I have lived in Bellingham for 6 months now, and I finally made it down to the Horseshoe Cafe. I am a HUGE fan of 24 hour diners. I think that every city needs one...besides Denny's and Shari's. The fact that they have free wireless and serve decent coffee makes the place even more wonderful. There is something about laughing with a group of friends over coffee and diner food at 2am that is just perfect. I am glad that I found it. Personally, I think that the 24 hour diner is the closest thing that the United States has to the Parisian cafe (love that comparison, Mallory). Thinking back, it is where I have had most of my better philosophical and intellectual moments. read more

The eats are average and some of the items are affordable. Friendly staff yet a bit long on the wait considering how dead it was. Probably wouldn't have come here if the breakfast joints weren't so crowded. My breakfast sandwich hit the spot with bacon and cheddar. My hash browns were a bit soggy, bummer. Won't be back but could definitely find worse read more

Waited over an hour for food that was not worth waiting for. I've never seen an omelet swimming in so much grease.Waitress said she had put the order in but obviously hadn't. At least she gave us a discount. read more

This place has character. i will say that for it. Sometimes the character is scary.. those guys standing out front. thank goodness they are not interested in me. On a trip to B-ham a year ago I needed internet access and had no laptop and this was the place.. to go. I had a few lattes and watched a lotof filling delicious looking food go by. Staff was kind of varied from wierd and sullen to friendly an dchipper. But look at the crowd - mostly college students and sort of drop-out looking guys, some travelers.. "does anyoen know of a place I can crash type" and me and a few black labs sneaking in. It was a godsend having it central for internet use, but the inside was a bi tdowner. read more

I've gone to this place a couple times and I've never been treated with such disrespect. I ordered three burgers with fries to go and only got 2. They refused to double bag my items and forced me too tip them almost $10 without my consent. I was told the price of my food was $34.81. Then when I was going to buy diapers for my son I didn't have enough money for them. Confused, I looked at my transactions and saw I was charged $41.77. Way over the price of what I was told. So not only was a treated rudely when I ordered my soggy fries and burger, I didn't get all my food and was practically robbed. I wouldn't recommend and extremely upset. Also the man who helped me had caramel skin, curly hair that was almost dreaded, had on all black clothes, facial hair, and was about 6ft. I ordered on 11/16/2021 a little past 12am. I never write reviews but for this I had to, so hopefully the right changes can be made and won't happen to someone else. read more

The food is off the chart, out of bounds but the service is not good. Do not recommend if you are on a time crunch I've gone in on my lunch break twice now and haven't been greeted or seated within five minutes of me standing in the entrance . But other than that the food is awesome and the staff is friendly! They're just a little slow! Can't stress this enough the food is amazing best biscuit & gravy in town read more

Got there at 1130pm with my husband and daughter and boyfriend. ..it was as though the waitress didn't want us st the restaurant. She did everything to NOT wecome us and was slightly irritated when we ask about food. ??...my daughter had one drink all night but asked for a mimosa at this time. .the waitress (rachael) told us that she "hadn't had interactions with us and my daughter to see if she should be served alcohol?? I didn't order food due to not wanting to be shunned for being hungry..we could not get out of there fast enough and asked rachael to make it to go. She responded "gladly"...by the way. Don't know what they did to the food behind the counter but is was nothing to write home about and hash browns burnt...Bellingham has fun great restaurants. ..go visit another one besides this read more

The remodel a couple years ago seem to come with wiping out their old food. The menu is pretty much the same, but the taste of some classic greasy spoon dishes are a little strange? Sort of follows in that lame Bellingham tradition of having to be 'ironic' or 'different' instead of just making sausage and gravy taste like sausage and gravy instead of 'garden fresh blah blah" which results in over complicated food? Back in the greasy spoon days it was always consistent whether or not it was technically good or not, it tasted familiar enough to be alright. It's almost as though they take the traditional food which is frozen, and then add other ingredients which don't mix well. Wait staff is.......um...well they are there is all I can say. Some are old pros, some are just tip hungry hipsters using identity politics to gauge their performance. read more

Great late night restaurant! I went here last night with a friend and we ordered nachos and onion rings. Good service considering we were there about 11. Not the most delicious food you will ever have but good prices and good food (think diner food). Definitely will come back, they had some unique dessert items I would like to try. read more

Wait time was fine and location is super cute but the nachos were disappointing. We added chicken (6oz it said on the bill) and got very little. read more

Amazing late night spot! Stuffed Hash browns are the bomb! Great service, funky diner feel. Love.

