Great breakfast food, the homemade salsa was delicious! Friendly staff. The omelette was delicious! read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Omelette with toast and potatoes - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

$75 for a less than mediocre breakfast for a family of four and they don't take credit cards...enough said.

I can't stay in Encinitas without having breakfast at The Potato Shack. The corned beef hash is the best I've ever had, their man hole cover size pancakes are awesome (I get mine with chocolate chips), the coffee is good, and the service is always great. Another plus is I've never had an issue finding parking, I've had to pick other places to eat along coast hwy 101 before simply due to not finding any parking, but not here! Always a place to park, always attentive service inside or outside, and awesome food! Hint: no credit cards here, so bring cash to avoid the onsite ATM fee. read more

Looking forward to enjoying a wonderful meal soon this summer. We have been coming here every summer for quite some time and they never disappoint us. I love that they remember us and alway have the best in food, service and ambiance. Thank you for that and we look forward to seeing you soon. How many places can you say are consistent in everything and bringing the quality they are proud of serving? Everything is delicious! Oh! And the potatoes rock! read more

Food is perfect. From their home made salsa to their sausage patties to their epic " manhole pancake"!!! Great service and best breakfast in San Diego by far!!!!!! read more

Potato Shack Cafe - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

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This place is great and I have been coming here for years and have never left a review! My go to is always a cheddar and mushroom omelette with an English muffin, coffee and potatoes. It is my favorite omelette and sets the bar for when I travel. I am always happy to come home and visit the Shack because I like their omelettes best! All of the dishes that I see coming from the kitchen look great and someday I want to try something else! Scott is always very welcoming and makes one feel good about being there and Erica always does a great job of taking care of my order! read more

Nice little breakfast spot! Service was fast and friendly. Food was good. Pancakes huge! Lost 1 star for both servers carrying water glasses to our table grabbing the top of the glass where we would place our mouth after they'd just cleaned off tables and handled money. Yes, I'm a germaphobe but just carry the glass without touching the top! read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Manhole size pancake - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

Local breakfast joint tucked next to Main Street. They have a great outdoor dining area. This is the kind of place where you want to sit, read the paper, and watch Encinitas life go by. I had the grilled cheese and hone cut fries and it was delicious. I was not in the mood for breakfast but the omelette and pancakes look delicious! Cash only! read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Western Omelette - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

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Solid first experience here. Brought the full family and we got an omelette, two types of "manhole pancakes" (their term and very accurate), and eggs and bacon and sausage. Everything was tasty but the hero was the pancakes. The service was solid and the coffee was bottomless and standard cafe fare. The star off is because the syrup on such yummy pancakes should be of higher quality. Doesn't have to be real maple but use something that tastes like it. Overall good experience. Would try the Bennie if I return. read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Two eggs over medium, sausage patty and manhole pancake (plain). - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

I got my own order wrong and thought sausage was missing when my order arrived. When I asked about it he told me sausage isn't included in that order but they could bring me some if I wanted. I declined, if it wasn't a part of the order then that's fine, it was my mistake. Returned to my table... a minute later, in passing without a word spoken he slides me an extra sausage. I hope I tipped well enough XD. Great restaurant, great service, my go to when I'm in the area and it will continue to be read more

Such a great spot for breakfast! No matter what you order, you get a ton of food and it all tastes amazing. We ordered the Manhole pancake, loaded potatoes, side of bacon and chicken fried steak. The manhole pancake and loaded potatoes are always a go-to for us. We're never able to finish the whole pancake, but it's too fun not to get. read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Manhole pancake, loaded potatoes, side of bacon and chicken fried steak - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

Great little cafe. Service and food were quick and fairly priced. Could definitely split something!

Very novel place to visit if you're a breakfast person like myself! I like getting the special A, which is : Top Sirloin Steak, Chicken Breast, Chicken Fried Steak, or Two Pork Chops & Two Eggs Served with a plain manhole cover pancake or Toast & American Fries for $14.95 Then I upgrade the pancake to have chocolate chips, granola or fruit for $1.50 more. Definitely can have some leftovers unless you come hungry! Love the oldies playing and the rich dark wood tables! Right for the main road! Bring a visitor to SD here! read more

I'm giving you these guys high marks just for being open- but, it's been 100 years since I went shopping for a surfboard. What fun! The pre-breakfast discussion has presumed to start. read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Great potatoes! - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

Service was good and location also fine but the food quality left much to be desired unfortunately.

