This place is exactly what you think it will be if you take it face value. My boyfriend and I love this spot! We don't expect the best service as it's usually just one server and a cook or two. Go when you have time and aren't in a rush. Luckily my boyfriend and I love time together to just talk and be off our phones so the 30 minute wait for breakfast isn't tortuous. Food is exceptionally fresh and well presented (again) for what it is. It's a diner people! Not a Newbury street cafe! Adjust your expectations haha The place is the a perfect diner with interesting roots that serves great, cheap breakfast with that local touch of personality you'd expect in Medford. The cornbread muffins will keep me coming back. The food always comes out exactly as ordered so that's a plus! I took my parents here, and breakfast for 4 people with extra sides and coffee was only $42! You can't get that in Boston or even Somerville at this quality that I have found. Be open minded and give it a shot! read more

Ok, the decor is pretty weird and the bathroom is always freezing for some reason, however, its my absolute favorite place for breakfast hands down. The spinach and feta omlette (made w egg beaters per my request) is the best I've ever had. Now, while the breakfast is amazing,I reccomend going for lunch and getting the eggplant or chicken parm (or the combo that has both). I'm not a big pasta fan, but this little oddball Medditeranian place has the best pasta dishes I've EVER had. The chef could very easily hop into a joint in the North End, set up court and season the Italian out of any of the other chefs. To top off, my husband and I can have lunch, still have leftovers for dinner and the bill still ends up under $20 bucks. Beats the North End any day. read more

This place is quite the hole in a wall, and slightly unsightly, but the food is GREAT. I've been coming here for years and consider it to be the hidden gem of Medford. Yes, I've gone to Ball Square Cafe and Soundbites, but the crowds never die down. At lighthouse, there's never a crowd, it quiet, fast, and cheap. Great eggs, the best "hash browns" I've EVER had (seriously), perfectly crisp and delicious! The lunch section of the menu is phenominal as well. Awesome steak tips, and really good pasta dishes. If you're in the area and are looking for cheap its, this is your place. read more

Waited an hour and half for eggs and pancakes. Of course, the food came cold and soggy. After disposing of the food and calling to see if I could get a refund they declined. This order was placed using the EAT24 service that's attached to the page. They were also extremely unhelpful in resolving the issue. I'm sure the experience in the restaurant is different. But if you're going to charge a delivery fee, an order minimum and then have your food come out poorly and not honor a refund request for $15 bucks, you have management issues. If you don't know how to operate a delivery service, don't advertise that you do. Just take it out all together. Also, don't use EAT24 either, the customer service is trained to call and check order times only. Problem resolution skills are equivalent to the ability of teenagers working in low-tiered frozen yogurt shops. Ranting....done. read more

So if I could give 3.5 stars I would - but because of the price and the flavor I'm boosting it to four. We'll start with the cons since you notice them quicker -- The decor is, quite frankly, frightening. It is somewhere between a mix of an empty warehouse and as another reviewer described: a basement playroom. The layout is the polar opposite of feng shui. Not that I'm any kind of expert, but its basically just a bunch of tables tossed in a back room with some kind of take-out looking counter in the front. The servers are frantic/frazzled/flaky, but sweet. Our server wrote everything down - not in the typical waitress/waiter shorthand, but in full detail (needless to say this took awhile). However, I appreciate attention to detail and I would have been more upset had the order been wrong! Okay, now the good -- The waitress came over really quickly to get us coffee and water and took our breakfast orders when she brought them back, which I appreciate! Unless I say so, I don't need to wait to order. I'm hungry! Of course I spent the time I waited for my food reading reviews on Yelp - which may have set me up to expect more. Everyone talks about how big the plates are and how the food blows them away. The food did come out quickly -- probably about 10 minutes or less? But the waitress completely forgot my boyfriend's order of home fries. He asked her about it twice and she said "oh sure let me check", walked over to the kitchen counter and said "I need an order of homefries" .. uh, lady? We can hear you, we're only five feet away! The plates WERE big, but not OH-MY-GOD-THIS-IS-SO-BIG big. I got an omelette -- 5 eggs, yes, big, but I ate the whole thing and it didn't seem excessive, with a grilled bagel (had to ask for cream cheese?), and homefries (which were really hashbrowns, but still yummy). The bill for both of us was about $17. Not bad, not bad at all. I feel like some of those little things are the things you have to take with a small local family joint. For the money and the food it's definitely worth it. I would tell you to check it out, but it's my only non-disgustingly-crowded morning brunch spot in the area so... don't! Cuz I wanna! read more