Yes...excellent dinner and service ...way to go Kayla! First time in Bellingham ...happy to find such a great place!

I hate to leave a bad review but I was really unimpressed with the Horseshoe cafe. I heard good things and was all excited about eating at the oldest restaurant in Washington. As soon as we walked in I thought this place really needs some cleaning up and remodeling. I get that its old, but they could make it look a little nicer. And the bathroom really needed a good cleaning. I ordered the chicken and waffles savory with gravy and cheese. I thought the chicken was just regular fried chicken didn't have any flavor or anything and the waffle tasted really bland as well, and the gravy was just ok. read more

This is rapidly becoming my favorite place. The food is excellent. The coffee is good. The bathrooms are horrible. The staff are always friendly. The crispy chicken salad is just my favorite way of pretending I'm eating healthily. I would like to live here at the bar. read more

I've only eaten here once, and I'm never eating here again. I ordered breakfast one morning, and the woman behind the counter put her finger in her mouth before she served me my food. She at least could have washed her hands before doing so. A long while after, I went to have a drink with some people I hadn't seen in a long time. It was my first time on the bar side of the place. Well, let's just say I THOUGHT I was going to have a drink. The bartender had an attitude, and told me to sit and wait for the waitress to come by. After about 15 minutes, the waitress came nowhere near our seating area. Let the local dive-bar aficionados have this place. For me, never again will I darken its doorway. read more

Horseshoe cafe. More like horseshoe no way. I ordered the waffle and my mom got mad. I hate it when that happens. I also think or waitress put mustard in my water. Eww. Netflix just added monster in law and my mom won't let me do it. It's a very interesting concept for a show but I always get the short end of the stick. 2019 is off to a terrible start. read more

Just thought we would try the Horseshoe again seeing as they have just reopened with new owners. Thoroughly disappointed, I had the chicken fried steak, I'm glad it came with a steak knife because it was as tough as hell, my wife's bacon was so cremated that we thought about holding a small service for it, and the portions were tiny. Don't think we will be back read more

I really want to like the updated Horseshoe Cafe. I was born and raised in Bellingham. This is supposed to be the oldest running restaurant in Washington State. My dad worked here as a buser while in high school. The Horseshoe Cafe aka "the shoe" often played a central role in my misspent youth. I remember when the cowboy got in trouble with the city for feeding out quarters to shoppers who ran out of time to avoid tickets? That was amazing. We used to socialize over cheesy fries and bounce between booths. This back when you could chain smoke and spend hours people watch. What else is there to do in Bellingham for a young person? They used to have a phone booth which local street hustlers would conduct business out of. I saw my first IV needle left a few inches from the garbage can when I was in high school. Classy this place isn't but that is okay. They were the only bar in town that actually had ontime clocks and drinks where cheap/stronge. Everyone would get their last drink on while other drinking establishments stopped service 15 minutes early. The joys of the late 1990-early 2000s. Now older, I would often go to the shoe to revisit some of that magic. The shoe has changed a lot. It has been a slow, painful death in the last few years. A lot of the old time wait staff that I loved have left over the years. Replaced by college students suffering from "Bellingham syndrome, aka I have better things to do in my life than be a waitress". I started going to the shoe much more lately since I moved back Downtown. The poor young wait staff often didn't know how to handle the homeless, and allow them to walk over the restaurant. I know that they often feared for their safety. But the service has gone down hill greatly. They stopped offering refills a few years ago. I was excited to learn that the shoe got a much needed face lift. My friends and I have been anxious to see what they did to the shoe. But for the longest time, it was never open! Last night I was able to go. All I can say is meh. I'm not sure if the owner is trying to gentrify the restaurant to compete with the newer restaurants down the street. If I wanted a clean, yuppy feeling I would go down to Fiamma Burger and pay $15 for a cheeseburger magic of the Horseshoe Cafe is how stuck in time it was. Big, greasy food sold cheap in out-dated 1970s decor. The cowboy mural got painted over, and cowboy theme has been "classed up". Cons: Many Horseshoe classics have been removed from the menu. My friend said that they did away with traditional cheesy fries for some cheese dipping sauce? Why fix something that isn't broken? Say goodby to the potato burrito, philly cheesesteak, and much of the fried appetizers. I'm not sure if they got rid of the pies. They got rid of the paper napkin holders. I'm not sure why this bothers me, but I don't like a limited napkins at a greasy spoon. The prices have gone up. I ordered their old fashion $6 shake. Back prior to the remodel you used to get the milkshape plus the extras. The service remain slow since the new owners came on board. I don't blame the waitstaff, as it looks like they purposely keep only one wait staff working a shift now. I'm not impressed by their new french fries either. It is no longer 24 hour diner. The wifi is slow. They really need to get a better system for that. Pros: You can't beat the people watching opportunities. As much as Downtown Business Owners hates it, this neighborhood will always have a high drug traffic/high violence. The new window views allow you to watch all the crazy action downtown. There is a coffee bar where you can bring your laptop. They got rid of their crazy $4 cup of coffee that the new owners started. The bar hasn't changed at all either. The new cheeseburger is good. I don't want to see the Shoe close with hipster/gentrify whitewash that most of Bellingham has gotten in the last 10 years. Keep the focus on cheap, greasy simple good food. If you like a good greasy spoon the Horseshoe Cafe is a place for you. I'm not sure if my love for the shoe is solely on nostalgia. But I hope to see the kinks get fixed. read more

