We were in Buffalo, NY and were looking for a diner for a quick bite to eat before getting on the road back to the Hudson Valley. We stopped in here based on the first couple of reviews we read. We should have read further. When we walked in, we were told there was a half hour wait for a booth or counter seat. We asked why the four counter seats on the left side were empty and were told the patrons for those seats are waiting in their cars (why are they in their cars and not in the seats?) We waited outside for a half hour and got a call to come in for our table. It took us all of one minute to get in and the waitress we encountered first said that she called my wife's phone and received no answer. When my wife said that she just spoke to someone, the story changed and we were told she called two people at once and the other couple were standing by the register. The waitress said it would be another ten minutes if we wanted to wait at the counter so we waited another ten minutes. Strike One against this place. My wife asked for iced tea with Splenda, but was told all they had was sugar and a pink saccharine substitute (what eating establishment has only sugar and pink sweeteners; EVERY other place I have ever been to has at least yellow or blue, if not both). My wife then asked for iced coffee. She was told there was only enough for a small glass and my wife said that was okay. Less than five minutes later, the waitress came back and said that the coffee was given to someone else. No apology, just an explanation: 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday'. Strike Two. We put in our order (scrambled eggs and turkey sausage with a bagel; Greek Omelette with French toast) We were then seated at a booth and waited more than 45 minutes before our food arrived. My scrambled eggs were loose, the turkey sausage was overdone and tasted 'off' and the home-fries were greasy. My wife's 'Greek' omelet (which didn't really look like it) was over cooked and dry with a miserly amount of feta cheese sprinkled on top. The 'French' toast looked more like French bread cut into slices, browned on both ends, sprinkled with powdered sugar with a scoop of butter on one slice and a scoop of something unknown on the other (margarine? sour cream?) Neither slice was cooked in the middle and it tasted like underdone toast. When my wife complained to our server, she said 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday'. She offered to redo my wife's order, but I said we don't have another 45 minutes to wait. Her response was 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday' and again said all she could do was remake my wife's order. Strike Three and we are out. As we were leaving, my wife asked the waitress we encountered upon entry how hard is it to make iced coffee? Ice and coffee. The waitress said we were very rude. No, the service at Lake Effect Diner was rude. The attitude of the staff was rude. The food was rude. And it was not an inexpensive meal. They keep trumpeting that Guy Fieri stopped in here for 'Diners, Drive-ins and Dives', but I have to agree with another reviewer: they must have hired a chef specifically for Guy's visit and then let him go afterwards. I have every intention of warning off our Buffalo family and friends from this 'diner'.
Noah S.
no Splenda, that ruins coffee or tea and therefore the entire meal for Diabetics looking for sweetener ... the pink packets are bitter tasting
Virginia Z.
Went there for breakfast food came out cold . They took it back came out cold again . This was my first time here ,then they remade it . Was like warm . Not a great start for a first visit .
Danielle Dyer
Great food and generous portions! My husband and mom loved their fish fries. I had the meatloaf bomber. My chocolate peanut butter milkshake was very yummy! My mom also loved her macaroni and cheese. Very nostalgic setting. Amazing waitress! Great time!
Chris Martin
Honestly this place is nothing special ..Omelette was ok. Home fries good. Toast was awful (soggy and thin). Pancakes were delic. My OJ was half frozen but still very good. Overall food was decent…but much better breakfast options and way over priced in comparison..
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Barbara Bahny
Service and food were excellentKid-friendliness: Very kid friendly
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Home Fried Potatoes and Eggs, Sandwiches
Darlene DiMaria
UPDATE- visit on 2/25/24. What has happened to this place? It used to be nice and unique with good food. Today was not a good example. It was not overly busy. We did not even have to wait for a table for four of us. We ordered and got our water and juice right away, but then waited almost 45 minutes for our food. Nothing hard or time-consuming to make either! Just eggs and a BLT with fries! The fries were actually cold, like they were the first thing done, and then had to wait for the bacon?! The waitress, Danielle, was nice and friendly enough. She did bring another order of hot fries. The prices are a bit high, $7 for a glass of juice! I guess that is the cost of fresh squeezed! Eggs benedict was $18! Unfortunately, food was nothing special considering the price and the long wait. Perhaps only one cook today?! No apologies for the wait either. Oh well, another place that is losing its charm here in Buffalo. Probably will not return.Nice variety, very cool atmosphere. Love the floats. Owner is very personable and isn't afraid to take orders and deliver meals. It was nice that he stopped and chatted with us a bit and made sure we enjoyed our lunch to say hi to everyone when he can.
