I've tried it twice giving it the benefit of the doubt. The menu is huge so I thought how are they making all this to order? Turns out everything is frozen then cooked, I ordered chicken fried steak and the patty it came with tasted the likes of a salisbury steak from a banquet frozen meal, Gross to say the least! I don't wish the restaurant bad, but I hope they see this and relieve themselves of that way too big of menu and shorten it then use fresh food. Seems way more manageable anyways... read more

I have been several times but only for breakfast. I have had good breakfasts here but nothing to write home about - until now! I tried a breakfast crepe. The sterling signature one that comes with eggs, cheese, chicken, bacon and spinach. The sides are a salad with a delicious light dressing, and the house potatoes. Omg so good. All of it. I cleaned the plate. read more

Sterling Café - Nice to be able to eat inside - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

The service was great and the food was decent. It is nearby and local so I like it for when I am too exhausted in my day to cook but want a decent meal for a good price. read more

Yummy food and excellent service!! The fresh squeezed orange juice is exceptionally delicious.

Wish I had gone to SaladWorks! I ordered the Turkey Melt expecting as pictured with bacon, avacado, tomato, swiss cheese and nice sliced turkey breast on sourdough. The bread wasn't sourdough, the turkey was sliced deli turkey that had been warmed on the griddle and tasted like old oil, same with the bacon (it was crisp as requested). There were two slices of avacado clumped in the middle, tomato was all on one side. The fries were pretty good, they were all clumped together though. It was just awful. I had to try to reassemble the darn thing. The lemonade was good. They charge more if you use a debit card instead of pay in cash. The sandwich was $16.99! I won't be going back. read more

We stopped here for breakfast before we headed to the Pumpkin Patch and we left happy and satisfied. We were quickly seated and although it seemed they only had two staff members, the cook and the lady taking our order they were so quick and attentive. My kids ordered a kids breakfast one child ordered the waffle eggs and sausage and it also came with milk or juice. My other child ordered a Mickey Mouse Shaped pancake and it was huge, he loved it! I ordered a Belgian Waffle and I am glad I did not order additional sides because the portions of everything were plentiful. My kiddos did not finish everything on their plate, because they were so full. We enjoyed our breakfast and time here and will definitely be back when in the area. Perfect place to go if you want a quick breakfast but also the restaurant sit down feel. I love that we were not rushed when we did finish, because we had some time to wait till the pumpkin patch opened. read more

See all

We had a restaurant.com coupon that we needed to redeem so we used it on this place. At first, when we walked in, we weren't too impressed because it was a bit unkempt. Newspapers strewn on the counter and papers stacked up. We were kinda dreading it, because we figured, if they can't take the time to clean up the areas and make the place more attractive. The menu is huge! Our server was very friendly. My husband ordered a Portuguese Pasta which was very spicy. I ordered the cobb salad. The presentation was great and so was the food. After a few bites, my husband commented that he would come back to this place. I agreed. My cobb salad was great. I like cafes that use mixed greens or romaine lettuce for their salads instead of iceberg lettuce. Definitely worth checking out! read more

See all

Came here for lunch/brunch after a great massage at JoJo which is in the same shopping center. Service was fast and friendly and we were seated quickly although there is a lack of medium sized booth seating at this location. Most of the booths are oversize so unless you want a table you might find yourself in a giant booth. One of the coolest things here is you can get pancakes as part of some of the breakfast combos. My wife likes pancakes but not as the main course so it worked out perfectly for her. I had my standard country fried steak and it was fine. Prices are reasonable and the menu had some interesting items. I think I would like to come back and try their specialty fried chicken next trip. Bottom line good spot for some cafe type eating. read more

Sterling Café - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

Terrible service, food over cooked and not what we ordered, had to get up twice for coffee refill, come on people this is breakfast it's not that hard. Way overpriced. Save your money, McDonalds would be better. read more

Great service, quality food, a solid menu, and not a franchise chain. They aim to please.

