If you want a classic, heavy American breakfast, this is the place. Big omelets, huge and fluffy pancakes, and everything in between. It's the type of place that is a guilty pleasure. read more

Keys Cafe - Caramel roll - American Near Me - White Bear Lake, Minnesota

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My husband and I had just finished visiting the Farmer's Market and saw a line of people waiting down the street. We walked down and found Key's Cafe. Honestly, we never knew there was one in White Bear Lake and now I know why. We sat outside on their recently made patio. Good things: patio seating, friendly service, reasonable prices I ordered the biscuits and gravy with is one biscuit with gravy, hash browns and two eggs. I was surprised when I was brought a knife with my meal, because why should I need it. This was literally the worse meal I've ever had in a long time. The biscuit was hard as a rock, even with the gravy on it. That's why you need the knife, to try and cut the biscuit. I took one bite and couldn't take another. The sausage gravy was SO salty, I couldn't eat it. I had my husband try it in case my taste buds were off. Nope, he choked his bite down and then drank all his water. Hash browns and eggs were perfectly cooked, though. My husband ordered corned beef hash. This is so weird. It was about 1/2 pound of chopped onions mixed with corned beef. Typically, corned beef is salty. His hash had no flavor whatsoever. He had to salt it! All in all, it was a very poor meal. We did share our feedback with the server and she didn't charge us for the biscuit and gravy. read more

Chicken fried steak was exactly as you would expect. Good midwestern joint. Coffee was marginal

No regrets! I was nearby and hungry so I looked up a to quick place to eat. The steak was good and portions were huge! I also had the pancake and that thing was like the size of a small pizza! The only downside was the menu choices but I definitely had something to choose from. It was a bit smaller compared to other diners but the quality of food was great! read more

Keys Cafe - American Near Me - White Bear Lake, Minnesota

Oh Keys, what can I say that hasn't already been said? This place is an institution, and for good reason! My mom & her parents grew up going to Keys for their famously huge breakfasts, and after moving into the area earlier this year I was so excited to have one so close by. This location is wonderful! Food has always been so good - and with HUGELY generous portions, of course! - and the service is stellar every time. We love coming here after church for a delicious Sunday brunch! Be warned that there's often a wait time of at least 10 minutes, sometimes longer, but it's not bad. There's plenty of seating to hang out, or you can check out some of the great shops in downtown! read more

Country fried steak was the best I ever had. The hash browns need some work, barely brown and not crispy. I will ask for them well done next time. read more

They have great service here! The people are so nice, I recommend this place 10/10 they have the most greatest pancakes I've ever tasted. Without the syrup it kinda taste dry but when you add the syrup it's very good! This is my review for keys - thank you read more

Excellent breakfast menu with huge portions. You definitely get your money's worth.

We have been coming to keys for years. Even when the pandemic hit, we would regularly order this on DoorDash. Their food has never disappointed and make sure to try the American fries! read more

Cozy cafe in the heart of White Bear Lake serving up huge portions. Of the things we ordered, the pancake stood out as the best - fluffy and light. The rest of the items (omelette and hash browns) were standard. read more

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Was very disappointed with my wait time once I arrived to pick up my breakfast order of two omelettes. Was told by Mark taking my order by phone it would take up to 25 minutes, no problem. But after arriving 30 minutes after placing my order, paying ahead of time for it & told they were bagging up my order, it was another 20 minutes before I finally received my order. Was told they are very busy, which I thought was the whole idea of supporting our local neighborhood restaurants during this time of shut down of dining in & instead ordering for take out. Just disappointing when breakfast is not the only thing on our agenda for a Sunday. read more

**Update** The owner reached out to me and was very kind. I am updating my review to reflect that. I will visit one of their other locations in the future because the food is wonderful, especially their turkey! I wish I could give zero stars. I had a bad experience only made worse by the rude manager. Don't try to talk over your customer and put words in their mouth as they voice their frustrations. Just listen and apologize... it would go a long way. I will never go back. read more

