Eel River Cafe has all the atmosphere of a traditional diner, complete with vinyl booths and a long counter space from which you can see the coffee brewing and hundreds of cow tchotchkes decorating the place. Just there for a quick cup of coffee to fuel the remaining miles to San Francisco, and while the coffee was fine, the service was a little slow - the place was busy and seemed not to have quite enough staff. It's summer! It's going to be busy. Why not staff up? Next time in Garberville, I might try a different coffee shop; on the other hand, I love diners and might give quaint Eel River Cafe another try. read more

They are always a favorite of mine. My only complaint is they used to have Buckwheat pancakes,but knowing peoples tastes, I was probably the only one who liked them and there fore not a big draw. Otherwise, GOOD FOOD. LOVE THE BISCUITS AND GRAVY. read more

Stopped by for a quick breakfast before heading home on the road. It's a small café with friendly staff.

We stopped here for lunch on July 4th. As you would expect, it was crowded. However, it still only took 15 minutes from placing our order (burgers and fries all round) to receiving our food, which was hot and clearly straight off the grill/fryer. Portions were generous. The service was a bit spotty - cream for coffee never arrived - but they were clearly struggling a bit to cope with the onslaught of diners. (Pretty much every other place in town was closed.) Seating is in booths or at the counter. Cute display of cow statues etc. Street parking. The only strange note was that the servers threw out two diners who had backpacks with them. Their bags were clearly small enough to fit under the table, but the servers were very stern about it: "Backpacks aren't allowed, so you must leave." We felt rather sorry for them, as there really wasn't anywhere else in town to eat. I'd have given 5 stars except for that. read more

I have been going here for years and it is definitely the best place in Garberville for breakfast. This is the only place my local friends want to meet-up in the morning. My favorite is the bacon and eggs because somehow they manage to serve the bacon crisp without any residual grease unlike many other restaurants. If you are in hurry this may not be the place for you. Service is slow due to the small kitchen but always pleasant, so relax and read the paper or just talk to your friends and enjoy the black and white cow themed decor. read more

Stopped for lunch at the cafe on the way to Fortuna. We ordered a cup of chili and the country chicken fried steak... all I can say is that... IT WAS SOOO GOOD!! that I've been wanting them since I got back from the trip 2 weeks ago!! The gravy for the fried steak is just good, and if you order it in the breakfast menu.. you got it with eggs on top, and homemade hash brown underneath it wit gravy covering them. It IS that AWESOME. read more

Pretty solid restaurant. I've been here a few times and have enjoyed everything I've gotten. Breakfast is pretty much standard greasy spoon fare. And they have a veggie burgers for us veggies out there. read more

We ate the classic hamburger a regular hamburger chili two glasses of tea and a glass of lemonade that weren't filled all the way to the top for $3.25! The service was poor it took a half an hour to get our food and the food was horrible! Me and my mom are on our way to Eureka and stopped in Garberville because it's the place to go! I was so upset about the service and the food it was crazy the bill came to $55. I wouldn't eat there again if I had to. I was really disappointed because I was looking forward to a great meal in Garberville. read more

This is a super cute diner style place that fits the town it lives in. We went for lunch and everything was great American style diner fare, which is what we wanted. Unpretentious and good. I had a veggie burger, which was yummy, and my bf had a veggie omelet, that was delicious. Service was great too. Old school good stuff. read more

Was seated immediately and food was delicious. Friendly staff and breakfast is served all day!!

The Eel is the real deal - counter with swivel stools and real booths. Driving through Garberville, found this on Yelp and it filled the hole in our stomachs from three days on the trail. I had the 1/2 turkey sandwich (large enough to be a while) and soup. My friend had the Fiesta Salad - which came with extra jalapeños. Both delicious. And he cafe is decorated with cow crockery - fun! read more

Haven't even got my food yet and I can tell you this place is garbage. The staff just look at you till you ask them to come help you and then when they do decide to come over they don't even know what's on the damn menu or what it comes with. The good reviews must be from locals that come here all the time. read more

Stopped here on the way to Humboldt redwoods for breakfast. They have great a greasy breakfast that's simply delicious.

This place is so good. I had the chili cheese omelette and it was so delicious. They make the chili in house and it went great on eggs. My only problem with the place is that it doesn't have enough room for all the people that want to eat there! read more

Old fashioned diner with booths and counter seating. We went for breakfast and everything we ordered was tasty, especially the biscuits and gravy, vegetarian breakfast sandwich and thick, fluffy pancakes. Large portions and quick service, even though it was busy. read more

Good food and friendly staff. Always have long conversations with each of them. My family was so happy when they opened 7 days a week.

Terrible food! After waiting 40 minutes for the food to arrive, my burger was burnt beyond being edible. I'm not talkin' a little over done... It was completely black and charcoal for about 1/4 inch into the bottom of the burger. Tried to eat it, but gave up. Told the waitress, and she didn't seem to care. We were camping all weekend and I was looking forward to a big yummy meal. This place is awful. Don't waste your appetite, time, and money. Will never go back. read more

We stopped by for breakfast before exploring the redwoods. We had huevos rancheros and the veggie scramble. We ate every bite! Good, no frills fare. read more

The girls were very nice but service was slow, could have been short staffed. To top it off I've had better burgers...