I have been here 3 times and was somewhat disappointed, the first trip there we had a great server that knew how to treat folks, she was helpful with the menu and our food was prepared quickly and was hot too. The two other times were a week or two later and on consecutive days. I really wanted the Seafood Royal crepes but the cook, said that was impossible because the lobster was still frozen. I settled for the "homemade" corn beef hash with 2 eggs over easy and potatoes too. The hash tasted like not homemade to me. The eggs, and potatoes were well prepared. I asked the server if the Royal Seafood crepes would be available the next day, I really wanted these crepes. She kind of stomped off to ask the cook and came back saying "maybe". I informed her that I would be back the next morning. The next morning I arrived and ordered the Seafood Royal crepes from the same server. She acted like she didn't remember our exchange just 24 hours prior. She informed me that the lobster was frozen and my choice entrée two days in a row was not available. So, I tried the Crab benedict, the benedict was large portion and tasted great. The server with the blonde hair was super nice, the other was not. read more

Sterling Café - Crab Benedict - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

The food was excellent. There were four of us, I had the days special bbq ribs. The robes weee so tender and tasty they fell off the bone. another had a fettuccine Alfredo, another had scampi's, and then seafood platter. All were reported to be simply delicious. The service was outstanding, very pleasant. The ambience was very comfortable. We would highly recommend this restaurant. read more

My parents chose this place for Thanksgiving breakfast with two family friends. They were charged almost $100 for 4 people. First the server was extremely pushy with someone at their table, basically telling him what he was going to order and eat. He did not get what he originally wanted because of her inability to listen. Then came the bill. $89?! For 4 people?? My mom noticed they were charged for every individual item on the plates rather than the breakfast combo meals they ordered. That meant a la carte prices for everything. Fine, they paid, left a cash tip on the table, and agreed to not return. My mom got a notification that her bill total had been updated after an additional tip. She checks and the total was changed to $94!! After they had already left a cash tip and had marked out the tip portion of the receipt. We can get over a $5 tip but we will not get over being stolen from after a poor service. Double check those bills and be ready to advocate for yourself. read more

Okay so I need to update my previous review because obviously in my opinion, all things have been much better at Sterling Cafe. First of all, I am not sure when this sweet and extremely hard working family took over here, however service and food has been stellar for at least two years now. Everything that we have enjoyed, from the breakfast burrito and omelets to Club sandwich and pork chops, has been served hot, fresh and delicious. The weekend mornings can get a bit busy in this cute corner restaurant and still, the pleasant employees and friendly family workers tend to patrons with attentive anticipation of customers needs and display smiles as if they are hosting a happy family get together. It is so nice to be greeted with genuine appreciation and recognition. If you are looking for great food, a large variety of menu choices to satisfy almost everyone, and a friendly environment in a local family run cafe, stop in and give this little place a try. I know that I have been very pleased to be dining here again. read more

My mom and I decided to try this place for dinner tonight first thing we noticed it was a very clean establishment very clean atmosphere they have a very wide selection to choose from they serve lunch and breakfast all day which is very nice in case you don't want to order dinner which is very are waitress was very friendly very great service we decided to try the French dip was very good with French fries it was nice and hot we where very impressed with are dinner I highly recommend this establishment for anybody looking for a new place to eat they have a very wide selection to choose from breakfast and lunch served all day will definitely be coming back here again very soon for more future visit and more delicious foods to come thank you Sterling café you guys are awesome :-) we look forward to our next visit very soon thank you again read more

Sterling Café - French dip well done with au ju and French fries - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

I've only eaten there once, but the food was good. The service was good. Probably going to try it again.

Eggs Benedict was curdled! How could they even serve them & expect ua to eat them! The worst we ever had!

I'm from out of town, came for the weekend. The food arrived earlier than the time that was given! Which was great. The food was delicious, it was so good I forgot to take a picture. The chicken was juicy, pesto was fresh, tomato's were fresh too. Fries well seasoned. I also orders a side of sweet potato fries too. They were a little soggy but nothing the oven or air fryer couldn't take care of. I also ordered the the strawberry, banana with Nutella crepe. Sweet tooth satisfied! I would definitely order it again!! 10/10 must recommend! read more

This restaurant has become our "go to" place for dinner. This family owned restaurant has a friendly and helpful staff. The food is excellent. My personal favorites are the ribeye steak sandwich and the cobb salad. The sandwich is delicious with a hand cut ribeye on a soft french roll. It comes with their crispy, outstanding french fries. This is a consistent winner. The cobb salad with grilled chicken is delicious. The grilled chicken breast is freshly grilled and seasoned perfectly. The homemade blue cheese dressing is wonderful. So, check this place out for any meal and you won't be disappointed. read more

