I'm not going to pile too much more on top of the heaping (well-deserved) praise that this fantastic little cafe gets already. It's one of our family favorites for Saturdays after we finish our shopping at the WSM. Agree with numerous reviews that the option to pay with a credit card would be nice, but you can scrape together the loose change from your couch and manage to get a darn good meal, so I won't complain too much. read more

-Cash Only & Metered Street Parking- But the cafe itself... Amazing. I wanted to try everything on the menu the first time I went. And everything I have tried so far has been great with zero complaints (their avocado bacon eggs beni is delicious, though a little awkward to eat... And their burritos are a personal favorite). Our server was an absolute sweetheart, kept conversation friendly but still nice and short, and she was great about refilling our water and coffee whenever we started to get low. This has become the brunch place for me and my friends - I'd recommend it to anyone! read more

This place lives up to the hype and the Yelp reviews were helpful! I went at 10 a.m. on a Thursday and got a table immediately, and there were only a couple of diners there. Great for solo dining by the way. I got the stuffed French Toast and Egg Scrambler (cheesy eggs with potatoes and toast) and a side of bacon. Everything was amazing!!!! I opted for the half order of the French Toast because of Yelp, and that was a wise choice. It was so much food and I have a hearty appetite. I did think the coffee wasn't as good as I read on here - just your typical diner coffee. Nothing wrong with that, but because it got such rave reviews, I was expecting more. Service was amazing and even the fellow diners were pleasant. read more

This was one of the rudest encounters I have ever experienced at a restaurant. We arrived around 11:00AM, and had a party of two. There was only a few people in the whole restaurant and we observed several open tables. A man walked in immediately after us and was seated right away. We were then told that they were unable to seat us and that they wouldn't be able to serve us before they closed ( they close at noon - an hour later). I have never felt more unwelcome at any restaurant in my entire life. My advice - go somewhere else who will appreciate your business. read more

This is our favorite spot for brunch in Lakewood. My husband and I each get the eggs, bacon, potatoes and toast and also share a trail mix pancake (and I always get a chocolate milk to satisfy my inner child!). We make sure to wake up a little earlier than usual when we want to go for breakfast on the weekend because it can get pretty busy! The only downside is that it is cash only and we never carry cash, but that is our own fault! Totally worth a stop to the ATM. Service is always fast and friendly and the waitresses are always quick to fill your empty coffee cup! :) read more

We are visiting from California and really appreciated the delicious breakfast and friendly service. We will be back next trip. read more

Borderline Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

Oh yeaaah breakfast burritos! The avocado Benedict a few others have mentioned and with good reason. read more

Borderline Cafe - Borderline brunch - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

I've been here twice now and got the southwest eggs Benedict (no bacon) both times! It's an English muffin with tomatoes, poached eggs, guac, cilantro, and a lime-southwest hollandaise sauce; it is amazing! I will never get anything else when I come here! Both times there was a wait (under 40 minutes). There isn't a waiting area so you can feel a little squashed in the door way when others are trying to come in/leave. My waitress was pleasant both times. Great local breakfast place! read more

Great breakfast. Sunday at 10 was almost no wait with the place almost full. Service was spot on. Pancakes were delicious. Several burrito choices too. And eggs. Friendly service. Will return! Remember Cash only. read more

Borderline Cafe - Perfect breakfast. Best poached eggs too - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

$$ Cash Only $$ I have been here several times and they never fail to impress. Great service by what seems to be a family owned restaurant, cozy, and relatively quick for how good the food is. If you get there at a busy time, you can be expecting to wait for a table because of the size, but it is well worth the wait. Everything I've had has been good, but the dish to write home about is their stuffed french toast, unreal! Favorite Brunch place in Cleveland! read more

Walked in and I was greeted by the waitress who said to me "there is no room" and she walked away. Didn't suggest we wait, maybe come back in 10 minutes. Nothing. Yes the place is small but who Treats potential customers like that. That was my first and last experience there. read more

The Food was terrific!! Purchased the smoke sausage omelet ant that's all she wrote. Server was friendly and made me feel right at home. I highly recommend..don't let the small size of this place fool you. Portion size was more than enough...did I mention the home fries! Yummy and seasoned just right! read more

Wow!!! Slap your a** Good!! Bright fun atmosphere. Very friendly service. You can tell they have their regulars. The server seemed to know everyone by name and when they would be back. And the food is FANTASTIC!!! Had the avocado bacon Benedict, slap you a** chorizo tacos and a half order of banana stuffed French Toast. They were all amazing. I can't wait to come back tomorrow to do it all again!! Wow!!! *CASH ONLY** read more

Borderline Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

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Best brunch in Lakewood! Always quite busy, but well worth the wait. Get the eggs Benedict and hash browns with cheese.

