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    Maid-Rite

    4.6 (41 reviews)
    Closed 7:00 am - 3:00 pm

    Maid-Rite Photos

    MAID-RITE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Casual
    Moderate noise
    Good for kids
    Outdoor seating

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    Recommended Reviews - Maid-Rite

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    Fluffy omelets with toast
    Patti C.

    Great place to grab a breakfast or lunch . Friendly service with everything handmade makes this tiny diner charming. Countertop stools and old fashioned flair with a touch of home cooking gives you a hearty breakfast at a reasonable price. Light fluffy omelets and "made rite meat" are tasty . The service is fantastic with friendly help. A real hidden gem although it is a chain, this one is a joy

    Simple two eggs and two toasts
    Matthew K.

    Giving this 5 stars because it's exactly what you want in a diner. Food not exquisitely gourmet or anything but exactly what you would want Ina diner and the home made jam was really tasty. Servers were the best. Such great people. Chatted to them for a while and both chef and server just great humans. Perfect ambiance for sitting belly up to the counter and having a morning get up and go breakfast.

    Inside
    Shelley C.

    Gotta love the GPS that guided us to this location. I was actually asking for info on how to get to the city. Ending at this tiny little mecca was a super bonus! I guess this little treasure is the center of town, or Karma felt we should show up here. Either way, it was worth it to sit on a bar stool in cramped quarters, order a sumptuous burger and fries, then watch the waitress craft an excellent butterscotch milk shake. Loose meat burgers are something super old school. NuWay in Wichita, KS is the only other loose meat burger I have ever had the pleasure of eating at and it was established years ago, too! This loose meat is akin to eating a sloppy Joe, but with less slop. Oh, who am I kidding? It is a delightfully tasty mess on a bun, not too greasy, but enough that you need to buy stock in napkins before it's over! The fries doubled as edible chopsticks for all the meat that fell off the bun, by no means shorting the bun any meat! There is something special about a loose meat burger. No matter how you hold it, you WILL lose some into the basket! The butterscotch shake was sweet, tasty, delicious, filling, cold... I could go on and on with description. One thing for sure was that we were full when we left. It's no wonder they have been around for so long. Keep on doing it the same way and you won't go wrong. If you are reading this, figure out how to go eat there!

    One of the oldies but goodies!
    Jerry M.

    This Grand Dame of Diners has been open in downtown Cedar Falls since 1947. Maid-Rite was founded in 1926 in Muscatine, Iowa, by Fred Angell. A butcher by trade, Angell created a recipe for his loose-meat sandwich that a friend said was made right. He opened his Maid-Rite restaurant in Muscatine, the first fast food restaurant. Angell offered car-hop service at his second restaurant, a concept copied by White Castle and A&W not long after. Angell sold four franchises by 1930, which are still in operation. Several of the original Maid-Rite stores are extant and are historical landmarks - the Maid-Rite in Springfield, Illinois offered the first drive-through window. While this particular restaurant is not on the National Registry of Historic Places, it is certainly a local landmark. A throw back to diners before the days of portion control, rigid menus and cartoon mascots, this restaurant serves up Maid-Rite sandwiches the same it was done 65 years ago. A classic Coca-Cola button sign on the roof belies the fact that the restaurant pours Pepsi products, but it's still a great vintage sign. The building also sports neon signage, another great throwback to earlier times. While the diner is showing it's age, it is clean and maintained. If you're looking for a fancy dining experience with uniformed wait staff, silverware, china and linen napkins, you're in the wrong place. On the other hand, if you would like a great sandwich, don't want to spend a lot of money and relish a dining adventure, come'on over to Maid-Rite in Cedar Falls!

    Restaurant exterior
    Kristian D.

    This is a rather unique place in Cedar Falls, IA. The Maid-Rite chain has many locations, but this one is a true diner setup with lots of small town charm. The standard Maid Rite is a loose meat sandwich with fixings. I had the Cheese Rite which adds American cheese. It does not need cheese which gets lost in the mix. The meat is seasoned, tasty, and overflowing, but not overly salty or spicy. The fries were nothing special. I would recommend some other side instead. Well worth a stop!

    Menu

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    12 years ago

    place is dirty nobody wanted to wait on us the help is lazy we waited forever and the food sucked wont go back!

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    Patton Diner

    Patton Diner

    4.0
    (38 reviews)
    0.1 mi

    Very nice diner in downtown cedar falls with a full bar! The biscuit I had was soft and chewy…read morerather than crusty, which I appreciated. Plenty of sausage gravy that was creamy. The BEC Sandy had plenty of egg on it and was tasty. Portions were decent but not huge. The restaurant is long and narrow so it doesn't have a lot of out of the way places. It was also brightly lit. Coffee was good and they had a good selection of premium coffee drinks as well. Service was friendly and our server checked in on us appropriately and filled coffee as needed. All in all a really nice breakfast option different from the usual.