First time going to that place. It's an old school place but we love that. Very friendly people, the food is good and price are great.

This was an online order. It took 50mins for the order to be processed, cooked and then delivered which is actually the median time frame for these guys. Not too bad, i guess. So i don't usually order breakfast, as i'm more of a dine-in individual but i am currently confined to my position at the moment. Regardless, this particular restaurants cuisine is nothing short of mediocre. I ordered the clam chowder, small OJ, 2 side orders of egg whites and the Eggs benedict. Clam Chowder- 0/5, Possibly the worst chowder i've experienced. The chowder is bland and the consistency isn't there. I tried to see if adding the Oyster crackers would alleviate any discrepancies but to my demise, made it that much worse. It's just something that shouldn't be consumed by someone with a pallet. OJ- 4/5, I mean who could screw this up, right ? Definitely not fresh squeezed but whatever brand they purchased is definitely a good one. (Although, i believe this isn't Tropicana) Egg Whites- 2/5, I am a big egg white person. There is definitely a way to make these suckers enjoyable but that's far from the case with these guys. It's really weird, i ordered 2 servings of these guys and i feel as if one serving ended up tasting better than the other ? Strange but all in all, a rubbery texture along with a strange buttery chewing, by far the worst. Felt like i was eating a dried out muffin with sprinkles of water and butter on top. Eggs Benny- 2/5, Not too bad but not worth 3 stars. The ham was rubbery while the muffin looked "lifeless". All 3 muffins were toasted, closer to burnt but not, on top but soft on bottom. The ham was rubbery and i had to fight through to get my teeth through to actually chew it. The eggs were nicely poached but the inside was closer to a hard medium rather than a soft so no yolk was released after the initial bite (Not photo worthy and killed my excitement :( ) As for the hollandaise, decent. Not too yolky nor too buttery but could use a bit more flavor. I didn't bother with the hash brown since i don't typically eat it but it did not have that golden/dark brown color that Hash's usually take ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ definitely won't order from here again but if you do end up getting anything from here on a limb, Eggs Bene won't hurt the pockets or your heart too much. read more

The low-point of our meal was listening to the waitress throw up in the bathroom. Yup. To be fair, we happened to be seated at the crossroads between the smoky, acrimonious kitchen and the long cold hall to the restrooms. "Is this okay?" the waitress had asked, gesturing to this unappealing table. I profoundly wish that I'd said what was in my heart: "No. It's gross. Why would you sit someone there?" Lesson learned. The food was mediocre and the bill was inexplicably high, given the prices on the menu. All things considered we are NEVER, EVER going back. Even if it was just morning sickness. read more

I order delivery from here via Grubhub at work - that's always great. Quick delivery and they've never messed up an order. Weekday delivery gets 5 stars. So last weekend I decided to try Sunday brunch there... The wait for a table was kind of long, despite the fact that there were empty tables. There are only two servers who double as hosts and food runners. They are polite, but obviously quite busy. Not exactly the cheerful breakfast I had in mind. Service continued to be slow and coffee refills were almost nonexistent. The food was...ok. And that's being generous. My pancakes were dry and I hate that they use butter packets left on the table. They might have been better with some real whipped butter, but I'll never know. The bacon was extremely thin, but actually pretty tasty. My favorite part of breakfast, the grilled bagel, was never brought to me. I was still charged for it. It wasn't worth the argument over $1.50. Dine in gets a 2. So, will I be back in person? Not likely. Will I continue to order delivery You bet! read more

