Welcome Diner — Restaurant in Tucson

I drove by this place a few times and at first thought it was a REAL old school diner. I finally went in and immediately realized it was a hipster spot and not an old diner. I walked in and it was pretty empty, only a few other customers. The waitress at the front awkwardly stared at me after we initially exchanged pleasantries. Usually wait staff are more engaging when customers first walk in. Another awkward encounter with a different waitress and a quick glance at their absurdly overpriced menu made the decision to walk out after 3-4 minutes pretty easy.

The next weekend I went back and my experience was different. The welcome was a little warmer and it was more crowded. I sat down and waited a few minutes to get my water and order my food. I was dreading a potential long wait for my food, but it was actually pretty quick. I got the “No Way Jose” burger with fries, and it was all delicious. The fries are some of the best I’ve had recently and the burger was different than most in a very good way.

Now you may be wondering why 1 star if the food was so good. Well first off, the first time I went in I felt so unwelcome and uncomfortable that I left within 4 minutes, and other reviews indicate that this isn’t rare. Secondly it’s extremely expensive for a “diner”, my burger and fries cost $19 before tip. I get that high quality, good food comes at a price but they should put more cheap options on the menu to balance it out. Burgers and sandwiches don’t come with fries, you have to pay $3.50 extra and a side order of kimchi is $4, and unless they're giving you a half pound of kimchi that’s a rip off (I know that sounds weird, but trust me I know about kimchi).

There’s a Carl’s Jr. down the street and it’s much more reasonably priced and just as...

Very eclectic "southwest with a little touch of crazy" diner with living room area and converted garage dining area that I've driven by several times and never visited until this weekend. Came with my husband, our 3 and 4 year old and our 2 friends. Everyone there seemed happy like they enjoyed their job, seated us right away, music was great and just the right volume. It seemed geared towards people maybe in their 20s to 40s or so. Lots of cactus, succulents, southwest/hipster decor with really cool hand drawn looking pictures of southwest themed stuff framed along the wall. They didn't have any booster seats (or highchairs either I think) which made it a little hard for my short 3 year old to eat at the table. I tried the pork belly, mac and cheese and jambalaya and it was all very good. Portion to price was so so. The waiter checked on us a few times while eating and no one minded that we all stayed to visit after finishing eating. The one bummer was that my husband's eggs, sauce and English muffin on his pork belly eggs Benedict was ice cold like it was in the fridge. Not great for his first time trying one. About halfway through he couldn't stand it cold anymore and got up and asked if it was supposed to be served that way. They said no and were very apologetic and took it away but never gave him anything else instead but did take it off our bill. He was a little upset because he hasn't even finished the pork belly (the only thing warm) and was still hungry only having eaten half his food. Everyone there was very nice with good food in...

Let me tell you about the Welcome Diner: if this place hasn't won an award as Tucson's Best New Restaurant, we are living in the dimension of the Walking Dead. Service was great (our wait person, Triana, not only had the niftiest name in Tucson, she had the knowledge, know how and smile to make her the niftiest person in all of Pima County!) I had the Jackfruit Po' boy with brussels sprouts. I honestly don't know which was better, the sprouts or the sandwich. The sprouts were definitely charred first to bring out that flavor, then sauteed in olive oil. If that doesn't demonstrate confidence in the back of the house, I don't know what does frankly. The Po' Boy couldn't have been better even if I had eaten one in NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana.) The bread was pillowy soft, the shredded beef was very tender, possibly braised for 4 hours or longer. The flavors were richly vibrant....I couldn't get enough! The desert was a beautiful lemon curd pie with a blackberry compote and I believe a pistachio garnish to tamp down that sweetness. Gotta tell you, I'm not a fan of lemon curd but I could have eaten that desert literally forever and ever and ever...well you get the picture. The restaurant is immaculate, I mean, it looks like you could eat breakfast off the floor. Big, wide, open spaces! I remember when the Hub opened with its fanfare and hip feel to it. Welcome Diner has similar fanfare and is probably twice as hip!! Do no not pass up an opportunity to enjoy the food, the welcoming staff and the streamlined...