Went there 2 days and probably should leave 2 reviews...but I'm not. 1st day food was very good and service was just ok. 2nd day food wasn't very good and service was excellent. Therefore the 3 star review. Consistency is Key (pun intended) both food and service. read more

There are two types of people in the world: those who like Keys, and those who don't. I'm one who does, although I can admit that some locations are better than others. This is one of the great ones. My department comes here about once a month for a breakfast meeting, and the servers are always crazy friendly and accommodating. The food is consistently tasty and you know what to expect (i.e. giant pancakes, well-buttered toast, hot coffee). It's homey and comforting, which is all I want from my breakfast spot! read more

Back to my favorite Keys (well, toss up with Foshay) this weekend. Ironically, not by choice though. Met up for brunch, late breakfast, lunch - whatever the hell you call it, I eat so much I quit keeping track of meal names, Saturday around noon. Of course, WBL around this hour is a packed place, so parking can be a bit tricky. But, for those that don't know, this Keys location is about as close to "small town cafe" as it gets. Blink and you'll literally drive right by. In any event, I used to come to this one so much not too long ago that my waitress asked "didn't you used to have a mohawk?" Needless to say, this Keys and I have met. Enough about that, onto the review. Brief wait for a table, which is expected. I expected service to be a bit slower given the rush, and it was. Were seated for a solid 8-10 before the waitress came by (no drink offer in the mean time, just had waters delivered which was fine). Minds were made and everything ordered at that time. Naturally, I order a colossus of food... short stack with the Keys omelet, which is one of the bigger omelets a human can order in this state. Everything from the cooler gets thrown in pretty much. As we waited for food, my neighbor table had a 3-4 year old little kid who ordered pancakes, and they came out in the shape of Mickey Mouse. Damn that little turd for showing me up to my date with his creative genius. And of course it was too long after I ordered to request this. Can you say jealous? Food came out and it was everything I knew it would be. Pancakes were incredible, fluffy, soaked up the syrup (not real maple though, which I'll get into later) and had amazing buttermilk flavor. Alright, to hell with later, what the fuck is with this corn syrup Log Cabin shit they give you? I didn't realize Keys was too cheap to afford solid, real maple syrup. Don't start with the "you can't taste a difference" BS. Get some real stuff from northern Minnesota, Quebec, Vermont or even across the border in Wisconsin, taste it, and then tell me "you can't taste the difference." If you can actually utter that to me afterwards, to hell with you, you don't know good syrup and I won't bother explaining the meaning of life to you. Alright, onto the omelet, it's too early on a Monday to remain that pissed. Fantastic. loaded to the brim, but still able to close it. Good mix of veggies, hash, sausage, and cheese. Went VERY well with the sourdough toast. Service during and after when it calmed down in the place was exactly how I'd like to be, attentive but not intrusive, waters were refilled a couple times while we sat and chatted. The only thing holding back the 5 star is the syrup choice. Do everyone a favor and ditch the Log Cabin and buy real syrup from a Minnesota company. Picky, I know. read more

We came for breakfast on a Thursday morning and the place is cute! We brought my Mother-in-Law and our 2-year-old and everyone left pretty full and happy. We tried the Celine's scrambler (MIL LOVED it) and the Veggie Scramble, adding Sausage. I don't remember what Hubs had except that I think he got a side of biscuits & gravy but daughter had the kids Mickey Mouse pancake with bacon. The coffee was also delicious. Our server was wonderful, she took great care of us, especially when we realized that we actually only had 20 mins to get through breakfast. Everything came out fast and piping hot. My only very minor complaint is that I never got my toast - what, I like toast! We even took a pecan roll home for the next day! Great breakfast spot! read more

My daughter talked me into going here for lunch against my wishes because the other key's locations I have been in just reminded me of perkins or bakers square. This one had more class and a warm and inviting interior. We wanted breakfast for lunch so we split a huge omlet with onions, cheese, peppers and hashbrowns and a side of pancakes. The pancakes are huge and really yummy. The daughter said I think they put sugar in the batter. I am guessing vanilla and malt....but delicious yes they are and the onions and peppers are huge chunks and al dente'. Everything was awesome and they even have their own homemade jam that comes with the homemade bread. Great Job Keys Cafe White Bear... read more

