Cheap Charlie's is great if you go there with realistic expectations 1) it's cheap 2) it's a diner 3) they serve cheap diner food. Nothing out of the world or will make you think "there's no way I could make this at home" but it's decent, inexpensive tastiness. The atmosphere is nothing special, but the service is friendly and relatively quick. You can stuff yourself for less than $6. It gets crowded, so you may have to wait or sit at the counter if all of the tables are full. read more

I'm not sure I can do any better than G. D.'s review... The Atmosphere: post-apocalyptic is the word. I doubt it could pass the most rudimentary of inspections. Helpful signs on the wall specify 2 or more people per booth - as opposed to what? Do they really have a problem here? I have never checked the restrooms, and hope I never need to. The way the rest of the place looks, I can only imagine. The Clientele: You have 2 types - the middle-aged suits that roll in at 6am, pour their own coffee and go upstairs, and (without a word exchanged) their order is delivered. I'm told these guys are there 5-7 mornings per week. I asked today who the one was and was told he was Fred, a local dentist. It's good to know that my Dr will understand when I tell him I'm addicted to CC. And then you have the retired crowd at the bar - who lay down (in exact change) their payment when they sit down. Seem to be a ritual. The Food: With Cheap as our first name, what can you expect? the best pancakes, sausage, and eggs in town, served with coffee and more butter than the law allows. Best breakfast in town - or any town. Really when breakfast include a drink for $2.99, what more could one ask? The Price: See name on sign. The Pig: Beats me - must be Charlie. The Location: Conveniently located within throwing distance of the world's biggest hospital system, and within 4 blocks of said hospital's ambulance service, so response time ought to be pretty decent. Overall: Rochester Icon - and has a loyal (and disposed to chronic illness and early death) fan-base, of which I am a card-carrying member. read more

I went to Cheap Charlie's for the 1st time today. The initial customer service was very poor. But I was open to giving it a chance. Half way through my meal, I noticed a white chip in my food. It was a piece of the plate that had chipped off- yes, porcelain/glass! I showed it calmly to our waitress (who I heard was one of the owners), she just took the plate and walked away. No apology or anything!! She brings back some microwaved potatoes that were just as gross. They tasted a day old and you can tell they were microwaved. The waitress asked us if the potatoes were good. We answered honestly and said no, they taste like they were yesterday's potatoes microwaved. Our customer service got worse!! Again, no apologies! Never once heard sorry. Our friends asked for a box to go; she handed it to them with an attitude and didn't even look at them. We had to ask for the hash browns to be removed from our bill. I would NEVER COME BACK! read more

Cheap Charlies - I went to Cheap Charlie's today for the 1st time. Our server (pretty sure she was the owner)- had the worst customer service. - Diners Near Me - Rochester, Minnesota

I neither loved it nor hated it. As many have said it is a small diner of modest proportion and style. It does have a very large pig on the roof if this means anything to you. The food wasn't bad, my potato pancakes with eggs were good. The bacon was kind of meh. My wife's meatloaf was good. It came with mashed, green beans and a small salad. As the name implies the prices are low, so our meal was a good value ($25+tip for 2 adults and 1 toddler). read more

Went to Cheap Charlies for the first time. Its a small dinner with good service, good food, descent prices. We heard the breakfast there Rocks! Can't wait to try! We talked about our favorite places to eat while in school and Cheap Charlies was mentioned so we gave it a shot. Went to try their breakfast a couple weeks ago and ,YES, breakfast rocks! I ordered their Spanish Omelet that was on special. At first I thought, thats all I get . . . It was loaded. The first bite melted in my mouth and I took my time eating it, letting every flavor hit my taste buds. It did my tummy right! When you are with a group of people, you may get lucky and be able to eat off of their plates also, because you do get a lot of food and the price is right! read more

Very respectable old-school diner! Breakfast for two ran us 13 bucks. Great cost performance; pleasant staff. Will visit again.

