Meadow Mountain Cafe — Restaurant in Estes Park

Worst customer service ever!

I have been coming to this café for several years as a treat when I'm camping in the area, but NEVER AGAIN.

Today I attempted to eat breakfast at Meadow Mountain Café with my family. I follow a gluten-free diet, so I ordered huevos rancheros, a Mexican dish traditionally made with corn tortillas. I have ordered this dish in many places in both Colorado and Texas (when I am from), and it is ALWAYS made with corn tortillas.

When our meal arrived, I noted that my huevos were made with flour tortillas. I pointed it out to my server and explained that I could not eat flour tortillas due to a health condition, and asked them to make it with corn tortillas. The server checked with the cook, who said they could do that but that they would charge me for BOTH dishes. When I protested, the owner (a younger fellow--perhaps this place is under new management?) came out and argued with me for several minutes, saying that I should have ordered the dish the way I wanted it, and that they would indeed charge me for making the extra dish. I countered that huevos rancheros are traditionally made with corn tortillas (go ahead and google it for yourself), and that since their menu did not state otherwise, how on earth would I know they deviated from the standard ingredients? The owner then argued that it is their standard to use flour, and that was my problem, not theirs.

He finally agreed to make the dish. After that, our waitress basically ignored us. She never came back to check on the rest of my party (my partner's breakfast was missing the bacon that should have been included, and he never got a chance to ask for it), and never refilled our coffee cups (despite refilling cups at the table next to ours).

Basically I experienced the worst customer service ever at this cafe. This restaurant does not believe in making their customers happy. What might have cost them a couple of extra dollars to make my meal correctly has now cost them a customer for life....

I’ve been eating at the Meadow Mountain Cafe for over two decades. It’s known to be a little slower but time slows down in the mountains and the food was always worth it.

Fast forward to this weekend. They make it clear that they are short staffed. One waitress, one cook and one dishwasher. I have no problem with that. What I have a problem with is the attitude I got from the waitress after waiting 90 minutes and questioning her about our food. She was blatantly rude and confrontational. She had the cook deliver our food, who said, “Sorry, I didn’t know you were in a rush”. A rush? If I were in a rush I wouldn’t have sat down in the first place, but was I prepared to wait almost two hours? No. After we got our food our waitress immediately came out and said, “I wouldn’t want you to wait for this”, as she slammed our check down on the table.

I will never go here again. But I will say this, the older gentleman who brings drinks was a total delight. Hopefully his attitude will rub off on...

Soooooo cozy!! Loved this place and everything and everyone in it. Was a chill Monday morning with a few tables taken up inside. Was cool to learn from the waitress, Jenny, that it was built back in 1946 and still mostly original! I love the charm and decor, felt like going to your family's cabin. The wood stove was on and it felt so nice in there. I got their biscuits and gravy and a side of their pork green chili. The chili was REALLY good and spicy! Lots of meat and chunky, definitely need to check it out if you love green chili. The B&G was also very good and cozy. Huge portion! I was able to take leftovers. Can't wait to go back and sit on the front porch when it's warmer outside. They had specials and a different table got this fantastic looking blueberry cobbler thing that I wish I had stomach room for. Really cute and awesome little place....