The Potato Shack Cafe is so good I will drive 70 miles for a Man Hole Cover Banana Pancake. #fact On my way down to San Diego early one morning, I was in need of breakfast. I turned to trusty Yelp & stumbled upon The Potato Shack. I love love love hole in the wall places. And that's exactly what you'll find here. This magical little breakfast den is tucked away on a side street in Downtown Encinitas & has everything a breakfast lover could ever want. Inside there are roughly 6 booths and 4 tables. Outside is additional seating. The tables are rustic & the decor reminds me of my grandparent kitchen in the Midwest. My first trip there I tried the Eggs Benedict & my partner in crime had Banana Pancakes. FOLKS--the bananas are cooked IN the pancakes. And...they have peanut butter on the table with the jelly. (Btw-if you don't put peanut butter on your pancakes, I can't mess with you) The following visit, we split a half order of biscuits & gravy (that come with 2 eggs & hash browns), a chocolate chip pancake & a banana pancake. His pancake came with eggs & bacon. I took home 3/4 of my pancake & it was even great the next day! This is hands down my favorite breakfast place. I hate that they're so far from me but I'm counting down the days until my next San Diego trip so I can visit again! read more

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Been coming to for over 17 years and this is my first time here. Nice little quaint place to have breakfast We had omelets and a pancake. Had a nice relaxed time and the waitress is really nice and friendly. Thank You for a delicious start to our day read more

We went to the potato shack for the first time and since we had never eaten there before we asked the waitress for her recommendation. She said the huevos rancheros were one of the most popular things on their menu, so that's what we ordered. We've had huevos rancheros dozens of times from various restaurants and I'm sad to say this was the worst we've ever had. The service was great, the food was delivered quickly, atmosphere was nice, but don't ever order the huevos rancheros. We won't be going back read more

Awesome Food! Pancakes are huge and the staff is great. Highly recommend all the food.

Staff not friendly - make you feel like you are bothering them - food average - ordered eggs Benedict and it was bland - old man is grumpy and short with you - wouldn't come back - too bad - used to come here all the time when our kids were young - not what it used to be read more

First thing I want to mention this place Is NOT HANDICAP FRIENDLY. At one time there was one or possibly 2 Handicap Parking Spaces right at the entrance. Not Any More. You can see where the Signs were Removed. Only one spot and it is in the rear parking lost as far to the left as they could locate it. The Farthest spot in the corner of the lot. Now the food. I have heard how great the food is. Well I ordered Breakfast. Bacon & Eggs with potatoes. I asked if they could mix in some onions & bell pepper as the potatos were on the grill. When served I was shocked, on top of the spuds the uncooked 0nions & peppers piled on top of the potatoes. They did give me a new plain order. Now the Manhole Size Pancake. Yes it's big. BUT this this is the first pancake I had to use a knife to cut it into small pieces. read more

Went on weekday and no issues with crowd. Had the hash and daughter had the man-hole chocolate chip (yuuuge) pancake. Good stuff! *Cash only operation* ATM on premise. read more

Score one for the Yelp app. The original plan was to have breakfast in San Diego, but when I stopped for gas in Encinitas, I started playing with the phone and noticed a boatload of breakfast places. As you might expect, this is the only one named after a carbohydrate. So off I went to the Potato Shack, a friendly little place with tables inside and out, and a menu that has all the basic breakfast items. Except hash browns. The basic side order is fries. Fries?, yep that's what I thought too; so when I ordered my bacon and cheese omelet, I paid a buck more to upgrade to potato patties. When the meal came, I was disappointed in the patties, that is until I took the first bite. To be honest, they looked some pre-formed poured into a mold potato cake that might come from the "chefs" at ConAgra, but this was one of the rare occasions that I was wrong. These things were fresh, homemade and delicious. They tasted like a potato pancake. A well-seasoned one at that. And their were 3 of them. The toast was actually darned good too. They use a thick bakery bread, and offer a basket of condiments on each table. I don't think I ever saw peanut butter on a restaurant table before, but I actually had P B & J instead of regular old toast. I haven't even mentioned the omelet yet. My tastes were simple, well-done bacon and cheddar only, And I got what I asked for. Everything was either fluffy, crispy, or melty in the appropriate places. One last compliment for the rest rooms. The architect designed two single person rest rooms, which is what you would expect for a place this size, and each one has a locking door. Every other place I have ever been to marks one for the guys and one for the ladies. But Potato Shack is onto something here. You are (hopefully) going to lock the door behind you anyway, so both rest rooms are unisex. No one has to wait while the room for the opposite gender sits empty. Pure genius. read more