It's a little more than a half mile outdoor walk from Mayo Honda to the restaurant, if the weather is nice, it's a nice break from the indoor-ness that is Mayo. This place is a "dive", but the food was good, and the service was excellent. I spent this morning sitting at the counter with 3 gentlemen talking about their experiences during the Korean and Vietnam wars while drinking coffee and eating an omelet. A " super omelet " with hash browns and coffee was just short of $9.50 plus tip. For the quantity of food, it was very reasonable. The place isn't pretty, but it hash a lot of character if you don't mind the looks. read more

Cheap Charlies is kind of like "Mickey's Diner" in St. Paul MN. No gold stars for the cleanliness but ya gotta love it. I like taking my Dad there for breakfast. He has been going there for decades and just gets a kick out of the waitresses. The staff is hard working and friendly. The prices are fair and the portions were good. If you like old fashioned truck stop diners, you'll love Cheap Charlies! read more

Come in town once a year and always stop here. Had the Tex Mex burrito this time and it was very delicious. Came with a side of great tasting salsa that I used to dip the burrito in. Eggs on the side were cooked to perfection. read more

Best breakfast I have had in town. I had the country fried steak and potatoes. You can never go wrong eating at Charlie's!

Went there on Saturday morning @ 8:40 am. Place was packed! So I sat at the counter and was immediately waited on. Ordered the Eggs Benedict with home fries. $7.25 total including coffee. Great price. Food was ample, coffee strong and hot, service excellent. Want a filling breakfast for under 10 bucks, then this is the place. As to ambience. It looks like Red Green goes there. Ample duct tape over a goodly number of the booths. So is it cheap to eat there, or are the proprietors just cheap, or is it both? You decide. An establishment frequented by locals. Struck up a conversation with 2 gents, one a Korean War vet, and the other Viet Nam. Very enjoyable and both said they had been coming in excess of 3 decades. So what does that say? I'd certainly come back as it is clean and quick and cheap. BTW no one could explain the pig on the roof! read more

"Serving love and grease since 1955," they say, and they do it well. Had a very good strawberry chicken salad, highly recommended by a most friendly waitress - proprietor. She wanted me to eat healthy! read more

Cheap Charlies - Diners Near Me - Rochester, Minnesota

Cute lil mom and pop shop! And since that's right up my ally we had to stop! Did I mention that they were on mn must eats? Let's start with the prices of food! They are pretty normal for mom and pop shops. The problem the food! Although it looked amazing, as soon as u try to eat it, we'll everything else went down hill! Our hash browns where burnt, the omelette was over cooked and flavorless, the gravy was lumpy and tasteless as well! When we told the lil asian lady she was so sweet to either give us a refund or remake it! But the amount of grease in our meals were enough to clog any artery! When paying the bill, the girl dropped our change and just left it there! Like oh ok this is what we doin now? You would think that this place would be way better considering it's right next to the big Mayo Clinic's n hospital! I must say even though I gave this place a low score, they do have so much room for improvement! And it's always a plus when the owner knows how to apologize for the food not being up to par! read more

My wife first brought me here almost 16 years ago when I moved to Rochester. The old fashioned diner feel was so awesome and the food was great. We haven't been back a lot, as we're not regular breakfast out people. This morning, however, she asked if I wanted to go to Cheap Charlie's and I was so excited to come back. It is definitely NOT the Cheap Charlie's I remember. The waitress was quite curt and unfriendly. We ordered our food and when it arrived, my wife asked if they had any packets of strawberry jam, as the cup on our table had other varieties but no strawberry. Small request in my book, and a perfect opportunity to give good customer service. The waitress acted appalled that she asked and told my wife that if she wanted to, she could go dig through the packets on the other tables. They weren't busy AT ALL, so it wouldn't have been much for the waitress to go grab a couple strawberry jams. The waitress also took what was clearly a personal call on her cell phone and proceeded to walk around doing drink refills and waiting on customers while on her phone call. I don't think I've ever seen that happen in a restaurant - dive or not. And as for the food - it was a huge disappointment as well. The eggs and sausage were lukewarm at best, and the sausage was under done. I was hopeful that the three super fluffy pancakes would be the redeeming thing. Wrong. They were too "cakey", not fluffy at all. And NO flavor. They were so bland. And the syrup was either watered down or some seriously cheap off brand. I love shopping small and supporting local businesses, so thankfully we still have Panakoeken - which, thankfully, is never a disappointment. I am an Uber/Lyft driver and am asked on a daily basis where to eat in Rochester, and Cheap Charlie's will no longer make my list of recommendations sadly. read more

