Everything about Don's Diner is wrong!!! This used to be one of my favorite spots, but the quality of food and service has changed drastically. read more

It say's open 24 hr. Was closed mid day. Building was dark. Lot was empty. Wasted time

The buffet was definitely delicious-fish, smother pork chops-rice. Service was very attentive and friendly. read more

Went for breakfast but had the buffet. All the meat choices were good and yes I tasted them all. The ribs were really good. The sides l had were well done. The Atmosphere was very friendly and the service for the team was great...we had a good time read more

Small diner with a large parking area in the back, which was good. Came here for a business meeting..wasn't really that hungry, but when someone else is paying... Very nice and personable staff greets you on the way in and out. Our waitress took a bit of time to wait on us, but she was sweet and apologetic, and I think she was the only one working, so... Ordered a tea (which I didn't drink because the water was lukewarm at best), grits and an omelette with spinach, tomato, and feta. The grits were very creamy, but needed a ton of butter and seasoning, as did the omelette... It was a decent experience, but there are too many options for me to return again. read more

Don's Diner - a plate of food on a table - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

Terrible food! Service is Terrible, cake was DRY!!! Food isn't seasoned at all and was cold/warm!! You would have to go back home to remake your food! And that defeats the purpose of eating out!!! It state its 24hours but its not and I see why!!! They need to put this on Chef Ramsey's show so he can help them! The inside of this diner isn't bad tho read more

I wanted good soul food. I was NOT disappointed! Ty, Don's. We ordered buffet, so didn't have a lot of contact with server, but, she was fine with us. The turkey wings in a brown gravy were amazing, among other things. read more

Eat at your own risk!!! My uncle stopped in yesterday and included cake in his order. Among 3 of the slices 1 was was covered in mold. I don't know about you but, this is completely unacceptable for me. We ended up tossing all the cakes because we didn't want to risk it. If you dare too, my best advise is to check all your food before leaving. read more

Don's Diner - Molded cake - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

This place has always been on my list to dine. Yes, the service is a hit or miss. However, if you get a good server who takes pride in his/her hospitality and putting their guest first; you are in for a treat. This Diamond in the rough is earning back my business since post pandemic. If in the area, give them a try. It's a cozy spot that welcomes all and the place is pretty simple, not flashy. They also have an all you can eat self-serve buffet Friday -Sunday. You can call them directly for more details. read more

Don's Diner - The front counter and entry way of Don's Diner in Irvington, NJ - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

Don's Diner food rock.. You have to go to the buffet on Saturday and Sunday because they sell all you can eat soul food.. so so delicious.. Today, I had catfish with home fries and eggs.. delicious I love this diner. I recommend this place.. the waitress was very friendly and the atmosphere was very chill.. read more

This may be the last time that I chance coming to this unsafe area to get a meal, because once again I'm seeing that the service here is hit or miss. I asked the young man who was about to fix my plate if he could put on gloves, and he replied that he didn't have any. His female co-worker with "Butter" written on her blouse who I wasn't even addressing took exception, so she started talking loud to a different co-worker about my asking the young man to put on gloves, when I'm the one who just came in from outside. As always, I used a paper towel to open their doors and used Purell before I even got to the section that has the food AND most importantly, I'm not touching my outgoing plate because it will be plated for me and handed to me in a plastic bag. Anywho, the managers/supervisors need to instruct their service employees how to deal with paying customers. read more

I have been to Don's Diner several times before the pandemic and always enjoyed the food. I go on the weekend for the take out buffet. Post pandemic you were able to serve yourself. Now they have workers that prepare the plates for you. I like that idea and they have mask on. I took a star away because I feel like they should have gloves on as well. Their fingers have to touch the inside of the plate to pick it up. All the food was hot and looked delicious. I am thankful that I knew exactly what I wanted and didn't go hungry because you can fill your plate pretty quickly. The servers did exactly as I requested not wanting large pieces or potions. Great service. My daughter didn't like her oxtails and said the sweet potato's are under cooked. Everything else was good. All was good on my plate except the Turkey wing was super dry. I added a slice of strawberry cheesecake. Total bill....$42.00. That's really pricy for a togo plate but it's $10.15 per pound. I do have specific things I love to eat from Don's Diner so will return in the future but will not try anything new I haven't had before. read more

Don's Diner - Strawberry cheesecake - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

