Classic casual spot. Reliable food , big menu, and polite servers. This is a great spot to come as a family or with a group who wants to have options. read more

MEH. No vegetarian options to speak of. Ordered a side salad since I didn't want pancakes for dinner. It was expensive, everything seemed canned or frozen. Everything is deep fried or microwaved. Save yourself money and get some frozen food at Walmart and deep fry or microwave it at home. read more

Never been here before, it was delicious but we learned our lesson. They have 2 options: full size and a little less, we definitely should have ordered from the little less category because it was enough food on one plate to feed the both of us.Great service and great atmosphere, looking forward to trying the breakfast menu. read more

Black Bear Diner El Cajon - Slow cooked pot roast, mashed potatoes and garlic toast. - Diners Near Me - El Cajon, California

We love This place for breakfast and dinner. They cater to my picky kid who loves eating the kids bear claw waffle for dinner. And my husband who loves the portions size and selection. I really love their turkey club. Berenice Sarabia-one of the amazing managers recently helped me with a Thanksgiving meal for my sons class. She has great customer service skills and had everything ready for me...even remembered to ask if I wanted gravy on the side for the kids. All the staff have great customer service. read more

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Whoa! Shocked this came up on my recommended places to review- I'm truly surprised I hadn't already reviewed it! The food here is delicious! I am especially happy about their corned beef hash, it is to DIE for. They also have a lot of healthy options that taste fantastic as well! Everything here is really fresh when they serve it to you. Customer service here is phenomenal too! Be expected to wait if you're dining here, it's a very popular spot, but super worth it! At the front they sell a lot of random merch. My mom bought my son two sets of pajamas here and they are so cute and such good quality lol! Anyway, don't skip out on this place! The food is great! They do take out and delivery (through a third party) too if you don't feel like leaving the comfort of your home. We ordered a lot from here during the pandemic and it didn't disappoint! Always delicious and FRESH! read more

Welcome to San Diego Black Bear Dinner. I have visited your establishment in Las Vegas and Northern California with pretty good results. However, today's visit with our first local location could of been better. They offer a lot of good looking items on the menu, but I settled with an oldie but goodie: the Denver omelette with a side of country red potatoes and rye toast for $12.75 and a cup of black coffee. The omelette was quite good and came with a generous amount of chopped smoked ham, a bell pepper and onion mixture, and topped with cheddar cheese. The ham was very flavorful and was what I most enjoyed about the omelette. The egg portion of the omelette was well prepared and cooked but could of used a little seasoning. A few dashes of black pepper did the trick. One thing I would like see do is, in addition to sprinkling the ham on top of the omelette as they do, to mix in some of the ham with the egg. An area were they need to improve is the preparation of the country red potatoes. They give a lot but that does not make up for their lack luster preparation. For example, they had to much oil in them; as a result, they were not crisp on the edges and just to oily to enjoy. I asked them to replace them with hash browns, but those were not any better. I asked for them to be extra crispy, but they were to soft and even mushy inside. Let's get a handle on those potatoes peeps. The rye toast I ordered was good but perhaps a little over buttered. Ask for the butter on the side if you do not like a lot of butter on your toast. The black coffee I order was rather strong and had a harsh after taste. One needs to smooth things out here please. Service at was nice. I had "Brandy" and she was nice and apologetic regarding the short comings. read more

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Beautiful ambiance, portions in abundance and delicious food. 10 stars if it was an option

I just had the fish tacos on the new summer special, and they were so horrible, I couldn't believe anyone could ruin a fish taco. I could hardly eat one. Why are you putting a fish taco together with flour tortilla? check out Brigintine Fish tacos? And the fish was hard...just the worse fish taco I've ever had. please hire a more qualified cook. and oh, add a lot more cabbage. where is the quality control?????? read more

The cheese in the chili bowl will not melt! I I tried twice in the microwave and nothing. What cheese are you guys using?

My husband and I had time to kill while we waited for our dog at the veterinarian. We were seated into a clean booth and greeted by Nicole, our waitress. Bottom line: great food, great service, cute diner and large servings. read more

The food is always plentiful. We make it a point to visit here every time we are in town. The menu has a ton to select from, the food always is cooked well and the service is good. read more

Last week I was craving waffles for dinner. I didn't want to make a whole batch so my husband and I decided to try Black Bear Diner because they advertised breakfast all day. I wasn't expecting the Cracker Barrel type gift shop at the entrance. That was a little odd to me. A little theme park feel. We were sat near a window, one of 5 parties in the whole place. The table directly behind me had a small loud child jumping up and down in the booth bench. Note to staff: don't seat a couple right up next to a toddler when there's space and options for a different table. For the love. My husband ordered a patty melt and I ordered chicken and waffles. It took over 30 minutes to come to our table and both the waffle and chicken strips were cold. The chicken strips were the type that come from a frozen bag like smart and final. Not hand prepared in site. The whole experience was a let down. Should've stayed home and made it myself. read more

Service was amazing, but the food was so dry and flavorless. Not worth the money or the hype, especially not being from California I would have preferred ihop or Dennys. read more

