Ordered for pickup. 1. Would have been nice if they actually handed me my takeout instead of me having to pick it up off the table . Rude 2. Ordered Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo. Chicken was pink and sauce was watery. Ick. 3. Chowder soup: couldn't figure out what it was made with. 4. Husband liked the fried haddock and fries. But to him anything fried is good. Save your money. read more

DELICIOUS My fiance and I just recently moved to Spencer, MA. We were off on a Monday and were looking for a good diner to eat at! I have previously been to Charlie's a few years ago, but now living in town, I decided to bring my fiance for the first time! I got the Belgian waffle and my fiance got an omelet special! Both were cooked AMAZING! The food tasted so good, my Belgian waffle was crisp around the edges and just melted in my mouth after each bite! The atmosphere is extremely country feeling and very pleasant to be in! The chef was hilarious and really made our dining experience a one of a kind! I highly recommend this hidden gem - super delicious, great value and great people! Love love LOVE this place! read more

We waited an hour for our breakfast, watching others with larger parties get theirs before ours was delivered- barely warm. When we let the waitress know, she snapped "We are very busy and don't have any food runners here." She brought back our food a minute later, and it was still barely warm. We asked to see the manager, who was the owner also. He was rude, interrupted myself and my spouse, raised his voice, was condescending and made excuses. Not once did he apologize and his behavior was completely inappropriate. He offered to cook the meal over himself, but at that point our experience was ruined and we left. Apparently, they were too busy to have basic manners and common courtesy. Your customers want hot food and to be treated with respect. No thank you, we don't pay to be abused. read more

The serviers were amazing and very responsive to are services and helpful. But the owner was rude and made my sister cry bc the way that he acted towrds us and are family on mothers day of all day was outragous never going back bc of the owner. read more

What has happened to Charlies? This use to be our go to but it's like Covid has broken this place and the owner had given up. The bar is still not open. It has 4 tables attached to it where people can sit. When I asked why It was still closed I was told nobody wants to work. Well let me tell you every other bar in the area is open and staffed so your pay scale much be horrible. On to the food. We ordered a clam roll. The clams were overcooked. The French fries were over cooked. We had stuffed Mushrooms the stuffing was so dry it was horrible. What a shame. This guy spent years expanding and growing his business and now it's like he has just given up. A 100 dollar tab for sub standard food. We won't be back! I should add that the staff is amazing and the service is on point!! read more

Our favorite breakfast place in the area. Wait times are sometimes long, but I can't speak for every time. It only happened twice or so on holidays and we've been many many times. So if you go on let's say Mother's Day, it could take a bit for your food to get to you, but other than that this place is perfection to me!! Can't wait to be back. read more

I've been in a few times for breakfast and have sat in both the diner and restaurant sides. The food has always been good. I've had eggs, French toast and pancakes. All of them excellent. Home fries are excellent as well. So why the 2 stars? Steve the owner is an absolute jerk. Rude, obnoxious and degrading. He has something to say about everyone who walks out the door. I can't believe what a d-bag this guy is. read more

Service was fast and food hot. We had the luncheon size Turkey dinner which we couldn't finish. We frequent Charlie's and have never had a bad meal read more

Really not good. I expect much more from a place like this. The place is not clean, the food nasty and the server rushed us (although the food took took long on a slow Sat afternoon). Look at my sandwich. Can you please scrape your dirty grille before making my sandwich? Also, I noticed that you did a second or third fryer dip of my nasty grease soaked o rings. Don't understand the traffic flow from the dining room to the new section. How about you fix your quality issues before expanding? Btw, I live in Spencer. read more

Charlies Diner - Diners Near Me - Spencer, Massachusetts

I live nearby and until yesterday frequently would eat here. One thing to consider before eating here, is the owner there? If so, plan on them being an a$$hole. I was minding my own business at my table when I overheard the owner making fun of my outfit. I didn't ask for their opinion and they were pretty close to where I was seated. I had heard bad things about this person, but I had never had any incident until yesterday. I'm a paying customer being insulted as I'm eating. I didn't ask for their opinion. I didn't confront or even say anything while there. I'm no longer going to be frequenting this establishment. It's a sad world we live in. read more

