We love this place so much that we are here every weekend and we know the staff on a first name basis as if they are our extended family. Ms.Holly, Ms.Pam , Don Ignacio , Melanie, Melissa to name a few.... Hats off to the chef and sous chefs that make this incredible yummy food. I have been brining my friends and family to this lovely place and introduction them to this family oriented diner! We will be coming here for many more weekends to come. Blessings to all of you read more

Mel's Diner - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

1. The steak and eggs were cooked perfectly the way I ordered it! The portions are good! 2. The spot has chill casual vibes! The interior is cozy! 3. The staff were friendly and attentive! Our food was ready in less than 15 mins! 4. There is an indoor and outdoor seating area! there are a lot of tables and booths! 5. Parking lot is huge! Note: This spot only accept cash and Venmo! Photo: NY Steak & Eggs and Chicken Fried Steak & Eggs read more

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Mel's Diner popped up when my girlfriend was looking for breakfast, and it was our first time here. I'll say this right away--it was delicious. We ordered a mushroom & bacon omelet, cinnamon roll (instead of toast), potatoes, and a 4-stack of pancakes. I've honestly never been to a place that lets you swap toast for a cinnamon roll, and that alone won me over. The roll was soft, warm, and absolutely delicious. The omelet was fluffy and flavorful, and the potatoes were my favorite part--so good that I ended up ordering an extra side. The pancakes were classic, fluffy, and hit the spot. You can tell this place has been around for a long time--in a good way. Even the old-school cash register gave it character, which I really liked. Just a heads-up: it's cash only (or Venmo), so come prepared. Overall: great food, comforting diner vibes, and a spot we'll definitely be coming back to again. read more

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We were very pleased with the tasty, well-cooked food. Service was great and Manager Pam was helpful and gracious to patrons. We gladly recommend Mel's Diner in Fountain Valley. read more

Bomb breakfast and yummy soup. Got the ham and cheese melt and the cup of soup and was very yum service was great.

We came here for a work conference but were able to also visit a friend. We were brought to this restaurant for breakfast and was not disappointed. The service is outstanding and the food impeccable. I ordered a vegetarian omelette with their version of hash-browns. Your plate is literally filled with yumminess. We also tried the famous cinnamon rolls and luckily we did as we got the last one. If you have diabetes, don't get this. It's super sweet and decadent. I can see how they sell out quickly. Sadly no pics were taken as we sampled up the roll pretty quick. My coffee was continuously refilled. For an unassuming restaurant in a strip mall, they pack a punch! read more

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Come back for coffee, breakfast Order a coffee, cinnamon roll , biscuits & gravy Faster service here The cinnamon roll and the biscuit wasn't completely the both baked still aren't not fully baked. (the dough is still wet and sticky, like raw dough) Seems like rushed to serving. We just left after paid! read more

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I would say this is my favorite diner in Fountain Valley. It's a no fuss, traditional, American diner, specializing in breakfast and lunch. It's fairly small on the inside, but it is very homey and the sort of place that you'd want to stay a while. Our server was very polite and everything that we ordered arrived very fast. It's important to know they don't accept credit card, only cash or Venmo. It's in a small shopping center, so there is plenty of free parking right out front. I had read many reviews about their award-winning Chicken Fried Steak so had to order that for myself for my first visit. I will say that the steak was fantastic and it had a great sear on it. I would definitely say it's one of the better Chicken Fried Steaks I've had in a long time and would highly recommend ordering it. Pricing is also very fair so I would recommend to anyone in or visiting the Fountain Valley area. read more

Mel's Diner - Mel's Diner - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

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Update on the biscuits and gravy. This time it was a nice soft biscuit. The gravy is decent but not homemade. I would get it again.

My mother in law rarely eats breakfast and surprised us by telling us she felt like Denny's. We've been to Mel's without her and we told her we should support a local business and came by after she found out how close it was. It's been around since 1988 and I like the old sun-worn sign out front. Lots of locals eat here and it's clear they have a good relationship with the community. Lunch and breakfast is served all day so you can order anything on the menu, they are also open 7am 6 days a week and are perfect for early risers. The country fries are like giant hashbrowns and are great! We all ordered them as a side. They also garnish their dishes with a little sprig of parsley and I like little touches like that. Ham and cheese omelette: mother in law enjoyed this, two colors of cheese and ham diced neatly. Corned beef hash: the corned beef has more of a freeform shape and it gave it a home cooked feel. Tasted good and not too salty. Turkey avocado and cheese sandwich: I asked for the bread toasted and wish it was toasted slightly longer. Everything was freshly prepared, the avocado was still nice and green. read more

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Conveniently located next to the Tesla superchargers. Mom and pop shop that has your typical breakfast fares. My goto is the chicken fried steak. Beware of the salsa it is super spicy!! Customer service ia the best! read more

Mel's Diner - Country Fried Steak 8/10 - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

The service was GREAT!!!! Very comforting!!!! Alyssa is AWESOME! Her personality is everything!