There's not much to say that hasn't already been said by other reviewers. I've been happy with everything I've ever eaten at any Keys Cafe location. I find it a bit surprising that the White Bear Lake location was not previously listed on Yelp. read more

Celine made our wedding cake and dessert bar, pretzel bar during cocktail hour, and catered all the meals for the wedding and she was INCREDIBLE!! People have been talking about how amazing it was since September. She was always easy to work with and helped me use personalized water glasses that were the guests' wedding favors. I wouldn't recommend anyone else, she was incredibly responsive and we feel blessed to have her as such a major part of our experience! read more

Keys is a great cute place to dine locally and feel like you're eating home cooking! The hostess and cash register person were extremely kind and welcoming. The food was very good, just not necessarily outstanding. I'd definitely go back! read more

First time coming to Keys because I've heard a lot about it. No wonder why! It's a cute countryside type place with a family like atmosphere. Jackie was our server and she was so sweet! I had the bisquits and sauage gravy and my mom got a couple eggs with potatoes and their homeade sourdough toast. YUM! The best bisquits and gravy I've ever had, and believe me when I say that's my favorite breakfast! Definitely will be back! read more

Keys Cafe - THE BEST bisquits and sausage gravy I've ever had!!! - American Near Me - White Bear Lake, Minnesota

First timer, excellent food. I had biscuits and gravy excellent breakfast served all day. My girlfriend had the Turkey dinner huge portions reminded me of a Thanksgiving dinner, voted best Turkey dinner Twin Cities. Cookies great, waitstaff excellent. Reminds me the small hometown Cafe's across Northern Wisconsin. We will be back. read more

Keys Cafe - American Near Me - White Bear Lake, Minnesota

I LOVE this location of Keys. I have been coming here since I was a kid. They have great sandwiches and amazing blueberry pancakes... Their strawberry pie is to die for... Truely Keys is great for any meal. It can be a bit crazy to try to get in here on a weekend, but I think that speaks volumes for how great it is! read more

This was my first time at the Keys cafe. Very homey atmosphere. I ordered the smoked salmon eggs benedict and it was delicious! The hollandaise sauce was good and they weren't shy with the portions. Our waitress was friendly and made sure our drinks next ran low. read more

Keys Cafe - Salmon eggs benedict - American Near Me - White Bear Lake, Minnesota

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I ordered two chicken strip meals with french fries to-go and when my boyfriend and I opened the boxes of food, they replaced the fries with red-skinned potatoes...I even repeated "french fries" several times when I ordered by phone... read more

I may be a little looming myself, but the Loon Omelet was so good I had to leave a comment.

I have something of a man-crush on Key's. I mean, what's not to love? They have a great menu, an amazing bakery, and a good atmosphere. Any of their restaurants across the Metro and beyond are well worth a visit! read more

The white bear keys staff is amazing. Whether is eggs and pancakes or catering for a large group - celine and her team are top notch

Just met up with a friend to have lunch here. I decided to go all out and got their club sandwich with fries, and a chocolate shake. Their portions sizes are huge, I had half a sandwich, lots of fries and half of a shake I couldn't finish (no complaints here). The sad which was big and definitely yummy. Crispy, thin fries. And the shake was a classic old fashioned diner shake, delicious. My friend got their chicken salad sandwich which she definitely enjoyed also. Service was pretty good, small wait time and kept drinks refilled. Somewhat cramped entrance, their pastries look amazing and parking was a bit difficult but we will definitely be back. read more

Came here one night for dinner - who doesn't like some good old breakfast for dinner right? - and left feeling good about the place as I would expect from this Key's. Had the biscuits and gravy with hash browns and eggs and overall was pleased. However they did overcook the eggs and tried to serve them to me. When I made a comment, then it dawned on them to cook two new eggs really quick and replace them - only causing me to become a bit annoyed. The hash browns were nice and crispy so went really well with ketchup and the sausage gravy was flavorful and went very well with the biscuits. The portions (of course) were huge too! New thing I learned about this place though, you get a free cupcake on your birthday! Really nice that they didn't make my group go up to the cash register to pay either and have the awkward conversation of how much we wanted to tip right there at the counter. read more

