Lime Kiln Cafe — Restaurant in San Juan Island

This place has become a far cry from what it used to be. Lime Kiln was particularly known for their pancakes. It was that thin, kind of chewy type of pancake. Lime Kiln was the first place I'd go as soon as I stepped off that ferry. My husband and I would be dreaming of that moment the syrup hits the buttery pancakes. Unfortunately, the last couple of times we went there, we were gravely disappointed. The pancakes we ordered came out raw. The top was really pale; when we looked at the underside, it was gluey and not cooked through all the way. Obviously we sent it back. Unfortunately, the second time around was just as bad. This time, it was essentially a piece of thin cardboard. The edges were crispy and the middle was cracked. I managed to eat a couple bites before I decided something that tastes so bad is just not worth the calories. We eventually went back a week later, writing off the previous experience as a horrible, one time mistake. Sadly, the experience was exactly the same. I even tried the scramble this time, and that dish was also not good -- the eggs were really rubbery and greasy. I actually felt nauseous afterward. I think what happened was that all the regular cooks did not come back due to covid. The cooks are seasonal so they usually come around May and stick around until late September. However, it seemed like the cooks this season were different and inexperienced. I honestly think the restaurant struggled to find people so the cooks that they managed to get were the bottom of the barrel. I feel bad for the restaurant but what can you do... I just don't want to pay $14 for a piece of undercooked dough or a plate of nauseating eggs....

Lime Kiln cafe has a great ambience and even better location, and the donuts are awesome if you like cake donuts. The service is also very good. Not necessarily "above and beyond" but they were very friendly and we got our food after only about 15 minutes, very reasonable.

The problem was the food. Honestly, it was kind of a joke. It was obvious that they had some quality impacting cost cutting measures in place. The pancakes were much closer to crepes and didn't taste any better than something out of a box. They were legitimately watered down pre-mix. The ham in the omelet we ordered was just cheap, sliced deli meat haphazardly cut up. Also, the chicken in the Chicken Fried Chicken was laughably small. We joked that it actually should've been called a Chicken Fried Nugget. Also this is more of a personal gripe but they fancied up the "gravy" with rosemary and other additions. Don't do that, or if you do don't call it "country gravy". Call it a rosemary herb béchamel or something. Really though for me, none of this would be review-worthy if they didn't charge resort prices, absolutely not worth it.

We were really hopeful that Lime Kiln cafe would be good given the life-affirming beauty and ambience of Roche Harbor and their donuts are exceptional. Unfortunately, as the adage goes, it would be foolish to visit them a...

Sitting outside at the harbor watching the boats and nature was fabulous! My friends each got a chicken sandwich, which they say was delicious. My bacon cheeseburger was juicy and delicious. My husband's fish and chips were underwhelming. He said it was crunchy and dry, and the fish was really thin. He couldn't finish it. The crust was more than the fish itself, and the fries were meh. Food came fairly quickly. I would recommend this place overall except for the fish and chips. A light beer battered fish would be much tastier. Use a bit thicker piece of fish as well.

Something that wasn't in their control was the bathrooms. They are located in between the businesses. I have a walke, and the step up to the bathrooms would have been really hard to get into with the door being right on top of the step. It was veryy awkward and difficul, along with the fact that there were no handicapped stall, so I had to leave my walker outside the stall. The cobble stone path was uneven and...