Local American food at a good price. This is the joint for a great breakfast or lunch that's down home country cooking. Server was nice and helpful. The ladies working the counter up front felt like they could be your grandma. I just felt at home here, which I know is weird to say but it's true. Also the locals eat here so if you know anything about restaurants, if the fire department or locals frequent a place then you know it's the spot and Ken & Mary's is that! read more

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Ok, so love the atmosphere. The food was ok, but would have liked it to be a bit better. But the staff so sweet. Next time I will just try the lunch read more

Great menu and food and attentive staff! And very convenient and close to town!would definitely go back anytime i was in the area!

Home town favorite from how busy it stays. Servers are quick and friendly. Prices are more than fair. Quick service, full pot of coffee at all times. Interesting decor, could spend awhile just reading the signs Worth a try. read more

Ken & Mary's - Dining room - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

Not great but not bad. The food is okay for the price the staff is always nice and the ambiance is a little dated but overall it's not bad.

Food is always amazing here! This is definitely our favorite breakfast place in Shelby and the service is always amazing! Also highly recommend the weekend lunch buffet!!! read more

Just another bad experience today. Lack of service, food not properly cooked, cold coffee. Staff busy talking rather than taking care of the customers. read more

I have eaten at Ken and Mary's several times, every chance I get. The food is delicious, and the service is usually fast and friendly. However, last Tuesday we arrived at 1:30 due to traffic congestion; when we entered the staff was laughing, joking and cleaning. No problem, but they ignored us for about five minutes then rudely said "we close in 20 minutes." So I asked, "can we eat?" No answer. Just grabbed the menus and seated us. The service was curt. We ordered, ate, paid and left at exactly 2:00. My concern is this: if you really close at 1:30, lock the doors. Your customers don't deserve rude treatment. I thought about just letting it go and taking my future business elsewhere, but I think the owners should know about the behavior of the employees. Thank you. read more

The breakfast is remarkable, and the timing on the service is like no other! Ambiance is awesome as well...

Nothing great here. Average at best. Have a Bologna sandwich at home and save yourself $60.00.

I was not happy with the quality of service or the food quality. I really don't recommend this restaurant. The owner was yelling at some of the employees during my visit, which did not make for an enjoyable environment with my family and friends. read more

The best thing about Ken and Mary's is the way it feels when your waitress knows you, knows your family, what you like to drink, etc. The food comes out fast, hot and made with the love only a small town family- owned restaurant can provide. I like spending my money locally, supporting locals making an honest living, supporting a small business that's served this community for over 20 years, and eating the best breakfast in town! If you haven't eaten there, what are you waiting for? You'll love it! read more

Heard waitresses talking bad about customers and dealing with elderly. She didn't have her front teeth.

I can't understand why locals love this place. Went there once the food was unappealing, tasteless, bland, and over-priced. I don't prefer chains, but even Ihop is better. Oh and the atmosphere and seating is horrific. You are seated on top of each other and have to smell other people who don't have good hygiene while trying to choke down the food! read more

Ken & Mary's is by far my favorite place for breakfast! I love the home style cooking with all the hometown folk! Reminds me of breakfast with my grandmother. would recommend to anyone 100% read more

Ken and Mary's is definitely a hometown favorite! Great food and buffet! Friendly staff that have been there for years and family owned. Great place to catch breakfast or lunch. read more

Don't do it! I don't know how people could rate this place so highly. They've obviously had their taste buds burnt off by the crappy coffee. I guess when we read one review that said "the place was great for around here,", we had a clue. Around there they must not eat their moms food or mom is a bad cook. There must be a lot of bad cooks around there then. The pancakes were thin and gooey. The omelette was cold. The gravy, don't even try it. The blueberries were canned. I've eaten bad food before and this was up there in the bad food list. read more