A diner done well describes this place to the T. The omelet and hashbrowns were indeed massive. The cinnamon roll was equally huge. The burger special of the day (California burger) was perfectly cooked as well. The server was very attentive, keeping our little one happy, and the beverages filled. All in all we left feeling full and happy. read more

Love eating at Keys. The food is so good! Feels like eating at home. The servers are so kind and friendly. You never leave here hungry.

Very simple but so delicious! All I got was a number 4 with crispy bacon and it was wonderful. The bread was soft and crisp, the ham was amazing and the bacon was perfectly cooked! The service was fantastic as well! read more

Great little diner/restaurant! Street parking is available and I have never had to search. The portions in this place are fantastic. For the most part, you can't go wrong. I loooooove their breakfast and their bakery items are dynamite. You won't break the bank eating here either. Staff has always been friendly and even the people have been friendly (other patrons). It's a nice little place to come eat and they have never disappointed me. read more

Generous portions, delicious breakfast, comfortable atmosphere. Service was attentive and pleasant. Staff parked one friend's scooter and another's walker. We were not rushed and left happy. read more

If you are looking for comfort breakfast this is the place. We've been here a lot and have never been disappointed. If you leave anything less than stuffed it's because you have restraint that few Americans do. The service is always good. Has a very family owned feel. The only caution is that if you try to go on a Sunday morning you will have to wait. It is however worth it. They do also have somewhat odd hours it seems as they are not always open when I would expect them to be. read more

I've eaten at Keys once before and remembered it being a really good breakfast. I swear You can smell the freshly baked bread from miles away, so I decided to order take out for lunch yesterday. I called to ask about the daily selection of soups but they didn't sound super appealing to me, so I decided to get a salad. I ordered the blue cheese and sugared pecan salad, but the person I was speaking to on the phone didn't seem like she knew what I was talking about at first which confused me. She wasn't very professional over the phone so I'm just assuming she's new! No big deal. They told me it would be ready in about ten minutes so I waited 15 and headed over there. It was all ready and packed up in a to go container and bag for me!!! I was so excited to eat it as I was starving. Unfortunately my work got really busy once I was back so I had to delay eating my salad for about 30 more minutes. Once I finally had the chance to indulge, I opened the container and something about the salad looked entirely boring and basic. It was so simple and didn't look extremely appetizing but I went ahead and started eating it. Then all of a sudden I came to a sad, appetite crushing realization - they had forgotten my blue cheese ..... How does one forget to put an ingredient on a salad that's in the name of the menu item?!!! Ugh. By then it was too late and since I had ordered it to go, I wasn't about to head back over there to ask for a side of blue cheese or a new meal. I fully believe that take out orders deserve attention to detail because most people don't think to double check that they're getting what they're paying for at the counter! Had I been eating in the cafe, it would have been easy to correct the mistake but that was not the case. I'm very discouraged now and am not sure if I'll ever order lunch from this Keys location again. read more

A strong four stars. I really like their breakfast food. They know what good bacon is, they have homemade jam, and the wait staff are really nice. I had a really good cod sandwich recently, as well as a bowl of chili which I found almost too good to be true! Get a burger sometime. It is one of those classic American diners that has a small-towny feel to it. I grew up on this stuff! Keep it up, Guys. read more

So, we recently had a chocolate cake from Keys and boy, was it moist and delicious. It was a chocolate cake with a marbled white and chocolate frosting. Not only was it beautiful, but it was a scrumptious cake. It wasn't dry. It had a decent amount of frosting. It tasted like homemade. We all loved it. I can't speak to Keys' other food items or desserts, but based on the cake alone, I'd return to try other items. It was THAT good! read more

The food was delicious, we ordered an omelette and cinnamon French toast. We highly recommend it. Heather was our waitress and she was really sweet and very attentive. read more