The fold was undercooked. The sunny side eggs were barely cooked. The butter wasn't even butter. The French toast had no flavor, not even salt. I didn't finish eating any of my food. Never had such a bad experience as this one. read more

Iconic small town diner. Wonderfully greasy hash browns and a pretty darn good chicken fried steak. read more

Cheap Charlies - Just had to stop here. - Diners Near Me - Rochester, Minnesota

Man... it's hard to sum up in one post how much I love this place. I have very high expectations when it comes to resturants and I'm a definite foodie. Cheap Charlies is your classic hole in the wall, "greasy spoon", local diner... in the best way. They have free (good) coffee when you get a meal, breakfast all day, and the best omelets. I usually get the "Spanish Omelet," which is taco meat, tons of veggies, and jalapeños, all cooked in a tortilla shell. It's the most unique and delicious thing. They also have great eggs benedict, HUGE pancakes, and I keep wanting to try their french toast breakfast sandwich (it looks so good!). A must in Rochester! read more

Inexpensive and filling. The French Toast was a real winner. read more

Great little hole in the wall downtown to get good reasonably priced food. Group of 7 all enjoyed the food and quaint atmosphere. Will be back again. read more

The seating area is pretty small, but the food is well worth it! Hearty portions, wonderful flavor, and dirt cheap!! This is going to be my new breakfast hang! Everyone was super friendly and the wait-staff were really great, ensuring that we had everything we needed. I can't wait to try the entire menu!! read more

I have ate there for years but this last time will be my last time! The food was terrible! It is sure is not like it use to be! I never tasted so unreal eggs in my life! read more

I remember my grandparents taking me here as a kid the atmosphere has stayed the same over the years. Just like out of a movie the waitresses are friendly and give you the darlins and huns. The food is not as good as it was when charlie was around. Real potatos have gone to powdered, portions are smaller and your food wasn't soaked in grease 20 years ago either. 6$ for the best hot turkey sandwich in town and the friendly waitresses still make it a regular favorite. They will accomodate large groups upstairs. read more

Cheap Charles is a Rochester institution and occupies the position of "local hole in the wall". This is a favorite breakfast place. The chicken fried steak is superb and if you have a heart attack due to the grease, gravy, and butter, then the Mayo Clinic can be seen from the front door. read more

you are either going to love it or hate it....it is a legend in rochester....look for the giant pig on top of a small building beside the paint store one block off broadway......be prepared for ripped up chairs and booths---mismatched silver, chipped cups and or plates and a whole lot of local flavor...if you leave here hungry something is wrong with you! They serve up a shit load of food....and once they just slapped down a half a loaf of bread because they had too much so let's dish that out too....hahahahhaha a ton of the local working men dine here because they have what I would call blue plate specials.....the breakfast is served all day...and the floor is grimey, in fact, my chair stuck to the floor from sugar/syrup or something.... but that don't bother me because the price is good and the food is good too....always a wonderful place to go on the cheap and have a true diner type experience..... read more

I am in Rochester, mn for the first time and attending a conference. Since the meeting starts later today, I had time to get breakfast on my own. As usual, I went to Yelp for a local place to have breakfast. I had a simple breakfast of eggs, toast and coffee. The staff was incredibly friendly and filled my coffee often. My coffee was never cold, for sure. The eggs came out quickly and were perfectly cooked. I know this doesn't sound like a big deal but I've been to many diners where the scrambled eggs were brown, overlooked, etc. I also had a ver nice conversation with two locals who told me about the areas, their lives and more, This is just the type of place you want to find when you are in a new area and want to eat at a local hangout. read more