Southern breakfast doesn't get better than this. I'm from California and appreciate down home cooking. I love the atmosphere of this restaurant. Something about this place and the family style service you get really speaks southern hospitality to me. My first time here was today and by the great service I felt like was a regular customer. Coffee is great and fresh!! Pancakes are nice fluffy and unbelievably FRESH!!! I also got the ultimate omelet which was awesome. My wife ordered the livermush omelet which was also really good! If you are ever in Shelby then Livermush is something of a local delicacy which is a must try!!! This is what we in California call a "mom and pop" place. Everyone should experience this. read more

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This place was a complete disappointment. My husband and I went for breakfast and I barely touched my food. I had a sausage and cheese omelette that was extremely bland. My hash browns were fine, but my sausage and gravy biscuit was inedible. They don't use white gravy, they use brown gravy. It was completely flavorless and all you could taste was grease. I asked for hot tea and instead of putting it in a coffee cup they just gave it to me in a Styrofoam cup. They entire room was decked out in Dale Earnhardt memorabilia, so the atmosphere wasn't really my style. The service was friendly, but I was so disappointed in the food it couldn't make up for it. I suggest going to Shelby Cafe instead for breakfast. Their food is much better. read more

Wanted to squeeze out 3 stars but just couldn't. Lots of non food related plus's here. Cool feeling small town diner, easy access, friendly staff, cheap prices, good portions and value for the amount of food. The bad is the food quality. Horrible biscuits and gravy. Not just bc it was barely hot. No flavor. Home fries were from a bag. Cooked 2 hours ago and kept warm. Omelets were decent but not great. Pancake was bland. No fluff, dense and flat. Hash brown was ok but clearly the same kind you could throw in a toaster. The place had a real good home cooked country meal feel to it but the food was exactly NOT that. read more

Very good breakfast. Walking up it reminded me of a hometown Cracker Barrel. It was decorated with really random antiques on the wall. We sat in a room covered in NASCAR memorabilia. The waitress was nice and did a good job. They gave you a lot of food for the price. Very reasonable. The menu was confusing in the way it was written. I didn't understand what the sides were or how the plates were configured. The food was really good. THE BEST pancakes I have ever had. I had one apple pancake and should have ordered 3. They were delicious. The Omlet was good but not great. It was still a little runny in the middle and the toppings were fully cooked. The onions were raw and not chopped completely. But it still tasted good. The hash browns were bland. I wouldn't recommend. I creeped on some peoples plates as they walked by from the lunch bar. That looked super good. They had fried chicken and veggies. The typical southern, after-church lunch you would think of. I would go back here but next time I'm drowning myself in pancakes! read more

Ken & Mary's - Mexican Omlet - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

One of my favorite breakfast spots in town. Their food is awesome and made to order. The grits are delicious and the omelettes are tasty as well. The staff is very friendly and I've never had any issues with anyone being rude. The buffet they usually have for lunch always looks very yummy, although I've never tried it because I always want to have their delicious breakfast!! It's a pretty large building, and it does get super busy at times, especially the weekends. But since it is so large they have a lot of seating available, so usually you don't have to wait for a table... and if you do, the wait is short. read more

Ken and Mary's is a staple in Shelby. Best known for their breakfast, the restaurant is consistently packed out on Sundays. Their pancakes are the best in shelby so long as you get plain buttermilk or chocolate chip. Any meal with eggs and sides will be good. The decorations are plentiful and unique. The service is the fastest around. The food comes out within ten minutes every time, often under five. The only reason it lacks a star is that the environment is very "redneckish" and it feels as though if you aren't straight, white, no tattoos, clean cut, etc. then you will notice some judgement from staff and patrons alike. But the food makes it worth it. read more

Love their breakfast. The best comfort food. Buffet is awesome as well. I could eat here all day everyday..