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This place is no joke if you're dying for some serious soul food action. I was kind of in the area and I read about the epic soul food buffet so I gave it a whirl on a Sunday afternoon. In aggregate the food was pretty darn tasty, although I did feel dizzy after eating what felt like an uncanny amount of sodium and grease. My favorite buffet items were the wings, fried fish, baby back ribs, string beans and another type of cajun spiced fish that escapes me. The banana pudding was also killer. You know it's good when I ate to the point I wanted to literally fall asleep on my chair (which I nearly did) and ended up passing out when I got home from a food coma. I really enjoyed the friendly atmosphere, though I also came in right around the time when many were coming after church so the whole vibe was a bit more formal than I anticipated. However, the folks here were super friendly and very helpful with recommendations. I had a great time overall. It's also nice they have a fairly big parking lot, though it definitely gets super packed there so be warned. Overall it's a solid place for soul food but you'll likely end up passing out like me after the meal. read more

Don's Diner - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

I have to update this review after the terrible service I received here today. I phoned in to order two salmon cake orders. Upon taking my order the waitress gives me minor attitude as I mention I'd like American chz on my grits to which she replies "yea I said that chz" like there aren't various cheeses. Fast forward to us arriving. I ask about the price difference between their online menu and in store she rudely ask "is that too much for you?" Me and my partner look at each other as were Perplexed as to why she woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning lol. To make matters worse we pay and exit, she FOLLOWS us out the door asking me did I say anything? To which I said yes you're rude she was confrontational from the start and just plainly ghetto as hell. I understand hating your job but Jesus Christ. Goes to show Don's hires anybody. Support a real black business and go to Irvington IHOP ! read more

This was my 2nd visit to Don's Diner and I'm sorry to report that this local Staple falls short. The Diner itself needs a bit of remodeling and better lighting. The wait staff although friendly did not pay attention to details. My meal was subpar. It was lukewarm, tasted like frozen food warmed in a microwave or out of a can and was smothered in sauce. Really disappointing. read more

My food was hot and fresh. Everything was cooked perfectly-- especially my soft over easy egg. Fish fried crispy but not hard. Lots of creamy grits. I just wish toast was included with my brunch. I will order this exact meal again Yummy read more

We went to Don's Diner today. We had turkey wings, fried tilapia, Mac and cheese, collards, stuffing, yams with corn bread, potato salad, and uptowns. We were very pleased with the server and the delicious food. We even had pieces of chocolate cake and pineapple coconut cake. Everything was superbly prepare and I really mean it with all of my heart. Don's diner will always be our go to for delicious Soulfood. read more

Went for Brunch Sunday, missed our appetizer, but the owner was extremely apologetic. Picked up the cost of our beverages. The Benedict was awesome. Lori had the truffled eggs and they were the bomb. I would highly recommend that dish. A little slow with coffee and drinks but a must visit. read more

Don's Diner - Great burger! The sauce on the burger was awesome. We all did the specials. An interesting twist on sauerkraut. - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

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The ladies room is disgusting...so disgusting second time coming g in a week and it's filthy which leads me to believe it's always filthy

I'm not sure if bad and argumentative service is this place's "thing" but it needs to stop. I called and ordered a breakfast sandwich, and because I'm allergic to cheese, I stressed "no cheese". I'm the past, from at least two waitresses, I get the line, "no need to say that, if you didn't ask for cheese I wouldn't put it on the sandwich." Unfortunately, this is not true, since I've left the diner several times with cheese on my sandwich, leading to me wasting time returning and exchanging my purchase. Still, this experience was the worst. Not only did I have to have the back and forth about how she was the perfect waitress and wouldn't put cheese on a sandwich if it wasn't ordered, she still got the order WRONG! No, there was no cheese, she got that right. But I ordered a Taylor Ham and Egg and got a Bacon and Egg. I guess in her perfection she can get the no cheese right but not the type of meat. Not wanting to return the sandwich during COVID, I ate it and vowed never to return to Don's Diner. How completely sad!!! read more

Ill will NEVERRRRR eat at Dons Diner Again!! If there was a such thing a 0 starz.. This would be it but we gonna go with 1 by default. I asked my waitress for Hot water cuz the silverware looked dingy. She caught and attitude and said I just washed them. Seriously??? Food was trash except the Catfish and the salad. But how u mess up salad even though she could've told me it came with olives and cherry tomatoes, I hate them both anywho. I asked for fried cabbage cuz it came with it. It was xtra for Mac n cheese.. Cabbage was not fried.. It was nasty, soggy, watery, Mac n Cheese was dry and bland. Environment was so ghetto and my server was sooo unprofessional it was a shame. Service absolutely terrible not to mention my drink spilled all over me. My bill came out to be $20 all together. The lady had nerve to say u can leave a tip.. But I only gave her $3 cuz I don't just not tip right. But really felt like giving her nothing. By the time I made it to the hair Salon... I notice I was charged twice. Of $20.05 so basically $40.10. On Tuesday. I call the restaurant to let them know I was charged twice. The waitress that served me had the nerve to catch and attitude and said "I dont know how I swiped once.. Had another attitude and hung up on me. By now I called my bank to request a whole refund.. Tell my why this morning at 501am I was charged "AGAIN" $23.05.. I will never ever eat there again. read more

