I love this place! When travelling between Watsonville and San Jose or when coming home from a trip its a great place to stop. Food's good, service is second to none. read more

Went here for the first time today with the husband and baby. The wait to get a booth was long but that's just a sign the place is a good place to eat. Waitresses were nice and the layout made it easy for stroller access..in the less busier parts anyway. Prices were cheap, and quality was good. Love the eggs Benedict. Husband loved how the buscuits tasted fresh, and the country fried steak is to die for...i don't even really like country fried steak. My only complaint was my fruit was warm and cut odd. Other than that. Yuuum. read more

The pork cutlets with cinnamon apples are excellent. My wife always enjoys the burger basket. Service was very good and prompt.

Had dinner with the family while road tripping with the family. The food was good, I ordered The Gobbler which was a turkey sandwich with avocado and cranberry sauce, it was alright, not the best. The service was good, I think some items were a bit over priced, but it's a decent place to stop and eat. read more

Five stars for customer service especially from the hostess her name is Anna she's the best and should be a server as for the food it comes down to what you like. I had some kind of fried chicken it was good but not the best read more

The worst service ever, the food was poorly made, steak was ordered medium came out well done

One of my favorite spots in town! The food is superb, and the service is just as good. It can get very crowded on weekends, and they don't accept reservations, but the wait is well worth it. Their portions are for very hungry people and can usually be shared or made into good leftovers. My favorite is the Belgium waffle. read more

Immediately walking in, I felt like we should have chosen another place to go. The person who seated us was unfriendly, as well as the server. No check up on our drinks. Our experienced could have done without thinking more about our service (or lack of), and more on the food. The food was ok, but I wish we had taken it to go. We would have, if we weren't headed to the airport. Thanks for the terrible service, Black Bear. Not. read more

Started with chicken noodle soup and it had a nice flavor too it. Very good actually. Ordered meatloaf and very crispy French fries. Well I think he thought I said barely browned. Oh well and the great thing is I'm a NJ guy and the brown gravy to dip the fries in was good as well. I'm not a brown gravy on hamburger so I got it on the side. Meatloaf is fairly good as well. Little salt and some ketchup hit the spot. read more

If ever in Gilroy, Ca you definitely need to try this restaurant food service is excellent & they serve breakfast, lunch or dinner all the time. Food is very good & well worth your money. read more

Good food, larger portions, reasonable prices, friendly service, what more can someone ask for? If you're in the mood for American food, look no further. read more

Upset! This review is for the employees who made my bf feel awful on his birthday! Black Bear Diner sent my bf a coupon for a free meal on his Birthday, so we came in to claim it. It's not required that we dine in or is it mandatory to make any other purchases. Besides, we don't eat meat on Wednesday's due to personal matters so we had our vegetarian food for today already. My bf was hoping to eat his birthday meal tomorrow. Regardless of the reason, we shouldn't have to be looked down upon or made to feel guilty for not dining in or making other purchases. However, instead of wishing my bf a Happy Birthday, the lady named Frances and her coworker Marlene made us feel horrible. Frances asked me twice, "So that's all you're getting?" And "So you're not getting anything else?". MArlene seemed surprised too whispering to Frances, "They're not getting anything else?". No we're not getting anything else today! What's wrong with that?! For all the junk emails we get throughout the year, getting one free meal on our birthday isn't that much! No one should have to feel uncomfortable and bad on their birthday! Don't treat people this way! Thanks for making my bf's birthday unforgettable! read more

Terrible. My wife and I went in there today, (New Years Eve), and it was not busy, but it was all downhill from there. Food was cold, coffee was not decaf, potatoes were not cooked. They should give up on their potato offerings and start over. Their version of hash browns is not appetizing even if they had been cooked. No check back on coffee, a small blessing in this case, but they seriously need to up their game. Been to a lot of BBD's and this one is consistently the worst. read more

One of our favorites.....if you're looking for comfort food, look no more. We have never been disappointed. Friendly attentive staff and amazing manager, Marlene. Give it a try! read more