Nothing special, food ok, cashier begs for tips plus charges 3.50% for debit card use

Driving by a couple times, I've noticed a packed parking lot and a line of people waiting to get in. A couple people compared the décor as a smaller Cracker Barrel. That's where the similarities end. Cute rooms with old antiquey décor, a gentleman takes you to your table and immediately gets you coffee. The menu is VERY basic. Egg combo plates with the typical meat choices, omelets, and pancakes. We all get the two egg plates , one bacon.one sausage and one country ham.The person sked PLEASE, hardly heat up the ham as to not over cook. It was WAY over cooked. we all get wheat toast. (only wheat and white is offered or a biscuit) and hash browns. The eggs were all ok but the hash browns come in a bowl that seemed heated in a micro instead of on the skillet. It was potato mush, no seasoning. I added hot sauce just to give it a little taste. The toast was dry and hard like it was done before rest of breakfast. (and my Mom asked for extra butter) Got three tiny pieces of bacon. I am so used to drinking nonfat or 1% milk that whole tastes like heavy cream to me but that's all they offer, so couldn't have milk with my meal. I don't think the food is worth giving it another chance, can get this quality at any small diner, let alone waiting in line for. read more

My food has always been good. I have tried a lot of things on the menu! The place has always been clean. The staff is friendly. The prices are average. The parking lot is fine, just never any parking because it's such a popular place. The decor is odd but it fits! Always feel at home there. read more

Breakfast daily until 2pm! And it is delicious! The biscuits and gravy are the best I've ever had! Pancakes are the best too! The ultimate omlet is out of this world as well! Great, home-cooked breakfast! We had prompt friendly service, and the food came out super fast too! And it's cheap! We like the atmosphere and decor... Log cabin style building with a lot of country style! They also serve lunch - a variety of sandwiches or a hot bar to pick off of - like meatloaf, fried chicken, man n cheese - all looks yummy!! This is the place to eat while in the Shelby area!! read more

Ken & Mary's - Biscuits n gravy + omelet - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Shelby, North Carolina

Family owned and amazing food service coffee French toast!! Prices! No masks required nor the ppl working there!!!

The best breakfast spot in town. Brought my family twice when they came to visit because they loved it so much.

I went here for a work breakfast recently and was quite pleased. I haven't been here for at least 5 years, so I was pleased that they now take debit and credit cards. The breakfast was quite standard but good and pretty expensive. Probably $5 dollars for a fairly large sized breakfast. The turkey bacon was very good as were the grits. I always appreciate when places leave the jelly on the table and Ken and Mary's definitely leaves the jelly packets on the table rather than making you ask for them. Not bad for a breakfast. It definitely feels like a Cracker Barrel mixed with a flea market, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It has its own unique charm to it. read more

I had breakfast here, this is not a Cracker Barrel, it's more like a man cave. The gravy was horrible. So steer clear of the biscuits and gravy or anything that comes with gravy. Paid $9 for an omelette, grits and that terrible gravy. Coffee was good, service was good. Decor was lame. read more

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This place is amazing the food is great and the staff is really friendly great food and service gone there for breakfast and lunch highly recommend and it's really family friendly especially if you have kids read more

Best French toast ever! Breakfast has always been wonderful every time I have been there! My daughter went to GWU, her & her friends loved this place! She is the one that told me about the French toast. We took her & her friends out for breakfast before graduation from GWU and we all ate French toast read more

I am easy to please so I loved this place! The food and service was excellent. I had scrambled eggs with cheese, biscuits and gravy (brown), and hash browns...YUMMY. Server was friendly with personality. Try it, you'll like it! read more

Wow discovered this place today. Friendly people. Made us feel so welcome. Had a great waitress. Good excellent and great prices. Will be returning. read more

Food is good. Nothing special. But good for the area. People that work there are nice...as long as they aren't busy. If busy, they are SUPER rude. Even if you aren't in a rush and being nice them. So beware of that. read more

We really like this little "mom n pop" place. We live near and visit often. Customer service is always great. The food is always hot and tastes like something your family would cook. Would recommend if you're in the area, stop in and check out what they have. read more

Ken & Mary's is the best breakfast and lunch restaurant in Shelby. Their waitresses are a number one, best in town. Looking for Good Food and excellent service, Ken and Mary's is the perfect place to go. read more

Awful food. I'm guessing people of Shelby don't know what good cooking really is. The gravy they use is left over grease from greasy food they prepare. DON'T EAT THE GRAVY. Shelby cafe is much better. I just don't get it. Yuck read more