My friends and I used to eat here very regularly for the 4.00 potato burritos. This is supposed to consist of potatos, beans and cheese. Last time I ate there our whole table ordered one each. About half way through, my boyfriend choked on a gigantic chicken bone! This experience would be gross for anyone but it especially grossed me out because I have been a vegetarian my whole life, and this burrito is not supposed to have meat in it- or bones! We brought the bone to the waitress and they just looked at us like "so what do u want me to do about it?" we said since we all had these burritos we don't agree with paying the bill. The waitress said if we dont pay than it has to come out of her own pocket and she would only give us one for free. They never apologized and that was the last time I've eaten there. The same waitress that night has been extremely rude on several occasions before as well. It's a fun place to go at night for drinks once in awhile but they obviously don't follow health code. read more

Second time I'm here and I just love the atmosphere and the service, This hidden jewel should be discovered by everyone.

Lets be real, the shoe is exactly what you think its going to be. Now that theres no rats, the food is decent, and its open late! The best part of the shoe, by far, is the entertainment. Watching the ceaseless parade of drunks stumble through, and the servers handle them like pros, while cramming cheesy fries into my face can be compared to poetry. Shitty poetry, but poetry nonetheless. So far my favorite episode of 86 the drunks was when the rotund, red faced drunk man dressed like the Kool-Aid man came in shouting and Chauntel politely informed him he had previously been 86'd and had to leave. The scene he made while being escorted out made my mozzarella sticks taste way better, and kudos to you Chauntel for taking orders while kicking out drunks. Truly a pro. read more

Five stars for potato burritos done right! We used to get potato burritos at Casa every so often as an indulgence (I can't have dairy so I would pay for those indulgences, but it was worth it a couple times a year). When the ownership changed hands the quality went down. Every so often we'd get a good one, just enough to give us hope, but increasingly we would leave disappointed. Then I heard they had them here (come to find out that this is its original home). Yippee!!! They are just right here: crisp potatoes, plenty of cheese, the right ratio of beans and sauce to potatoes and cheese. Forgive them the ambience and do yourself a favor and come get one of these! Thank you, Horseshoe, for restoring our faith in the potato burrito! read more

This place is kind of a rip off. I payed 6.99 for two alright scrambled eggs, dry toast, and two tiny sausages. The lady that worked there was very nice, but seemed really busy even though there were hardly any people in the place. She didn't even refill my water once... and I needed more because of the dry toast. Overall, kind of disappointing but I can see how it would be good to go from 6am-11am and get good deals on probably great hangover food. Probably won't be going back anytime soon. read more

OMG this place went from greasy and a dive place to clean and literally the slowest service on the planet. An hour wait at the table for food. Foods about the same but the place came to a halt for food service. I so want to like this place but they keep making it impossible. read more

Server Ever was rude as hell. She messed up the bill then has a **** Attitude about it.

