Food was average My New York State was a little tough to choose best kids in gravy were OK. My wife said hers was great service. Our waitress did very well and it was really packed a lot of people in there during breakfast time. A tip make sure you wear a jacket in there. It is really cold inside. I noticed everyone had jackets on. Good place to go and eat and have breakfast. I would go back and maybe try something else. They got a huge menu burgers sandwiches large very large menu. read more

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We stopped in today, Sunday at noon, for the first time and weren't surprised by the wait. The hostess pointed us to a tablet to enter our name for the wait list. I watched my wife enter the number in party (2), her email, cell phone, and afterward we saw a 4 to 14 min wait on the screen. OK, we waited. Several people were called, several came in behind us. After about 10 mins we peered at the tablet to try to see our name. Nothing. We asked the hostess for help and were told to just enter our info. Now it came back with a new 20 min wait. Ugh. We left. Next time we'll be more assertive in asking the hostess for help making sure we're really on the list. read more

I use to like Mel's but today Tuesday February 11, 2025 I ordered a bacon cheese burger with seasoned curly fries, which I always order. Well today my burger and fries were terrible, the burger tasted really bad and I hope I don't get sick , the fries tasted old and dry. I will not be going back to Mel's again read more

Nothing to rave about here, typical cafe menu and quality to match. This Mel's was very accommodating to our large party and our waitress was on top of it! Even with a large group our food came out quick with no errors. If I could give the service a 5/5 I would, but the food was not great. read more

The Original Mels - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

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As always, Mel's had quick friendly service with reasonable prices. The food was all cooked perfectly. My kid said "I never wanna go to Dennys again". 5/5 for food, cost, and ambience read more

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The food and service have gone downhill drastically. The food is flavorless and the staff do the absolute bare minimum, which is take your order like they don't want you there, drop the plates on the table and then disappear. We couldn't even get the ice water we asked for. The decorations are still nice though, just miss when the food was good and the staff was friendly read more

I just want to saythat this restaurant is the best in service, food quality, pricing and consistency. The servers are always attentive and asking if we need anything whether or not it's their table or not.. A+A+A+.. read more

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The food was great but the service was horrible. We ordered the Alaskan cod meal which came with 2 sides for 16.99. We opted in for double fries. Waiter offered curly fries instead of regular fries not telling or informing us it was an up charge. What was not a bill of 20.99 when we paid they said they could "discount" this time and took $1.00 off. Thats not how this customer service should work. Not worried about the price worried about them being Informative. I have gone to mels for years and never had such poor service. I will remember to never go to this location again due to the lack of customer service. read more

this is one of the best Original Mel's location I have ever been to. Cindy our waitress was really nice and attentive. Food came hot and fresh, the portions that they put are worth the price and food had a lot of flavor. I'm a fan of Benedict's and this time I tried something similar but new to me... their Hangover Benedict's with gravy on top and it was delicious. The only downside was the coffee, it was a little bit bitterness but besides that everything was good to me! read more

The Original Mels - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

Disappointed to say the least. Once seated (only me and my 11 year old), it took maybe 15 min before they brought us a kids menu. Then we ordered drinks twice, since they forgot. 20min after that, they brought the drinks. Ordered: child's pancakes, and I ordered a bagel and a side of bacon. 30 min later we got our food. Went to pay, and noticed my bill was almost $40 they charged for an adult breakfast and a jumbo soda.. Again my child ordered from the child's menu. They only took $2 off .. which still is higher than what we're supposed to pay. Annoyed that we were there for over an hour I just paid and left. Unfortunately I will probably never come back. Lack of service and up charging is crazy here. read more

Went to Mel's today, December 17th, for breakfast. I ordered the Country Skillet and when I received it , it was cold. I had the waitress take it back. After she took it back, I looked up and the male cook looked at me and gave me the finger, like he was scratching his chin. That will be that last time I will ever go there. Have never had anything like that before. read more

Cute 50's diner deco with jukeboxes at your table. Music was not just 50s. Service was good. 3/5: Chili Fries - large plate. pretty good 3/5: Onion Rings - not bad. nothing amazing. 3/5: Mozzarella Sticks - good. 2/5: Grilled Cheese Sandwich - just okay 2/5: Chili Dog - the hot dog was split open and it still wasn't big enough for the bread. The ratios on this are totally off. More like a chili sandwich. Soooo, the food is "middle of the road". Not great. Not horrible. It's a large menu, so you can probably find something to eat. I would recommend this place for snacking or dessert with friends. read more

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My friend and I visited for breakfast because it's one of the few places open for outdoor dining, at 8am in the morning. Also, my waitress was really nice! The reason why their review is so low is due to cleanliness. I understand that we're sitting outside, so there will be issues of bugs, flies, etc. However, this place really needs to step it up. I sat down and my table / opposite chair had spilled soda on it, attracting bugs. I had to move tables twice because the first had a bunch of flies on it (3-8 flies) and the second table had stuff on the chairs. I know there will always be flies and bugs when you're eating outside, but cleaning up dried soda and such will help a lot! After moving we had a much smaller fly issue, there was one who visited us here and there but not the initial swarm when we first sat down. read more

The Original Mels - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

great service hostess Maria sat us quickly and accommodated our party. We got the food quickly although our waitress was somewhat rude.