I would have given 5 stars but I had to minus one for the horrible parking lot, super small for the amount of traffic it gets, and another minus for the terrible biscuits and gravy. I had the all meat omelette with spinach and cheese, pancakes, hashbrowns and sausage. Everything was amazing, some of the best pancakes I've ever had at a restaurant :) My only complaint was that the biscuits and gravy came to us cold (can you imagine cold lumpy gravy? GROSS!), and the biscuit itself was so dense that it was almost like a french bread loaf, not fluffy like a biscuit at all. For as much of a show they made out of it, and the portion size, I was very disappointed that the biscuit tasted terrible. Our servers were really nice and they were able to accomodate my friend who brought her toddler. I'll be coming back again but won't be ordering the biscuits and gravy! read more

On Thanksgiving afternoon we went to the Black Bear Diner in Gilroy. We ordered the turkey dinner special. The mashed potatoes were tasteless, the stuffing was very wet and not much flavor either. The turkey was mostly dark meat and in chunks and pieces rather than slices. We even found two thin bones in the turkey. They served this special with their usual non crispy veggies. Gravy was slathered over the meat and potatoes. The only part of that meal that was good was the included pumpkin pie with whipped cream. Service was just OK, and our waiter mixed up our check with another table. I took a long time to correct the issue. Correction was finally performed by another employee, and our original waiter didn't stop by our table to apologize. There really weren't many customers there when we went. We got there well before 5 pm. We have eaten here close to fifty times over the years so we know how good Black Bear Diner can be. Clearly, management team was lacking. Better to close up on holidays and miss a few dollars than serve previously prepared food that should have been discarded. read more

My family and I have been going to Black Bear since it opened. I have rarely had a bad meal here. The place is quite clean and the items on table are always nice and replenished. The wait staff has always been very friendly until now-- they have some funky ones in there as of recently. Some of my favorite things to order include: Eggs benedict, the gobbler, bacon cheeseburger, hashbrowns...oat pancakes are delish! Hungry for dessert?? The BlackBeary cobbler is seriously amazing! (With vanilla ice cream on top!!) read more

A really delicious prime rib dinner for 15 bucks and we cannot even finish it. Super juicy. Fun food!

Ate here after a shopping trip to the Gilroy outlets. I hadn't heard anything about it, but was pleasantly surprised by how great the experience was! Hubby ordered the chicken fried steak with the best homemade biscuit I've ever tasted, and I had the Gobbler turkey sandwich and fries, which was a great choice. We shared a chocolate shake, and neither of us was able to finish our food. The portions are huge, and the food really tasty read more

I am leaving 5 stars because the floor Supervisor Willy rocks....I represent the Greater Bay Area Make A Wish Foundation and had some friends win an awesome basket that Black Bear Diner donated to a silent auction to raise money to grant wishes to children with life threatening illnesses in the Bay Area....They came tonight to use their gift certificates but were told they can't use them....After receiving a phone call from my friend who won the basket and was told she could not use them I asked for the Manager....Willy came on the phone and after explaining the situation he apologized and honored their gift certificates and even included a complimentary dessert....FIRST CLASS CUSTOMER SERVICE......THANK YOU BLACK BEAR DINER FOR SUPPORTING THE MAKE A WISH FOUNDATION...."YOU GUYS ROCK" read more

Since moving to Gilroy from SJ about 6 months ago, we have gone to this place probably 5 times already. Great service every time. Food is excellent. Super huge portions. And my daughter gets a balloon which makes her super happy. Which makes me happy. Love this place. read more

The food was great. Our service not so much. Our server Manuel seemed rude. I was never asked if I wanted a refill on my coffee while I noticed he went around to other tables to offer them a refill. Then I had to get up to ask another person for a glass of water, because Manuel just brought our check and never came back to check on us. Next time we stop in Gilroy I think we will pass on stopping at this diner. read more

The food wasn't very good and they forgot to put in my son's order. Rather than tell us this, they allowed us to sit with three people served, waiting for the fourth meal. The other dishes got cold, of course, before the manager came over to explain what had happened. They did try to make it right but there really wasn't much that could be done. When the fourth meal finally came out, my husband's food was inedible. They comped his (since he couldn't eat it at all) and the fourth meal. Would be 1 star but giving an extra for staff at least trying to fix the situation. read more

Great for late night dinner. I enjoyed the chicken strips with fries and a strawberry shake. I wish the straws given with the shake were bigger but you could always use a spoon. read more

Great portions sizes, home cooked style food, friendly and fast service even when busy- seems pricey but for the portion sizes it's actually a good deal. read more

Always yummy and friendly staff. Never a bad choice if you're looking for a home cooked type meal.