It's outdated, dark, looks as if it had been decorated by people wearing Jordache jeans or Hotdogger pants, and downright strange. And it's my very favorite breakfast spot in all of Boston and the surrounding areas. The first time you go, you'll likely be shocked by the number of choices on the menu - there's probably a hundred different combinations to choose from. Once you've decided, you'll again be shocked by how quickly the food comes out, and how great everything tastes. Then you'll realize that their idea of a standard omelette contains five eggs, or perhaps that the eggs benedict has one and a half english muffins, not the standard one. Or maybe you'll notice that they'll refill your coffee exactly when you need it, and wonder how they just know. And then when you're finally done indulging, your bill is so low that you can't imagine how you ate so much for so little. The next time you come in, you're family. They know your face, and welcome you with a smile and a knowing glance. And when you leave, full and happy and thinking that you probably can't eat for another day, they'll wave goodbye and say, "see you next week." Can't beat that, no matter how many eggs anyone puts in your omelette. read more

Nice little breakfast and lunch place in Medford Sq. I had the corned beef hash with eggs, homefries, and toast. The eggs were fine, the homefries overcooked, dry, and crispy, and the corned beef has was ok (from a can). If wasn't for the price it would have been 2 stars so I would say if you are in the area and have no other options give it a try but if you want something a little more satisfying then venture out to somewhere else. read more

This place was pretty mediocre and a disappointment to two starving people on a Sunday morning. It was all edible but nothing special- the veggie "omelette" was really a bunch of veggies with an egg on top- and the platter my boyfriend got sounded like a huge amount of food but came out looking like a kids meal! Worst of all, after we finished our meal, we sat there for about half an hour waiting for our check. We checked with the waitress who told us someone would be out to help us and then talked to the table next to us for fifteen minutes. Eventually we just went up to the register. We were really excited to find a new place close to home- but I don't think we will be back. read more

It hurts me to say that this is the last time we will come here. The wait for the food was over 30 minutes. It was too much for the kids. The waitress was great and she did what she could. The other waitress even heated my cup before pouring in the hot water. She's a tea drinker. I ordered the steak and cheese. I got a dry hamburger omelette that was awful. I sent it back for some cheese and they put a slice of cheese on it and microwaved it. The French toast was fine. The prices are reasonable. However the quality has gone way downhill. No more fresh potatoes, the hash browns were from a package. My mother didn't want to come here this morning. She had warned me because she had come with her friend and they had an awful meal. We had been here two weeks ago and it was slow, but acceptable. Today tipped the scale. Mom was right. read more

Me and a friend at work ordered food around 11:30. Estimated time of about 10 to 15 minutes for delivery food end up showing up at 12:45 did not bring all the food that was ordered food with half cooked. Callback company to get a refund read more

Lighthouse Cafe - This is how the food was delivered to me burnt with literally no food in the box - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Medford, Massachusetts

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No heat in the winter, really crappy atmosphere, sketchy people hanginig out.....BUT the food.....ohhhh the food So good! In fact, the price is pretty good too. If you can look past the weirdness, you'll be rewarded with a great breakfast that won't lighten the wallet too much. Give it a shot, it's good =) read more

The server here knew just about everyone who came through the door by name. I've been here for brunch before, but this was the first lunch. The monte christo was delicious and the fries were crispy goodness and they gave us a side of mayo for the fries. We got our food in about 5 minutes, it was that fast. One downside, they have soda in cans...no tap. read more

Eek! Methinks not- we ordered through eat 24 and not only did it take double the estimated time- but the food was cold and super disappointing. The bacon tastes like the kind my grandpa keeps in the freezer and throws in the microwave on a paper plate. The french toast was ok- a bit chewy, and cold so it actually was microwaved on a paper plate. read more

Lighthouse Cafe - bacon? - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Medford, Massachusetts