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I will never patronize Don's Diner ever again the food is not that great, my cake was stale it had to be at least a week too old and the prices are absolutely too high. never again, I could have gotten a better dinner at McDonalds. All the servers have rotten attitudes. Fu** Don's diner read more

Had a good experience last night . Waiter was always available and nice . Thank you so much, I definitely will be returning back soon. read more

I came up for vacation from Miami Florida.... It's a damn shame the food up in this spot up north is so much better then the south. I'm a black man and it this good was my thanksgiving my bbq my Christmas ya hear me!!!!!! A must come eat a absolute MUST!!!!!!! I am very impressed and very satisfied!!! Don't read more

I tasted my friends Mac & cheese, it was over-cooked. She said the ox-tails were okay, my turkey wings were just okay; but little Aaliyah was satisfied with her mozzarella sticks & French fries, but I hated the black eye peas; they were bland & truly lacked flavor. read more

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I visited on 04/17/21. Food was great, very clean and my server was wonderful. Supervisor or manager was very rude and has no customer service orientation. She was rude to me as a customer and also an employee who she spoke derogatorily to. Zero ratings to the lady who apparently does the cashing and is probably the supervisor as she is very rude and has no customer service training to both customers and employees. She was speaking very disrespectfully to one of the employees when I sat to dine in. She even spoke profanity. I turned around and looked at her after hearing how she was behaving with the employee. Another customer was wide eyed. After finishing my meal and walking up to the cashing area, myself and an employee were discussing if I could use a card as there was a sign which says cash only. The employee stated I should wait for the lady who is cashing as probably she will take the card. She the rude aggressor (Who is the cashier) was coming from the back and rudely stated " I was only gone a few so why is everyone looking at me." Mind you, we were only looking at her because I wanted to ask her if I could use a debit card. I asked her why she is so rude based on her remarks and she rudely again responded "Who are you to say I am rude. Lady, you do not know me." I then realized that I was dealing with someone who obviously does not know how to deal with the public and has no customer service training hence, I shut my mouth. Who knows better, does better. This lady needs to learn common decency and customer service orientation before being allowed to deal with the public as well as mange or supervise employees. She therefore needs to understand that she is dealing with the public and MUST be courteous to customers as well as employees. Slavery has long been abolished and if she thinks I am willing to spend my hard earned money at any establishment which treats employees badly as well as talk down to customers , she must be Ludacris. I will not shop at the restaurant again. read more

Only wished we found this spot earlier!! My wife and i definitely enjoyed this diner!! It's been about a week since we last went the buffet was to die for the food was amazing!! I don't know about the breakfast only because we decided to try the soul food buffet. Later that night we ordered dinner from them and that was good too!! Our chocolate cake wasn't all that good but the cheesecake and strawberry shortcake was great!! The Waitress named butter was great and the staff was nice!! A good place going back today read more

They've updated the decor, and it really looks nice. The servers are friendly, but they aren't doing anything special. The food is all just fine. Nothing special, but certainly hit's the spot. They do eggs, wraps, soups and sandwiches pretty well. Their salads are pretty boring, and the dressings are abysmal. People seem to love the soul food options, though they look just ok to me. I have to imagine there are better options around for that kind of food. Still the best diner in town, though to clarify, it's the only diner in town. You could do worse for a meal in town (see the IHOP). There's really no reason to travel to Irvington for food. It's a perfectly fine option if you're in town for any reason, like work or such. read more

Don's Diner - Landmark - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

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A perfect find. Though the name says diner they have more than that. Breakfast, soul food and more. Buffet items: mussels, shrimp & broccoli, oxtail, collard greens, tilapia, soul rice and black eyed peas and of course more. Oh and of course free refills. Service: quick and friendly. Quality: solid five stars. Looking to return on my next visit. read more

Don's Diner - This is to start. Hehe. - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

Yes the lady that work there is very, very rude. . Guess she a manager. I live across the street from the restaurant. And I go there every now and then and get the same attitude. I never seen nothing like this. Make me feel very unwelcome. But hey I still go there. read more

