Very friendly staff with great services and breakfast was fabulous. had very down home feel to it.read more

Breakfast and lunch spot serving standards: omelettes, skillets, pancakes and french toast for…read morebreakfast; sandwiches, salads, "dinner" entrees for lunch. We have only eaten there at lunchtime - with mixed reviews. The Philly Cheese Steak, Mediterranean Chicken Salad, Chicken O'Philly and Teriyaki Chicken were all given a thumbs up. Their tenderloin is pounded too thin for my preference - and it might have been commercially prepared- so they have no ability to adjust the thickness. The biggest disappointment was the hot beef sandwich. Boars Head sliced beef, instant mashed potatoes and canned gravy. Not a winner in our book. Service is fine, ambience is small town diner. Well lunch there again - just not the tenderloin or hot beef.

I have given these guys three times to improve and they just can't do it. Today I ordered a Rachel…read morewith baked potato. Who makes a Rachel without Thousand Island dressing? These guys. The turkey lacked flavor, so was way overpowered by the kraut. The baked potato clearly had been baked days before, then a weak attempt to reheat was made. It didn't even start to melt the butter. Mealy and gross.

We came for the Mother's Day brunch buffet and had a very disappointing experience. The brunch was…read moreadvertised as running until 1:00 PM, and reservations were still being accepted up until that time. However, when our party arrived for our 12:30 reservation, almost all of the food was gone and nothing was being refilled, despite there still being 30 minutes left in service. The little food that was available wasn't even very good, and everyone in our group left hungry. The service was also extremely poor. After ordering drinks, we waited about 15 minutes to receive them, and by then we had already finished the minimal food we were able to get. Throughout the rest of the meal, we were largely ignored and had no idea how to even check out. While the manager did comp 50% off the buffet cost, we still paid full price for drinks. For a group of six, we spent around $80 and left disappointed, hungry, and frustrated. This event was clearly not planned well, and both the food quality and service need major improvement.

Five stars isn't enough…read more While visiting Oelwein for family business, I stopped into MA & PA's Diner for lunch. The food was excellent, and the famous square pancakes absolutely lived up to the hype. After I returned home to California, I realized I had accidentally left my clip-on sunglasses at the diner. I expected they were gone forever. Instead, the staff found them, carefully packaged them, and mailed them back to me at their own effort. That level of customer service is incredibly rare today and says everything about the kind of people who run this restaurant. The meal was delicious, the atmosphere felt welcoming, and the hospitality extended well beyond my visit. If you're passing through Oelwein, make this a stop. Come hungry, order the square pancakes, and enjoy a little taste of what "Iowa Nice" really means. Thank you again to everyone at MA & PA's Diner for your kindness and exceptional service. I'll definitely be back the next time I'm in Iowa.

I was on RAGBRAI and Ma and Pa's Diner was in the ending town. It was recommended by our shuttle…read morebus driver. The food was great. I was with three other RAGBRAI riders , we all loved what we on. Pancakes, bacon, eggs, omelette, and baked cod. Worth stopping in if you're in town. If I'm ever back in Oelwein, I would definitely go there.

the menu there is always amazing!! the food is sooo good!…read morethe atmosphere is please'n, while wait'n for your meal. last but not least, the service y'all.. wonderful

Since the Catfish Po' Boy was out of this world, I think it's safe to say the rest of Rodney's food…read moreis...Hats off to the simple selection, quality ingredients, and soulful touch to each meal. I will certainly return when in Waterloo and plan to spread to word to friends, family, and colleagues.

Friendly and helpful employees. Delicious award winning breaded tenderloin sandwich and a fresh…read moreside salad with ranch. Wish I had been hungry after the salad and half of the sandwich, because the ice cream looks delicious!! Will have to return to try it out! clean place and clean restroom too.

Food was ok do get your hopes up too much. Good ice cream and burger place and good tenderloin.read more

I really enjoyed our lunch here today! Amazing patio along the river- an ambiance to savor our…read moreserver was lovely and explained menu items to us. I enjoyed my couscous stew. The others in my crew had the warm quinoa salad and gyro and also enjoyed those! Definitely a gem in this town!

If you are looking for different unique flavors this is the place to try. We started with the Bake…read moreFeta served with pita bread. Yum!! Then shared a Cubano Panini and a Shawarma (Gyro) with fries. If you like spicy order the Harissa on the side (chili pepper paste) delicious!! I suggest to read menu online for description of the food options. Our waitress was very attentive.

Best place in the area to get a pork tenderloin sandwich and crispy fries! Friday fish specials…read moreand great pie! Fast, friendly servers bring delicious home cooked meals to your table. We always stop there when we are in the area.

Located in the former Country Cottage Cafe location - Oelwein Family Restaurant offers a full day…read moremenu including some all you can eat specials and supper entrees. Stopped in for breakfast on a Monday morning. Waffles, omelettes, French toast, skillets - lots of choices. We had a western omelette with hash browns and a pancake, vegetarian omelette with hash browns with onions, French toast with sausage links on the side and a vegetable skillet with bacon. Rye toast on the side for the skillet and veggie omelette. Sunny side eggs on the skillet were done perfectly - hash browns soaked up the yolk as expected. French toast was tender. Omelettes are three eggs - chock full of veggies. Overall a good experience. Note - 3.9% service charge for credit cards. We paid cash.

I really wanted to love this place but it was a big let down…read more First, we were there on a Friday, just before what is likely a very busy time. We sat at the bar. The servers were there, obviously waiting for customers to start arriving, and they were all congregating at the end of the bar, chatting it up. It was super unprofessional and pretty annoying. We were glad when the food came out quickly so we could just eat and leave. To be honest, I don't recall what my husband ordered. I got the pork tenderloin. The tenderloin was very tough and had zero flavor. Like, I don't think they even put salt in the coating, let alone any other seasonings. This is Iowa, if you can't make anything else at all, you should at least have a decent pork tenderloin. This was our second time trying the place. Both instances were equally underwhelming. I wanted this to be our "go to" place but sadly we won't return.

The food was sub par with being a limited menu during the day. Also pay with cash or you will be…read morepaying more for using card. Burger tasted like it was frozen from box. Fries were amazing

This is by far the worst people in customer service I have ever had in my entire life. In…read moreparticular that middle aged lady who pretty much runs the joint. If you've been there you know exactly who I'm talking about. The lady who will put the end piece of a tomato on my sandwich along with a piece without a center thinking she can get away with it. Not sure if I looked like an easy target to throw your garbage tomato peices at but not me lady lol. When I asked her to please add another slice she literally threw the slice on my sandwich and smashed the bread closed, like I'm literally laughing so hard while I'm writing this. There is nothing you can do because we live in a small town and we want a Subway but I personally can't wait until this lady retires because she obviously LOATHES PEOPLE. This Subway is so depressing.

The last 2 times I have ordered from Independence Subway the bread has been hard and dry. Tried the…read moreItalian bread on 9/8/25 and tried the wheat bread on 9/16/25. Think I'm done ordering for a while.