While visiting my mom at her assisted living home, we wanted a bite to eat and stopped off at this large very colorful at night diner for dinner. A large selection of food including great club sandwiches and burgers served with passive amounts of food. Great service. Dessert was difficult because of so many pies that were made but we settled on cheesecake. Right next to a drug site and very colorful in the evening . read more

We were in the area looking to buy a mattress. I never realized how mattress people are like used car salesmen. "What will it take for me to put you on this mattress?" Anyway, stoped in and ordered an open faced roast beef (after seeing the guy next to me eating one), grilled cheese and chicken club. All very good, with fries slaw and pickles. The deserts in the showcase looked great and were great. 5 stars for the carrot cake and peanut butter cheese cake. read more

I like the food, but I won't go back because they will charge you 3.00 extra if you use your credit card.

Never coming back here. Service with a smile doesn't exist, and it's slow. Atmosphere and the coffee is the only thing this diner has going for it. Pork roll thick cut but not cooked enough so it tasted like bologna. Small portions and definitely overpriced. Charged $3 for coleslaw and $1 for pickles both of which were forgotten about until the check came and very institutional ("we just made it fresh" when she clearly forgot about it) and we weren't told there would be an extra charge for. There is a 4% fee for credit cards. Nope. Too many good diner options in NJ for this- Unfortunately never coming back. read more

If I could give no stars Beware Fellow African Americans. RACIST This is the story I walk in give the name of the order. The gentleman than starts to questioned me.The order is under my girlfriends name the gentle than starts asking me questions who paid for it it's not paid for. It was a grub hub order and on the receipt it says pickup. He continues to question me and not give me the food he finally gives in and gives me the food. Yes I am a black male I can't believe businesses like this still exist. NEVER GOING BACK AGAIN DUE TO PURE RACISM THAT I JUST RECEIVED read more

Place sucks, pancakes are hard, and i found a tomato scurrying around in my pancakestasted like they didn't clean the grill before making them, do not recommend read more

We've been coming here for years, but after tonight we won't be coming back. We should have realized something was wrong when the parking lot was empty at dinner time. My entree (Pork Chops) was overcooked and rubbery and the sides (mash potatoes and green beans) were tasteless. My other half had grilled chicken over pasta snd the chicken was severely overcooked. We left without getting dessert. Can you Blame us? read more

I went to this diner at the end of the meal I went up front to pay my check. They processed my card, I saw approved and he said that it did not go through. I advised that I saw approved on the credit card machine and he insisted it did not go through. I allowed him to process my card again and he said now it went through. I checked my bank account while I was there and showed him the 2 charges and he again insisted the first one did not go through. Well 7 days later when it was no longer pending it was a on my account as a second charge. DO NOT USE CARD AT THIS LOCATION, CASH ONLY. read more

Horrible. Server rude. Asked for medium rare got medium well. Server said it was medium rare and I was wrong. Also she never came to table until end of the meal. Would give no stars but this app doesn't give me that choice read more

To all of the restaurants out there who have been bitching and rightfully so that you are going out of business, here is what NOT to do! Don't FUCK, your loyal customers that are coming back to you with a $2.99 COVID FEE! Crystal Diner in Toms River, you will NEVER see 1 cent more of my money!! And if you go out of business that's what you get for screwing you patrons!!! Also worst grilled cheese I have ever had. Cheese not melted and ham still cold. How do you screw up grilled cheese! read more

Crystal Diner - a chalkboard sign in a restaurant - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

Ordered fries to go and gravy on the side. Fries were horrible. No taste. So mushy they tasted like mashed potatoes. No salt no pepper. I would NOT recommend. read more

I ate here about 2 years ago, yup I drive this place all the time. It is pretty hard to mess up breakfast. Home fries - mushy. Toast - burnt Coffee - don't bother, it reminds me of Keriug coffee. I will be back in 2 years to see if it gets any better. read more