    Nice old school diner decor but elevated. When you walk in the door, it really looks old school…read morealmost supper club-ish with wood paneled walls. But, turn the corner into the diner proper and you know this is going to be some good food. It's bright and airy inside with fun decorations on the walls. We ordered the Korean Chicken Sandwich (a total favorite of the Cedar Falls native) and the single smashed burger. Thumbs up to the Korean Chicken. The smash burger was OK. The fries were delicious. The iced tea was also delicious. I know that is weird to praise, but it was. The only downside to this experience is that we ordered the potstickers as an appetizer and never got them. I would return. (Apparently, breakfast and brunch is a thing here.)

    Photos
    Main dining room.
    Main dining room.
    General Patton Chicken and Garlic Fried Rice
    General Patton Chicken and Garlic Fried Rice
    Patton Diner

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    J's Homestyle Cooking

    J's Homestyle Cooking

    4.2
    (103 reviews)
    2.1 mi
    $$

    This place had a true hometown feel. The service staff were super friendly and calling everyone by…read morename, it was packed, and the food was the centerpiece of it all! Homemade pie slices for $2.99 in this economy is WILD, but was the posted price with a whole laundry list of flavors! YUM! This is a breakfast/lunch spot and they close at 2pm except for a few evenings that they do dinner evidently. It is ABSOLUTELY WORTH making sure you get there even with the odd times!!! The French toast is amazing and I love french toast, I had some with my omelet. The omelet is a thinner version. Cooked on a flat top, folded and filled beautifully with all the goodies I requested. It was delicious! I ate far more of both the omelet AND the french toast! Yummmm. My partner had the sampler (top left on the menu). The server said you had to try it. It had eggs, meat, a side of French toast, AND a 1/4 biscuit with gravy! We took a bite of the sausage with a bite of the biscuit and gravy which was perfect! All the food was good as was the coffee (which had beautiful full flavor and wasn't watered down... momma likes some STRONG COFFEE and theirs was perfect! Our server was also wonderful, happy, helpful, and so nice. Wish I was better with names! They were packed but moved people in and out efficiently so go give them a try!!!

    What a great breakfast spot. The service was fast and friendly. The environment was clean and even…read moretoned. And the food was amazing. The Panther Plate is wonderful, a mix of omelet, hash browns, country fried steak, and biscuits and gravy in one GIANT 4 egg omelet. So stuffed!

    Photos
    Outside of restaurant
    Outside of restaurant
    Breakfast burrito
    Breakfast burrito
    Omelet and French Toast

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    Omelet and French Toast
    Sidecar Coffee

    Sidecar Coffee

    4.4
    (64 reviews)
    1.4 mi
    $

    My wife and I stopped by the First Street Sidecar location in Cedar Falls this past weekend…read more Unfortunately, this location does not appear on Yelp, so I am leaving a review for the College Hill location (which I have visited in the past). Here are our thoughts below! Food/Drink: Monster Cookie (Yum! This cookie was HUGE, soft, and delicious. Rating = 8/10). Hot Cinnamon Roll Latte (This tasted nearly identical to a warm, gooey, cinnamon roll! Be warned - it is a very sweet beverage. Rating = 7.7/10). Iced Hazelnut Latte (YES! This is basically almost as good as it gets when it comes to a latte. Absolutely scrumdidilyumptious. Rating = 9/10). Service: The service here could not have been better! Our barista's name was Brianna, and she had a phenomenal attitude. She looked excited to help us out and appears to love her job. Her passion for her job truly shined through during our time in the shop. Ambiance: As mentioned above, this review is based on our visit to the First Street location in Cedar Falls. It has a much different vibe than the College Hill location. The First Street location is not quite as "homey" as the College Hill cafe and has more of a coffee chain feel (not as much unique character that I typically enjoy with local coffee brands). The College Hill location, on the other hand, has much more personality. It is an excellent place to get some work done, read a book, or meet up with friends! All in all - we undoubtedly had a 5-star experience at Sidecar this past weekend. Excellent food and drink and some of the best service we've received in a while!

    White chocolate latte was delicious, smooth not too strong or sweet. Cinnamon roll was the gooey…read morekind in the middle, loved it. Cute shop, staff were very friendly and service was fast. I'll be back probably go through the drive through tomorrow!

    Photos
    Bluebells - honey blueberry green tea with blackberry. SO good
    Bluebells - honey blueberry green tea with blackberry. SO good
    Cinnamon rolls
    Cinnamon rolls
    Iced Hazelnut Latte, Hot Cinnamon Roll Latte, and Monster Cookie

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    Iced Hazelnut Latte, Hot Cinnamon Roll Latte, and Monster Cookie

    Maid-Rite - diners - Updated August 2026

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