Good burger fries were under done not very crisp. Oil might need to be hotter. No milk shakes. WTF! How do you have a diner with no milk shakes.. Wanted a burger fries experience that I had here for many years before and after a retreat which is vegetarian. Oh well . Conditions change. Namaste read more

Unfortunately disappointing. Over cooked Haddock and Frozen calamari , Stuffed shrimp was overcooked an NOT stuffed, and Prime Rib and "roasted" Brussels sprouts that had ZERO seasoning. The one saving grace, they can still cook a burger. Fries? meh......maybe a bad night.......won't be back soon to find out........unfortunately read more

The prices are very reasonable. The place was clean. Service was extremely slow and not made correctly. There were 4 of us. One person did not get his meal until we were all done and then it was not made correctly. He got a roast beef sandwich with fires. The fries took another 5 minutes to be brought out. I had a tuna melt which was cold. Cold tuna defeats the purpose on the melting the cheese. I only got my side when the last person got his meal. The liver and onions was made correctly but of course had to be eaten as soon as it was delivered. It it was super thin and ok. The side salad was delivered 15 minutes after the liver was brought out. The BLT was actually made correctly along with the correct side but was delivered 5 minutes after the tuna and liver. read more

Simply put I don't like the majority of their food. I gave it one last try for their macaroni and cheese which I did like but they changed the recipe to a Velveeta kind of macaroni and cheese which I don't like. read more

Went to Charlies Diner for breakfast yesterday. The service (could have been the individual server) was very slow. An hour to get our food from the time we sat down. It seemed busy but not that busy. When the food finally came, the plates were warmer than the food. Makes me think they were sitting under a heat lamp for a while. The food was good but would have been better if it were hot. When it came time to pay our server was no where to be found. We had to flag down another server who took care of the bill for us. read more

Guy Fieri made Charlies famous. The business grew and it's just not the same. Quality is not there. Ordered a bowl of clam chowder and it came to me lukewarm, watery and absolutely NO clams. read more

I love this place. Food is always very good and very well prepared with very generous portions. Service is also excellent. If you go during peak times, be prepared to wait for a table as they can get very busy. read more

great food. Clean and friendly. First time here but definitely will be back. A nice mis of older and younger crow. Nice place to sit and enjoy a nice meal read more

Charlies Diner - Diners Near Me - Spencer, Massachusetts

Food is very good for Massachusetts. Change the menu now and then and turn on the Yankee games.

Great breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Tonight's special, Mac 'n cheese! With a rack of ribs...yummy!

I was there this Sunday morning in the diner section. I was surprised to see that the woman working the grill had no gloves on. One of the servers there was grabbing bacon directly off the grill with her bare hand and serving it onto customers plates. When the manager showed up, he picked up where she left off. read more

Very slow service, food was pretty good, booths very small I'm not a big or small guy and man I was very uncomfortable eating there. New to the area trying new places around town, idk if I will return to this place. read more

With all due respect to Bret, I was a regular at Charlie's for 7 years when the diner was still located in Worcester, Massachusetts. In 2001, it lost its lease and the owners had to remove the diner structure from its site on Plantation Street. Eventually, they found a new location in Spencer, and reinstalled and expanded there, and about the only thing that has changed (thankfully) was the view out the window. Charlie's is a classic Worcester built diner serving up THE quintessential New England diner experience. Food here isn't fancy, but it is solid, tasty, and memorable -- memorable in the sense that you can go out and sample all kinds of exotic cuisine the world over, but you'll always want to come home to a seat at Charlie's. I've tried just about everything here, but on our last visit we started with the soups. I had the homemade pea soup and Mrs. Roadside had the turkey noodle, both of which could be described as meals all by themselves. The turkey noodle had chunks of fresh roasted turkey, ample vegetables. The pea soup had that soul-satisfying stick-to-the-ribs quality too rarely found in any short order restaurant these days. My main course of bourbon-marinated steak tips served with real mashed, gravy, and peas and carrots would fit well at the table of a much more expensive steak house. Mrs. Roadside loved the clamstrip roll with fries, and we both polished all off with grapenut custard. As good as the food is, it's almost worth your while just to go and sit at the counter for an hour just to soak in the atmosphere, which feels as if you've stepped back in time to a simpler more neighborly era. You will not find anything like this in any Wendy's or Dunkin Donuts (thank god). As a long time customer of this great place, I can best describe a meal at Charlie's thusly: You can have it your way at Charlie's. Just don't think you're entitled to it. read more

