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    Elmer's Kitchen

    4.1 (322 reviews)
    Open 6:30 am - 2:30 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Elmer's Kitchen Photos

    Business Info

    ELMER'S KITCHEN ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for kids
    Good for groups

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    Recommended Reviews - Elmer's Kitchen

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    Reviews With Photos

    Timothy C.

    Always wanted to go to this place. Have lived in Boise for many years. Finally went. Major letdown. The waffle was almost $12!!! THAT MUCH FOR A WAFFLE!!! with JUST BUTTER!!!! absolute...INSANITY!!!! I will never go here again. These diners are supposed to be affordable. How does a family eat here? Ok so yes, it's located on Capitol, super close to BSU and basically is downtown....so they will always get the business. But DAMN!! $12 for a waffle!! ONE. WAFFLE!!! just...one! This place is obviously NOT for the locals. It's for the parents of BSU students. They basically know that they can hella over charge and somehow get away with it. Just crazy. Again...it's like a diner. So there is absolutely NO need to be charging what they do. Waitress was very nice tho. Ill give her/this place that much, but yeah...for a restaurant I was excited to try after so many years bc I love old school places like this...I can 100% say...I will never go here again. Thanks for reading, YelpElmers!!! GO. SOMEWHERE. ELSE!!! You will get more food and won't get robbed. Cheers!

    An absolute SPREAD
    McDaniel P.

    For a busy Saturday morning these guys handled service amazing. Walking in I was hit with the nostalgia of breakfast joints back east from when I was a kid. I ordered the "Hungry Rancher Breakfast" and man were they not lying. Maybe I've been watching too much Yellowstone. I couldn't finish it. Rainey was our server and she did wonderful. Highlights were the sausage gravy and the coffee.

    Good food.
    Greg S.

    Very good service. Clean. Food was not greasy. Veg omelette had fresh veggies. Photo sums it up. Not much else to say other than it is a good idea to come here.

    German pancake ham steak eggs over medium
    Becca C.

    Had the German pancake with the ham steak both were amazing. Service was great, coffees stayed full.

    Fresh cut flowers in the ladies restroom!

    My friend and I ate brunch at Elmer's this week. The owner greeted and welcomed us as we walked in and we were seated promptly. Our server was very sweet and efficient as well. I had an omelette with hash browns and a biscuit. The menu said that the biscuits were from Pillsbury and I assume they were frozen, but mine was really good as were the omelette and hash browns and coffee. The coolest thing was that they had a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers on the counter in the ladies restroom; they were just gorgeous! We told the owner how pretty they were as we were leaving (while he was sweeping the rug) and he said he cut them himself that morning! That was such an unexpected and pleasant surprise! I'd definitely recommend Elmer's!!

    Chris Y.

    What are the great things about getting to see family is they always do the best breakfast spots luckily one of my uncles took me to Elmers and we got lucky and got really good parking but that wasn't enough. I had to have what I thought would be the French toast sandwich but instead I got an omelette with pancakes. The service was incredible. I had to Say Jeff was a lot of fun had a really good outlet in all his is a lHe's a careful and throw eat or do you want to give yourself time and the family restaurant this isn't the quick in and out. You need to have time to enjoy the conversation appreciate the atmosphere and make sure that the food gets there. And give it every chance to be appreciated before you turn it into an empty plate. .

    Farmer's breakfast
    Jason S.

    Today while moving in our youngest to her new place to attend Boise state we walked over here for a late breakfast/lunch...I hadn't eaten at an Elmers for over 20+ yrs since we left the state of Washington. But when we used to live in Washington we had one blocks from our place and have fond memories as a young family eating here. Walking into this location it brought us back in time. A little outdated but super clean inside and the host at the front was super welcoming and friendly. Upon being seated our host brought over some waters and took our drink order. Heads up they do have adult beverages for brunch as well like champagne, wine and beer selection. After a very short wait our waiter Jeffery came to assist us. This to me was the game changer he was super friendly, attentive, informative and made this whole experience one that I would come back for. For food I had the crabacado omelette which consisted of lots of fresh Dungeness crab, bacon, sliced avocado and metered cheese. This omelette was very delicious and filling. I haven't had this good of a crab omelette since being in the Northwest. The crab was so fresh tasting and if you haven't ever had bacon and avocado with this flavor profile you have missed out. My daughter had the chocolate chip pancakes with eggs and bacon on the side. These pancakes could've fed a family of 5 they were so big, but so delicious with great fluffy taste. My daughters BF had the farmers breakfast which was 3 eggs with sliced ham, bacon, sausage links, hash browns and homemade biscuit. We loved everything and glad we stumbled across this place. I hope that more locals and visitors give this Boise staple a try. It's hard to find great food like this and the portion size vs the price. I really enjoyed our visit and food. We will for sure be back!

    This was horrible. Cold food, small portions that you can tell come pre-packaged. Four dollars for a child size soda. Four dollars for one cup of coffee. Ten dollars for a tiny piece of shoe leather (ham) and a side of cold hashbrowns. We ordered "STRAWBERRY" pancakes and were charged for them but also charged an extra fee for the strawberries. Forty-three dollars for two people. It was disgusting and expensive for the quality and portions.

