Shelby Cafe — Restaurant in Shelby

My lunch experience today left a LOT to be desired. I was in the area today with my two young kids researching the area for a travel piece I'm writing for a major Charlotte magazine. After driving around the downtown looking for a place to eat, we decided to stop here. I liked that it has been in operation for so long and figured it would be a great, down-home place to eat. It was packed when we walked in... we weren't greeted, and just stood there for several minutes until someone barked at us to sit wherever we wanted. All tables were either filled or hadn't been cleaned, so we had to sit at a dirty table for several minutes before it was bussed. It took several more minutes for our very rude waitress to come over. She didn't greet us, introduce herself, or offer me a menu, just asked me what I wanted. I asked for a few minutes to look at the menu and she rolled her eyes and walked away. Ten minutes later she came to take our order. I told her what I wanted (a chicken sandwich) and she asked "sandwich or basket?" Now, I figured this meant it came with a side but I've never eaten there before so I asked her what the difference was. She rolled her eyes AGAIN and said, "A sandwich is a sandwich. The basket comes with sides." It took almost AN HOUR to get our food. For a plate of pancakes (well, I had ordered two, one for each child, but we only got one) and a chicken sandwich. Our waitress never once came to check on us during that time. Even my six year old was asking whether or not they liked us since they weren't paying us any attention. Entire tables were coming in, ordering, getting their food, eating, and leaving, before our food even arrived. Then, when it finally arrived, my chicken was cold, the fries were stale and dry, and she thought I meant I wanted my two boys to share a plate of pancakes instead of putting in two separate orders. Overall, I was not impressed at all. I've never been treated like that before at a restaurant. I know it was the lunch rush but if that's what they're putting out, I'm surprised they're still in business. I definitely will not be including them...

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Ugh!... Not quite what I was expecting. The Man and I were in the area and decided to give this place a try. It is the old downtown section of Shelby. Lots of old growth shade trees before older storefronts. Its quaint not kitschy. This area has a fun nostalgic vibe rather than economically depressed. Upscale Mayberry at its finest.🍽️

The diner is situated at the corner of a one-way street. If you are trying this place for the first time, I recommend studying google maps for a minute. We circled the block before finding parking at the back. Be Prepared – Sayeth the Scar the Usurper! The diner itself takes up two store areas on this block. It was packed with people. There are signs everywhere saying since 1922, think Whistle Stop Café. Most of the clientele were chatting, happy, knew everyone’s family back 3 generations. Its got a really family feeling.💙

I got the Garbage Platter while the Man got the Hotcakes special. The name of my meal gives impressions of stinky smelly things best left in a metal container. However, the reality was anything but. Layers of eggs how you like (mine were over hard) cheese, and a meat of choice which for me was bacon. Layers of morning yummy on top of morning yummy.. It is might be better in the future with sausage rather than the crispy bacon. The whole plate is smothered in white gravy then topped with hashbrowns. The gravy didn’t have much flavor which is why I think hot sausage would be better. Otherwise, the food is good. The Man got the Hotcakes special. Two pancakes, eggs any way with choice of meat. The hotcakes were really good. He liked what he got. ✌️

This is a good place to go. Its reasonable, tasty with great service. If we are going west, this would be a good place to go. But since it’s a 45 min drive from Gastonia, it wouldn’t be a...

I really, really wanted to like this place. I chose this place instead of a chain restaurant, and I wanted to support a local business. The floors are not checkered black and white anymore, and it smells like a musty old building. The table was the cleanest I could find, and there was trash and crumbs on it. I went for breakfast at 9 am, and it was not crowded. The menus are at the table, and are sticky and covered in ketchup. My server was nice enough, but she did not seem happy to be there at all, and she stood behind my chair right behind me to feel the cold air vent and to complain about the heat. I ordered a veggie omelette with cheese, hash browns, and grits. I did not get an omelette. I got an over-cooked scramble of browned eggs and raw veggies smothered in what looked like Velveeta. The hash browns were burned, yet cold in the middle. The grits were ok, but I had to add salt to everything to even get it to be palatable. I understand if locals like it, but I won't spend my money here again. I have never had a breakfast that sloppy. The cashier totally ignored me after she scanned my card, and she walked away to ring up a waitress who wanted to buy 2 cookies. Not worth the money or time. If a cook is willing to send out food that looked like it had been dropped then scraped off the floor, then it's definitely not worth coming back. I really am not trying to be mean for the sake of being mean. But this place was not good, and they need quality control on their food...