Good tastes really good! Coffee is outstanding. They keep menus on the table under the plastic glass-genius! read more

Charlies Diner - Corn beef hash half gone (sorry) - Diners Near Me - Spencer, Massachusetts

Extremely slow service, and they kept getting everything wrong when the food finally did come out. When I asked to speak to the owner, he was very rude. Said he didn't have time for nonsense and I could take my business elsewhere. Another customer complained as well, and the owner started swearing and yelling at her. Rest assured, I did take my business elsewhere and recommend others do the same. read more

Extremely slow service and mediocre food. Chicken was extremely dry. French onion soup had burnt bread.

Given this place 3 tries now since everyone seems to like it so much, all take out orders. I really don't understand what all the fuss is about. First try was steak tips with veggies and rice pilaf. The steak tips were tough and overcooked (asked for medium rare and got mostly medium well). The rice was the most flavorless rice I've ever eaten and it looked like Near East rice pilaf, which you have to be a moron to not prepare properly. It tasted like the rice was boiled with a little butter and the flavor packet wasn't put in. The veggies were soggy and didn't taste fresh at all. Second try I went for the meatloaf with gravy and a side of onion rings. The meatloaf itself was cooked fine and the gravy was good (tasted canned, not homemade so no points there), but this was the first meatloaf I've ever had that I couldn't finish. It just didn't taste good, even being masked with the gravy. I asked for the onion rings to come in their own container so they wouldn't be soggy from the meatloaf juice/gravy, they put it all in one container so I had inedible meatloaf and soggy onion rings. The third time I went for Prime Rib, which was actually good despite being cooked medium when I asked for medium rare. But again, the sides were junk. I won't be eating here again unless they start caring about the quality of what's going out of their kitchen. At this point, if it were Charlie's or McDonalds, I'd prefer to spend the money at McD's: it tastes good and actually comes prepared how I ask it to be. read more

This is a jewel in ventral Mass worth the drive . Best fried seafood or Breakfast . Reviewed on Diners and Driving Guy Fiera has been there . Great place for a Motorcycle ride read more

The food was cold and the the prime rib was over cooked and loaded with fat not to mention the service was horrible the waitress never came back after we started eating to see how everything was my wife gave her prime rib to our dog . Will not go back ! read more

Sat at the bar with my my husband, the bartender is very responsive to my husband but when my beer glass is empty, it stands empty until my husband says something to the bartender. This is not our first time to "Charlies" and this has happened every time we come here. As a former bartender, I find this behavior or lack of service disappointing. The bartenders seem more interested in what's happening in each other's lives than what's happening right in front f them. These bartenders would NEVER last in Boston. So sad especially since the food is decent. read more

Went here the other day with the wife, and we ordered the Fisherman's Platter. It was ok, but the fries were a soggy mass of starch. I tried, but was unable to locate even one fry that could be called even sort of crispy. Atmosphere's ok too - typical small town ambiance - seat yourself and all that. The waitress was pleasant and efficient. To sum it up: the entree was ok, as fisherman/Captain platters go, but those fries were terrible. Probably would go elsewhere for the fisherman's platter next time. read more

I love Charlie's Diner all time favorite breakfast place, that Rays omelette is to die for! Never had a bad meal or service there. Great people and safe environment. read more

Sat in the "old" section. Great basic food in a enjoyable "diner atmosphere". Service was good and efficient and the food was served hot. Try the hot pastrami wrap, very good. read more

Modern renovation and the view is nice of the reeds. Tried the crab Rangoon's, and was expecting more. They were frozen and not home made. It's not a tough dish to make from scratch. The nachos were soggy . read more