I would give them a 0 if I could. Sent my daughter and her young sister to pick up an order we placed for pickup. They paid for the order after being rudely taken care of by the older woman at the register. They then preceded to the car only to have the cook come out into the parking lot yelling at them and following them to the car yelling and demanding a tip. First a tip is not necessary for a pick up order but to scare my daughters is unforgiving. Then to come home and find this in the Turkey club is gross. How unprofessional to beg and yell for an undeserving tip...then to find this they should pay me... read more

Crystal Diner - Bug in Turkey club - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

My fiancé was in the mood for a diner burger and fries. I wish I had read the other reviews before we decided on this diner. We waited a ridiculously long time only to get the wrong order. I ordered a cheeseburger deluxe with American and received a burger with mushrooms and Swiss cheese. The waitress took it back and they swapped out the bun for one with American cheese and scraped most of the mushrooms off - the plate still had several mushrooms on it when I got it back. We were hoping our meals would be worth the wait. They were not. The burgers were bland and the fries were hard. Overall a disappointing experience. read more

How about a Negative Zero review!!! Run away from this horrible pathetic food establishment!!! Gross frozen turkey( if you call it that) & hamburger patties, dried frozen fries. Next add Jewish Sopply Joe with meat you can even chew or cut!!!! Chicken worse than McDonalds!! Waitress was useless. When spoke to Manager at checkout, $92 bill, He blamed everything on his food Vendors!!! Sad place. read more

Although the food is quite incredible, it couldn't make up for the lack of service from my drunk waitress. The lady with red hair greeted me and my wife and promptly brought us our coffees. But we were a bit reluctant to eat there after smelling the liquor of this woman's breath. Overall the dining experience was phenomenal and I do recommend the Crystal diner , I would stay away from the red hair woman if you prefer a sober service!!! read more

Waaay overpriced!!! Never again. I was charged sixteen dollars for a broccoli and cheese omelette, 2 sausage links, and a cup of fruit. Highway robbery. Never again!!!! read more

Crystal Diner - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

What used to be a nice place to grab a meal has turned into a nightmare. I visited this diner on 5/13/21. it was maybe 50% capacity. Ok, maybe the food will be good. There were 15 or so specials at the board at the door. Ok, this is good. has to be fresh, right? WRONG! to start, I asked the waiter speciailly how one item was and he said " well, in the end, you will eat it". WTF? What does that mean? i should have known then but was hungry, so I stayed. The chicken: not hard to ruin and yet I could not even chew it. it was like rubber. obviously nuked to death. And i expressed this to the waiter with no result. no credit. no compassion. Just indifference. At check out, i attempted to use my card and she said theer was an added 4T% for CC use. WHAT??? I paid cash. All of this was unfortunate but lesson learned. Stay away from Crystle Diner. it has gone down the toilet. read more

All the signals were screaming "Turn back!", from the snarling host to the fairly empty dining area, so I guess we got what we deserved. Two of us ordered slightly different versions of grilled chicken wraps - the fries were barely cooked, the chicken was simply inedible. It actually bounced back when you chewed on it. We were famished, so we ate the fries, deconstructed the wraps and ate everything but the chicken. The only bright spot in this place was the waitress who was friendly, efficient and professional. read more

I have not been here in a while, but last time i was here the food was pretty good and would love to come back some time its just the very long waits. But other then that, I enjoyed! read more

My friend went to the Crystal Diner in Tom's River last week. She was served a hot open roast beef sandwich and corn. The corn tasted really bad! She then smelled it and it was rancid! The roast beef was a funny brown in color so after tasting bad corn she was afraid to touch the meat. She returned the food and just ordered a BLT with fries. When she went to pay the waitress did take off for the bad food and $3 more. My friend eats there ALL THE TIME! When she got to the register she held back the money for the BLT because she felt she shouldn't have had to pay for something she really didn't want. The NASTY owner felt entitled and with an attitude told my friend that...she was given $3 off. So, she threw him a few more dollars but it was still short $4. She started walking out and the NASTY owner said he would call the Police. She said...go ahead! I think the Board of Health needs to pay this establishment a visit. Patrons beware of bad food. I think they keep it too long. She's never going back there again! read more

