The Original Diner
| Address: | 2240 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA |
| Phone: | +1 510-540-6351 |
| Rating: | 3 |
| Working: | 9AM–9:30PM 9AM–9:30PM 9AM–9:30PM 9AM–9:30PM 9AM–11PM 9AM–11PM 9AM–9:30PM |
Location
Photos 9
Reviews 27
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A Private User
we ate at this place today (called "fins restaurant according to our receipt) which, though retaining the original mels neon sign is NOT a mels. though the shake was good and my grilled cheese was tasty, my boyfriends burger was literally frozen and raw in the middle, pale and barely cooked on the outside. disgusting. furthermore, when he complained to the waitress she declared it looked fine, "thats what medium rare looks like". no, medium rare is not uncooked. and if you are using crappy preformed frozen patties, then dont ask customers how they want their burger cooked. you cant cook a 1/4" patty to anything other than well done and have it edible. as we were complaining we overheard the next table complaining to their server about the very same problem, and receiving the same "looks fine to me" answer. also, the burger was $10 for a thin frozen patty, and the waitress offered no apology for my boyfriend biting into raw beef. PASS ON THIS PLACE there are plenty of good restaurants on Shattuck to never have to eat here.
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A Private User
This place is disgusting! It was a date night for my husband and me, and we got out of the late showing of our movie, decided we wanted an ice cream shake, our favorite place Burger meister was close decided, cant be that bad? OMG! the floor was filthy dirty and nasty! I would NEVER ever let my toddlers walk in there, the service sucks! We ordered a malted milk shake, and it was made with no malt, but charged as one! and then to top it all off, the cheesecake that I got, it was no better than a damn slice from Jacks! At least if I had gone to jacks I would have gotten better and faster service! This place is pathetic! I dont understand how they havent gotten shut down by the health dept or the horrible food!
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Jiann Mok
Tips: - dont visit on a weekday during lunch: all the Berkeley High School kids wander in, causing noise pollution and slow service - remember that this is a diner-- the food should be cheap(ish) and greasy!! Pros: - corned beef hash (tender, greasy beef + crispy potatoes) - good prices (I always get a lot of meat in my hash) - friendly servers - there is always seating available - breakfast is served all day (who else here likes breakfast for dinner!?) Cons: - I can feel my blood vessels clogging up from all the grease. So worth it, though. Bottom line: Decent diner food. Ill be back.
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Ron Kemp
Ordered the Hot Turkey Sandwich over sourdough. Couldnt even finish half of it. Absolutely horrible. First and foremost it isnt even anything close to real turkey! Its some processed crap. Then, to top it off, its totally flavorless. I cant say well never return, since we love dining at small, local places, but you can rest assured that I will never, EVER have the hot roasted turkey sandwich again. In fact, Ill even tell others to steer clear of it.
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A Private User
This place used to be a great 50s-style diner, but the new owners took out the jukeboxes at the individual tables, changed all the music selections to current pop music, turned up the jukebox volume to 11 (so you cant actually have a conversation over dinner), and jacked up all the prices. Also, never never never order the hash browns.
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Shannon Holloway
I dont typically do reviews, but I saw several negative reviews on this place so thought Id share my good experiences. I go here somewhat frequently with coworkers for lunch . . . service is good, atmosphere is good, food is what I expect of diner food. For old school diner food and atmosphere this is the best place in Berkeley.
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Sean Lupin
Food sucked. Was experiencing medical condition and politely requested to use the restroom, promised to order after. Was denied and insisted to wait for the owner to fill a cup of soda and pay upfront before allowed to treat medical condition in restroom. Would not come back.
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Haoran Guo
didnt actually go into the diner, but my friends and i got assaulted by a homeless guy outside. overall, im glad to have such good friends to share an enriching experience, 5/5 prob wouldnt get tackled again. hbd mealnie
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Clayton Edgerton
This place sucks bigtime. Slow, overpriced, and just incredibly bland food. I have absolutely no idea how this place stays in business. I cant think of anywhere worse to eat in Berkeley.
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kevin cousins
The Original Diner gave me an authentic American diner experience. Im glad I found the place because I got a pleasing meal with service and price worthy of a much more expensive venue.
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Matt Stites
Nothin much more to it than a simple okay diner. The omelette was aight. Super friendly staff. Bizarre to find this kind of place in the middle of Shattuck but its cool.
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A Private User
Been here two times and both times was served the biggest juiciest hamburger plus french fries, ever. Delicious, would definitely go here again and again.
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Lincoln William Statler
Its an American style diner with burgers, breakfast and dinners. Stick with breakfast and burgers. You get what you pay for.
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Alexis Lee
Its cheap diner food. The burger is probably your best bet. Kids hot dogs came out pale and lukewarm, I suggest you avoid it!
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Suzy Kahr
Asked for curly fries, but too hungry to send back. Cranberry sauce is good, has sliced almonds. Comfy booths. Quiet place.
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Andrew Ness
Food is meh, decor is okay - traditional diner style but not really in a nice way.
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Tomas Rodriguez
I like the atmosphere and service, but food is fairly tasteless AND expensive.
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Jim Ostrowski
Great milkshakes! Also had really good pancakes and veggies burgers.
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Maniaclolz
AMAZING BREAKFAST AND LUNCH So many options and all are equally good
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A Private User
Dry potatoes, ok eggs, horrible pancake. The waiter got order wrong.
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Nuria Vendrell Llopis
How is it possible to cook chicken wings so badly??
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Diana Cortes
Visited for breakfast, good coffee and good food.
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James Pretti
food was not great. cheap prices. friendly staff.
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Deja Kk
AMAZING BURGERS!! Good price. Leave a tip!
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J Lee
Okay food... go here for the decor...
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Diane Wells
Nostalgic fun, next to movie theatre
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A Private User
Bad burgers, but very nice omolets!
