Ive come here couple times & remember the burgers were real good. I went back recently & had again a great late night diner experience. Really good breakfast food & pumpkin shake. Loved how even tho they were short staff with 1 worker for the night, the worker Janelyn quickly took our orders & got to it in the kitchen cooking all our orders and all still very delicious despite shebwas working alone. Kudos to her that night bc I saw a frustrated rude customer yell at her but she kept her composure & held the fort down till another coworker was able to come in & help. So not only great food, but great customer service for the gal who did her best working solo at the register and kitchen!! Would definitely come again when in the area. read more

It's our Berkeley concert stop, the burgers are always good. Decent size parking lot, easy, friendly ordering, ample seating. A cheeseburger will run you $6.35 and is a good filling portion. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Staff were ok, not the friendliest, but then I see why...when a crackhead patron was kicking a water bottle around the dining room and screaming at the staff that they'd forgotten their cracked out order. The kind of behavior where anywhere else they'd call the police, but here the assailant is painted as the victim. I requested my food to go and I left. The bathroom was littered and the walls had graffiti. The whole place was reminiscent of Biff's alternate 1985. Yet, my burger and fries were really good and the pies looked great! read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Bacon Cheeseburger - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Paid $16 for breakfast and they forgot 4 slices of bacon... pretty ridiculous to forget a key part of the order. Too busy taking delivery orders ahead of me that came late read more

This review is mainly for Christine, the food was what I expected which was great, however, her customer service was amazing. She greeted us as soon as we walked through the door, she was patient, (since I have a two year old) and she offered me items before I even requested it which was an extra plate and utensils. A little kindness goes along way, and she is very much appreciated for it, she made us feel welcomed. Thank you, Christine. read more

Got breakfast here. It was a lot of food, but low to average quality and overpriced. The eggs and toast were fine, but the bacon was very greasy and the hash browns were just frozen ones heated up. The coffee tasted like Walmart coffee. The meal left me feeling ill the rest of the day. read more

I've passed by this place too many times to count and each time I said I was going to try a pie. Last week, I finally drove into the parking lot (which is amazing because there are rarely lots on University Ave) and walked inside to try a slice of pie. The venue itself is filled with a lot of booth seating. You an order at the counter and then take the pie to whatever place you'd like to sit. There were a few people still seated at around 9pm at night. The cleanliness of this place definitely needs some work. In addition, to use the bathroom you need to get a token, but somehow the bathroom is completely gross with paper towels and toilet paper everywhere. I ordered a regular slice (1/4 pie) of the chocolate creme pie. They had a lot of different options, but as I'm not a huge fan of fruit flavored pies, I chose chocolate. They also had custard pies and cheesecake, which both looked inviting as well. The chocolate creme pie had the crust, chocolate cream filling, and a huge layer of whipped cream on top. I am glad I shared the slice with my boyfriend because it definitely got a bit overwhelming after a few bites. Although the pie was pretty good, I don't really have much to compare it to. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - 4.20.17 Chocolate Creme Pie regular slice - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Food is straight up fire! I usually get the Two Egger with hash browns. It never disappoints, just excellent shit man. I appreciate all the staff that work so hard to make excellent foods, keep the place clean. Cooking all day and dealing with customers is not easy work... all these people are under appreciated. Thanks Nations Staff for being awesome! If I win the lotto I'll drop off a bag so we can retire! lol read more

The pies and cheesecakes here are to die for!! Though a restaurant that mostly focuses on its diner foods - milkshakes, hamburgers, and breakfast/brunch plates, Nation's cheesecakes are what I visit for. Rich, creamy, and so so good, just a small slice is enough to partake in for one sitting - though I usually like to buy an entire cheesecake for about $10 to share among friends or take home to eat over a day or two. I definitely can't say as much for the actual food here at Nation's, though I do know that it can tend to get mixed reviews. In any case, if you're in the area and are looking for some super fulfilling, sweet, dairy goodness, Nation's cheesecakes (raspberry and blueberry) are my absolute favorite items on the menu. They also have a bunch of other types of pies (pecan, lemon meringue, etc) that are also worth trying! The diner is large and spacious and reminds me of a homier Johnny Rockets. Booths are comfortable to sit in, and the staff is always friendly. read more

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Great service. Food was amazing, can tell it was made with love. Happy happy customer read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

