Standard, no frills diner that executes well. My party of 5 dined for a weekday brunch around the holidays and were able to be seated quickly without a reservation. The staff were all very friendly and helpful with recommendations! The food was exactly what you would expect from a good diner and portions were large - especially the omelets. I will give props to mels for the homefries though, I was pleasantly surprised by how crispy they were! Overall I definitely recommend checking them out, but from past experiences I know to expect a wait if you go during peak brunch hours. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Chicken Salad Sandwich - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

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What's not to LOVE about Mel's! Where else can you get pumpkin spice coffee in January Bacon lovers, take a look at this abundance of bacon cooked just right. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - 2-2-2 special: 2 French toast, 2 eggs, 2 bacon. I had fruit salad instead of home fries. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

Driven by here a bazillion times. Finally stopped and came in. Clean, bright lights and smells of food. There are two menus, one for specials, the other for the mains. I chose the country inn French toast, has to be at least an inch and half thick! Home fries and a slice of ham. Waitress was quick on the scene to take our orders. Coffee refills quite regularly. Food was hot and fresh. Well worth the stop. Hoping to come back. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Country Inn French Toast - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

First visit in a couple of years...... very dissapointed. My sandwich was listed on the menu as "Carved Roasted Turkey". What I got was pressed, cheap deli meat. Not worth the price. read more

Loving the new makeover. Updated front area, dining room and bar. New counters, Nic bright new paint job, looks great and updated! Been coming here for years, mostly takeout. Still in love with their grilled bagel. They've also improved on their homefries! read more

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Solid diner food with nice service. Very fun ambiance. It's best to go when it's not too crowded but it's always a good time read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Corned beef hash and eggs - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

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Very awful experience yesterday. The very rude elderly waitress ripped a pepper shaker from my toddlers hands and made her cry and we had to leave. The food is decent, but the service has always been very slow and very poor for years. That is probably because there really is no server under the age of 80 in there for some reason. After yesterday's interaction I will never go back and will be telling everyone what happened. read more

Quality food, family-run business that employs local students and is very supportive of the community. Nice staff, comfortable seating, plenty of parking. Get there early on weekends! read more

Delightful diner with a new twist on standard fare. Fun atmosphere, friendly service. In house bakery with Dail specials

Much improved since last review. Especially the home fries. The place looks spiffier too since a recent partial renovation. Prices a bit high for most things (e.g. over $4 for a large muffin) but can't beat their Hungry Man's special for breakfast. Service is quirky by the very long term employees. Friendly, but grumpy at same time. But love the way they keep refilling the coffee. read more

Favorite breakfast/brunch place! Big portions / servings of food, so much to share / take home and the service is great! Love the cafe and everything is always clean and delicious. read more

Chicken Mandarin Salad has been my fav since 2006! Excellent staff & service. Even when I moved an hour away, I still make the drive for my fav lunch salad. read more

Ham in my vegetarian omelette, the crab cakes in hubby's crab cake Benedict had never seen a crab (all breading). Raw breakfast potatoes. When we let the server know she barely acknowledged the complaint and didn't do anything about it. Don't recommend and will not go again read more

We were on the way from CT to MA, and asked Google for a stop on the way for a breakfast. Mel's was to closest option, so we took the 'risk' and followed the recommendation. Bottom line: Great American authentic place. They use little to no oil on the omelettes, which was a great advantage I recommend this place for a breakfast read more

Been here a couple times. Each time it wasn't super hard to get in. The food was great both times, the portions are very large and fairly well priced. The service was great each time I went. Even when there were large parties at the tables around us. The restaurant is very clean and has a good local neighborhood feel read more

Mel's Commonwealth is a landmark with a long 60+ year history. Once originally a donut shop, today serving delicious breakfast and lunch. Co-owner brothers are usually visible greeting their customers on entry or table visit, just like their dad Mel did before he retired. This local eatery has a strong local support in and around the community. Many employees still work here for 20+ years. Diane was our server today. We started with a grilled blueberry muffin. Delicious!! These muffins are from the The Muffin Man- (look them up....yummy) My guest order a daily special - The skillet with a over flowing fruit cup. They said they enjoyed their meal. I ordered a meat lovers omelet -you have the choice of toast and home fries or three medium-size pancakes . My omelette was stuffed and my banana pancakes were excellent. (I shared ) This is a must visit, if you've never have been The consistency of the food and long retention of employees providing outstanding service is what keeps people coming back Enjoy ‼ We will be back read more