Let me start by saying that I am immunosuppressive due to a recent heart and kidney transplant. My wife and I have been to this restaurant in other places, so when we were back in San Diego for more procedures, we ordered delivery to our motel. The food was fair at best. My wife had a chili cheeseburger with sweet potato fries and I ordered a reuben with a side salad with a couple of sodas. The chili was meager, not spicy, and mostly beans. The sweet potato fries were almost tasteless. The reuben was small and greasy, and the salad was okay, except that it came with half a portion cup of dressing. It didn't matter, though, since there was no fork to eat it with! Speaking of, there were no utensils, condiments or even napkins... one would imagine if you're delivering to a motel, you could -at least- ASK your customers if they need that. So back to my first line... I can't drink beverages without a straw, eat a salad with my fingers, nor handle a greasy sandwich that someone else handled before me. I need to open it, and cut the insides out. Sounds gross, but it's my current reality. So my wife had an unpleasant meal, and I had one that I couldn't actually eat. As for the ambiance, who cares, I'll never go there again. ...and for all of this sad and inedible culinary experience there comes the price...wait for it... OVER $50.00!!! So...never again. read more

Just ok, I was expecting it to be a incredible breakfast spot and it was mediocre the breakfast potatoes did not have a lot of flavor and tons of onions that were either almost raw or charred. The pancakes were decent and the service was good. I will try again for dinner and see if it improves at all. read more

First, I'd like to say there were three of us. I got avocado and toast. There was so little avocado on that piece of toast. Luckily, we had a great wait waitress. Her name was Savannah and she really took care of us. My daughter ordered steak potatoes and a. Biscuit with gravy steak was supposed to be medium rare it was medium well done. The potatoes were cold as ice. The biscuits with gravy was great. They took the potatoes. They took her whole meal off of our our our bill Savannah again save the day. Our other friend who got French toast and can't remember what else came with her meal. I think she got ham and bacon, but she really liked everything. Everything was nice and I wouldn't say one more time. Savannah was absolutely wonderful. she deserves five gold stars and we are very much gonna ask for her. The next time we come in I was trying to tell the person that comes and drops your food off, looking at the amount of avocado that was on this piece of toast that I can tell you really was not toasted very well was not a half of an avocado and as I'm talking, he's walking away I've never seen anything like that, but I guess somebody needs to teach somebody that you stay until the customers finished and you ask them are you done? Is there anything else I can do for you? How can I help you and I will tell you that I thought savanna again was just excellent and everybody in my group agrees. It was nice that there wasn't a whole lot of people there and just wasn't loud like sometimes it is and we really really enjoyed it. The ambience was perfect. I wish the food has been the same, but like I said , Savannah,. Everything that she could do to make things right what's wrong? Did you do? read more

This place sucks. Service was horrible. Our waiter came to our table once and we waited over 10 minutes before anyone even came up to us. The hostess had to get our drinks!. The food was burnt and old. We've been to many Black Bear's in Arizona and this place was the. worst. read more

Food & service was just okay. Not bad. Not great. Came here from out of town for my kid's sporting event and wasn't impressed or too disappointed. Not really friendly or attentive, but they were receptive when I waved them over. I guess you get what you pay for. read more

loveeeeeeee it food was amazing and all the servers were outstanding. definitely a great place to come dine in!!!

Open even during the pandemic, this place serves up delicious food and provides excellent service with a smile. Food options are reasonably priced. The dining area is squeaky clean and the patio dining is also available. There is tons of parking spots and the place has a cozy feel to it. I'll be back for sure when I need a hearty breakfast. read more

The food is really good here, the service is what it is have to call your service person to get something for your table, the ambiance is good for a person who is handicapped or needs help getting things. Overall I think this was the most enjoyable experience I've ever had. read more

They open early. We haven't tried everything but we were happy with what we ate. Who could go wrong with breakfast? Big portions for reasonable price. Nice staff. Our waiter forgot our oatmeal & gave it to us to go with no charge. Good for families! It wasn't that loud & crowded when we went around 9 am Sunday...but it was raining that day. read more

Food is delicious and they serve really big portions. The service is a 6 out of 10 the y take a really long time to get your order out.

Really large portions & very reasonably priced. The grounds are dirty, but the food is very very good! read more

My lady and I came to Black Bear Diner hearing such great things. Being the frequent diners out that we are we appreciate all kinds of atmospheres. Quirky. Cool. Fun decor. Neat. Strange choice of music. Well okay, but rap on a Sunday Brunch, interesting choice that was changed up to more appropriate chiller beats. Food. It's good. It's diner food. Homemade items. Biscuits the size of softballs. Pretty rad if you're into that which you would be because that's why you go there. Service. So we sat at the bar. Got to see it all. The servers have this interesting modality. Like they can't be bothered but when they are or you do catch their attention they are nice. Short, not stopping for a chat, but efficient. It was super strange to watch servers walking through the galley on FaceTime. Or spending more time bantering with each other than guests. Even with that, they worked together well. Were aware and doing their side work. But still the overall feeling is "they can't be bothered". Though I'm not sure that's the vibe they are going for because though they don't check up on you much they do get the job done. Super interesting place. Not judging them too much because it was one experience but leaves you kinda with your head tilted to the side wondering what to take from it all. Totally interesting. Loved the massive commitment to the Black Bear swag though. Cudos to the merch. That's epic. read more

Big servings. Good service. Friendly workers. Classic American dishes and great desserts

Nice people lousy food the Chef must have dropped the salt shaker in the breakfast potatoes and the sausage gravy should have sausage in it.