Been coming here for long time. I've never been disappointed in my food. It's always great. The people there are very nice and its perfect size. It's nice and pleasant to eat there. read more

Mel's Diner - Today's special gourmet omelette - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

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Absolutely love this place, their award winning country fried steak and eggs is as advertised, award winning worthy. I also had the club and steak sandwiches on separate occasions, always good here and I love their service as well. read more

Mel's Diner - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

The food here was awesome, I got the chicken fried steak with country fries and it was cooked to perfection. The ambiance is your typical diner. The one downside was that service was pretty slow, where we waited a long time to see our waitress if we needed anything. 8/10, I would recommend this place. read more

The best biscuits and gravy in Orange County!! Awesome food and service is super friendly!! Old school diner, so cute. Holly is the best read more

Mel's Diner - Biscuits and gravy - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Solid breakfast place with generous portions and great staff. Only drawback is they only take cash or Venmo, no credit cards. read more

Mel's Diner - 2 eggs with bacon. - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Can't go wrong with Mel's Diner... Our new Go-To weekend breakfast place! I don't have to ask for a coffee refill-- Ever! You can't go wrong with any specials. But you have to get here early if you want the to-die for cinnamon rolls. Always jumping on weekends but always worth the wait! Enjoy! read more

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Support your local diner- this is one of the greats. Delicious food, great coffee, and fast service. Also a cheers to the very kind staff. Just what I needed passing through the area for work. Thanks so much Mel's! read more

Mel's Diner - One of the great weekday breakfast specials - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

The food and service were great! The ambiance we loved it was a homey feel haha. The diner accepts cash and venmo. We will definitely go back read more

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Food was delicious!! First time stopping by but it won't be the last! Love old diners! Food was delicious and the service was amazing read more

Mel's Diner - The lumberjack & French toast special - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Great local diner, food was great, service was friendly, and environment is just like any ol' bustling diner. I was surprised by the low cost meals, when comparing all the newer local businesses prices, which only added to the satisfaction of eating an amazing non-overpriced meal. I tried their award-winning chicken fried steak which was great, they also cooked by over-and-easy eggs perfectly. The only "downside" is cash/venmo only but it's a diner and I don't expect to be paying with card. Definitely not worth knocking the review down for that though. read more

Solid food I think it was the I on the menu. Biscuits & gravy eggs. We ordered and the food was out in 5-7 mins. Our waitress was handling the whole restaurant she was on point. My son ordered the pancakes the small stake was big enough for both of us. Drinks always full food solid definitely a diner I will go back to. read more

Cinnamon rolls and food is amazing. Been back last 2 Sunday's before church. Last Sunday we did get a sausage link that was a little underdone and cold but over all this place is amazing. read more

Not what we were expecting. The food was not good at all. It's OK if you live close by, but don't make the trip if you're from out of town. I was hoping to like this place, but no. read more

Very cozy vibes, love that the menu has many options! Received the food quick. FYI they do charge an additional fee for plates with eggs(they also have a sign) due to egg shortage read more

Mel's Diner - Chorizo con huevo plate - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

We've been wanting to check out Mel's Diner for a while. Took my daughters there for a Mommy and Me breakfast on a Saturday morning. We may have misses the early morning rush as there were a lot of people hanging outside. We were seated right away. Very homey feel and staff was great! Our food came out quickly and was delicious. I had let our server know that we were going to order to go for hubby & my son & she came back when we were almost done to get that order. Coffee and drinks were checked in on & filled. I will definitely be back with whole family. read more

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Ordered the chicken fried steak--the food was decent, but the portions were awesome. Service was super quick, and I was in and out in about 25 minutes. Solid spot if you're looking for a fast, filling meal! read more

Mel's Diner - Chicken fried steak - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Secret menu homemade chips with homemade rancharo sauce (added scrambled eggs) amazing read more

Mel's Diner - Best spanish omelette in town! Always my go to! Got to get the homemade salsa too! - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Mellow place with solid food and good service at a fair price. They have large portions so you can easily share a plate between 2 people. Also like that you can pay via Venmo if you don't have cash. read more