Hashbrowns were not as amazing as other said, but worth heading over too. Fancy stuff on the menu for a "greesy spot" and they only had 2 people working there but didn't have a long wait at all. I'd love to go another time and try more food. I got the Italian Lighthouse Omelet (5 eggs! for around $6), and our crew got the breakfast burrito (cut up to make it easier) and fresh fruit pancakes. They really have some awesome stuff. They are a little cheesy with the decorations but I don't think they pretend to be fancier than they are. The menu and kitchen reflect great taste and creative dishes, but yes, the decor looks like it was designed by not the same taste... but the price is right and the food is good. read more

I tried this place a couple times and overall everything was quite bad. The service was slow, the food was bland, and the space was dirty. The silverware was dirty and we found a hair in our food. Nasty!! read more

Had late breakfast on a Sunday. Waitress was very nice. Place is clean and the coffee was fresh. I am picky about omelettes but I saw the guy's next to me and thought I would take a chance. Just like I would make at home! None of that thin layer of eggs rolled around some cheap fillings that you get at other places. If you like you toast or English muffin crunchy than ask for it that way. Will def go back to try something new. read more

Not happy about my first time ordering a To go plate without looking at the portion. I ordered the salmon and it was the smallest peace I ever seen for the price and lacked any love and the rice was crunchy ...over all a waist of money read more

It's a hobby in French culture to find restaurants that aren't much to look at but serve excellent food. The Lighthouse Cafe is a great example - it's not the most beautiful restaurant (at all), but their omelettes are so good. I ordered the French omelette (of course), a 5-egg omelette with mushrooms and boursin cheese. At 5'1" and about 95 pounds, it's not expected for me to eat very much, and I really don't. I finished almost the whole thing, and ate most of the hash brown (which was really good as well). The toast that comes with the order is pretty decent, nothing particularly special. My boyfriend ordered eggs benedict, which were delicious too - the hollandaise sauce was extra velvety and buttery. The eggs, on both mine and his, were fluffy and light. Would I come back? In a word, YES. read more

First visit here since moving in, absolutely loved my meal and the service! Nutella and banana French toast were to die for, and the fresh whipped cream was fantastic and not too sugary. The eggs over easy were cooked just right, nice gooey yolk (so I can dip my bread), with the egg white fully cooked and not runny. I was asked several times if I wanted more coffee and the staff really made me feel welcome. May make this my weekly ritual while living in the neighborhood. read more

Lighthouse Cafe - Breakfast & Brunch Near Me - Medford, Massachusetts

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We rarely get north of Boston (other than for Woodmans and the PEM) but on Memorial Day were in Medford in early morning, and the Lighthouse was just about the only thing open (the hard-working owner sez he only closes two days a year, sensing an opportunity). I had a fruit, yogurt & granola bowl, and remarked how fresh and crisp all the fruit was -- he said he prided himself on the freshness of his ingredients. My wife had eggs and home-fries (OK, she did share some of the latter: the prepared kind but still ok). Simple fare, but well done, and the talkative regular near us shared his tips on nearby donut shops -- even offered to guide us there! read more

This is absolutely one of my favorite places in Medford. Living close by, I love the easy walk to the historic square. Currently, they're slowly going through renovations. They've restructured the entrance way. Now, you have a clear view of the busy street! Inside: dim and out-dated. Decor is nothing to fawn over. Usually two people on staff on a Saturday morning. But, behind the mediocre looks, is a great menu! Come hungry, come drunk, or stoned... come whatever. The food is excellent. The guy in the kitchen knows his eggs. He's got talent for great eggs. I can't stress it enough. I know, "it's just eggs." But, poached or over easy isn't easy to come by. It's a beautiful thing. My eggs Benedict was great! Okay, the presentation was maybe a, B+. And, oddly enough, there were three Benedicts! But, I don't care. The taste and value is there, and I felt the chef's love. The french toast. Amazing. The hashbrowns. Amazing^nth degree. (Seriously better than other, I'm sorry to say, over rated places in Somerville.) Just order it. I praise this place and now I want more. read more