We went in for lunch and will not be back. I ordered a vintage burger and salad. The salad seemed to be a few days old as certain leafs were very wilted and slimy. The onions smelled old and they too were very wilted. The burger was VERY greasy, flavor was ok. Also in our order was a French dip, the meat was super dry making the meat like rubber. The Aju' dip was very bland. Our server was the only one on the floor and it was getting busy, she was SUPER nice and tried her best. Service was good but the food was terrible. read more

Stumbled into this by sheer chance and found something interesting! This review is limited to their Crepe menu. Wow. A creperie in Lincoln. OK, so it's hidden under the auspices of a diner/cafe (which does lots of other things), but there's a respectably long choice of both savory and sweet crepes. So started with a really nice seafood crepe that comes with a small salad and really well-done sauted potatoes. The many other choices looked pretty darn good too so I cn see this happening again. This was polished off with a nutella/banana/strawberry sweet crepe topped with whipped cream and choc drizzle. All very filling and rather good. Really guys - put creperie on the signage. Who would have known! read more

Two words: BROASTER CHICKEN! Also, grat steak sandwich, chicken fried steak & I love the way they prepare the carrots and broccoli. I am not a fan of their salads. Service is always top notch! Ambiance is good, but it's a smaller restaurant. We usually get ours to go! read more

I get the club sandwich and and avocado YUM Nice spot to have lunch when I can get away from the office. Staff is super friendly. read more

My wife and I had been to Sterling Cafe in the past, and the food and service were both good! When we went last time, I presented a coupon that offered a second item for free (up to $7 value). The waitress took the coupon and said that she would apply it to our bill, and she later said that she had done this when she brought the bill. I paid the bill, but later noticed that the price of the second item (Chicken Quesadilla) had not been reduced. This should have showed as $2.99 ($9.99 less $7.00). I did not go back to ask about this, and we won't be going back there for a while. read more

See all

Their fried chicken is so yummy. I've driven by this place 1 million times on my way to go grocery shopping at Raleys and when I did go I was very happy for going. Stop by, it's good stuff read more

This is a place where they have lots of regulars and the staff know you by name. I think its great when elderly people come in and the staff treat ypu like you are family. Love going to this place. They have awesome specials from 7am - 9am that are $7.99. I got the Country Fried Steak and my fiance got the New York Steak. Both were cooked perfect. The Country fried Steak was nice and crispy while the steak was most and tender. One of my favorite breakfast places. read more

Sterling Café - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

Joes special is extremely good. We go there a least once a week. Service is always great no matter the server. We would rate Sterling cafe tops. Very nice and clean. read more

The reviews for this place vary greatly. The food may be okay ( I have only had dessert one time here), but the interior could definitely use a refurbishment. Scuff marks on bland white walls, uneven, ugly flooring, ducts on ceiling and wires on window. Very dark in one section, even at noon and with lighting on. Sadly, the place has no charm, and adds to Lincoln's inferior reputation for not enough cozy, esthetically pleasing restaurants. read more

My Son and his family invited me to Sterling Cafe for my birthday (I suggested the Sterling Cafe cause I had been there before) The food is fantastic and the Bloody Mary's well all I can say you will want more than one,DELICIOUS. Our breakfast and drinks were served in a timely manner and the Waitress was always smiling and made sure we had everything we needed to enjoy our breakfast. read more

I had higher hopes. I went with a friend to catch up and perhaps we just picked the wrong night. It was Karaoke night. Need I say more? But from the applause for the less fine singers, I can only believe they were locals or the patrons applauding were drunk. That in and of itself is forgivable. Just not a great night to try to catch up or have a serious conversation. (Noted to self.) Other areas that fell short were In that both myself and my friend tweaked our orders, one for allergies and the other a specific nutrition plan she was working with. The server was fantastic, helped us with options and read back our order perfectly. Both orders came out wrong. My friend sent hers back, I didn't. But I also didn't eat a portion of my food. So, while its worth a try again, I find my self hard pressed to want to try again. But it seemed very popular with the locals, so maybe I'm just missing something. It wasn't an overall bad experience, or the food terrible. It just didn't impress. read more