I first learned more about Nations by meeting the CEO at their headquarters in El Cerrito. He told me their story: their father was the janitor at the first location. He worked his way up and became a partner and bought out the founder. It's a family business and they make all the food when ordered, the pies are made fresh and they source meat locally. I went to the Berkeley location to see if the hype was real and I do have to say it is. The place is so much more than fast food. It has omelettes, a ton of pies, burgers, chicken sandwiches and even some salmon! I opted for the cheeseburger with the works, and although it could have done without the mayo, it was a good burger! 2 big slices of cheese, fresh lettuce, tomatoes and onion with a big roll and a nice juicy patty for $8.25. The fries were solid, but portion is more for one than to split. Their pies are solid, although I would have much preferred to take my slice of French apple home to heat it up vs on site. I'd stick to their variety of cream pies or cheesecake if you do decide to eat it on site. Service was solid, although I do admit I wanted to buy some pie to take home but the line was long and only one person at the register, so I passed. The place could use a facelift, but it's kind of got that kitschy, non-descript old school diner look. And... it's open late! Overall, I'm glad I tried Nation's. I'd 100% return for a burger and fries when jonesing for some fast casual eats and in the 'hood. read more

There are a lot of great food options in Berkeley but sometimes you just want something familiar. Burgers, pies... you know the spiel. Very good quality and reasonable prices makes an outstanding value. Chicken burgers with grilled onions and no mayo are a more healthy option. They come with a wheat bun and great if your concerned about what the scale says in the morning. The pies really are good - they tend to be fresh, I think because of high turnover... or maybe because of the nearby police station the officers keep them flying off the shelf? Or are cops more into donuts? If your driving yourself and need a parking spot they've got a big lot that always has a spot open. Bathrooms are clean and you can get a token from the cashier. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - cherry cheesecake - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Easily the worst location i have ever been to. I had to wait 30 fucken minutes for a simple order of burger fries and chilly. Nobody was in line in front of me or behind. My food came out cold. How the fuck you make fast food slow and come out cold? Management needs to retrain the idiots who cook the food here. I cant imagine how long the wait would be during a lunch or dinner rush. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - This is the dumb cashier who toom 30 mins to cook my food - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Traditional American fare presented in a diner-like fashion located at the edge of downtown Berkeley. This definitely feels more like a joint I'd find in the South (eg. Waffle House), and almost feels a bit out of place in Berkeley, but I'm glad it's there. Decent food, diner ambiance, and okay service. Food-wise, I find it a 4/5. Burgers were the archetype of a classical American burger. Fries were average. Pies, however, were delicious. Service-wise, probably a 3/5. Servers were straightforward and generally okay. Ambiance-wise, probably a 3/5. Plenty of seating and parking, but could be a little cleaner. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Hamburger - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

If you only could pick only one thing to get here, get the banana creme pie. It's one of the most raved items among UC Berkeley students! It will definitely lift your mood. I like the menu because it has hamburgers and breakfast and pie; it's such a great combination! The other flavors of pie here are generally decent. The blueberry cheesecake and lemon merengue are both satisfactory choices. Nice atmosphere to get together with friends! Sometimes service sucks, and they take a long time, but some days they're pretty efficient and not bad. You also need a coin to get into the restroom, so you gotta ask for that at the register. read more

4.05 for a soda that cost you maybe 75 cent to make i wont be eating there ever agian .

Food was good, service was great, atmosphere seems a little dated but overall there was plenty of seating and seemed pretty clean!

Nasty nasty nasty ordered through Uber ears so waited 1 hour and a half for a burger that tasted like soap and meat was disgusting and dry . mad and disappointed read more

I have a soft spot for plain old diner type joints that can satisfy my craving for simple breakfast food and Nation's fits the bill perfectly. There is a parking lot outside that doesn't ever seem to be full. They are also open until 12:30. Breakfast all day because sometimes you want breakfast food at midnight. I have always gotten the two egger and it is indeed giant. Nothing is wrong with any element of the meal. Eggs cooked properly? Check. Toast with toast-y accoutrements? Check. Potatoes crisp and plentiful? Check. All this for less than $10? Check. I haven't tried their pie yet but they certainly look tempting. Nation's doesn't pretend to be something it's not and I think it's perfect the way it is. read more

This place has it going on. When you need a burger to fox the itch. Get a burger from here. Ask for the fries well done and upgrade to miracle whip for a tangy bite. read more

The food tastes great. Just like any fast food joint, you need to listen to hear your meal is ready. Nation's produces my second favorite burgers. Their shakes are my favorite. The only downside is the expense. For a full meal with shake, it costs close to 20. The expense is why I give them a 4 out of 5 stars. read more

My family raves about this place but I think it's not the best pie out there. We always get the banana cream pie and the strawberry cheesecake. I have not tried any of the other foods, so this review is just for the pies I've tried! The banana cream pie is half whipped cream, half banana. I usually have to scrape off most of the whipping on top. Other than that, the amount of sweetness is just right for this pie. The strawberry cheesecake has way too much syrup on top of the strawberries. I have to scrape off all the syrup because it makes the pie WAYYYYY too sweet. The fresh strawberries give the cheesecake a tangy twist from the overwhelming sweetness. Overall, it's good to eat once in awhile, but I don't recommend eating too much of either of these pies for the calories and the sugar intake. read more

