a tip as I always do, wish I hadn't because I won't go back. I'm a local and have never been this...