The best hidden gem in the area. Breakfast is so amazing but still affordable. Definitely would recommend!!! But bring cash - its cash only - trust me - it's worth it!!! read more

Borderline Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

This place was a great find for our Sunday morning brunch. The owner was extremely nice and attentive. The corn beef hash was delicious with some homemade mustard that was tasty. My boyfriend got an omelet with hashbrowns and they were amazing, really similar to au gratin, but better. The restauraunt is quaint and clean. There was barely a wait and everyone has a really nice, positive attitude. They only accept cash, but they are reasonably priced and well worth the trip to the ATM. read more

Staff is very friendly, the food was very fresh. Just an FYI it is cash only my friends.

Our go-to for Sunday breakfast. They and we have adjusted well to the new take-out world. Excellent food, as always - now we get to enjoy it at home with mimosas. read more

The servers are amazing and the food always comes out hot! Don't forget your cash (even if you do the ladies are so trusting for you to go to the bank). Always a wait but so worth it! I always get the breakfast quesadilla with extra lime sour cream! read more

Just got turned away because we have a party of 6. Her option was a table for 3 then a table for 2 then one person would sit alone but "it'll be a long time". Unbelievably rude. Plus she literally shut the door in our face. We certainly won't be returning nor recommending this place. read more

This place is awesome! Borderline cafe is a must go to place!! This place is definitely worth going to the ATM. Next, the service was on par. Kelly, the only waitress working, did an excellent job. She catered to our every needs flawlessly, topping off our coffee and water without being asked to, and making us feel right at home while we waited for our food. She was the only one waitress and she killed it! For being a hole in the wall place, Borderline Cafe delivers 5 star service, quality, and expectations. It is hands down one of our favorite breakfast places we've been to in cleveland by far! Southwestern Omelette and Pumpkin Cream Stuffed French Toast: The omelette was light and thin. It had the perfect amount of cheese and sour cream. I loved the salsa that came with it. The pumpkin french toast was the special for the day. They were amazing! The pumpkin cream was perfect and the candied pecans were nice addition. I had the Huevos Rancheros Verdes: It was "¡muy delicioso!" The green salsa is very good and the over medium eggs cooked just right! The atmosphere was very welcoming and our server was one of the best I've had in a long time. I had the Chorizo Burrito: First and foremost, the presentation was amazing for a $6 burrito. If you like good first impressions, this is the place to be at. Ok, not only is it appealing to the eyes, it's appealing and mighty delicious to the taste as well. The two sauces sprinkled on it was awesome! Not sure if they were homemade or not. I ordered the stuffed French toast and it is THE best I've ever hard with the perfect portion size. Just enough for me and for the rest of breakfast club to have a taste. Kelly is such a great waitress who is prompt with coffee and so courteous!! Love this place! Bacon Avocado Eggs Benedict: This is the specialty, for good reason. There is perfect amounts of avocado to quietly compliment the poached egg and bacon. The hollandaise sauce was superb, which is very easy to mess up. It wasn't too thick or runny. It does not look like a large serving as first, but quickly filled me up. I definitely recommend this dish to any and everyone...something different to have for breakfast but totally worth it! There is a reason our breakfast club has been to this place twice...it is worth every penny! read more

Awesome breakfast place! Walked up there got in right away and just enough food to fill you up but not uncomfortable. Got the bacon avocado Benedict was great.. Loved the cilantro lime sauce read more

Borderline Cafe - Everything was great! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lakewood, Ohio

since it's family owned/operated i will say that their hours are not ideal for me, but everyone needs a break and i can totally respect that so i'll have to change my schedule to get out there more often. this food puts a southwestern spin on the classics we love. my personal favorite is there southwestern omelet. it's really basic but there's something about it HERE that i love. my brother's favorite choice here is their huevos rancheros. also, their toast(as funny as it sounds) is the best toast i've ever had. please give this place a shot, you will not regret it. i drive from the far east side of cleveland(mentor) to get to lakewood for this food. read more