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I really like this place, but the portions are way too big and it's definitely greasy. I've tried a variety of omelets, waffles, and pancakes; all have been delicious. I really love the salsa.. Of course their potatoes are very good and hence the name. I'd suggest sharing ONE dish for two people here. The only bad thing is every time my boyfriend eats here he gets sick.. but I never have. He refuses to go back so I go with other friends. He has had a bad stomach from there 3/3 times so I can't blame him. Inner decor is really cute with the tree cut style tables. I've never had to wait more than 3 minutes to get somewhere to sit, even on the weekends. Staff is nice and fast with bringing out the food. It's way better than a lot of other breakfast places. read more

(Theme to the B-52's Love Shack Song) If you see a faded sign by the side of the road that says 15 miles to the... POTATO SHACK, potato shack yeah, yeah. I'm headin' down the 405-South highway, look'n ' for the Y-E-L-P getaway Heading for yelping getaway "I order a pancake it's as big as a whale and it's about to set sail! Went to San Diego for the weekend, and had to try this "Legendary" hot spot loved by the locals. The decor is cozy wooden furniture with tree stump tables. There's two dining rooms indoors and outside patio dining as well. The service was great and very fast! I ordered their Patty melt on 2'' thick fresh Rye Toast with melted Swiss and smothered in grilled "GREASY" onions! Instead of french fries with my sandwich I opted for Onion Rings and let me tell you.... I ate all the onion rings before I took a bite of my patty melt. AMAZING!!! Their coated in a thick batter then flashed fried to golden brown perfection. Dunked them in buttermilk ranch and this fellow yelper was a happy camper. When you come to the Potato Shack don't be afraid of large portions, greasy food, or pancakes the size of J-Lo's Booty! This is Heather E. Signing out saying..."Are you gonna eat that?" read more

Best breakfast in SoCal hands down!!!! Must get the American fries mixed with your favorite goodies: American cheese, bell peppers, mushrooms and loads of on the table homemade salsa fresca which surprisingly is a match made in heaven. Meet Scott and pops Jim who are SD natives and will welcome you to their local legend and landmark (not to mention coach the local Torrey Pines football team!) This duo rocks the house, and the breakfast/brunch is out of this world!!!! A must visit for the locals and tourist!!! read more

I've been going here for some years now, usually for breakfast on some weekends. I've had a good experience all the time with an occasional flag down for beverage refill. Otherwise, they're attentive and have great service. I think we probably just chug our drinks in the morning because we're incredibly thirsty. The food is very homely and consistently good. It's nothing fancy but I'm not looking for fancy breakfast. Just good, tasty food, good service, good atmosphere, and clean establishment. The food comes out fast, which is always a plus in my book. Their ingredients seem to be fresh as well. The staff are always friendly and warm, which makes it feel even more welcomed and relaxed. Cash only but the prices are decent and affordable so you shouldn't be spending more than $30 per two people for breakfast, which should be a lot for two. Dogs are permitted at the patio and I see families here all the time. read more

Not impressed. With a name like "Potato" Shack I would have thought the potatoes would have been much better.

This place holds quite a bit of history and is just one of many brunch spots in downtown Encinitas. The saving grace of this place is its biscuits: flaky and soft yet dense (in a good way) and filling. However the gravy it came with was thoroughly lacking in flavor and came out lukewarm and slightly congealed... bleh! The manhole-sized pancake is humongous but what's the point of its size when it tastes dry and lackluster (even syrup and blueberries couldn't save this sad pancake). This place used to be good and I really would love to support it but to be honest there's a plethora of delicious competition just down the street.... read more

Potato Shack Cafe - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

Their man hole pancake was gummy and not much flavor in spite of being filled with blueberries. The French fries were disappointing considering they pride themselves on their potatoes. The service was excellent but sadly the food was not. read more