We seem to always get the same waiter, which is always in a rush and seems pre-occupied. Rarely checks back and when he does again, pre-occupied and in a rush to get finished with you. The restaurant appears clean but pretty loud on top of the jute box playing. The lady manager is very nice and friendly. read more

So the food wasn't bad but the main issue is the service. While dining there our server took awhile to get our drinks after being seated but was on top of trying.g to take our order, after getting out food our server proceeded to watch over us as if he was rushing us. To top off our experience about a week goes by and we saw that we got billed $70 for two breakfast plates and some juice that in total cost $37 so we go in only to question how this happened and the manager acted as if we were crazy and ot just doubting that this actually happened. Unfortunately this was our first time here and will be our last. read more

I love this restaurant it is my favorite Black Bear location (so far) I've only been to three. There decor is so cute and the food is the best. Beware they serve extra large portions even from the little less menu. So be prepared to take some home or have a fridge/micro in your hotel room. Grrrreat job guys! read more

Made an order over the phone: showed up and I had to wait a pretty long time because the kitchen was behind. The manager apologized given it was a busy time in the morning and gave me discount. Food tasted great, so it was worth the wait. read more

Standard American Diner food. You know what to expect. Better than Denny's, but the same sort of selection. This location can get quite busy at times. Nice for when you want something better than fast food, but don't want to spend too much, or need anything fancy. read more

This place gives you a crap load of food. We got the chicken fried steak and something else that I don't remember. I just remember the huge piece of chicken fried steak that I couldn't even finish 1/3 of. It was good... but not great. read more

We met some friends at the Black Bear Diner on Saturday. I don't know what I was thinking when I ordered the salmon. This is not a seafood restaurant, folks, so don't order the salmon. I was served two small pieces of salmon that were dry and didn't look or taste like salmon. Both pieces were from the area of the fish just above the tail and one piece was a pale white. I expressed my dissatisfaction with the fish and the waiter took my plate and brought me two new pieces. At least the new fish LOOKED like salmon! But it still tasted awful. Then we made the mistake of ordering the berry cobbler. These beauties must be premade and warmed in a microwave before serving because the crust was so rubbery, it was tough to cut with a fork or spoon. I've eaten at the BBD in Shasta and have been mostly happy with the food, but I'll steer clear of the BBD in Gilroy and I won't chance ordering salmon at any of the BBDs again. Hope this helps others not make the same mistake I did. read more

You want reasonably priced great food with large portions...this your place! The tri-tip is delicious....U can't beat their breakfasts...try the cobblers....heated and a la mode! You will be as stuffed as one of the bears sitting outside the restaurant! Male Staff members could be a little more pleasant ..but other than that...this place is a must visit! read more

I've really liked this place ever since it opened. (All of their locations have been good, but the one in Gilroy is the best.) The food is really good. Their policy is for you to let them know if anything isn't to your liking so they can fix it. The portions are honestly large enough for a person to split an order between 2 or 3 meals. My friend once took a picture of his burger so he'd have proof of his meal when he returned home. My only complaint would have to be the amount of time one has to wait to get a table. Of course, that's really just a testament to how much people like this homey restaurant. (I'm also a fan of their newspaper-style menus.) read more

If you have a big appetite or are really hungry, then this is the place for you. The portions that they give you are huge......I have had breakfast & dinner here and have no complaints other than at times the wait is long to get your food. If you are just wanting desert, definitely try the apple pie ala mode....... read more

Bomb! The 7 GRAIN ALMOND PANCAKES.....OMG.....SOOOO YUMMY! TOO GOOD TO BE PANCAKES.....YOU SEE I DON'T EAT PANCAKES BUT LOVING ALMONDS I TRIED IT SINCE IT SOUNDED HEALTHY....mmm... and omg.... there's the thick juicy ham, thick mouth watering bacon.... potatoes... there really isn't a thing in the 10 times I've been here I didn't like. BBD is a chain...heard different reviews from the diff. restaurants but the one in Gilroy = best breakfast I've ever had bar none. read more

Had a really bland rib eye. Other guys had good smelling and tasting sandwich, bfast, and chicken meals. The steak just didnt cut it.

Good food, really big portions and nice staff

great place, great atmosphere. Super rustic and comforting, this is as good as it gets for the comfort food in gilroy. maybe i'm wrong, but i recommend the place for sure, breakfast/lunch/dinner read more