3 stars because our waitress was rude. The food was excellent! Great job to the chefs. But as for our waitress I was stunned, she came by and asked what we wanted to drink, mind you I have never been here before so I said we are still looking and smiled and she said "uhhh ok" looking confused and then walked away. We sat there for 15 minutes she was walking past our table multiple times and intentionally skipping us. I'm usually pretty generous with tips but due to her customer service I only gave her $5 I will definitely not be back! read more

The Original Mels - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

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I downloaded yelp just to give a review for the waitress working here named Roberta, all she did was make my day today. I came in with a group of friends and her amazing mood and beautiful attitude made my day way better. She was very interactive and very considerate and worked very well. The food was also Amazing! read more

I have not been feeling very well and could not decide what to get for dinner. After checking several restaurants, I decided on Mel's. The open faced turkey sandwich sounded good. Let me tell you, it was OUTSTANDING! The gravy was seasoned very well and the portion was just right. It includes, mashed potatoes, dressing, and turkey smothered in gravy over a piece of thick crust bread. You also get a serving of cranberry sauce and vegetables for under $20. This hit the spot. Tasted home made. I will definitely get this again. read more

Average experience. Breakfast food is good, country fried steak, steak & eggs, blueberry pancakes etc... Ambiance has a 50's diner theme. Friendly service! read more

Went to mels 4/25/25. got seated quickly! Took a bit for our food to come but we had a nice server. Ordered bacon&cheddar melburger without tomato lettuce and thousand island and it was so good! I could taste the bacon which had a good flavor. Fries were good and salted and they had pibb so bonus points. Nice music and wasnt that crowded. read more

Mel's is a hometown staple with a blast from The past but modern and current day vibes. The staff are wonderful and the food is delicious. It's no Denny's and definitely superior to IHOP. Try it out, there's something for everyone. read more

I really hate to give this restaurant a bad review. I've had some of the best sandwiches and meals there. The last few times my meal has been awful. A few weeks ago the patty melt was so bad that I ended up throwing away the half I brought home. The meat was just a packed, flavorless, juiceless mound of ground beef. Today I had an omelette. The hash browns were cold. The avocado on top had black streaks thru each slice so I pushed them off. My server was excellent and attentive. The person who took my payment at the counter was rude. That's it. I'm leaving this review and hoping they get back to the excellent food that they had in the past. read more

The best Mel's I've ever been to! Great service, quality food, and wonderful team. Management is exceptional.

Once you come into this place, you feel like you're walking into a '50s time zone. The place is decorated with several frames of black and white pictures of 50s cars, well-known 50's and 60's celebrities, a jukebox once you enter and their booth has a miniature jukebox where you can play old songs. This place reminds me of the Back to the Future scene. Even the chairs have that feeling of the 50s. This place is a nice diner that serves BF the whole day and also sandwiches. We ordered the California Omelet with their Mels potatoes. This menu is so good and feels like it's homemade. The mixture of bacon, sliced tomatoes, and cheese on the omelet is perfect. The potatoes are also well made and delicious. We also had their roasted turkey sandwich. The turkey meat is not dry and was roasted perfectly. The gravy was not salty and just right to complement the turkey. They have a lot of choices if you want to have a nice breakfast meal. The ambiance in this place will make you feel the 50s and 60s retro If you want to enjoy a nice meal and at the same time feel like you're on another time, try this place and you'll enjoy it read more

The Original Mels - California Omelette - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

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Like the food when they get it right. Always spend at least $50-70 here. Tonight they got several things wrong. I asked for buffalo sauce on my blue cheese burger and none. Asked for ranch which I paid .79 cents for and none. I called and this girl said "hold on let me pass the phone." Picked up the phone minutes later and said "can you call back and speak to the manager tomorrow?" Like what kind of business can't handle a small issue like this during business hours? Craving NOT satisfied and I'm really disappointed with customer service. Oh and fries barely were seasoned with salt. Online it says seasoned. When my husband picked up the order which was to be curb side (we put the car make and model), he said there is no curb side area outside and he barely was able to get the attention of the employees to pick up our order. Not sure if we will order again unless we dine in because we have 3 kids and can't be paying good money to have our order incorrect. Disappointed to say the least! read more

My Daughter took to this Mel's in Vacaville for breakfast this morning, and when she went to pay for our food, she presented her military ID and they only discounted her breakfast, not mine as well. That is the first time in all the years her husband has been serving that this has ever happened. The food was great and the service was great so we tipped 20% regardless. Cheap ownership rules. Consider the freedom you enjoy and the small compensation our troops get to protect that for you Does the $1.88 you saved put you out in front of that. Un-American, All American Restaurant. We will go to Black Bear or Dennys next time! read more

Was super great the food and service and about the only people in town open on the 4th of July read more

The Original Mels - Chorizo and egg skillet.. - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

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Service was very good. Food was great, always is. Restaurant clean, restrooms clean what more do you need?

