Miner's Diner — Restaurant in San Diego Country Estates

Choo-Choo Choose Somewhere Else Let me be clear: this establishment has exactly one (1) redeeming quality: a charming choo choo that chugs along a track near the ceiling. It’s cute. And that is where the pleasantries, and indeed any semblance of quality, come to a screeching halt. The choo choo is the sugar coating on a poison pill. I was lured in by the promise of old-timey charm, but the only thing old-timey was the feeling that I'd been swindled by a snake oil salesman. The main event of my disappointment was the malt. As a self-proclaimed malt connoisseur, I have sampled malts far and wide, from humble roadside stands to gourmet creameries. I can say without a shred of hyperbole that the concoction served to me at Miners Diner was both the most significantly overpriced and unequivocally the worst I have ever had the misfortune of tasting. What arrived at my table was not a malt. It was a culinary crime scene. Let's break down the travesty: Temperature: It was bizarrely warm. Not room temperature, but a tepid, unsettling warmth that is the mortal enemy of any frozen dessert. Consistency: Runny doesn't even begin to describe it. If you were to perform the famous Dairy Queen 'Blizzard Test' on this liquid catastrophe, it wouldn't just fail; it would create a biohazard spill on the floor with impressive speed. Texture: The texture was a lumpy, curdy nightmare. It was a gritty, separated mess that felt like drinking separated yogurt that had been left in a hot car. My companion aptly described the sensation as a "carpet smoothie," and I cannot un-taste that horrifyingly accurate description. This "malt" was an offense to dairy, an insult to my wallet, and frankly, not fit for human consumption. Beyond the liquid tragedy, the rest of the experience was a study in "bleh." The cute choo choo simply cannot generate enough charm to overcome the profound mediocrity and the feeling of being thoroughly fleeced. Do yourself a favor. If you're walking by, perhaps peek in the window to see the choo choo. Wave to it. And then, for the love of your taste buds and your wallet, keep walking....

We ordered: the Miners Burger for my son, and off the kids menu: the grilled cheese sandwich for my other son, an uncrustable sandwich for my daughter. My wife ordered the veggie melt and I had the soup bread bowl with Taco soup. Everybody at all their food so it must not have been too bad.

I had way less taco soup in my bowl than I imagined for $10 though. It was probably the smallest bread bowl that I've ever seen if we are being honest. The taco soup was pretty greasy as well. The bread bowl was also only half full with soup and then a load of these fried tortilla strips or something thrown on top. I had several bites of my wife's veggie melt and it was way better. I wish I would have gotten the salad that I was looking at instead.

We went there a couple days after it had snowed and on the weekend just before new year's Eve it was crazy crowded in Julian and we had to wait probably 30 minutes to get a seat. We were sort of in the back corner of the restaurant by the time that they had seating for us. Which we felt a bit neglected as far as service goes as a result of that. I think the waitress only came by a couple times during our whole meal, and one of those times was because I flagged her down for them to refill our ketchup bottle since it was basically empty when we got our food. I'm sure maybe the service is a bit better when they aren't so busy. I also don't get why most of the places in Julian don't extend their hours a bit during these heavy tourism days it is a major bummer when everything starts closing down at 5 pm, this place included. I get that it's a small town and everything, but I think that it would go a long way to keep people interested in staying and...

Stopped by Miner's Diner around 2pm on a Tuesday. When we arrived, we were handed menus and told, "Sit wherever you want." The atmosphere was fun, with lots of old-time items and quirky things for sale hanging on the walls.

My husband and I both ordered the tri-tip sandwich, which is like a French dip. The sandwiches were very tasty, but oddly, while his came with a side of peppercorn aioli, mine did not.

We also ordered a $9 strawberry shake, which came with a good amount of whipped cream in the glass and a generous extra portion in the mixing container.

Unfortunately, there were signs of a lack of care when it came to customer service. For example, a sign near the register read, "Only two tickets per table" and "No modifications" under certain menu items. That said, the server did allow me to skip the onions on my sandwich, explaining that the "no modifications" policy was really for busier times.

The server’s attitude didn’t help matters. She never smiled, dropped off our plates without a word, and didn’t check in on us at all. When the bill arrived, I noticed a 3% fee added. When I asked about it, the server, still unsmiling, explained it was for using a credit card. I asked what happens if I paid in cash, and she replied, “Then we’d take it off,” but the delivery didn’t inspire much confidence.

If you’re paying cash, I’d suggest double-checking your bill to make sure the fee is actually removed.

Overall it was a fine lunch but the overall experience left us questioning whether we...