Jay's Cafe — Restaurant in Kenmore

Long story short, New owners and not what it used to be it sucks. I remember a little old cafe with waitresses who, knew what you wanted be for you did. I am currently on the hunt for the best chicken fried steak in my area. We came in and the waitress was prompt to seat us. She came and filled my cup with coffee, befor my fellow dinner could ask for Orange juice she was gone. So I started at her trying to make eye contact when the waitress makes the usual visual sweep. I watched her make the sweep a few times and pass me even after making eye contact. She ran around to other tables neglecting us. Eventually she came buy with water and we were able to make our orders. Ordering was not that great she rushed us through. The chicken fried steak has a few options and she cut me off as I tried to say what I wanted and then she didn't let me explain everything I did, I had to blurt it out. As we waited for our orders she brought my fellow dinners small Orange juice out that was room temperature maybe slightly chilled. When our orders finally came I noticed a few things, a couple that came in a while after us had there order taken and received there food first. My chicken fried steak was all premade excluding the eggs. The gravy was from a can or package the hash browns were pre made frozen and mushy. The over easy eggs were alright. My companions 2 eggs where from a mix and it was supposed to be 2 eggs but a maybe looked like one. I received my Orange juice that was a large when nether of us was asked what size we wanted. On an end note my we asked to keep a menu but she took it anyways. I said I wanted an orange juice (clearly) with my food and she started listening off the types of juice they had. My fork had something on it was not clean I whipped it off on my napkin took a picture. Under the table on the wall were...

I stopped in on a whim, I was starting to shake I was so hungry. The moment I walk in I am sure I made the right decision. It's about 11 am so I'm just past the breakfast rush and not quite into the lunch crowd. There's a handful of older blue collar, salt-of-the-earth patrons finishing up their pancakes and coffees. I sit at the counter because I'm rolling solo, and there's a tv on playing Discovery Channel. Remember when Discovery played nature shows? They used to alway have science on or wildlife documentaries and whatnot, well at lunchtime they play Gas Monkey. I'm guessing there ain't a whole lotta REAL Texans wearing sparkle encrusted pockets on their jeans! Anyway, I order a soda water. The second waitress knew what I meant, then decided on the patty melt and fries. I was half listening to the negotiations on the tv, & half listening to the fellas on my right talking about drug tests and sleeping disorders. Y'see fella 1 was looking for a job and has to pass a marijuana screening, but the issue is he can't sleep well without a toke or two. I'm not sure how he's going to handle putting in an 8-12 hour day on 2-3 hours sleep! I'm thinking that there's probably another job out there you could smoke weed in. The benefits are kind of a big deal I guess. Must be a union gig. Fella 2 is the quiet type. Nods a lot, couple short questions gets fella 1 going again. The melt was fantastic, grilled onions were done perfectly. Couldn't finish the fries! Y'oughta try...

Has a lot things going for it, but could use some renovations. First thing that strikes you when you walk in besides the "classic" diner feel is how dark it is inside. Granted, we came on a typical rainy PNW winter afternoon, but it wouldn't take much (swapping out for some brighter light fixtures for a start) to add a lot of life and make things more inviting. Exterior also looks a bit dated.

Jay's is fortunate to have what seems like a strong regular customer base, and is well-positioned in a rapidly growing area, but will likely need to make such improvements to attract new customers.

Moving on to the food - the extensive menu has all the American diner classics, with hefty portions at very reasonable prices. My wife had the veggie omelet, while I went for the veggie benedict. My benedict was tasty, slathered in hollandaise sauce which was well-made, but next time I'd ask for it on the side. Hash browns on the side were good. Veggie omelet was also good, though the veggies were mostly likely frozen. Omelet came with 6 (!) slices of French toast, which was quite good. Coffee was a little watery/bland. Overall though, we were both satisfied.

Finally, the service was very friendly, but I could see things slowing down if the restaurant was filled to brim. Also, a minor thing, but the soap in the men's bathroom had run out when I visited (good thing I had hand sanitizer!).

Would be happy to come back, particularly if some improvements were on...