Nicole Turvey
Delicious food as always! The homemade breakfast sausage is a must try! So glad they are open again ☺️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Christopher
I had breakfast this past weekend with my girlfriend. I haven't been a customer for awhile, but would definitely come back again.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Vicki Scheuer
Very nastolgic old fashioned diner, good food and service. 2/11/2024 this place has lost its charm. The service was sad, the food tastasteless, the sausage was under cooked, the pancake was over cooked, the butter gross. The windows need to be resealead I froze my way through a very unsatisfying dining experience. ?
Reasonable prices, great food, and excellent, friendly service. 10/10 recommend. The only downside is they close at 3pm.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Sofia Oliver
Wasn’t a fan of the pancakes at all. Sour with the yogurt and Sprite they add to the batter. Potatoes were great. Would go again, but not order the pancakes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Blizzard Breakfast
Jacob Colbert (Jacob B. Colbert-Manning)
This was one of the best brunches I ever had. The breakfast was healthy a reasonable proportion. The place was packed when I went there the wait was average. It has a vintage 50’s diner design that draws you in. I had a breakfast sandwich, eggs and bacon. They know what they’re doing because the food was fresh didn’t taste aged or like they put too much salt on it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Sandwiches
Richard Payne
The Homers are top
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Adam R.
very quick and polite service, sizeable portions and good quality food. limited seating but that helps give it the old fashioned diner feel. already recommended to others!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Eggs Benedict, Home Fried Potatoes and Eggs
We were in Buffalo, NY and were looking for a diner for a quick bite to eat before getting on the road back to the Hudson Valley. We stopped in here based on the first couple of reviews we read. We should have read further. When we walked in, we were told there was a half hour wait for a booth or counter seat. We asked why the four counter seats on the left side were empty and were told the patrons for those seats are waiting in their cars (why are they in their cars and not in the seats?) We waited outside for a half hour and got a call to come in for our table. It took us all of one minute to get in and the waitress we encountered first said that she called my wife's phone and received no answer. When my wife said that she just spoke to someone, the story changed and we were told she called two people at once and the other couple were standing by the register. The waitress said it would be another ten minutes if we wanted to wait at the counter so we waited another ten minutes. Strike One against this place. My wife asked for iced tea with Splenda, but was told all they had was sugar and a pink saccharine substitute (what eating establishment has only sugar and pink sweeteners; EVERY other place I have ever been to has at least yellow or blue, if not both). My wife then asked for iced coffee. She was told there was only enough for a small glass and my wife said that was okay. Less than five minutes later, the waitress came back and said that the coffee was given to someone else. No apology, just an explanation: 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday'. Strike Two. We put in our order (scrambled eggs and turkey sausage with a bagel; Greek Omelette with French toast) We were then seated at a booth and waited more than 45 minutes before our food arrived. My scrambled eggs were loose, the turkey sausage was overdone and tasted 'off' and the home-fries were greasy. My wife's 'Greek' omelet (which didn't really look like it) was over cooked and dry with a miserly amount of feta cheese sprinkled on top. The 'French' toast looked more like French bread cut into slices, browned on both ends, sprinkled with powdered sugar with a scoop of butter on one slice and a scoop of something unknown on the other (margarine? sour cream?) Neither slice was cooked in the middle and it tasted like underdone toast. When my wife complained to our server, she said 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday'. She offered to redo my wife's order, but I said we don't have another 45 minutes to wait. Her response was 'We are short staffed and it is Sunday' and again said all she could do was remake my wife's order. Strike Three and we are out. As we were leaving, my wife asked the waitress we encountered upon entry how hard is it to make iced coffee? Ice and coffee. The waitress said we were very rude. No, the service at Lake Effect Diner was rude. The attitude of the staff was rude. The food was rude. And it was not an inexpensive meal. They keep trumpeting that Guy Fieri stopped in here for 'Diners, Drive-ins and Dives', but I have to agree with another reviewer: they must have hired a chef specifically for Guy's visit and then let him go afterwards. I have every intention of warning off our Buffalo family and friends from this 'diner'.