Excellent customer service. Very family friendly place to enjoy delicious food! Patty melt and Ribeye steak is incredible. Highly recommend. read more

Service sucks! First the guy that seated us spilled water on our table and did not clean it up. We waited 10 min and no one came to take our order. I looked around and saw the waitress and she looked at me and quickly looked away. I was about to walk out when she finally came up to take our order. There was no smile no greeting just can I take your order. Foods good but I will not come back. read more

This restaurant allowed dine-in meals despite COVID-19. We ordered two dinners and waited for about an hour before we were served our meal. At least 5 customers came in after us but were served before us. We complained to the young male server, who said a couple of times it will be a few more minutes. Apparently, this is a family business. The cook is the owner and he has family members working there. We finally complained a third time and the female waiter (cook's daughter) asked the cook (her father) how much longer. He said 5 minutes. This waitress told us that the male waiter was new and failed to properly turn the order in. The food finally came, but my wife's order was not everything she ordered. The female waitress corrected it with an addition to the order. If this had not been done, we would have paid for an incomplete meal. I complained to the female who apologized by saying the young male waiter was new. I said I understand everyone has to be new sometime, but he needs to seek solutions when someone complains to him. He merely ignored our complaints about many people being served before us. This is not good business and could have perhaps solved the problem if he had spoken to the cook and verified the order, etc. The food was so-so but not worth the one hour wait and poor service. I hope the owner and staff learned from this experience. To my surprise, there was only an apology, but no discount for the inconvenience. I may think long and hard before I go here again. :-) read more

This place always has mixed reviews. But if you read them you will see they are usually related to ridiculous customer expectations or Covid. I've lived here for eight years and have eaten there many times. The food is always tasty and priced well. I love the fact that it isn't a chain restaurant. The owners are friendly and care about what they serve. Can't say that about the chain down the street. read more

Or new favorite breakfast spot! I love getting the eggs Benedict and they have amazing crepe options. The bloody Mary's here are excellent! read more

Sterling Café - Eggs Benedict - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

Loved the delicious food. Had the chicken with fettuccini, but was with three others that also loved their choices. The service was amazing because the place seemed full & there was only one server, but you couldn't tell. read more

Sterling Café - Flowers to you! - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Lincoln, California

An old-fashion cafe with breakfast all day, lunch, and dinner. We had a breakfast burrito and the waffles with eggs, bacon, and crispy hash browns on the side. Service was attentive, quick, and friendly. The outside is conventional shopping-center, but the inside is old-fashion good. read more

Broasted chicken to go is awesome. Haven't eaten in yet but staff is always attentive when we order and pickup.

They have a great breakfast special. I usually have a crepe, omelet, or chicken fried steak. All of them are good. The crepes are my favorite! I like the chicken ones. My mom likes the shrimp one. She also likes the New York steak breakfast. We've been going there for years to catch up and have one on one time. The service is hit or miss. I still gave it five stars instead of four because there's a mature blonde woman there that is out of this world fantastic. My mom and I would go once a month, and she would still remember my order. I have a terrible memory and can't remember names. She is always friendly and attentive. They also have gluten-free english muffins and bread. read more

We've come here off and on for several years now. Cute, clean, and friendly cafe. The service is great here, can't say we've had a negative experience with it, the servers have always been very attentive and courteous. We absolutely LOVE their daily NY steak special, for $9.99, you get a NY steak with your choice of potato or rice along with veggies, bread and soup or salad. We've paid more at steakhouses and received less with mediocre steak. The veggies that accompany the steak are always excellent and so is the baked potato. Haha, I'm critiquing the sides! But, it's really well prepared. We've had hits-steak was prepared, spot on. Misses-steak was over or under cooked. We've also had some of the pasta dishes and sorry to say, it just didn't do it for us. The spaghetti with meatballs, were mediocre, the recommended seafood linguine, much to be desired. The sandwiches are like any other sandwich you get elsewhere. If you are looking for a good steak dinner and you are in Lincoln, I highly recommend Sterling Cafe. For $9.99, it's hard to beat! read more

See all