Restaurant was about 25% full. We were seated right away only to wait 20 minutes with literally no service. Nothing. Walked out. Very disappointing. read more

Atmosphere: Each Original Mel's Diner is slightly different. There are over 15 in the California-Nevada area. I've driven by a few, and each one has a different personality. The one in Vacaville is located in a stand-alone building. While the exterior is a simple building, the inside is filled head to toe with all sorts of old diner memorabilia, license plates, and old school trinkets. From the outside, you might just expect to be a "regular restaurant," but once you walk in, you know it's a diner. It's one of the coolest California diners I've been to. Food: The Original Mel's Diner menu has everything you want in a diner. You can see the entire menu here. There are plenty of breakfast and lunch options. They do have a few salad options as well and even a "crispy chicken salad." It says online they are only offering a limited menu, but when I ordered, it appeared like they had plenty of options. I decided to order the Corned Beef Hash & Eggs. It came with a lot, including Biscuit & Country Gravy, Scrambled, Mels Potatoes. You had plenty to chose from, including choice of bread, eggs, and type of potatoes. It also came with fresh fruit, and I was pleasantly surprised with how fresh the fruit was. The food was delicious! The meal was also huge. I was shocked that a to-go order meal would be that big, so it was a nice surprise. Service: The hostess and waitress at the Original Mel's Diner were friendly. I got a text when my food was ready, and everything was perfect. I couldn't have asked for a better experience. Cost: For my meal, it was $17, but the food portion and quality were well worth the price. Overall Thoughts/Would I Come Back? I enjoyed Original Mel's Diner a lot, and I thought it was one of the best diners I've been to so far in California. I would definitely go back. read more

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Food was good and the service was nice. Definitely coming back when I'm in the area. I got the two plus two & my bf got the other plates. read more

The Original Mels - Two plus two (French toast, scramble eggs with bacon) - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

Tiara T was great best service I've received at this Mel's! She was attentive and very polite

Always enjoy Mel's! It's a comfortable environment for all. Kids love it. There is so much on the walls to look at, the music is upbeat and fun, and there is something for everyone to eat! Always get good service too! read more

Two issues. Making people use Yelp waitlist instead of giving personal service like they used to is a poor experience, especially for those who do not want to give their cell #. Second, we were sat before 3 other tables, all of them got service from the server before us. Very disappointing. Waited 20+ minutes for the server. read more

Super slow! We waited forever for our food. We got here at the same time as another 4 some and they got their food and we waited for more than 20 minutes after they were done! Don't come here! read more

Service was excellent. We got in late and thankfully they were open. I had a BLT which was very good. The bread was not over toasted and therefore did not destroy the roof of my mouth. My husband's pancakes were delicious as was his strawberry shake. read more

The Original Mels - Special order pancakes with chocolate chips, blue berries, Bananas, and strawberries - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

Today at breakfast I was seated next to some very Rude people with a dog. They said it was a service dog but no vest. Kept sitting in walkway Caitlyn our server ask them to keep dog under table. They started saying they could let their dog sits where it wants. They got up and left. I'm glad they did. It was busy today. I have always had good service in the morning, that's when I come Thank You read more

Great place love the atmosphere and the food was great the decor makes you feel in the era of the diner it was great read more

The Original Mels - Me and hubby enjoying breakfast at original Mel's - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

We decided to go get breakfast this am and decided to go to Mel's. It was not busy at all only 3 tables, got there and waitress told us to sit anywhere. So we did and she never came by, I was curious of what's going on after 20 mins, nothing. She didn't even come and give us menu or anything. I said let's go, we walked out and we saw her at the front wiping the table. We walked out and she even said goodbye. Never ever going here again, bad service and the floors all sticky. read more

Today my wife and I went to Mel's for breakfast. It was all good until the lady brought me my food and gave me toast that was sickening, it looked like someone was eating it and then dragged on the floor. The lady said this is how it came out of the toaster, I told her that this toast should have not been brought out. read more

The Original Mels - Diners Near Me - Vacaville, California

I decided to eat at Mel's while waiting on my car oil change in Vacaville. We got seats immediately considering the holiday season rush and raining to boot. There were a total of 3 different reps assisting in seating, taking drink order and our food order. The seating person was very helpful in seating us soon as we walked in., the drink person was very helpful in finding herbal non caffeine tea for my mom. The waitress who took our meal was pleasant initially. We were served quickly. The only thing for this Mel's she never came back. No one asked if it was ok after serving, no one inquired if we wanted more coffee or tea. I had to ask for my bill from another waitress after sitting at least 20 mins after completing meal and putting my coat on suggesting we need our bill. The guest next to us had a different waitress;meal ordered and their waitress assisted them at least 3 times after ordering and inquiring if they needed anything else, if their meal was ok, refilled their coffee. I assumed this Mel's would be like the Mel's in Berkeley or Pinole which I often patronize. If they are not going to treat everyone the same and give the same service to all customers: I will pass on any future visits to Vacaville Mel's. The safest part is that our waitress was always close to our table and looked our way more than often with many opportunities to change the situation. She never did.. read more