    Bacon avocado omelette with fruit and a biscuit

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    9 years ago

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    9 years ago

    We have eaten at Elmer's all over the Northwest and this Elmer's in Boise is not the same quality we are use to. Avoid it.

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    10 years ago

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    14 years ago

    I ordered the breakfast burrito, with avocado. It was damn good.

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    7 years ago

    Delicious food and wonderful service! This will always be a place I can take my family when they visit Idaho!

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    7 years ago

    We had breakfast there this am and it was amazing. Good older comfort food and excellent service.

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    13 years ago

    Great value. Genuine hospitality. Feels like you're grabbing breakfast with grandpa as a kid.

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    11 years ago

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    12 years ago

    Great breakfast, nice waitresses, will definitely come back. Huge selection of breakfast and other good too.

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    9 years ago

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    10 years ago

    Stopped for breakfast today. Great service, great food, huge portions! Fruit side dish was very fresh.

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    8 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    8 years ago

    Very nice place and friendly staff. I had the potato pancakes and they were great, my son enjoyed the waffles.

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    8 years ago

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    10 years ago

    Great food great service love these breakfast lunch and dinner places Our waitress Fae was wonderful

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    Page 7 of 9

    Ask the Community - Elmer's Kitchen

    Eddie's Restaurant

    Eddie's Restaurant

    3.9
    (163 reviews)
    3.0 mi
    $$

    Staff is outstanding and can't beat a good country breakfast skillet!…read more Never a bad meal here!!

    Before Christmas, my friend wanted to meet up for a quick bite so she suggested Eddie's. We both…read morewanted breakfast for lunch so Eddie's sounded like a great place to eat at. I arrived first. There was a server behind the counter not really acknowledging me. There were also a couple other servers hanging out by the breakfast bar that were in their own little world. So, I just stood there for a while. Finally someone who was actually serving a table who wad walking by greeted me and got my sat. I got some coffee started while I was waiting for my friend. I told me server about my new kidney and that I couldn't use the creamers on the table that had been handled by previous guests. She was kind and got me a new bowl of creamers. I kicked it, enjoyed my hot coffee and waited till my friend showed up. After my friend finally showed up, we breezed over the menu and decided on some grub. I did have a meal a little before our lunch date so I got something off the smaller menu. I decided on the hamburger patty with onions and 1egg meal. I thought it was going to be the perfect amount. Everything came out quickly. I did ask for a side of brown gravy for my hamburger patty, it was looking kinda dry. The side of fruit I got looked fresh and my egg was cooked perfectly. My patty was smaller, it would be comparable to a patty you would use as a slider. The gravy and onions did add nice flavor to it. Unfortunately the gravy was sitting for a while in the back cause it was lumpy and cooler. The egg was fresh and the fruit as good. My coffee was always topped off by our server which I really appreciated. My friend and I didn't realize what time they closed. We just thought that we came at an odd hour so no one was eating and it was slow. We hung out for a while and chatted. Finally another server told us that she was going to go paint the bathroom and she would be in there if we needed anything. Finding that to be such an odd comment, I googled to see what time they closed. It was 2:15 and they closed at 2. I thought a simple "is there anything else we can get you cause we are closed" would have been sufficient instead of beating around the bush. I served for over 30 years and have never told my guests I would be in the bathroom if they needed me. It was an interesting meal here. The venue was fun with the lights and vintage decor. The food was decent. Our server did a great job but service outside of her was non existent or questionable. I have my favorite breakfast joints and I wish I could have added this place to it on this end of town. I love supporting local but it's hard to support this joint when the service and food was just 50/50.

    Photos
    Cute place.
    Cute place.
    Egg, sausage & pancakes combo.
    Egg, sausage & pancakes combo.
    Inside

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    Inside
    Westside Drive In

    Westside Drive In

    3.7
    (361 reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $$

    This classic, retro spot delivers a highly unique novelty experience with a massive menu. While the…read moremain food items are fairly standard, the incredibly creative dessert and the nostalgic drive-in atmosphere make it a fun, memorable stop. Finger Steak Basket (3/5): A very generous portion that comes packed with battered, deep-fried strips of steak, tater tots (gems), and a slice of garlic bread. The finger steaks are served with a traditional cocktail sauce, which is an interesting pairing for beef that didn't quite hit the mark for me personally. They tasted much better when dipped in fry sauce instead, which also pairs perfectly with the crispy gems. The garlic bread is a nice addition to round out the basket, though it lacks a strong buttery or garlicky flavor profile. The Idaho Ice Cream Potato (5/5): An incredibly creative dessert that's worth the $7 price tag for the fun novelty alone. It looks exactly like a real baked potato, but is actually a generous portion of vanilla ice cream coated in cocoa powder, and topped with chocolate syrup, peanuts, and crushed Oreo cookies, though you can ask to omit any toppings you don't want. Logistics Tip: The restaurant is highly flexible, offering two drive-through lanes for quick to-go orders alongside plenty of traditional parking spots if you want to dine on-site at their outdoor seating. Restrooms are available and are located directly behind the main building.