My husband & I went early for breakfast on a Friday morning. Eggs were mediocre, my husband's toast was almost burnt. The restaurant was not busy at all. The waitress did not come back to our table until it was time to give us the check. They charged 4% extra for using a credit/debit card. Unbelievable! We won't be returning. The 1 star is for the location. read more

Came to the Crystal Diner with my dad for dinner recently. Again, nice looking place, friendly staff. Table was covered in sticky syrup or something from the previous diners, and both my dad and I ended up getting it on our hands and sleeves. Waitress made a halfhearted apology, and brought out wet napkins for us to clean it up ourselves. Only 10 minutes after we had done so, a busboy stopped by with a rag. Strike 1. We ordered our food. Takes forever to get out to us, and diner is not that busy! Strike 2. We got our food, and again, "underwhelmed" is the word. I got a cheesesteak and onion rings - cheesesteak was getting cold and falling apart, but I ate it because I was starving. One bite of the onion rings - drenched in oil and SOGGY. Left them there for the waitress to get, and I asked her to take them off our bill, which she did. Strike 3. And you're out, Crystal Diner. Will absolutely not be here again, ever, regardless of who is paying. When you fire your entire kitchen staff and start from scratch, let me know. Maybe we will talk. read more

I'm giving two stars because the food was actually good and the waitress was a sweetheart However I don't appreciate getting my check at the table and then noticing that the total increased when I got to the register. I see a "convenience fee" of 4% added to my bill and when I asked what it was, I was told that it was for using my credit card and that "everybody's doing it"! Uhmmmm I eat out A LOT and everyone is not doing it! Especially not without letting you know. So even though the the food was good this left a bad taste in my mouth and I will not go back. It's not so much the charge that upset me but that I was not informed at the time of payment, as I may have chosen to pay cash and I was given an attitude when I questioned it. read more

East Coast and diners go hand in hand. I mean right? So our first week here its a hot out I am talking' kelvin scale hot! its just nasty out. Hubby is working, in-laws are tired, kids and I need to get out. We have been to NJ many times and passed Crystals 100's of times and always wanted to go in so here was our chance to venture... Crystals it is! Walk in. We wait, and wait and then the hostess appears asks how many (3) of us, she proceeds to walk us to the booth front of the kitchen where the waitresses are sitting and jabbering about (personal stuff) and one gal is like actually sitting in the booth, why the hell is the hostess sitting me in a booth a waitress is sitting in? the place is empty it's noon, where is everyone? Okay so we open the menu holy toledo everything but the kitchen sink is listed and this make me take pause.. because although this is not my first diner "rodeo in NJ or NY" or anywhere for that matter but this menu? this is just crazzzzy... 1. With the variety of stuff on this menu, how do they keep a fresh turn around on these oddball items? 2. What is the chance of someone maybe 2 people ordering that same item that day? Restaurant Impossible fills my brain--- So while I ponder this, a couple in another booth asks their waitress what the soup of the day is.. she says I don't know real snarky like and thy are wide eyed thinking ruhroh.. Ssssso she proceed to yell to another waitress sitting on her duff in the booth behind us, HEY WHATS THE SOUP TODAY??? so she yells back I DON'T FRICKEN KNOW!! I look at the husband at the booth he has the deer in headlights look, his wife is mortified, Are you kidding me? these poor people and it becomes a yell fest! back and forth, between 5 of the staff in this place.. the couple said its okay, really, we will have salad, they didn't even ask what dressing this place had... in hindsight - we should have gotten up and left, but ya know .... So the waitress finally comes over could have fooled us she could have been anyone no uniform, no name tag, no indication she was a server- masticating gum like it was the last think she was gonna get that day.. (had she been Florence Jean Catleberry from Mel's Diner I would have understood and felt safer) but she wasn't Flo and this wasn't Mel's and this wasn't looking good for us.. My my 22yr old son looked at me like get this lady? I just shrugged. Server? maybeee? She asked for his order- okay, she is our server. Because she didn't say hi my name is (fill in the blank) and I am your server.. So he orders the BBQ shredded pork sandwich (taking his life in his hands I tell ya), Mini-Me asks for a BLT (another risk taker) and I ask for a turkey club NO bacon NO Mayo, I am already nervous. So, my son get's up goes to the restroom to wash his hands, he comes back slides into the booth and says, in a whisper, maybe we shouldn't eat here let's go back to Nonna's house, she just made sauce..... REALLY? A little late son don't you think? Mini-Me the trooper and food guru that she is.. all but has a cardiac right there in the booth, when she hears her brother say this, cuz she is all about germs and avoiding ajida at all costs. Food arrives, ughhhhh, not happening.... we nibbled it to make it look good, and then son faked a call to work, he paid the bill and we took it to go. With all the diners in NJ in Toms River even, avoid Crystals. Never ever again. read more