We visit this place for the first time, for breakfast and It came great, the plates with so many varieties and the flavor so good, the attendant service was really nice , very serviceable and knowledge about the foot, it was a family Ambience, we had an amazing time, we will be back soon. read more

The service was excellent. Perfect for a family. Lots of cross the isle conversation and laughter. Feels like home. The food was great also. I got the meatloaf (yes, for breakfast) lol. My first time eating that style of meatloaf but it was really good. The hub got the country fried steak. He said it was really good. Large portions. read more

Black Bear Diner El Cajon - Housemade Meatloaf (1060 cals.) - Diners Near Me - El Cajon, California

We ordered the chicken fried steak, abacon cheeseburger, and0 the Volcano breakfast. The Chicken fried steak and onion rings were a 9. The gravy a 4 and t h e green bean a 1. The burger was a 4, no seasoning and the fries a 9. The pancakes were a 7 and the eggs, bacon and sausage were a 9 We will go bac l and try something else read more

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I was here a year or so ago and had absolutely horrendous service one morning. I was the only customer in the place. Only one person working the front(hostess & waiting tables). Waited a long time for a table and even longer to get my food. It was good at least. No refills on the drinks and a crap attitude. I never finished the review and it took a lot to get me to go back. Fast forward to last night at dinner. What happened? A+! The hostess sat me right away. Soon after, Savannah came by to take my drink order. Huckleberry Lemonade She returned with the lemonade and took my order. A friendly gentleman brought my chicken fried steak, loaded baked potato & Italian green beans(Savannah also brought me a big salad and cornbread to start). Best chicken fried steak I have had in years. Good size portion obviously and plenty of gravy. Italian green beans and loaded baked potato both with lots of bacon. I finished the green beans, but tapped out on the tater and CFS. So much food! I will be back much sooner next time! Well done Savannah and the rest of the crew. read more

Repeat diner here. Great place to meet up with my East County friends. The food was excellent and the service by our server, Dylan, was outstanding! Great food, value, comfortable setting and outstanding service. A favorite for sure. read more

My son and I havent been here since Covid. Service and food is still great. Our waitress Maria was very friendly and helpful.

I have to minus a star. When I got home I heated up my leftovers and found a piece of plastic in my hashbrowns, I thought it might have been some egg but it's definitely a piece of plastic. I'll still try them again but I will certainly check my food before I start eating it. read more

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Some dishes better than others but the food itself is ok. The portions are huge. The staff could benefit from some training. I come here at least once per month and the staff changes every time. The ambiance is wood cabin look. The a/c blows hard at this location read more

Stopped for Breakfast on the 14th November at the El Cajon Location. We have been to this location 3 times before. Service was excellent and Restuarant was busy. Food was very good and a very good portion. We have stopped going to Dennys about a year ago to poor service. We have had breakfast and lunch next trip is dinner. Thank you for being steps about the others. read more

First of all, the service and our waitress was awesome. However, the food not so much. I ordered the 10 oz. Chicken Fried Steak with Hash-browns and over easy eggs. The chicken fried steak was just okay. It tasted like it was pre-made, frozen then fried. The batter was a little thick and the steak was too soft like hamburger meat. What really threw me off was the hash-browns which had an off putting bitter aftertaste. This happens when you have preservatives in your food. I gave it 2 stars because our service was great, the restaurant is clean and the ambiance was nice. read more

Black Bear Diner El Cajon - 10 oz. chicken fried steak - Diners Near Me - El Cajon, California

The good: The food is super delicious. 5 STARS! The sausage links and Pattie's are some of my favorite in San Diego! Good portion and very tasty. Also made from scratch. Country Potatoes are very tasty also. Great portions on everything. Worth every penny and always satisfied. The not-so-good: We've had some good servers and more recently, some pretty grumpy ones. When requesting a substitute item, it seems as if I'm asking for too much and it's a hassle. I don't believe that's the case, however the server, who I've had three times already, responds as if it is an issue. She definitely smiles when she drops off the check and ask if everything was good with a chipper attitude, which is what EVERY good server should do, especially when hoping to get a good tip. However, as a customer and tipper, I'd like the smile and happy feeling from beginning to end, and not being made feel as if I am asking for too much when requesting a substitute or upgrade item, or coffee refill. Finally, the room can be more on the colder side with the AC blowing strong even when it's very cold outside. And it's not just me thinking this. Two other tables in the same area all felt the same way as we all expressed it. Save the AC and electricity for the Summer and sporadic hot days in the winter ;) read more

Food was great and service was fasst took my kids and wife for breakfast I had the corn beef hash breakfast

The staff here is very friendly and attentive. The breakfast menu has a lot to offer and food tastes great and the serving size is more than you can eat. Love the atmosphere here. The place is clean and cozy read more