Junction Diner — Restaurant in Poulsbo

I just went to The Junction Diner this morning for breakfast. Darryl & Jody of Bird's Eye View B&B recommended it, and they were right. My father-in-law & aunt & I all loved it. Here's why:

Portions are huge. The pancakes in particular were so big they nearly eclipsed the plate they were served on. Any bigger and the syrup would run right off onto the table. For a child, I'd dig a crater in the center to keep the syrup contained. My ONE sausage patty would have intimidated the largest burger patty, guaranteed. (and I had thought they were skimping when I asked for a small side order of sausage and the waitress clarified "okay, that's ONE sausage on the side: link or patty?")

Prices are small. Sure, we spent $32 for the three of us, but we took away a third of that food in a to-go box! If we'd had the breakfast special (a HALF-order of any "classic" Diner breakfast) for $4.95 instead of a Denver omelet, a side of sausage, and two full-size Classics, we'd all have been stuffed for maybe $23 including a good tip. Even cheaper if you just drink tap water-- and up here, the tap water tastes great.

Service is good, and pretty fast. It is also informal. This is a DINER. It is not a slick fast-food microfactory like Chipotle or McDonald's, nor a cafeteria-style place where the food was made hours ago and just kept warm all day till you eat it. Nor is this an upscale restaurant with well-mannered and formally trained service staff. It's a young local girl who is quick at the register and knows the menu well. She can get overwhelmed when a bunch of people walk in at once (which happened soon after we arrived), but sit down & relax, you won't have to wait long.

"Ambiance" is American-Diner Casual. The place is clean and shipshape but doesn't seem to have any intentional "decor" like some diners do: no 50's kitsch, no country ducks, no trucker paraphernalia or logging-camp or miner schwag. It's too small to fit a lot of decor anyway: there are only 3 tables and a lot of bar stools at the L-shaped bar. But the waitress was cheerful and the other patrons were friendly with each other and with us. It seems to be a favorite local nosh spot.

If I lived anywhere nearby, it would be one of my favorite places for breakfast (they serve lunch too but not dinner), but not to just hang out-- I'd feel I was hogging a table or a barstool, and I don't think they have free wifi. (Someone correct me if I'm wrong.) On the other hand, it really is a comfy place to sit and linger over breakfast, read the morning paper (you'll find one left behind at the bar), and chat. You could order, eat & leave in less than 30 minutes (if you order something small), but why hurry? The small-town diner vibe will refresh you...

Honestly I don’t write reviews but here I am, My wife and I just got back from Japan after living there for a little over half a year due to being forward deployed on an aircraft carrier. We just arrived off the plane and barely starting to adjust to life back in the states. First impressions of the diner was okay, not too busy. We arrived at 6am on 20 MAR 2024, there was only 1 staff member working. Extremely friendly to begin with and welcoming, food was good but as seen in other reviews it’s not anything you couldn’t make at home. After paying we left and we sat outside for a minute and the gentleman working came to our car and started asking us questions about the service and food. Thinking nothing of it we answered his questions and thinking it was all fine, then he asked why we didn’t tip seemingly frustrated. At this point I was shocked because I forgot and I felt bad, after living in Japan for so long we got accustomed to not tipping because it’s wrong to do so there and very impolite. When I tried to explain myself and tip the gentleman for his time and effort in making and serving our food he stormed off like a child without giving me any chance to say anything. Very unsettling and unprofessional at this establishment, even for an honest mistake. If this is the guy reading this, know that there are such thing as foreigners even from another state. Also you never know someone’s situation where they might not even be able to afford a tip, it’s extremely rude to go out to the persons car and ask them why they didn’t give...

Been coming here the past couple weeks with my co-workers on Friday mornings after we get off work from our 12 hour swing-shift. It opens super early (4:00am) and the food's great, so it's been rather ideal for us. It's a really small diner so seating is rather limited, but luckily we've managed to find open seating every time so far. The only seats which are consistently full when we've come in is the long front bar area inhabited by an older group of diner-regulars (today they seemed to be playing yahtzee, or some other dice game as they ate), a rather talkative bunch.

So far I've tried the country fried steak which is pretty decent, and the "Logger" omelet (which is huge and delicious. I highly recommend), but something I've had my eye on but haven't quite gotten around to trying yet is their corned beef hash (which they make themselves in-house) and the cinnamon raisin French toast (or also the blueberry pancakes. I'm usually not much of a "sweet" foods breakfast person, but the quality of the other stuff I've had so far is making me want to give these a shot).

The only thing I would change about this place is that the server keeps dropping our silverware directly on the tabletop rather than put them on a napkin. I cringe inwardly every single time. I'm sure they sanitize their tabletops regularly, but idk why it just unsettles...