A simple breakfast turned into a simple case of indigestion. Just ordered eggs and bacon with the eggs sunny side up. To my surprise I got to dry it out eggs and bacon that you could break over somebody's head also plain potatoes like hospital food !So the waitress waited till I was almost done and then she asked if wanted new bacon. They took off the bill ! Nice tourist trap for people leaving Seaside! Won't be going back! read more

Crystal Diner - Eggs and cardboard bacon - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

I used to like this diner. Recently we went there, the place was empty once one table occupied besides ourselves. When we finished and pay, we were charged $3 fee due to Corvid 19, no credit card was accepted. We paid cash and left. Now we knew why the place was empty. read more

Good food n excellent service! The hostess makes you feel like a real guest; made sure that we had everything we needed and was very pleasant. I only had coffee which was very good and my companions enjoyed their meals. They can accommodate large groups- very roomy!! read more

A picture speaks a thousand words. We were charged $4.24 for both meals. Had to run to the ladies room where there was only one roll for two booths. Enough said! read more

Crystal Diner - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

My wife and I just moved to the Toms River area last month. We are retired and spending a lot of time fixing up our house. So, we eat out a lot lately. We travel Rt 37 pretty regularly and noticed the big chrome "jersey" style diner on Rt 37 and decided to give it a try. What a massive mistake! I ordered a basic bacon cheeseburger (The Brooklyn Burger on their menu) and asked that it be prepared medium. First, it comes in about 10-12 minutes (there were only a few tables occupied. it seemed like a long time to cook a burger) Apparently it wasn't long enough. The burger was actually cool in the center and bright red. I complained about the 'doneness' of the burger and the waitress took it back to the cook. She came out and told us the cook is'n't going to adjust the price because the burger is cooked properly. If what I received was a medium-cooked burger, then a rare burger would not have even been placed on the flattop. My wife ordered eggs benedict with the hollandaise on the side, and well-done home fries. Well, the sauce was on the eggs, when my wife told the waitress that the sauce was supposed to be on the side she was offered an additional side of sauce, not an offer to re-do the eggs to match her desire. Home fries were stone-cold and hardly cooked at all, forget well-done.I could go on and on about our experience at this diner but, based on the owner, cook, and cashier's attitude it would do no good, so, I will only warn you: Don't go here, it is terrible. Oh, and the bacon on my bacon cheeseburger never came after asking for it twice. read more

I ordered a rare hamburger it came over cooked took them 15 minutes to make it unbelievable

Worst diner I've ever been to for many reasons- the portions are small and crazy expensive for what they are, the service is virtually non-existent, and they charge you a "COVID fee" for dining with them. Really? A "COVID fee" on top of ridiculous prices anyway? Needless to say there's no reason to ever go here. How do you make your customers pay you more for dining with them during a time when you should be grateful to have business? That's not good business and just insane. There's really nothing memorable about this place except the "COVID fee" tacked onto the bill for dining with them. NJ has a lot of great diners, but this is the only one I will never go to again. Save yourself the trouble as well. read more

The diner has outside dining which seemed socially distanced. I went inside to get the hostess to be seated outside. I immediately noticed the hostess and person working at the counter without a mask. There was a waitress with her mask pulled down to her chin. I left and found another place to have lunch, one who follows the CDC's COVID recommendations. read more

Do not get Becky as your waitress. She is slow and has an attitude. She is more interested in talking with other waitstaff than actually waiting on her tables!! Very rude!!! read more