Checked this place out recently and it did not disappoint! When we showed up, there was a line out the door, but it wasn't too far out the door and seemed like a good sign, so we waited. Everything was delicious. I had breakfast tacos and normally never finish all my food, but those tacos were so good I practically licked my plate. We ordered some queso home fries (or hash browns?) for the table and those were amazing too. We had a group of five and everyone was smitten with the place. When we left, the line out the door was a LOT longer. I'm going back for sure, but am going to shoot for going early so I don't have to wait! read more

The best, you just need to go.. Remember to bring cash and make sure to check the hours. Try the stuffed waffles with fruit. Really good. read more

Good breakfast food, good service. Its always packed, that's gotta be saying something. Benedict's are awesome, avocado is best. One negative, they dont seem to take pride, or cater to coffee-lovers. There coffee is not too good. It wont stop me from returning though. read more

One of my favorite breakfast places in Lakewood/Cleveland! I always go for the breakfast tacos and a side of cheesy home fries. The pancakes are always delicious (chocolate chip are especially). One problem with this place is that there is almost ALWAYS a line to get in. The place is small and cozy and the line is usually out the door. But it is definitely worth the wait read more

This the first time in this restaurant for breakfast, I loved it. I had the Chorizo Tacos, they were awesome and the homefries. I can eat just the homefries alone. I will be coming back to try the stuffed french toast. read more

The food NEVER disappoints! Always order a meal and now we get a side of pancakes as well because it is too hard to choose. Had a omelet for the first time and it was awesome....go western!! Very busy on the weekends so go early! read more

I've never had a disappointing meal there until today. We sent a muffin back because it tasted like it was cooked on a dirty grill with old meat grease. Our meals came and they were exceptionally greasy. Neither of us finished. We made it less than 4 blocks before explosive diarrhea hit and was a gross, embarassing mess. The worst part was that we told the waitress the food was off when we sent back the first muffin and after our meal arrived. She assured us it was fine. She just didn't hear us and didn't bother to investigate or check in the kitchen. As my mom said; "that's one place we'll never go again." read more

This is our favorite breakfast spot we have ever been to! Hits the spot for pancake/French toast enthusiasts and omelet fans. Highly recommend the cream cheese filled French toast with the strawberry/blueberry compote. Get there early to avoid a line. read more

Omg! The bacon avocado Benedict is one of the best breakfasts I've ever had! This was our first visit to this restaurant and we were blown away by the great service, fun casual ambiance, and delicious food. My husband's home fries were crispy and flavorful - perfection! Check this place out but be sure to bring cash (the prices are quite reasonable). So good! read more

Shit! Only one review for the Borderline? I was there every weekend eating veggie breakfast quesadillas, sour cream coffee cakes, and that crazy stuffed french toast. Their hash browns are the best; sort of like a chunk of potato smashed down and cooked and seasoned just right. Incredible food. read more

I LOVE breakfast sandwiches. I don't know what it is but I just can't get enough. Their borderline wrap is great - it's scrambled eggs, cheese and your choice of meat wrapped in a tortilla and served with salsa. I substitute breakfast potatoes for the chips (who eats chips, anyway?) and always leave so satisfied. It's a pretty small place so try to time your arrival either early or late to miss the crowd. read more

Great food, great value too. Be prepared to wait but it's worth it. Friendly staff too.

Best breakfast in Lakewood!! Nice staff, but kind of slow service. I've been here like 10 times it never disappoints!!

Boo. We went with two kids and told we wouldn't be able to eat there together. This info came to us after waiting for 15 minutes.

What a treat this place is! The food was excellent. I LOVED the chorizo tacos. I also suggest getting the stuffed waffles and splitting them with the table. The cheesy potatoes are also pretty darn amazing. Great prices. Friendly and polite service. I forget our servers name, but she had dark hair and a nose piercing and she was a delight. This place is a must. read more

A great little breakfast spot. Very small so expect to wait but the staff was prompt in seating those waiting when tables became available. I tried the bacon avocado Benedict and it was delicious. Will definitely be back again for breakfast soon. read more

Awesome place! Waiting area is very small, as is the actual restaurant but the food makes up for it. The Bacon Avocado Eggs Benedict is probably the most popular item they have and once you have it, you understand why. Service is also great! Check this place out if you're in Lakewood! read more