no Splenda, that ruins coffee or tea and therefore the entire meal for Diabetics looking for sweetener ... the pink packets are bitter tasting
Went there for breakfast food came out cold . They took it back came out cold again . This was my first time here ,then they remade it . Was like warm . Not a great start for a first visit .
Great food and generous portions! My husband and mom loved their fish fries. I had the meatloaf bomber. My chocolate peanut butter milkshake was very yummy! My mom also loved her macaroni and cheese. Very nostalgic setting. Amazing waitress! Great time!
Honestly this place is nothing special ..Omelette was ok. Home fries good. Toast was awful (soggy and thin). Pancakes were delic. My OJ was half frozen but still very good. Overall food was decent…but much better breakfast options and way over priced in comparison..
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 2
Service and food were excellentKid-friendliness: Very kid friendly
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Home Fried Potatoes and Eggs, Sandwiches
UPDATE- visit on 2/25/24. What has happened to this place? It used to be nice and unique with good food. Today was not a good example. It was not overly busy. We did not even have to wait for a table for four of us. We ordered and got our water and juice right away, but then waited almost 45 minutes for our food. Nothing hard or time-consuming to make either! Just eggs and a BLT with fries! The fries were actually cold, like they were the first thing done, and then had to wait for the bacon?! The waitress, Danielle, was nice and friendly enough. She did bring another order of hot fries. The prices are a bit high, $7 for a glass of juice! I guess that is the cost of fresh squeezed! Eggs benedict was $18! Unfortunately, food was nothing special considering the price and the long wait. Perhaps only one cook today?! No apologies for the wait either. Oh well, another place that is losing its charm here in Buffalo. Probably will not return.Nice variety, very cool atmosphere. Love the floats. Owner is very personable and isn't afraid to take orders and deliver meals. It was nice that he stopped and chatted with us a bit and made sure we enjoyed our lunch to say hi to everyone when he can.
Delicious food as always! The homemade breakfast sausage is a must try! So glad they are open again ☺️
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I had breakfast this past weekend with my girlfriend. I haven't been a customer for awhile, but would definitely come back again.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Very nastolgic old fashioned diner, good food and service. 2/11/2024 this place has lost its charm. The service was sad, the food tastasteless, the sausage was under cooked, the pancake was over cooked, the butter gross. The windows need to be resealead I froze my way through a very unsatisfying dining experience. ?
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 1
Service: 1
Restaurantji Recommends
Reasonable prices, great food, and excellent, friendly service. 10/10 recommend. The only downside is they close at 3pm.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Wasn’t a fan of the pancakes at all. Sour with the yogurt and Sprite they add to the batter. Potatoes were great. Would go again, but not order the pancakes.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 3
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Blizzard Breakfast
This was one of the best brunches I ever had. The breakfast was healthy a reasonable proportion. The place was packed when I went there the wait was average. It has a vintage 50’s diner design that draws you in. I had a breakfast sandwich, eggs and bacon. They know what they’re doing because the food was fresh didn’t taste aged or like they put too much salt on it.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 3
Recommended dishes: Sandwiches
The Homers are top
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
very quick and polite service, sizeable portions and good quality food. limited seating but that helps give it the old fashioned diner feel. already recommended to others!
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Recommended dishes: Eggs Benedict, Home Fried Potatoes and Eggs