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Nice diner feel with a large menu to provide lots of great brunch options. When we went, there was also a specials menu with some seasonal options for fall. I ordered the country inn French toast special, which was only $2 more than the normal order but included home fries and a side of ham/bacon/sausage (not pictured). Portion size was great. Only wish the potatoes were crispier. My partner also ordered off the specials menu and got the chorizo eggs Benedict, however the chorizo slices were pretty small which was disappointing. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Country Inn French Toast Special - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

The best I have ever had I just walk the place is brillant with sun and confort the food is so much and the price is so little I was baffled when they come with food to me I couldnt even finish that's how much they give you for so little money and the staff are amazing the place is quiet and beautiful like a 90s diner. I definitely recommend this place if you want a breakfast or lunch because I will definitely come back here read more

Are you the kind of person who appreciates a tasty bargain ? I am going to tell you about the Best Deal In Town: Mel's take-out breakfast options - you can get a hot egg sandwich with meat and cheese, and a big hot coffee, for under $7. You can also request the coffee and muffin special (costs slightly more, wait til you see these blueberry muffins on parade at Mel's!) Everything is fresh and tasty, and it is a Really Great Deal That Can't Be Beat ! read more

Mel's is a classic, family run diner in Wayland that serves a huge selection of breakfast and lunch items. Most of the employees have been here forever, which says something about how the owners run this place. You'll always find friendly service and a good meal here! I've personally been coming here since I was in middle school, and got the chance to go back this morning after being away for a while. Mel's two sons run the place, and are really nice guys who go out of their way to make sure you have an excellent experience. I usually go for pancakes, waffles, or French toast at any breakfast place, and you can't go wrong with any of those at Mel's. Today I had the country inn french toast, which was bursting with cinnamon goodness. For a great breakfast or lunch, don't miss Mel's! read more

I had a horrible experience! The waitress that wears a yellow bandana and has brown hair with highlights was horrible and racist. I am a person of color, and she would purposely ignore me and my family, backhanded comments and wouldn't even look at me while i ordered. She purposely ignored me when i asked for a new ketchup and said there's enough in there for you, and proceeded to take it from my hand. I am very disappointed and have been coming here since I was a little kid(I am in my 50s). This behavior is honestly unacceptable, it's 2025! read more

Mel's serves a terrific meal. The omelets are amazing, full of fresh vegetables. The portions are generous and delicious. You may need a doggie bag. Jon Wayland, MA read more

Great Breakfast plenty of options, great Muffin selection, and hot flavored Coffee options as well. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Front Entrance - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

Fish ^& Chips- fish not cooked through.wet icky. That was last week/ gave it another try today & burger just okay...but the noise level...ugh! Waitstaff oversharing & I was not able to just eat the burger - w/o hearing about waitstaff- holiday plans, kids and just not cool. Not recommending. It was a local go-to place- no longer. Tired setting- needs updates! So, nope- done w/ Mel's read more

If I could Rate this place 10/10 I would on here. This was my first time coming here and honestly would come back The inside of this place is great it has a really good 60s feel but with a modern interior there were so many options at Mel's but I went with the Wayland Warrior which I recommend It has 4 eggs of your choice 3 sausages,3 strips of bacon,4 pancakes toast or bagel(I chose the bagel) Homefries and Juice. The food was great fluffy pancakes crispy sausage and bacon the eggs were good and the bagel was soft the homefries were good but they were a little bit big but they were delicious If you are in Wayland with friends, family, or alone and your tummy is calling for food go to Mel's Cafe read more

Mel's Menu it's huge allot to choose from wow! for breakfast and lunch. The food is so good! portion are large size all the wait staff is so nice :) they differently care about their customers, very clean restaurant too. My favorite place been there 3 x. Check it out you won't be disappointed. read more

This breakfast place is so special and a gem of Wayland! They have everything ranging from breakfast and lunch foods, to amazing coffee, HUGE muffins and other takeout items. Some of my favorites are the takeout english muffin breakfast sandwiches, omelettes and the loaded homefries of course. The staff is so friendly and really make the experience. Stu and PJ are great owners and really try to get to know their customers. There are many regulars that come in which is really nice to see. They are also really accommodating to largers groups and kids as well, plenty of high chairs. Highly recommend if you are in the area! read more

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Mel's is a busy, bustling diner with lots of great menu options. My family has frequented Mel's for many years. Their food is even delicious as takeout to eat at home! Their eggs benedict and bagel sandwiches are to die for. We also love their silver dollar pancakes. read more

2 star restaurant with 4 star pricing. Food is ok, but overpriced for what you get. Kind of a dinner feel, but generally run down.