Oh, man.. this place is a staple of Bellingham. They have really cheap, mildly gross food - a weird bar - pool tables, etc. There's the section for those of age to drink and there are mostly arty, punky college kids who hang out there. Now, the horsheshoe is open 24 hours a day, so you can imagine the level of crazy that occurs between the hours of 1AM and 8AM... but, this place has been a salon of sorts for scenesters. When the smoking law wasn't intact, the horseshoe was always billowing in smoke. It was like an American version of parisian cafes. Drunk? The horseshoe always has a table for you! Oh, and I don't know if they still sell cigarettes, but they used to. read more

i have eaten here allot. the food/atmosphere is decent. HOWEVER on my last visit, there was a problem with my order(fries with gravy and cheese...easy). because of this problem i received my order at roughly the same time that all my friends were finishing eating. i informed the waitress that i wasn't going to pay for this due to the incredible wait time for a simple order. she then informed me that the she would have to recoup the cost to the house. now the entire time she was very attentive to my tables needs and friendly.... it was in no way her fault... until this policy is changed i will not eat there and i urge you to do the same! read more

This place has great drinks and really great breakfast at the best prices. However, the back room where the pool table is smells like a sewage pipe burst or something cause it's pretty rank. I was hesitant to mention something but last time I was in here it smelled just as bad. All in all, not a bad place for food and drinks but would be best if you had a cold so you couldn't smell the shit stew brewing in the back pool/bar room. ...but damn, for real light some candles in this place or some incense. I am willing to put money down right now that their sewage system bursted under the floor boards or some gross terrible fiasco read more

Unfortunately I had decent expectations for this place but they really let me down. We tried ordering the "before 11am" specials but we couldn't because it was 10:58... Doesn't make sense. It took us 45 minutes to get our food and when it arrived it was what we ordered but some things we had asked for weren't changed. Come to find out 5 minutes later, they brought us someone else's meals which were similar to ours! The restaurant has 10 tables, how can a waitress mess that up? She was really rude and not good at her job. We told management we weren't paying for our meals and needed to leave because the wait was so long and our parking was expired. Management was understanding because of the poor service. This place is dirty and I do not recommend it. read more

Just had dinner at the "new" 'shoe. Servers were really nice, food took a while to come out but not crazy long. I got the bacon guac burger, my date got the fried chicken burger and we shared an order of pizza bread. The burger was salty - it was good, but the bacon kind of put it over the top. It came on a brioche bun with a nice pile of crispy fries. The patty was juicy and flavorful. The chicken sandwich was tasty if a little tough, but the accompanying caesar salad was excellent. Pizza bread was pretty much like how you would make it at home. Overall, it ain't haute cuisine, but it's good bar food, and the burger was certainly a huge improvement over ones I've had at the "old" 'shoe. Looking forward to going back for breakfast. read more

My boyfriend a friend of ours and I went here the other night, they have amazing food. I've been recommending them to all of my friends.

My friend ate here a few nights ago, and she got such bad food poisoning. Just because you are a greasy spoon doesn't mean that you have no pride for the product that you serve out. Some of the best food I've ever had came from a greasy spoon that actually cared about the food and their customers. I'm recommending that my friend call the health department. AVOID!!! Run for your lives!!! read more

This is my preferred place to get breakfast when I'm in Bellingham. It's set up more like a bar and less like a cafe. It has a worn in, welcoming feel, big portions and friendly staff who are happy you're there. read more