I have much better luck at this location than with the one in El Cerrito. They always get my order right, even when I ask for well done fries or other specific requests. And somehow they make a simple grilled cheese sandwich on sourdough extra tasty. The staff here just seems more focused and efficient than other locations. The cheeseburger and fries we got yesterday were perfect. read more

The pancake is disgusting. The iced tea is also depressing. I'll try the hamburger next time. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Finally, after four months of figuring out how to be a "Californian," I wind up at Nation's. I've just seen the big ole sign everywhere and I'm pretty sure it's not in the Midwest... crossed my fingers and dived in to order. Probably the biggest cheeseburger I've ever seen or attempted to eat. Piled with all the toppings save for pickles. Crunchy lettuce, juicy tomatoes, the best cheese and patty... kind of like how I imagine Krabby Patties would taste. Fries were perfect and I made sure to test them out in every sauce. Been a while since I've fallen for a fast food joint. This is it, so good and so bad for you. Go. read more

This is one of the few locations I felt personally attacked by the employees here. We ordered some food for dine in and asked for some ketchup packets. The employee who helped us said they only had the ketchup dispenser. We decided to pass on it since it's still Covid. That's fine - no worries. However, 2 minutes later, another customer picked up their food at the counter and he asked for ketchup packets. The same employee's response was, "it's already in there". My boyfriend and I sat there in shock and felt attacked because they refused to give us ketchup a few mins prior. Would definitely not come to support this racist establishment again. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Found a plastic component in my cheesecake this was used for a kids birthday luckily none of the kids encountered this . PLEASE our children eat these items !! I could have had a child choke on this !!! read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Plastic component baked into cake - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Nations's Giant Hamburgers can often be overlooked when it comes to affordable prices, hefty portions, and a burger that stacks up solid. In all my visits to Nation's whether it be this location or another, one thing always proves right, they are consistently good. Whether you fancy pie, milkshakes, burgers, fries, or breakfast food, Nation's serves up some great food. Want to be the big hit at a get together, holiday party, or maybe even a Superbowl party? Then do what I do, and pick up a pie at Nation's. People will not fault you if you show up with a Nation's pie instead of the customary 12 pack of Heine. Some of my favorite pies to try include coconut, banana cream, or a French apple pie. Whatever you try, it's hard to go wrong. The Nation's at University Ave. has good service, and even during busy times, they are quick to feed you. My little son and I enjoy having lunch here and it is completely family friendly. Like any Nation's Restaurant, you order at the counter, pay, and they give you a receipt with a number on it to get your food when they call you. At this location, the wait is not too long for food. The restaurant is clean here, and so are the restrooms. I also prefer this location since it is conveniently located on University Ave and has a parking lot. (+) open late (+) prices that won't break the wallet (+) parking lot available (+++) large food portions. Good prices. (++) must try: cheeseburger and/or pie read more

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When you order the breakfast, it says protein of your choice and when you choose the "harvester", their Vegi-burger, there is a surcharge of 1.65! Despite the fact that the Vegi burger and the hamburger are the same price in the menu read more

Ok, so I was skeptical when my boyfriend wanted me to try these burgers. I come from Southern California, you know, In N' Out central. My vote? Nations beats In N' Out... as long as it's a day with not too much mayo or "dressing" as they put it. The fries aren't good so I never order them. The pies? Eh, I feel like I've had better. Though, during the spring time they have a very tall strawberry tart that's pretty good mainly because it reminds me of my favorite pie as a kid. My boyfriend wants everyone to know that "his" burger is the way to go. He gets a double cheeseburger with pickles and no mayo. Upon receiving the burger he opens it up, puts in some honey mustard sauce, closes it up and eats it. He wants you to try it. He says "you won't be disappointed!" read more

This review is only for the pies since that is all I've ever tried at Nations. Every time I drive my sister back to Berkeley, I pass by this place and make a mental note to stop by to try their pies that I've heard so much about. I finally came here for the first time a couple weeks ago. There was a good selection of pies available but we decided to go with a slice of lemon meringue and banana cream pie. For about $3, you can get a pretty generous slice of pie. Would definitely come back again the next time I'm craving pie. The place looks a bit run down so I'll probably take it to go instead. On the plus side, they have their own parking lot so you don't have to search for street parking. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Lemon merengue pie - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