Everything we had was perfect. My eggs benedict was beyond my expectations. The service was nice and very attentive. Thank you for the awesome breakfast! read more

Eel River Cafe - Cafes Near Me - Garberville, California

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Really wanted to go to Calico but the staff took the day off to attend the Reggae Festival in Persie! The grassfed beef from Ferndale was very good but my medium burger was well done. Great staff and I would go there again! read more

November 20, 2012; just before departing our stay at the Sherwood Forest Motel we stopped in for breakfast (suggested by the Motel). My sister and I liked the decor, lots of things to look at. The service and food was good and portions were very good as well. The waitress was very friendly and we chatted with her for a bit. When she was taking our order and asked about toast, I asked if they had gluten free (not expecting any) and was surprised to find that they did offer it and it wasn't nasty bread either. We would come back to this restaurant for breakfast again if we stay in the area. read more

Solid breakfast menu! I had the gluten-free french toast and it was DELICIOUS! I actually asked to make sure they had used the GF bread because it tasted too good to be true! Friendly staff, great old diner decor, comfy & clean. I'll definitely be back! read more

Best breakfast I have had in a long time. We were just passing through town on the last day of our road trip and we stopped in to get a big meal before continuing on our journey. I ordered the heuevos rancheros, it was served with homemade corn tortillas and perfectly cooked over easy eggs. The staff was friendly and the kitchen looked pristine clean. Was a very pleasant surprise. read more

Eel River Cafe - Huevos Rancheros - Cafes Near Me - Garberville, California

Excellent customer service and awesome atmosphere! Feels like the good old diner it used to be, with a bit of polish. My family loved their meals. Unfortunately, I ordered a burger medium rare, and it was delivered to me well done--twice. Great place to stop but order the burgers. read more

Where to begin?! This was a recommendation by our Camp Host. We drove 20 minutes in to get here. No greeting whatsoever when we walked in. Ordered the Fiesta Omelette with hash browns and toast, and waffle with a side of bacon. Let's start with the waffle: dry. The bacon: crisp and dry. Now onto the Fiesta Omelette : loaded with olives, the pepper jack cheese wasn't melted and appeared to be slices for a sandwich. The egg for the Omelette- thin. I wold be surprised if 2 actual eggs were used. Salsa?? A big scoop of tomato paste. Yes. Gross. My toast was dry. And the kicker: the hasbrowns - pressed into a patty super thin and crispy. My boyfriend actually picked it up with two fingers and asked the server where the hash browns were! A guy in the next booth commented - he wondered too. Definitely won't eat here again. #disappinted read more

One of my favorite places for breakfast, great food and awesome staff. The chef is super friendly and kind, as are the waiters!

Excellent breakfast and friendly service. Worth stopping in Garberville for. Popular with locals as well as those passing through.

Every year on our annual Pacific Coast Highway road trip, we make sure to pay a visit to the Eel River Cafe. With an old fashioned diner feel and classic booth seating, the Eel River Cafe harkens back to a simpler time with a menu of classic diner food - from BLT's to Chili Sizes, & all day breakfast fare. The iced tea is fresh brewed and the coffee strong and delicious. We've ordered the Eggs Benedict, Monte Cristo, Chile Size, Chicken Fried Steak, and classic hamburgers - and have never had a bad meal. Not once. The portions are abundant too. And no matter how full we are, we can't stop eating the french fries! We just love this Cafe and I'm always so grateful that there are still places to go that remind me of good food at honest prices with all of my traditional favorites. Thanks Eel River Cafe - hope to see you again very soon! read more

This really has good food ive eaten here three times recently and the food and service was really good

Good basic breakfast place. Clean. Wait staff courteous and nice. Limited booth seating but cute counter seating.

Super clean! And super cute. The food was standards for breakfast and lunch but all prepared exceptionally well. This breakfast nook runs out of favorites (like biscuits and gravy) daily. So get there by noon if you want your choice of everything. read more

This local diner has fantastic food! We ate breakfast here and it was great. I asked for my eggs on the Eggs Benedict to be "barely cooked" with the yolk runny and they were fixed perfectly! The server was very polite and accurate. If we're ever in Garberville again, we will surely have another meal here! read more

Traveling? This is a good spot to have breakfast or lunch. Been there more than once. It is dependable and a relief from roadside Fast Food drive in windows. Tommy Collins read more

We had a great lunch here today. I had the mushroom cheeseburger with Swiss. Cooked perfectly. My wife had the grilled tuna melt. She said it was very good. Very nice staff. Great atmosphere. Almost like the old diners. Give it a try! read more

locals love this place. just good Ole sysco style greasy spoon. locals call it the ill liver cafe lol. it's good and you know what to expect. read more

The one star is not for the quality of the food, it is for the very very bad service. We sat down and ordered right away....40 minutes later we got our hamburgers. They were OK, but we really didn't indeed to spend an hour in an uncrowded diner. It took forever and we think that the waitress forgot to turn in our order! Sorry, but would never go there again. read more

Food was good & hot. Restaurant was out of Rye bread for menu items calling for Rye. Took a long time for food to come out. Regulars appeared to get better service than travelers. Staff was friendly and attentive but folks placing orders after us were provided meals before us. (Regulars) Would try them again, but would definitely expect longer lunch times. read more

I'm a local and prefer this place over others in Garberville. If you're looking for a classic old school American diner then this is the place. It's homey, friendly and if you've never been here you'll feel like you're on a 60's movie set. The staff is friendly and efficient and the food is what you'd expect at a diner. Portions are very ample. My only complaint is that my favorite breakfast are eggs benedict and the sauce they use isn't real holindase sauce. Other than that if you're a local or just traveling through I would highly recommend the Eel River Cafe. read more

Awesome biscuits and gravy! Worth waiting for if you have too! Chicken fried steak was light and tender....delish! Cool little piece of heaven just outside of the redwoods! read more