Returned and got to say the portions improved by a lot. Quality of food was also a lot better this time around, worth a try if you're in the area. read more

Stopped here on our way out from downtown Boston, the service was very welcoming and our server was the sweetest lady. Would definitely recommend stopping here , the food was really good and quick! read more

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Cute, casual restaurant with plenty of seating and a vintage aesthetic. The staff is super friendly and go above and beyond to be helpful. The iconic blueberry pancakes were delightful and huge. We split the three pancakes among four of us and still had to take some home as leftovers! For myself, I ordered the El Diablo Omelette. The omelette itself was large, not to mention it came with bread and a side as well. Personally, I did not find it that spicy, except for the occasional jalapeño. I did enjoy it overall though, and certainly had leftovers. Good prices as well. Great place to bring your family for brunch. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - El Diablo Omelette - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

The omelette was very good today. Will definately have it again the next time I stop in.

This place is consistently great. They have lots of really good comfort foods. We order delivery for work meetings all the time. They are always on time and get our orders right (which doesn't happen often from other places we order from). Some favorites around our work are the salads - the crispy chicken one is crave worthy. read more

There was no wait, and the host sat us and brought coffee right away. And then we waited with no one acknowledging us at all. After about 15 minutes I finally had to ask the host to send our server over. It still took her at least five minutes all She apologized, saying she didn't know this was our table. She was only mildly attentive after that. She also said she would give us the better (more expensive) orange juice on the house for the inconvenience but it was charged on the bill. Atmosphere was cute. Food was ok. Husband did like the pancakes. I did appreciate they had potato pancakes. Also, people had non-service dogs there - with one person holding the dog in her arms standing over the table - and our food. The host told her it was not a service dog but did not ask her to remove him. read more

Average food with sub par service and VERY expensive. I've been there 3 times and 3 strikes and you're out. Never again.

I'm 77 and this is the kind of place I grew up with. Food is well prepared and served by nice people. Menu has a variety and great tasting options. I'm sure to be there again soon. read more

I can't understand how this place has any fewer than 5 stars? Oh, wait. Maybe because it's in snooty Wayland ;) just kidding (sort of). But really, this is the diner of my mid-twenties-hangover dreams. We just found this place a few weeks ago and no exaggeration we've been here 4 times. I've tried something new for breakfast every time and I just gotta say it's all been delicious. Okay, maybe not the out-of-the-box hot chocolate, but I should have known better than to order that in the middle of summer anyway. Not gonna taste good no matter what. Eggs. Check. Pancakes. Check. Omelettes. Check. Home fries...okay, I've had better but they're good. Muffins. TO DIE FOR. Seriously, people. You have to rate this place for what it is. Your local old-school diner with seriously good food and a laid back vibe. No frills, but all that would do is drive up the price and take away from the charm. Don't change a thing! read more

Got one of those pay $10 for $20 worth of food deals so I decided to check this place out. At lunchtime on a Monday it was crowded and somewhat noisy. Starting off the coffee, not so good, was close to room temperature. After informing the waitress she returned with a fresh hot cup. I was going to order a Ruben and asked the waitress if the corned beef was brisket or round ... Her answer was ... We make it here. I ended up ordering the Philly cheesesteak roll up. They didn't drain or blot the grease from the meat so the plate side of the roll up was sitting in grease that I didn't see but felt as I picked the sandwich up . The fries were OK but tasted like made from frozen. The waitress brought water one with no ice the other with very little ice. The good news ... My companion had an omelette with silver dollar pancakes which was pretty good. I'm not a foodie just like good food at reasonable prices. This place was OK but just OK. Don't look for my car in the p raking lot anytime soon. read more

Mel's Commonwealth Cafe - Omlettes are served with home fries and toast. Three silver dollar pancakes may be substituted for home fries and toast. - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Wayland, Massachusetts

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Driving by we spotted Mel's and figured they would have some good coffee to go so we stopped. From what we could see as we waited they offer a really nice breakfast menu for eat in dining and you can get breakfast sandwiches and other bakery items to go. The selection of muffins looked amazing. We went with their new one which had a bunch of flavors and boiled down to caramel on top, walnuts and cranberries inside and an overall apple flavor. It was just okay. Fell apart very easily and I'm not sure the cranberries went well as they gave it a very sour taste. Points for originality though. We wanted a cold brew coffee but they were out of it. We went with a coconut iced coffee. It wasn't that good. If you did a blind taste test I doubt anyone would have guessed coconut. It was nice and creamy but not particularly strong or flavorful. Prices were okay and there was plenty of parking despite the restaurant portion looking very busy. read more