One of the best 'dive-diners' in the Midwest. They have a fantastic breakfast and good size lunch portion. We've been going every now and again as long as I can remember. Truly is a Rochester institution. However, be warned that this is your greasy spoon style diner, do not expect 5-star service or cleanliness. Accept it for what Cheap Charlie's is... They've been doing it 'right' for years, so why change it? read more

Huge, greasy, yummy, inexpensive breakfasts! Meat Lovers omelet was the way to go, after a long, cold weekend camping! Exactly what I was expecting and exactly what I wanted. Will make it a regular stop on the way home from camping trips. read more

Ate there this morning, feel sick now. It is what it is, my wife had eggs and hash browns and they were fine. I had the country fried steak, the meat was ok, tasted like it was battered and fried fresh. The hash browns and American fries are from frozen potatoes. You could tell the gravy was homemade by how bad it was, lumpy flour being the best description of texture and flavor. The American fries I got tasted like they were a day old from the fridge and re-heated. Service is about as good as the food, hit and miss. I'd go again though, other plates looked good, the sausage and coffee I had were good. The lady who runs the place was welcoming. Got a peep show from one of the waitresses who wore a half-zipped up sweater with just a bra on, no shirt. Could of done without that actually. read more

I was traveling thru from Iowa to Colorado and saw this as place on the map. I loved this little place the food was good and hot. The waitress was quick to fill up the coffee and checked back several times. Going to be a favorite of mine. read more

Best breakfast in Rochester, MN. Great atmosphere.

It's unfortunate when the best part about a restaurant is the service. Our waitress was busting her ass by helping everyone meanwhile the owner, her daughter, and some older woman stood around and did nothing. Yet, she still did a great job managing everything from taking our order,refills, and busting tables. I can't say anything about lunch but the breakfast definitely sucked. The pancake was huge and tasted like nothing. Not even the syrup could salvage it. I guess they don't know that less is more... All in all will not be coming here. read more

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Just had the biggest breakfast in my life. Cheap Charlie's is sometimes called the greasy spoon place but I dont think so. The service is very good and friendly and the food is great. They open early too. read more

Last couple of times have gone by to to grab breakfast but have been closed this was during week around 8 in the morning Will go back by 1 more time, if they're open will stop and get something if not, then will find someplace else read more

It's a hole in the wall but for the price you can't beat it. I would do 5 stars but for it to be that I need to have to go back. While I would go back given the opportunity I am not craving it. Good not great. read more

This place is adorable. It's a classic no frills diner with a broad diner menu at - yes - cheap prices. I just finished an 8 oz sirloin with 2 eggs, toast, and iced tea for under $10. The elderly Asian servers are startlingly brusk yet pamper the regulars with doting attention. I'd give it 5 stars except that I don't want to get your hopes up on the food. It is a diner, after all. And it's cheap. But what's lacking in gentrified cuisine is more than made up by Charlie's authenticity. read more

50's style diner, don't come here expecting crepes or croissants! Its a great place to bring kids because they can't mess it up, food is very good, like home made. read more

The perfect hideaway Saturday morning breakfast!!! It's an old school diner and the staff is very friendly. This is not a fancy locale but nice. read more

Excellent food every time! Highly recommend tne hot beef sandwich or the French toast.

I've been told this place is very good, so I joined some friends who are regulars there. I had lunch -- a double bacon cheeseburger, and a side of onion rings. The burger was just okay, but spendy at $8. I could have added a side of french fries for $2, but instead had the "homemade" onion rings. They were greasy, underdone, and tasteless...and cost $4! I also had a diet Pepsi. So, my "cheap" lunch was over $13. I was so sticker-shocked that I only left a dollar and some change for a tip, which I regret because our server was very good. So, service gets 5 stars, food gets 2 stars, and price gets 0 stars. I won't go back. read more

Our staff was super friendly and quick. We ate like kings for 6-7 bucks each. I couldn't believe how much food we got for our dollar. It's a bit of a dive but that doesn't bother me. I recommend the country fried steak. read more