I started going to the Potato Shack way back when they still had a location in Del Mar... my friends and I would order the manhole sized pancakes and platters of potatoes. This was all when we had metabolisms of wonder... who could eat that many carbs in one setting now? I digress. So after the San Diego Rock n Roll 1/2 marathon, my friend C and I needed a hearty breakfast before we drove back to LA. As C taught me, carbo load into a half marathon, protein load coming out. So, being the day after some serious physical exertion, we needed some protein. Enter the Potato Shack. The good news, when you come here around 8:30 on a Monday morning, no wait! :) We were quickly seated and provided with beverages. We both proceeded to order egg dishes (an omelet for me, some sort of combo for C), both accompanied by the famous potatoes that one would expect from the Potato Shack. Huge platters came out quickly. I finished my omelet, but couldn't finish the potatoes or toast, even though I was still on some monster burn post-half. C, couldn't finish his either. One thing to note (we forgot, but were equipped), cash only here. There is an ATM inside if you need it, but best to hit up your own ATM and avoid fees before you get here. I saw a couple outside sharing one of those giant chocolate chip pancakes when we were leaving... I was a tad envious, but totally stuffed. Until I visit next time... read more

Potato Shack is the go-to place if you're super hungry. They have man hole sized pancakes, omelets the size of your arm and delicious coffee. Do not underestimate the portion size here, everything is extra large. So come hungry! Lots of indoor and outdoor seating, so the wait time for sitting isn't usually very long at all. The only con I can think of is they only take cash but they have an onsite ATM. Usually I get eggs or French toast. Both are delicious, and fill me right up. I personally love their potatoes too, they add a little onion so it makes the perfect combo. I have attempted the pancakes but never the man hole size ones. Those literally hang over the side of the plates!! The regular pancakes are still large and I never finish them. My husband loves the make your own omelets. The make your own omelet has a bunch of options to add to it, pretty much if you can think of what food you want in it, they can add it in for you! read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Two eggs, two sausage patties and potatoes with bell peppers - American Near Me - Encinitas, California

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A good breakfast place that takes CA$H only. The atmosphere is family-rustic with sanded down and lacquered rough-wood tables. The wait staff was quick and efficient. Our order was served promptly and the food was quite good. We did not order a Man-hole cover pancake but saw them on other patrons plates and they are large...roughly 10-12 inches and thick too. We didn't see anyone finish theirs. Spouses order was french toast, eggs, bacon and she quite enjoyed it and ate it all. My order was oatmeal with a bowl of fruit. The fruit bowl was quite large and the fruit was fresh and cut into bite-sized pieces. The oatmeal came with brown sugar and milk. The portion was somewhat small leaving me wanting just a bit more. Over all, we would return here. read more

Lucked out on parking on Friday at 11:15am, right in front, they have a lot next door. Did get the #3 manhole cover plain pancake with eggs and sausage, $9 then the baked potato with the works to go, $8. So much food! Service was good, had a great lady, it does get busy at lunch. Couldn't finish the pancake. Look at the photos and you will see why. Two dining rooms and patio dining out front. Cash only. read more

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Came here for my mom's birthday. Been here before but she hadn't so thought we'd try a local spot. Host taking names for the list quoted a 5-15 minute wait and it looked like it would be about 30 minutes so I was shocked when we got a table in less than 10. Great spot right out front under and umbrella and for 5 people no less! Food was ok. I saw the special note about getting the American potatoes deep fried so I thought I'd give that a go. They were definitely deep fried but they didn't taste fully cooked. The bacon was pretty salty but it was crispy and cooked well! The eggs were over easy and cooked well. The toast is really a highlight! I ordered sourdough and it's like Texas style. Delicious! Huge pancakes but the flavor or cooking of the pancake isn't lost because of its size. Overall, good breakfast, prices very reasonable for the amount of food. read more

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If I lived in Encinitas or the vicinity this would be my GO-TO breakfast spot! Potato Shack Cafe is located in the heart of a beach side community. They have both indoor and outdoor seating. I wish we were able to sit outdoors because the weather in this part of the world is ALWAYS amazing Seating aside, the food was delicious. The coffee hot and fresh. I ordered "brunch." Chicken fried steak with a pancake. Sweet baby Jesus, when they say MANHOLE sized pancakes they weren't kidding. It was large and could easily feed a family of 4. The chicken fried steak was tender, juicy, crispy, and covered in that creamy, peppery country gravy. It did not disappoint. This place only accepts cash, which is a bummer since I never carry any. They have an ATM onsite, but it charges $2 per use and whatever else your financial institution tacks on. What's also sweet about this place is that the it's a 10 minute walk to the beach, which is what I needed after consuming such a "heart healthy" meal. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by, check it out. It was busy when I went on Sunday morning and I am sure this is the norm on the weekends. Maybe next time, I'll order something with potatoes, just for namesake purposes. read more