It was my first time coming here for brunch. The service was amazing! Everyone was so nice and helpful. We got seated right away. I got the chefs choice. Chicken fried steak. It was great. I'm not a gravy fan but eating the fried chicken steak with the gravy was so delicious. The scrambled eggs wasn't overcooked. Everything tasted amazing. My friend got the blueberry pancake. It also tasted really good. The blueberry wasn't chunky and was mixed well into the batted. The place wasn't crowded when we came. The atmosphere here was friendly and you don't feel overwhelmed. Overall I would I would recommend coming here for brunch read more

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Very tasty and unassuming breakfast with great customer service! Going out to eat nowadays is so tiresome, everything is so darn expensive and the taste doesn't match the price tag. So when we vetted this place, the first thing we noticed was the price. Each breakfast item was around $12-$14 and the weekday specials were $1 or $2 cheaper. So with the price agreeing with our wallet the only thing left was to try it out. We ordered: -Chicken fried steak 2 eggs, country fries and toast $11.50 -Spanish and cheese omelette $10.50 -Split biscuit 2 eggs and and country fries $10.50 -Complimentary 4 mini pancakes for baby! Everything tasted great for the price. My steaks were tasty and albiet not the best quality of meat but probably better than most gourmet places! The country fries were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The best surprise were the over easy eggs. They were done perfectly and I can't say that about many breakfast establishments. The spanish omelette was standard but done well. The biscuit were soft and the gravy decent. Than the best part of our breakfast was the complimentary mini pancakes for baby! Apparently they do that for every child. We really appreciated the warm hospitality from the host to the chef who kept making faces at baby and making him smile. Plus, it doesn't hurt that our bill was under $35 for 3 people! Come here for some honest, down to earth cooking, that will have you stuffed. read more

Our family has been going to Mel's Diner for years and we always enjoy the food very much. The service is always exceptional- attentive, efficient, and friendly. It's one of our favorite places. read more

The kids were in the mood for pancakes so I placed an order for pick up. Service was great, 5 stars! I was greeted as I walked in, my order was ready, the hostess was sweet, chef in a friendly mood! One of the servers helped me carry my food bags to my car. Fantastic! But the food was not that good. The bacon and potatoes were alright and I did order the egg over hard and it was ok. The pancakes, which we ordered 3 orders of, were not that good. I ate 1/2 of one but it was just too thick and doughy and not fluffy. The flavor was a bit bitter and salty. I'm general I'm not much of a breakfast person. Therefore when I want breakfast, I want something memorable, so I'll be passing on Mel's the next time I am in the mood for breakfast. read more

Mel's Diner - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

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This small little brunch place is not your typical hipster, fancy, & aesthetic type of brunch spot! It's more old fashioned, cheaper, and gives ya a quick bite. I've been here 2x now and the food is alright! Nothing too special but nothing too bad either. I would say it's comparable to a Dennys grand slam. They also serve other lunch food but I've never tried. I live across the street so on a Sunday afternoon it's a great place to come to cure my hangover haha plus the food is way cheaper then other brunch places around the area. read more

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I love this diner spot. People rating it lower stars bc they only accept cash and Venmo are ridiculous. The food was fantastic, staff were kind, and the food came out within 5-10 minutes piping hot. Delicious!! New go-to diner. read more

Food: 3.5. Came by to get some much needed breakfast food. Place is located in a shopping center. We were greeted promptly upon entering. Note at front that cash only. Place was about 2/3 full inside. We were waited on within 2:minutes. I asked if the corned beef hash was fresh or canned and the server said canned. Canned corned beef hash is fine to me if cooked well done. We ordered the chicken fried steak and corned beef hash. Food was delivered timely and at the right temperature. Food was good and portion size was about right for two hungry people to finish without leftovers. Service was friendly and efficient. Ambiance is bright and comfortable. Service: 4 Ambiance: 3.5 Value: 3.75 read more

The absolute best hash browns I've ever had!! Biscuits and gravy were delicious, service was great!! read more

Mel's Diner - Their gravy is so good!! - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

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I love coming by here for a cozy and friendly breakfast! I've been coming here around 1-2 times monthly! They only accept cash/Venmo as payment. I love all their breakfast items. Their coffee also is great and they refill it for you while you eat. The atmosphere is very diner like and they also have outdoor seating. Their service is super quick and they are very nice here. The items are affordable and not overpriced. Portions are great. My favorites are their gravy and biscuits, chicken fried steak, hash browns, and eggs! So delicious. Come by if you can to get a warm, comforting, breakfast. read more

Mel's Diner - Chicken Fried Steak, Pancakes, bacon, eggs, biscuits with gravy! - Diners Near Me - Fountain Valley, California

Great food! Quick service! I did a call in to go; was not disappointed highly recommend them taking the whole family of six back this weekend read more