    Great place!! Service was great and they were nice. They have a massive menu!…read more Food review: Jr cheeseburger: 10/10 beef was delicious, great balance of sauce and toppings, didn't get soggy Onion Rings: 10/10 sweet onions, small slices super crispy Mac and cheese: 5/10 not my favorite although a decent portion for price! It tastes very mustard forward to me Smores shake: 10/10 lots of mix ins!! Delicious and thick

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    Westside Drive In
    Insta: mmmashterchef
    Insta: mmmashterchef
    Patty melt

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    Patty melt
    Merritt's Family Restaurant

    Merritt's Family Restaurant

    3.8
    (239 reviews)
    5.1 mi
    $$

    Came here for the first time this morning, a Wednesday. The restaurant was not crowded. It was seat…read moreyourself, and we chose a booth. Karinna was our server, and she did an excellent job of taking care of us; friendly, attentive, and helpful. That are known for their scones. To me, they weren't really like the scones I'm used to. They're big pastries of fried dough, and you can get them covered with cinnamon and sugar, fruit, cream cheese, and more. I had the three egg Jalapeño and cheese omelet (spicy/good) with hash browns and upgraded to the cinnamon and sugar "scone". My wife got eggs and sausage, hash browns, and the same type of scone. The food was all good, but the scones were delicious! More like a large pastry churro, and with butter on top it was amazing. My problem was with the men's bathroom. It was disgusting. Dirty, paper on the floor, toilet--well, you get the idea. This caused me to look around and see that the place was not all that clean. So, the next time we would come, and that would be for those scones, we'd do takeout.

    If you look over my reviews then you will see I love breakfast restaurants and especially home-made…read morechicken fried steak. So when the menu specifically says home-made chicken fried steak I get excited. And it is possible that I came to Merritts with too high expectations. That being said the chicken fried steak was very bland, no flavor. Salt and pepper couldn't save it. The scone was cooked perfectly but whatever honey butter they are using was waxy and not much flavor. My wife also said her omelette just didn't taste right. She also had the Boston shake which was basically just ice cream on top of milkshake, didn't really look or taste like a sundae. She also said the chocolate tasted stale. The service was fine for having few customers. I'm not a huge fan of going to a restaurant and having Dr Pepper in a bottle. So yes, a cup of ice was appreciated. The restaurant itself is what you would expect for a roadside family dinner. It actually added to the excitement of what I expected the food to taste like. There are just so many good breakfast restaurants that I could not give this a 3. I would not come back and I cannot recommend for anybody else. Sorry Merritts.

    Photos
    Interior plus a great shirt: "I got sconed"
    Interior plus a great shirt: "I got sconed"
    The rancher
    The rancher
    Juke box and counter area.

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    Juke box and counter area.
    Goldy's Breakfast Bistro

    Goldy's Breakfast Bistro

    4.2
    (1.3k reviews)
    0.8 mi
    $$

    My husband and I have two food categories we always research before visiting a new city: pizza and…read morebreakfast. We take both very seriously, so Goldy's was high on our list during our trip to Boise--and it did not disappoint. We ended up sitting upstairs, which turned out to be a great choice. It gave us a fun view of the dining room below and, more importantly, let us see all the amazing-looking plates coming out of the kitchen. If you're anything like me, half the fun of breakfast is seeing what everyone else ordered. The standout for both of us was easily the Goldy's Special Potatoes. The red potatoes are tossed with the restaurant's house seasoning blend, and whatever is in that seasoning mix works. They were flavorful, crispy, and completely addictive. We both cleaned our plates. I ordered the two-egg breakfast with scrambled eggs and cheese, along with one of their specialty sausages. Everything was cooked perfectly, and the biscuit was excellent. Since I was in Idaho, I also wanted to try something made with marionberries because they're so well known in the Pacific Northwest. I ordered the marionberry jam, and while I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, both my husband and I really enjoyed it. My husband went with an omelet and turkey apple sausage and was equally happy with his choice. The coffee was probably the only thing that didn't stand out to me. I drink my coffee black, and this was more of a classic diner-style cup of coffee--perfectly fine, but not the star of the meal for sure. Overall, Goldy's is exactly the kind of breakfast spot we love finding when we travel: great food, generous portions, and a place that feels like a local favorite for a reason. If we ever find ourselves back in Boise, we'll absolutely be back for those potatoes.

    Visited our son and daughter in law for a long weekend and they took us to Goldy's for a hearty…read morebreakfast. It's a small unassuming place in DT Boise. Great selection of breakfast staples. They're very attentive on their coffee refills. Steak and crab benny did not skimp on the steak or crab. Every bite was delicious. Only downside is there's no area to wait for your table. You'll have to step outside in the cold since there's really no space inside.

    Photos
    This is chandelerious
    This is chandelerious
    Fresh fruit
    Fresh fruit
    Sunrise Mimosa

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    Sunrise Mimosa

    Elmer's Kitchen - diners - Updated June 2026

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