I've only been for breakfast on the weekends and 90% of the time I'm there it's slammed with a wait sometimes hanging out the door. It's not fancy and is definitely a hole in the wall. They have good coffee. I almost always get scrambled eggs, homefries and wheat toast. Interestingly I think the homefries have been different each time, ranging from hash browns to cubes to slices of seasoned or less seasoned potatoes. I think of it as part of the charm : ) The french toast (regular, not banana) is the good hearty thick stuff. They are apparently open for lunch on a daily basis, but since I don't work in the area, I'd never make it there for that. read more

Don't much to look at. However, the breakfast is amazing. The corn muffin, hash browns and corn beef hash were all great!

So it's kind of dark and dingy,,. but seriously,the french toast stuffed with bananas and simple syrup was yummy. Sure, an hour later I felt like there was a cinder block in my stomach, but it was worth it. The Blue Moon special was also tasty. You just can't beat a grilled Blueberry Muffin. Tastes like Toaster Strudel, but good, The cheese omelet that came with it was also one of the better omelette's I've had at a cafe, however, the hash browns... not so much. Very McDonald's but bigger. No flavor. The best part... the price. Very cheap. There are worse ways to start your day. read more

It's a "greasy spoon" that's for sure. The beau and I ended up going here after a night of painting the town red. I live down the street from the Lighthouse Cafe; and so, we decided to give this place a try. We should have eased our way into a full blown breakfast spread but we couldn't help it. It was delish! It was really affordable and the portions are huge. read more

I wandered in here one afternoon craving a burger and was pleasantly surprised. Had my misgivings at first since the place was empty - but on a summer Friday, probably everyone is just on vacation. Service was attentive and fast, and my cheeseburger was delicious. I was blown away by the fries - rarely have I had any this crispy! Would definitely recommend for a quick lunch. read more

Th ambiance, the food, the people. 5 stars. Will come here often now that I've discovered this place. read more

Awful. They apparently didn't expect a brisk business on Presidents' Day. One server for the room and one cook. Waited WAY too long for silverware and to put in our order, receiving the worst tuna melt ever (it was warm only and not on the bread I ordered). Fryer broke, so French fries came out even later. Chef sent out unappealing fruit side to appease us as we waited and waited. Good thing I was there for a convenient, no-rush visit with my friend and not the food. There were repeated apologies, but I had to write this review. Too bad there are no good, casual, sit-down-and-be-waited-on breakfast/sandwich places in Medford Square. Will go to counter service Colleen's or Mystic Coffee Roaster and linger next time. read more

New to Medford Sq. area and have nailed it with Lighthouse Cafe for brunch! It leaves a bit to be desired on the decor, but we easily found a table with plenty of space. The waitress was polite and attentive. Total bill was about $12/person....which would have been less if we had any clue about the PORTIONS! I tried the Banana French Toast which were perfect and HUGE! I always expect the bananas to be mush, but these were great! I also ordered a Home Fry side... this was the hash brown version that looked the size of an Anna's Burrito. It was nothing special. Probably pass next time. My friends were extremely happy with orders of a Western Omelete (again, HUGE) and Chocolate Chip Pancakes. My Girlfriend's Eggs Benedict was kind of blah. Didn't look that great either. I know I'll give them a 2nd chance on that though! read more

I agree with Ellen H. and would have given Lighthouse Cafe 3.5 stars, but they win the extra half a point for the unlimited coffee. The waitress was by with the pot every time our cute flowered mugs got down to halfway. Bottomless coffee = bottomless smiles from me. They were kind enough to add chocolate chips to the apple cinnamon pancakes at my request, and they weren't the best pancakes I've ever had, but that might have been my fault. They were a liiiittle undercooked, and nothing special, but they hit the spot after a late night of drinking and dancing. And right nearby in Medford Square? Can't beat the convenience, or the wait time (0 minutes on a Sunday at 11 AM). The crowd's on the older side and seemed to be made up of lots of regulars. The restaurant itself is on the ugly side, but I appreciate the homey (and homely?) atmosphere. If you're looking for a trendy weekend brunch spot, this isn't it, but if you're looking for someplace where you can giggle about your night over cheap food and cups and cups of coffee, Lighthouse Cafe is the place for you. read more

