So good. Little diner vibe with great, affordable food. Try the eggs with corned beef hash.

Please believe the hype. Sam's french toast is SPECIAL. We have all had good, tasty, and even delicious food. The French toast at Sam's Cafe is an almost singular experience. Sam figured out how to make French toast that is encased in pancake batter. Umm... that probably doesn't sound all that great, but please trust me when I tell you it is something that needs to be tried. I have introduced probably 35 people to it over the years and 34 of them are completely hooked. The rest of their menu is good, also. I only get the breakfast food. Usually a bacon and cheese omelette along with the French toast, of course.. As other reviews have stated, it does not have particularly nice decorum. "Greasy spoon" is an accurate description of the place. But the food is good and, once again, the French toast is spectacular! Bring cash, as they do not take credit cards or checks. read more

This place gets so much hype on Yelp that my friends and I decided to try it. Sam's Cafe is super cute-looking from the outside. But that's where the good stops. Well, the waiter was really nice. But other than those two things, I see no positives about this place. The food was floppy and soggy and the utensils were not washed well... Maybe we ordered all the wrong things, though we did order the vaunted French toast,... Seems like that could be a possibility seeing that this place has 4 stars. read more

Every time I walk into Sam's I feel at home. I waddle up to the bar, sometimes hungover, and order the special with coffee and pancakes, and sit there patiently watching Sam do his thing while listening to the soft hum of all the people around me. The food isn't anything you'd find at a Bacarro or a Radio Maria, but I wouldn't have it any other way. It's cash only, which was an adjustment for me to make but it was one I did happily. Sam's is easily one of my favorite places in town, maybe not for the food alone but for the space as well. I hope it never closes. read more

How have I lived in CU for 20 years and never visited Sam's Cafe? We go out to breakfast every Sunday and were getting tired of our usual spots, having whittled down the list to just a few for one reason or another. So glad I remembered seeing Yelp reviews of Sam's. The American fries are great, as is the french toast. Food was out to the table in what seemed like less than 5 minutes, freshly cooked. The kids split an order of french toast and I had the breakfast special. I think next time I'll skip the pancakes with the special and eat the 1/2 piece of french toast that the littlest one left on her plate. It's not much to look at, but is clean, great service, and good food. And all for just $17 for all 4 of us. read more

Hands down, one of best breakfast hidden treasures in Champaign. Bs & Gs and French toast are spot on, and the food is a great bang for your buck. read more

Great place for morning birds! Parking is free till 8 AM and you can just grab a counter seat and chill.

I just got back from here and first off, we waited for over an hour for our food. The people who had come in and ordered way after us were served first, which was rude. Second, I heard them talking about being out of biscuits and gravy about 20 minutes before they actually told us they were. Granted, they did take 30% off after we said something, but the food wasn't even that impressive. I'm definitely never going back. read more

True diner with good food at a very reasonable price. Traditional breakfast options and it won't kill the wallet. Plus they know how to do grits right and that's not common when I travel north. read more

Had breakfast here this morning. This place has a simple menu, no frill's, but the food and service was quick and good. I ordered a ham and cheese omelet which was nice and thin. The omelet was perfectly cooked and stuffed with ham and cheese. Like a perfect egg crepe. After reading reviews on the French toast I did spilt a short stack with my husband to try it. French toast is amazing. My coffee cup never had a chance to be empty. I would definitely go back. read more

The service was slow, despite it not being busy. When our good finally arrived, it wasn't particularly excellent. The eggs and potatoes tasted a bit like burnt spatula. It wasn't a bad meal, but it didn't warrant the 30 minute wait we experienced before getting it. Refills to our coffee were few and far between. Getting the check at the end was also a nightmare, taking a good 15 minutes. read more

This is my favorite place for breakfast in Champaign. It is a comfort-food-greasy-spoon restaurant. I recommend doing the breakfast before your shower in the morning and then go home for the shower afterward or you will smell like the restaurant all day! The food is very inexpensive and it has the best french toast in town. The seats are quite uncomfortable but fit in with the ambiance. For a while they served Lebonese food on some evenings but stopped doing that. I wish they would bring it back. It was excellent, high quality and reasonably priced. read more

They have the best French toast. My husband always ordered Denver omelette where we were here. The price is also very reasonable :)

Super cheap, tasty and quick. Sam's is awesome for breakfast. The place is small and a bit dingy, it epitomizes what I think of as a greasy spoon cafeteria but the food is great. You can't beat the $3.70 breakfast special (two eggs, pancakes and sausage or bacon). The waitstaff is friendly and fast and the owner is slinging the food on the griddle most days. read more