Potato Shack is one of those places that you just have to take it for what it is. They don't take credit cards, Decor is outdated and at first service was a little slow. But my waiter more than made up for it. He was fast and attentive. My food came out promptly and HOLY COW I was served the biggest pancake I have ever seen. It was bigger than my head and I have an enormous cranium. Just ask my hats. Todd had chicken fried steak which he loved loved loved!!!!! And my dog had a piece of bacon the owner brought out for a treat. All in all expect a wait, good quick food and order the child's size pancakes if you are not a glutton. read more

First of all, potato shack is adorable and that's what drew my boyfriend and I in a week ago. We had actually noticed it from across the street when we were at the Encinitas fish shop for the first time and I said, "that place looks cute lets go there some time." We actually didn't go to Encinitas this time around with the intention of eating here specifically but we drove past it, saw the crowds outside, and decided it was a winner. There's a small parking lot out the back, the rest is street parking. We arrived about 30 minutes before close (2:30pm) and had no trouble getting a good spot but I imagine it can get pretty full earlier in the morning. There's both indoor and outdoor seating, we chose indoor. It's a seat yourself kind of place. It's extremely cluttered. I do love the coziness of the cluttered look but it was a little overwhelming for w first timer. The man that told us to sit anywhere kinda threw me off as he had on jeans and a tshirt and a baseball cap, literally not one thing that even hinted at the fact that he's staff but he seemed to be doing paperwork at the front the whole time so im thinking he's maybe the owner. The menu is precious, I couldn't get enough of the hand drawn art on the front. Huge selection of breakfast and lunch options which was great for me because I'm not much of a breakfast person. They have "manhole" pancakes which are seriously the size of a manhole cover....I held off this time but next time I must try them. I wish they served bloody Mary's or mimosas, but they have no alcohol ::((( our server was eh. And older thin blonde lady that seemed to not have the patience to give us "more time" because her second time coming back around took almost 20 minutes. Long story short, I ordered the club sandwich and my boyfriend ordered the BLTA, he got regular fries and I got the potatoes (which are so so good by the way especially with their salsa). Both of our sandwiches were okay I guess, mine wasn't very fresh. They were both HUGE, we both ended up taking home the 2nd half. W The potatoes were the real winner. I could've eaten a plate of potatoes and probably ended up writing a better review off that. I'm sure we will be back. Seriously I want to try the manhole pancakes so bad and get some more spuds :) the menu was pretty overpriced in my opinion so this couldn't be the "usual" breakfast spot but definitely not a place to forget when in Encinitas. read more

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I haven t been here for awhile. I still haven t found a dish that I don't like here. The staff is friendly and helpful, plus the location gets a good breeze from the ocean. read more

***CASH ONLY*** Had a friend in town visiting and she insisted on going to the Potato Shack. I grew up in Encinitas and everyone always talked about the Shack, but surprisingly I never went. I've never been big on potatoes or on giant plates of food so I always passed. But now was my opportunity to check it out. We came on a Sunday morning around 10:00. Parking is a little bit of a challenge if you aren't willing to walk. There is street parking, but there were no spots available at that time so we parked in the Lumberyard and walked across the street. The Potato Shack has indoor and outdoor seating. We lucked out and didn't have to wait for a table. We had a booth inside and it is a VERY tight squeeze in there; very cozy. In fact, it's a good thing I didn't eat the pancakes or I wouldn't have fit through the dining area to make it to the restroom. The food was good. My boys both got manhole cover size pancakes. The pancakes were thick and literally spilled over the plate. They had to work to cut it up and eat it. Our meal for four people was $50. I didn't realize until we sat down that it is cash only. Luckily I had cash on me or I would have had to use the ATM that's inside the restaurant and I'm sure it would have been an astronomical fee. It's a beachy restaurant with a locals feel. I'm glad I can at least say I ate there. My youngest son did get sick afterwards, but I can't say for certain it was the food since none of the rest of us got sick. It was just ok for me especially for the price and having to pay cash. I probably wouldn't make a special trip here given that I know there is often times a long table wait. Service was great though. read more

Potato Shack Cafe - Manhole cover size chocolate chip pancake - American Near Me - Encinitas, California