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Homeless outside and in begging for money. I always go to El Cerrito's Nation and here. University's Nations food preparation is different lately. Different cooks and lack of organization. I asked scrambled eggs with cheese and I received a fried egg with a piece of cheese folded In it. Thats not scrambled it's a want to be omelette but forgot it was to be scrambled.This is what happened when I ordered online for a pickup. They have a line for pickup, online or delivery. So, I go into pickup my order and I stood for 15 minutes. No one asked anything. I'm the only one in line. No one asked if I was picking up an order or what. While, I'm standing I observed a homeless man walk in and go to the condiments table for the customers. He turned up the bottle and drank from it. Walk back to trashed and went to sit but left. Now, my food has been sitting at pickup area. No one asked or called my name or number. I watched while two workers cut a cheesecake. After that one who says is the one in charge mess up cutting the two pies. Then they stood to the side pasting, and covering up the messy cuts with strawberries. My food was right in front of me but not given to me. So I said excuse me , is my order ready? I Now, I'm mad cause it has already been sitting for 5 minutes. Nevertheless, I conveyed to her that a homeless person was using the condiments on the counter and had poured a bottle upside down in his mouth. She asked me what is condiments? Now you're a cook also found out she was the one in charge. I had to explain to her the definition. So she said,I put your jelly in the bag. I'd explained to her that I not asking for condiments but someone walked in and tampered with the condiments that customers uses. She continued to ask me if I needed the salt/Ketchup. I said no, you do not understand what I'm saying. My concern is that you need to take all the liquid condiments off the table so no customers might take ill. I asked her who is in charge? she said, she was. So, again I asked who's in charged? if a customer witnessed a unsanitized issue in your dinner and you're in charged, what would you do? the store is not busy so why would you not take the condiments off the table for sanitation reasons .Replace with brand new bottles? This is the same Nations before covid that I mailed my customer comments into their headquarters. Concern about the dirty vents in their dining area. When it opened up, I looked up and they're still filthy. This one has poor management. Im done with ordering here. read more

Not open at 10:30pm on a Thursday. Update your Yelp and Google hours. Made a trip out to you for nothing.

I'm from San Pablo and Nation's chain restaurants started there. I grew up in the Tara Hills area and worked at that one what seems like a half a dozen times. My go to is the one egger with the bacon crispy. Last time I went there I bought a sweet potato pie and a coffee. You literally do feel like you're paying rent-it was ten bucks! It lacks "Berkeley charm" there was a street person that sat at my table before. I'll still go there mainly because I tend to be early for things. There was no public restrooms in the one I worked at in Tara Hills, San Pablo and there's no restrooms in this one either. read more

Worst worst worst service I ever had ordering hot. dog. The bun is burned even the sausage is burned. When I talk with the server. She said what I want. OMG, what the f....? What I.want? They burned all my hotdog and why say nothing? Oh, maybe it's nations burgers service policy. I will never visit nations burger ever read more

I found a finger nail in my fries. I know it's not mine because my nails aren't broken. Put off from getting food here ever again. read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - The gross finger nail that was in my fries - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Love this place!! Respectful employees. Clean restaurant. Fast service. And... ambience... it's on University Avenue what more could you want?! Highly recommend!!! read more

Nation's Giant Hamburgers - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Berkeley, California

Nation's been one of my go-to spot for years! It's Bay Area. I stumbled into here at 1:30 am and was glad they're open late! I had the munchies!!! Bacon cheeseburger with grilled onions and I tried the Oreo shake best Oreo Shake!!! I was tempted to also grab a slice of pie but I stopped myself. Can't wait to be back! read more

- Are you looking for pie? - Do you want a slice of pie? Maybe a whole pie? - Do you want multiple slices of pie with different fillings? - Do you want cheap good ol' American food? - Hungry for breakfast? - Burgers perhaps? If you fancy any of the above then Nation's is the place to go. Not gonna lie, their pie is good. Sometimes you just want a grilled cheese or grilled ham and cheese, this is the place to get it. Simple casual diner type of place. Spacious and easy to seat groups. Food is made quick, no frills. Come here for a pie craving, if you want some breakfast, or if you're desperate for some late night food. read more

NATION'S IS ON THE DECLINE: I have been going to Nation's since forever and am sad to see how the quality has gone way, way down and the prices way, way up. The three-egger breakfast was more than $13 and had the quality of food that you would get in a school cafeteria or on an economy flight on a cheap airline. The hash browns were of the low-quality frozen variety. The warm toast was greasy with butter. The jellies were of the lowest quality and packed in little plastic containers. Even the utensils are the cheapest quality I have encountered. For two people, with taxes, the price for this cheap breakfast was nearly $30, which is just unimaginable, considering what was received. For the price one would spend at Nations, one could have a delicious breakfast at a quality restaurant with well prepared food and a professional staff, somewhere like "Lama Beans" on Gilman. read more