*Disclaimer* - I worked for the Horseshoe before it was under new management and before it had a remodel and I feel as though I can comment on how things were in the past compared to how things are now. It should be noted that I currently have no affiliation with the Horseshoe Cafe aside from being a patron. First off, let's start with..... Food! - This is what I believe to have been the absolute biggest improvement in the restaurant. They used to only serve Eggs Benedicts on the weekends for a limited period of time and now it is a menu staple which is AWESOME. I would get requests for it multiple times a week, and though staff and patrons asked management to include it on the menu permanently it never happened. The quality of the food is much, much greater, with many items that are locally sourced. The prices have been adjusted to be more appropriate for the items ($2.25 for coffee V.S. $3; the option to create your own omelette is priced at .50/$1 (depending on what you choose) per item V.S. $1.10 across the board; additional eggs at $1.25(1)/$2.25(2) V.S. $2 for a single egg (seriously that was the old price). You get the idea. They also rolled out some creative new items such as adding red peepers and pesto to the menu. I could go on for ages, but check it out for yourself: you won't be disappointed. Service Staff! - Since I've been into the Horseshoe I have been greeted by attention waitstaff that are cooperative and attentive. I believe everyone is getting their bearings together (as the place has been open about three weeks) and there have been a few issues of slow service (food taking slightly longer than expected, delayed coffee refills) but overall the experience has been absolutely positive. Everyone is still figuring out the system and the restaurant has had a complete overhaul. Any earnest person (especially those in the service industry) should recognize that this is obviously not a long term issue, but more of a "working out the kinks" and going through the motions type ordeal. What the Horseshoe might lose out on when it comes to immediacy, it makes up for it in stellar customer service and rockin' food. Oh, and the service staff and management are INCREDIBLY receptive to the comments of patrons. They ask questions, they are invested in their clientele, and its extremely obvious that everyone is working together as a small family to provide the absolute best experience possible at the Shoe. They are getting there, and I am excited to see where they end up. Interior! - The godforsaken mural has been painted over and replaced with gorgeous brushed aluminum letters with "Horseshoe Cafe" being visible from outside through the glass. It is stunning to walk by it on Holly St and captures the eye. The kitchen window has been completely blown out and you can now see the entire kitchen from the counter/front of the restaurant. The metal that was used for both of these projects was locally sourced in Lynden, once again proving the owners commitment to their local community. The counters have been replaced with a wonderful red countertop, and the old cash wrap in the back has been replaced with a wonderful wood counter that rests against the window. They FINALLY added power outlets; A MUCH sought after design requisition by SO MANY patrons (especially students). This was all a no brainer. That bar hasn't changed much, but the lighting is better (especially in the Men's room) and the bar still retains its divey/Western feel but doesn't come off as trashy. Outside! - This will be a brief one, but everyone knows that the Shoe has struggled with the homeless and the violence outside in the past. The new management have been doing an incredible job at keeping the streets clean and reducing the number of conflicts with the homeless and drunks and its clear as day this has helped the restaurant. In summary, I'm stoked to see what the Horseshoe will become, and especially hopeful that it will become 24 hours again. If you haven't given it a chance I absolutely ask you to try it out. Try one of the pesto scrambles, or the Benedict, you really can't go wrong with either. Tell the staff and management how you feel, and they will be receptive. Overall, the Shoe is back and here to stay! read more

Went there a couple nights ago. I ordered a breakfast burrito. It was disgusting & so were the fries. Fries were over cooked & whatever that was in the burrito was WAY overcooked as well. I think next time I go out, I'll go to pita pit. Good bye Horseshoe. read more

I'm not sure how many times my brother decided to bring me here when I visited him, but every time it was the same thing. Breakfast at the Horseshoe along with the requisite 2-8 bloody marys. Great place for a pick me up early in the morning. read more

My sister loved her biscuits and gravy.. I did as well and ordered a side of gravy for my fries. Was pleasantly suprised to find my chicken strips were made of real chicken breast, and not frozen crap.. my only complaint was with staff. My sis got a cocoa and I ordered a beer. Her hot chocolate was immediate, which is understandable... but when our food came out, our server stated, " I don't know why our bartender didn't bring you your drink." 1. We were one of two tables and I watched her play around behind the counter. 2. Since when does the bartender go and serve drinks to the restaurant? By the time I had my drink my sis was halfway done with her food. If it's that slow, you should have grabbed my drink when you rang it in. The bartender doesn't need to serve tables in the restaurant area. read more

I love what the new owners have done with the menu! My family and I went in, I had the Fried Chicken Sandwich, and my kids had the chicken strips. They were absolutely delicious! No one left anything on their plate! My husband had the BLT and loved it as well. Next time we're going to try and leave room for dessert because the pies looked amazing! read more

Fantastic food, my only problem was the long wait time (about 50 minutes). I was there on a busy Saturday morning though, so it was understandable. My server was extremely sweet and their biscuits and gravy are incredible! read more

Lets face it you shouldn't go hear to drink. You should go here to recover. They have bright lights pleasant service and heavy food that is designed to eliminate a hangover in trade for gaining a few pounds. It gets the job done. read more