Scotty's Drive In — Restaurant in Idaho Falls

Walked in to order... young lady taking my order(long dark hair) was very pleasant and helpful... and didn't engage in any of the unpleasantries I will mention here.... while I decided what to order I had the occasion to listen to the young girl(hair in a bun) working the grill in back complain about customers asking for things or questioning prices or how things are made and bragging loudly to the other employees about how she told them and put them in their place... she went on and on the whole time I was there... all of the orders that had come before and after me had left so I went up to purchase more fry sauce...I watched them assemble what ended up being the chicken sandwich I ordered... they put a bottom bun on it with what appeared to be cheese... she wrapped it up then unwrapped it and took it over behind a partition and laughed and joked with a young man about how cheese didn't go in that sandwich and did they "scrape" it off well enough... they rewrapped it and put it in the bag and then added the fries that had been sitting out...I wondered where the other sandwich was...I found it when I got to the car it had sat in the bag and got cold while they scraped not only the cheese but most of the breading off the chicken sandwich... how pathetic.... I'd have asked them to redo it but given what I listened to while I ordered and waited I was pretty sure they didn't care what I thought.... and would have probably spit in the redo... and laughed about it.... The cold pastrami burger comes with "premium pastrami"(translate old Grey packaged lunch meat like I see at Walmarts lunch meat case) flavorless and pathetic... nothing premium about it except the price I was charged... the"grilled onions" got set on the grill still raw and crunchy...not what I expect for grilled.... burger was tough and dry and thin and did I say cold... and the few drops of peppers parmesan sauce I found was more like Italian salad dressing.... disappointing food experience.... still afraid I'm going to wake up sick from the color of the 2 thin slices of pastrami... The attitude I witnessed must be matriculated from owners or management as there were signs EVERYWHERE....NO REFILLS.... EMPLOYEES ONLY..... DON'T EAT ON THE BENCHES...... DON'T TOUCH THE TABLES AND CHAIRS(that were stacked in the corner and taped off)... THERE WERE SEVERAL OTHER ANGRY SOUNDING SIGNS TAPED ALL OVER...I miss the Scotty's of my past that was a Happy bustling place to grab amazing food... I've eaten there for over 40 years... but it appears today with be my last...I guess the girl at the grill proudly gave her previous customer the"what for"... well here's to you Miss Thing your customer was right... you need to stop cackling and start cooking then you might not screw up so...

4.0 star rating 8/4/2017 10 photos 1 check-in This remnant of midcentury Americana still exists with fountian like cola's, milkshakes and malteds. The original sign with four UFO looking saucer still exists in Idaho Falls. I only just found out that Scotty's was once a chain with locations in 6 states. The chain dissolved in 1968. There are only 3 locations in 3 states still open today but with no connection to one another. Scotty's in Idaho Falls is one of them. The menu and store bring memories of days of yore. I have been here many times over the years. This use to be one of the most popular teen hangouts. Not sure if it still is.

They use local beef from Doug's meats in Shelley, ID. They make thick old fashioned hand spun milkshakes with a myriad of flavors not widely found. Local favorite Reed's dairy provides milk and ice cream for Scotty's. Hand cut Idaho spuds for fries!! I have always thought that they have the best fries in the west! If you come here you really have to try one of there wonderful milkshake flavors or a unique soda flavor.

When I was a kid the servers would roller skate your food out to you. There use to be menu's with speakers in them. Now there is just the parking lot. Idaho Falls has always had a variety of soft drinks that you can't find anywhere else. Because of the unique flavors of soda pop many of the restaurants offer the same unique flavors.

Seating is limited inside the restaurant however there are tables and benches outside to sit. This place has been around as long as I can remember. Apparently it celebrated 50 years in 2014. For being 53 years old this place looks great.

Huckleberries is a very popular flavor in Idaho. Here all the fast food restaurants have fry sauce. There is a huge debate as to who invented the fry sauce Idaho or Utah. Being an Idahoan I side with Idaho.

We go the Great Scot value meal consists of hamburger, fry and drink. The Great Scot is triple cut sesame seed bun, two patties of all natural, extra lean choice beef, a special thick 1000 Island dressing, pickle, lettuce, onion and real cheddar cheese. AWESOME!!! The hamburger was not as tasty as I remember. It was good just not as awesome good as I remember. The fries, fry sauce and my Huckleberry Mountain Dew...

Tonight's experience has me REALLY skeptical about this place now.

After being out of Idaho for 16 years, it was an absolute delight to find that Scotty's was still in business - with the food and service still as good (if not better!) than back in the day. I've gone every couple months for a year now.

Just after 7:00 this evening, I went in and ordered probably the most popular thing: The Great Scott with fries. It was just me and 2 families in there. Suprisingly quickly, a bag of food was placed on the counter and a teenager mumbled something without looking up.

As she walked away, I had to say "excuse me, did you say #101?" She nodded but never really made eye contact. I added "Sorry. I could not understand what you said." Her reply? "Oh, you're good."

In my frustration, I may have mumbled under my breath "you're too awesome." And there was a guffaw from someone nearby. I'M SORRY. But I'm your customer. Without people like me? You kinda don't have a job...

On the drive home, I reached for a french fry from the bag. I'm not a fries person - most places I will get the sandwich alone if I can. Scotty's are usually SO dang good though! Tonight? They were soggy, luke-warm, and swimming in grease. Upon further inspection, the burger was equally disappointing. The patties were completely dried out, cooked down to about 1/4 inch, with the edges curled up.

I know crews can have off-nights, and good help especially in this job market is hard to find... you can't always bring your "A" game. But for 7:00 on a Saturday night? I REALLY expected at least like a "B-" game....