I absolutely adore Charlie's. My go-to breakfast place in all of central Mass. Cheap food, large portions, and great service. What more could you ask for? read more

We go here quite often normally the food is good. But this visit was awful the Chile was burnt my baked potato was ice cold and it was the worst pot roast I have ever had. My husband had the steak with shrimp scampi he did say that is was very good read more

My family and I were looking for a half-way place to meet for lunch in between the towns we reside in and decided on Charlie's because if it's location. Even though it was Mother's Day, there was no wait time and we were seated in the bar area at a six top. The service was okay, she seemed rushed at times and spent a lot of time in the kitchen, but she refilled our drinks and cleaned dirty dishes in a timely manner. If I was rating on service alone I would leave three stars, but this rating is solely for the quality of the food. The food was so DISSAPOINTING. We ordered boneless Buffalo wings and coconut shrimp. Both were out of a box. I worked in the restaurant industry for 20 years. It's ludicrous that they are not making their own food and still rely on pre-made frozen appetizers. Our main courses were also disappointing. I ordered a $17 Caesar salad with blackened salmon (dressing on the side). My mother also ordered blackened salmon, but she ordered the main dish with sides. Both pieces of salmon looked like they came out of a shrink-wrapped bulk bag of salmon purchases at BJs. They were so small and thin. The kitchen staff must have forgotten to cook mine for my salad because they put it in the fryer to try to speed cook it. This is a "trick" I have seen done in many kitchens over the years. The difference between how both pieces of salmon was cooked was very apparent, and my seasoning came off in the fryer, while my mom's was coated with it. Two members of our party ordered sandwiches with fries. The fries were over cooked and there wasn't a single fry longer than 2 inches. My brother ordered steak tips, but had a hard time chewing them because they were so rough so he brought them home. I was a little surprised our server didn't question the quality of our food because two of the plates were barely touched, but she seemed very busy and we didn't complain that. That's on us, not her. We won't be returning to Charlie's anytime soon. I think the quality of the food and food prep comes down to the ownership of the restaurant and the standards that they set. Charlie's standards are pretty low. Food should be fresh and homemade. Not boxed and previously frozen. read more

The food is good but the staff are very unsanitary. For example, Nobody in the kitchen wears gloves, The short order cook uses the same cutting surface for both raw meats and fresh veggies, and very few employees ever wash their hands. I think it's mostly due to the lack of training they received. I worked in a hospital kitchen for a few years and have a valid Servsafe certification, so I know a thing or two about sanitation. I saw about 20 things that were big violations in the food industry on my first day. The guy actually cleans his counter and his hands with the same towel from a bleachy, brown solution in the sink!!!! I was hired as a short order cook and the owner (Steve) never even handed me the spatula and gave me a chance before he wrote me off. He had me cutting potatoes in the back. He was arrogant and rude to employees, taking any chance he could to ignore or embarrass me. After two days, I asked when I should come in again for work and he said he would call me. Well, I called and left a message 5 times and he still never called me back. Left me and my family hanging with no answers or reasons for not returning my calls. read more

Just watched a waitress puke into a napkin at the silverware rolling station and they didn't sterilize the area.

I stopped in for breakfast with a few friends. This was my first time visiting. My first impression of our waitress was "she must be new" but she was fine. Got us everything we needed and was a very sweet young lady. After a few minutes, my sister told the table that she saw the cook (who we heard someone call Steve) shovel our waitress by the register. My sister said something vocally and Steve turned around and said "it gets crowded back here" but there was zero need to do what he did. This man then continued to harass our waitress. She was visible wiping tears from her face. He was rude and degrading to her. I felt awful for her. As we wrapped up eating, my sister pointed out a sign on the wall about the dinner not being politically correct. The cook Steve turned around and said it's because "those democrats are too sensitive". He then proceeded to try and engage in a political conversation with us even though I clearly said we were not interested in the discussion. The drinks were not great and the portions are small. But the food was ok overall. Due to the accepted treatment of the staff, I don't think I will be returning. And I'd love to help that waitress find a new job! read more