They cook everything pretty perfectly. My girl enjoys the omelette and they make delicious hashbrowns! The prices are so affordable I could easily come here everyday! Next time I'm coming for lunch! read more

I had breakfast from here for the first time in a few years and I have to say, the food is just not the same. I was told that the place had changed hands of ownership, which I didn't know before then. The menu is for the most part the same, perhaps with a few more options. I got the Lucky Stars breakfast and was kind of disappointed. The blueberry pancakes tasted like a boxed buttermilk pancake mix, the two strips of bacon could have been cooked another minute on each side and the eggs (I got mine scrambled) were fine, just under seasoned. My mother ordered the Sun, Moon & Stars and felt pretty much the same about her breakfast. She didn't have pancakes, but hash browns came with her meal and they weren't very crispy, mushy in the center and very under seasoned. The waitress was very nice and polite, but in general the service was a bit slow, especially at the end when we were waiting to get our check. It was very disappointing that this place has gone downhill, especially since I've been going there since I was young. I used to swear their chicken parm and French toast were the best around! I guess I'll have to find another breakfast place. read more

Went there for breakfast this morning. Have not been since it changed hands. I don't know how any cook can mess up breakfast foods, but it was gross. I ordered the sun moon and stars. The scrambled eggs were dry, over cooked. The bacon was super salty, and the hash brown, which is actually mashed potatoes, were really gross. The bagel was good. The service was super slow even though the place was almost empty. The fact that it was empty should have been a sign of things to come. Years ago this place was always packed. I will not eat there again. read more

The food is actually quite good. Unfortunately, delivery takes over 2 hours - if it arrives at all. Tried ordering once, and after repeated follow up calls I got my food two hours later. Hoping this was a one off, I tried again another day - this time, I was told after multiple calls that, as of two and a half hours after placing the order, the food still wasn't even being cooked. This despite the fact that an hour previously, they had claimed the food was almost ready. Given that this has happened multiple times, I can only assume they have no sense of professional responsibility towards their online customers - I can't speak to the on-premise experience, but avoid ordering from here if you can. read more

Terrible service. Ok food. I saw some of the reviews about poor service but tried to keep an open mind, as we tried a local place for the first time. First off we were seated without menus. Our waitress asked immediately what we wanted to drink ( a water and a coffee). At least 10-20 minutes later we still had nothing but silverware. I helped myself to menus which were up on the counter. It took the waitress 2 more attempts to remember our water and coffee! When she finally brought the drinks, she didn't bring cream. She walked by a few more times noting that we needed it however we gave up and asked another woman working for cream. She immediately brought it over. It took some time for our food to come out- an omelette with hashbrowns and toast and the hungry man plate with eggs, French toast, and hashbrowns. The food was ok. Hashbrowns we're cold, dry and rubbery. Omelet was decent. French toast was a little burnt. The restaurant was busy and the waitress was the only one working however I've been in similar settings and have never seen such a hot mess. I noted tables around us were also waiting forever to order their meals. One couple had been waiting for their food, watching at least 3 other tables who came after them order and receive their food first. The waitress finally noticed and went to check on it. She had never put in their order!! Needless to say my boyfriend and I were disappointed and will definitely NOT be back. read more

The first impression when you walk into this place is tired and dry. But DON'T let that fol you. They have a very creative breakfast menu and everything's pretty good. The eggs benedict gets 3 servings instead of just two, the hollandaise isn't overly buttery or runny and the eggs are just right. They do hash browns instead of home fries, which is a nice surprise cuz i didn't think anyone else besides denny's makes those around here. The coffee's a little strong, but if you're there after a night of partying, there isn't much to complain about. The only drawback is the service. They could seem a little more attentive to your needs. read more