It makes me select at least one star to review but if I could, I would give it a zero. Here's why: I've been coming up to Toms River, New Jersey for the last 18 years to visit my Mother-in-Law. It used to be a real treat to eat at the Crystal Dinner off Route 37. Not anymore. Every since the original owner sold it to a Pakistani family, it has gone way down hill in quality. And the prices are Four Seasons Hotel-like for mediocre food. Low quality, actually. If you read this before going, save your money -- avoid it and try Panera Bread instead. You'll have money left over to pay the rent and won't feel gouged and cheated. All the locals I've spoken to -- including a former employee-- feel the same. It hurts to write this because it was once my favorite place to go.... read more

This is your typical diner. Nothing special. Very nice servers. The food is nothing to write home about. The chicken soup was on the creamy side with couscous as the noodle. The crackers were a little on the stale side. The egg salad bacon wrap was decent. Very little lettuce, decent amount of bacon & egg salad that was pressed on a panini press. read more

Crystal Diner - Chicken noodle soup - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

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My boyfriend and I went on a Sunday morning for breakfast, they were not busy at all. He had asked the waitress for a water and hot sauce and then we watched the waitress talk to one of the other waitresses for about 10 minutes before getting his water. If that wasn't bad enough. There was a piece of metal inside his food read more

Crystal Diner - Diners Near Me - Toms River, New Jersey

Starting with our entry, we stood there while the host (possibly the owner) was looking at something then we were seated and waited and waited and waited for our salad. We got up to leave because people that came in after us (different waitress) were already eating. They asked if we would stay since our salads were finally ready then we waited again for our dinner. The mashed potatoes were cold so we sent them back and waited for them. I think that I understand why there are so few people here on a holiday weekend. There was a line for the bathroom so I feel that waiting is a theme in this diner. My food was dry looking but tasty. The other dinner was prime rib and was not great. They store rolls of toilet paper on the coat rack in the hallway, kind of a weird "decoration" and there's a 3.95% surcharge for using a credit card and sodas are $2.99 with no free refills. The host casually apologized for the long wait. Based on the overall experience, I do not recommend this diner. BTW, they sell cigars and humidors so I'd you're in the market for that, you're in luck. read more

This place is a breeding ground for food poisoning. If I could give this place negative stars I would. Our server was inattentive and we were only one of 3 tables in the entire restaurant. It took a while for the food to come out and by the time it did arrive to our table it wasn't even the correct order. It took them another 15 min to get the order correctly and all they had to bring over was cut up strawberries and bananas. The strawberries were sour and the bananas were brown. Then when we went to go pay there was a sign on the register that there's a 3.95% service fee added when you pay with card. So I had to pay extra for my crappy meal and service. IM NEVER COMING BACK so I hope you enjoy ur $27 that you don't even deserve. read more

Waitress was okay, but became nervous when I wanted to send my "Jewish Sloppy Joe" back! Hsd first asked if I wanted something else ~ I should have! instead I said I just wanted to send it back ~ the meats were horrible especially the pastrami. It was just chewy jerky! She said she needed to speak with the manager-owner. A small, elderly man who was beyond horrific!! We waited over a half an hour to find him ~ the waitresses said he was in the basement. He finally returned & the waitress said, "I can't do this anymore!" Do what? She said to meet the owner at the register who proceeded to yell at me from the start! I told him that I managed the Pastrami Factory in Manhattan as proof that I knew what it should taste like. He said then I should order from you! He added that I should have sent it back ~ I said I did! She took the plate away! He said I saw it & you ate it! Four bites getting thru the slop! I said calmly that I guess he doesn't want return customers. He began pounded on the counter yelling that he's been there for 20 years & they had plenty of customers. I exclaimed, still calmly, that I knew the wonderful family that owned the diner before he took over. The quality of food is all cheaper than the previous owner gave us to enjoy. The catsup (yup) isn't even Heins ketchup! Tiny slivers of a pickle, dried out coleslaw! This man continued to interrupt me with his yelling! He took $10 off the $18 sandwich. Just so disrespectful! So angry that I didn't like his food! Something is truly wrong with this place, with him & definitely with the food!! read more