Went to Don's yesterday morning at 5 am; I guess they're really relaxed on the graveyard shift. I asked them if I should pick any seat, since they failed to notice us right away. Lol I ordered the Slovakian platter ,which was quite a large serving-- I asked for a container before ever taking a bite. The dish was mediocre but the beef was still tasty. The service got better and the waitress was very pleasant. I'd surely check this place out again at a reasonable time, I'm sure the experience will be different. read more

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Haven't been here in years....Came here at around 3am for some breakfast after a night of partying. My husband ordered breakfast, french toast, candian bacon and scrambled eggs. I opted for a bacon cheeseburger. I heard that their buffet is the bomb!!! I will definitely be back to try that too. Don's has been around forever and the food is still good! read more

Don's Diner - Bacon Cheeseburger - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

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The food and service should surely be enough to look past the people this place attracts at different hours of the night. I enjoy coming here, the portions are more than fair, plus the milkshakes are spot on although for $5 I tend to second guess it until the straw touches my mouth. A great bang for your buck and the food tastes really good. This place is my go to diner in the area, it's not as close as Maplewood or IHOP but the trip is worth it to me. read more

Don's Diner - Wings and fries ~7.50. Worth it!! - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

Most of the locals probably come for buffet, that is fine. What this place struggles with mainly is consistent and competent service. Service is sub par. General is barely average. The buffet can be good but that is on a good day. Location is great guess that's why they get the business they do. read more

This review is from a while ago but me and my sister came here and the food was delicious so many choices!! The cabbage ,greens, chicken ,oxtail,seasoned !!! We actually ate so much we passed out in the parking lot !!With a lil help from Mary Jane excellent munchie spot definitely returning read more

Today I ordered breakfast from Don's Diner through Ubereats. And as a habit I call after to verify my order (which I suggest to everyone, because you never know). Let's be honest, some people are just rude in the Morning. However Immediately upon answering the phone I was greeted with a pleasant and welcoming young lady. I ended up adding a couple of items that were missed in my order, and she talked me through the process and was happy to do so. Thank you to Don's Diner for hiring such a courteous and positive worker. Cathy was phenomenal! Super personable and polite! Kudos to you Cathy! read more

I enjoy this late night spot and the service is always great. My waitress was great I has lemon fish and it was seasoned perfect. And let me be honest it can be very good but it was still very good. PLZBELIEVEIT read more

Don's Diner - Great plate - Diners Near Me - Irvington, New Jersey

The food looks so delicious but it didn't have any flavor I've heard so many good things about this I'm going to try again maybe it was just that day but the food was definitely not soul food to me read more

The food here used to be really good. I guess they put all their energy into the mid day soul food buffet, because if you order anything outside of that or late night, it's really questionable and not that tasty. Last night we ordered a honey fried chicken dinner. Sides were mac & cheese and mashed potatoes. The chicken was okay, but tasted nothing like the name. I guess I was expecting bbq's or something lol. The mash was clearly boxed. We had a second order of chicken francese. Excellent portion size. I was excited! I opened the container and saw that it was prepared with lime instead of lemon. I've never had it prepared that way and you could taste the difference. The lime was overbearing and didn't mesh well with the sauce. I guess they didn't think I would taste the difference. Disappointing experience. read more

So, it's the weekend. Father's Day in fact. I happen to wake up pretty early, about 6am. Can't help it. Instead of puttering around my apartment like I usually do, I think, "what the heck! i'll go to 8am mass. my dad would appreciate that". I go. Of course, there's barely anyone there, maybe 10 people total. Every other sane person is still sleeping or probably lives at home and had plans with their dad. All this is meant to explain why I'm at a diner in Irvington, NJ at 9am in the morning. I ran into a married couple after mass who wanted to take me to breakfast, Don's being the only around. Don's is your typical diner, but cleaner than most. I order a short stack of silver dollar pancakes, a side of home fries, and a glass of OJ. The pancakes were a quarter inch thick, fluffy but a bit dense. Your average bisquick mix pancakes. Plus, I'd like to see silver dollars the line cooks use. The pancakes were as big as my head, and although I only had to flapjacks, I couldn't finish the second... and I abhor wasting food. The homefries were flattop cooked sliced potatoes, lightly season and very much on the dry side. Now, I rather pride myself on my orange juice palate. I used to drink a lot. A LOT. There was a time when I could identify whether I was drinking Minutemaid or Tropicana or Florida's Natural etc. Don's seems like it's from concentrate, You know those frozen juice cylinders you thaw and add water to. A little too much water if you ask me. The service was great. She came by often, had our order right and brought it out with consideration, and left a message on our bill. Attention to care. Although I'd say the food was mediocre at best, the service brought the experience up one star. review 6/15/2008 I.M.Y. read more