Palmer's Inn Restaurant — Restaurant in Saint Clair Shores

I have passed this restaurant hundreds of times but for some reason never tried it until someone who had been there told me about it. I thought for some reason that Palmer's Inn was quite small, but I was wrong! There is ample seating in 2 rooms, with a choice of booths or tables, plus seating at the counter as well. There was a sign to seat ourselves which we did choising a table over a booth which is easier for me with my handicap. We were greeted immediately and asked for our drink orders. We got our drinks, diet soda for me and coffee for my dining partner. Unlike so many places, regarding the coffee, she never had to ask for a refill or warm up of her coffee as someone was always attentive and came around with a hot pot often. Along with our drinks and water, we recieved a bread basket with bread, flavored breadsticks and real butter to enjoy while we browsed the menu. They have quite a list of daily specials well posted in several areas and an extensive menu with a great variety of choices, all very fairly priced, no overcharging here! I also liked that they offered breakfast all day, as sometimes I crave breakfast for dinner. I chose the fisherman's platter, the menu said it was comprised of cod, shrimp and fried clams, choice of potato and soup salad or cole slaw. I chose a salad which had a variety of lettuces, not just iceberg, tomato, some generous cucumber slices and grated carrot. It was fresh, crisp, and the salad dressing did not taste like it came from a bottle, it tasted house made to me. I noticed afterwards on the menu they have a creamy garlic dressing that I will try next time. When the entree came, I was expecting like most places, a single piece of fried cod, 2 or 3 shrimp and a handful of clams. I was pleasantly surprised to see that my platter was just that, a platter of seafood! 3 large pieces of deep fried cod, about 18 breaded medium shrimp, and a healthy portion of fried clams, and both tartar and cocktail sauce. A side platter heaping with french fries was also included. I knew immediately that there would be leftovers! The cod was very good, lightly battered, and cooked to perfection. The shrimp were tender and not overcooked as shrimp that size sometimes are. The clams were of varying sizes and tender. The fries were crisp and fluffy and arrived piping hot. My dining partner ordered the fresh walleye, one of the daily specials. She started her meal with one of the choices of soup that day, the cream of mushroom, (the other choice was clam chowder). The soup was clearly made in house and not canned or frozen. It was thick and rich and full of hand sliced mushrooms. It looked so good and after a tiny taste of my partner's soup, I ordered a bowl to go to take home for lunch the next day, yes it was that good! Her walleye arrived and to her surprise, there were not one but 2 huge fillets, lightly dusted with seasoned flour and pan fried, lemon and tartar sauce on the side. A word about the tartar sauce: they have some of the BEST tartar sauce I have ever had. Again, I suspect it is house made and not bottled or jarred. Next time I go, I will ask. My partner chose the hash browns for her side. They arrived on a side platter, a large portion, perfectly golden and crisp on the outside and hot and fluffy inside. We both took home plenty of leftovers. A word about the service, our waitress was excellent. She was attentive, personable, and helpful with suggestions and answers to our questions. The other waitresses were just as friendly, not only to us but to other diners as well. Many seemed to be regulars they knew by name. I can say honestly that they treated everyone like family. I also noted that they willingly helped one another out as well as helped every diner if something was needed. A true group effort. In conclusion, great food, outstanding service, terrific value. A very happy dining experience that I cannot wait to go back to enjoy again. Highly, highly...

Unimpressed.

Major Positive: Staff is cordial and responsive, knowledgeable of the menu and helpful even in peak hours. You will not wait inordinately for your food, and you will be treated well by the staff. Tip appropriately.

Negative: I am not actively displeased with the quality of the food, but I am also not actually pleased. One look at the ingredients shows that what is used is as base level as possible. As an example, the "Slim Jim" was housed in an over the counter hoagie bun compressed and pressed in the skillet to flatten it, given it a dried out, generally unpleasant quality. The ham, too, had a dried quality that indicated it had been somewhat overcooked or left under the heat lamp too long. Every single dish had the same quality of being overdone or left in the heat lamp just long enough that the product had hardened and dried out. The food was edible and not outright unpleasant, but it was the kind of diner fare that you can have at any of a number of diners in the Detroit Metro Area. We are inundated with them, and the caliber of so many is unimpressive and does not stand out.

The offerings of the menu are voluminous for the sort of short order diner that it is, yet what I saw of them did not speak to high quality ingredients, but rather "the most basic we can use." When this is combined with the slightly above average price (A slim jim, fries and a drink is close to 16 dollars, which is on the high end for diner fare), it would be easy to be disappointed with the product. There are likely dishes that this restaurant excels at, but what I saw (which could be construed to be fairly basic choices) did not speak to the caliber of the cooks. Portions are large for the price, so you will receive ample food for what you pay, but given that the motto is supposedly "Low Prices for Delicious Meals" I would generally call this something of a misnomer, as I could probably get the same food for about 13-14 dollars in total elsewhere in the city at roughly the same quality.

The restaurant is generally fairly close to packed during even off-peak morning hours, making seating something of a premium. The seating is comfortable, but the whole air of the restaurant, from the old stained fiberboard ceiling tiles to the weathered appearance of everything does not make the atmosphere immediately appealing. Entry is also a bit of an issue. If you are entering through the cramped doorways at the same time as someone is leaving, you will definitely need to plant yourself against a wall to give room to enter and exit. I can't call this location handicap accessible, though I am certain that you could wrestle a wheelchair inside. Parking is extremely tight in peak hours and less than convenient with how the lines are angled in the parking lot.

The sheer number of positive reviews and the way that the diner was packed speaks to customer loyalty. I was not able to determine what made the customers so loyal other than perhaps a love of the staff and the fact that this place has clearly been a household name in the area. Diners like this breed loyalty naturally after a long enough time, and it is well positioned physically to attract a lunch crowd who wants Americana, so this probably feeds into its regular clientele.

I would neither recommend against this restaurant, nor for it. If you eat here, you will pay about 1-2 dollars more than you would at some similar diners in the area, but you will be treated well by cordial staff who will almost certainly remember your name by the second time you come back. Your food will be slightly overcooked and therefore a bit dry, but it will still be both edible and not unpleasant to eat. You can do better in Detroit than Palmer's, but you can also do far worse. Stop by if you like, but don't expect to have your...

It was all of $6 for two eggs, two pieces of bacon, two sausages, hashbrowns, and a slice of ham. There's a smaller version at $4, and it was super fresh. What's even better was the service. I overheard waiters and the host chatting happily and calling each other by name. Seemed like most of the customers were regulars. Our waiter was attentive and friendly, and the host even checked up on us to make sure we were all good.

I came here because the Great Lakes Diner up the road was incredibly full. I'm glad I happened in come in this little diner.

I missed getting a photo of the diner bar that was super cute.

EDIT: We came back again for brunch. Yummy French toast with impeccably made bacon. Our drinks never made it past being a quarter empty. The only people not greeted by name while we ate, was just my group. Fairly busy, so we sat at the diner.

EDIT #2: I now try to come here once a week to meet family for breakfast or brunch. This place better never close because it is such a precious little...