Good food. Inexpensive. The breakfast special is worth the price as the portions are fairly large. The restaurant was crowded upon arrival, but the service was fast and we never saw the bottoms of our cups since the waitstaff was quick about refills. read more

If you go to Sam's, you probably already know what you're going for. It's not for ambiance or subtle flavors or lunch... it's for delicious breakfast food. It's not exactly a new trend to sing the praises of small greasy-spoon style places, but there is a reason for that: no $30 fancy brunch can ever really inspire the same satisfaction that getting gratifyingly greasy french toast, pancakes, sausage, and hash browns for a few dollars can. read more

While I can't vouch for the breakfast or lunch, Sam's Cafe has a great Lebanese dinner menu on Thursday and Friday nights. They have a good, plentiful vegetarian combination plate which I have gotten the last two times I've been there. On our most recent visit, I noticed that the woman who is running the menu has specials available, but only seems to offer them to people who either ask or are repeat customers. The meat dishes, according to my fiancee, are also quite good. I'm hoping that she will keep these two nights open for a long time to come. read more

Good Lebanese food on Thursday and Friday nights. I went with a couple of friends for a B.day party, and decided to share all their entree's to get a feel of all the food. The cafe itself is nothing to brag about, just a small, non-elegant, bread-and-butter diner type of place. The food was good though. They had four items on their dinner menu, each being either $7 or $7.50, including tax: 1. Shish Taok. Small chicken breast pieces, fried in a garlic sauce. recommended. 2. Kibbe. I don't recommend it. A mixture of some sort and then fried, tasted strange. 3. Kafta. Their main beef meal. By far the best food they had. Very tasty. 4. Falafel. It was ok. nothing to brag about. They had a special meal that night, for $12, which had fried rice and cooked chicken. It was ok. Each meal comes with a choice of two meals. We all got homous, and tabolli, both of them being delicious. In fact, I think the homous was their best food! Btw, warm pita bread keeps coming, which was a nice touch. There are three Lebanese ladies who do the whole Lebanese dinner thing (Sam's cafe doesn't cater dinners on any other night other than the mentioned two). They were friendly and nice people. read more

This is the breakfast place of my dreams! Two people, breakfast, less than $10.00! I know, it's not fancy. They don't have smoothies or espresso like La Peep, they don't have stuffed pancakes like Ihop, and they don't pretend they're something they're not, like others. However, the food was really good, the coffee drinkable and the service friendly. Now if it would only move toward Urbana... read more

Everyone talks about the french toast at Sam's, and apparently I'm going to have to try that one day. But the thing I can't get over is the PANCAKES. They are absolutely delicious. I lived in Chicago for six years and found only one place that rivals Sam's pancakes in that huge city. As others have said, the decor leaves something to be desired, and the tables aren't as clean as they could be, but the prices are insanely cheap and the pancakes...oh, the pancakes. Plus, they have take out. :) read more

I can't believe that I've lived in this town for over 30 years and I've just discovered Sam's Cafe. I recently returned from a trip to Florida and I was raving about the cheese grits and lamenting that there was no place in town with breakfast food that good. Boy, was I wrong! A friend who grew up in this town--Mrs. Joy P.--invited me to try Sam's Cafe. Well, I did, and I've now visited the restaurant 3 times in one week, and I've introduced many friends who have also been "hooked." Everything that I've tried has been super good and super cheap. I also like the fact that breakfast is served any time. I tried the french toast and I must agree with other reviews--it's outstanding! I look forward to trying many more items on the menu, but it will also mean that I'll need to spend even more time in the gym--but it's worth it. The food is as good as it gets, and I'm a picky eater! read more

Yeah, I'm not a fan of this place. They are always under-staffed when I go there and the service they provide reflects that. Don't even try to go in on a weekend. The food is ok but I guess in all fairness the quality does match the lower prices. I would rather them raise their prices and focus on putting more staff on the floor and increasing the quality of food because those are the two main reasons why I will probably not be returning unless the cries of desperation for breakfast suddenly call when I'm nearby. read more

Stood in there for twenty minutes before anyone noticed us. Four tables without people, all covered with plates and trash. We were told it would be awhile because there were no tables. Incredibly rude, clearly don't care for customers or loyalty. Will not be returning. read more

Best breakfast spot in Champaign! I always get the breakfast special when I am in town. Best pancakes I have found anywhere. And it's very cheap. Decent lunch too. A good greasy spoon downtown. read more

Took my dad for breakfast and even he noticed it was dirty and that's saying something! The wait person was prompt and friendly. The food was just s bit too greasy and eggs were over cooked. I don't think we'll be back. read more

I'll make this one as easy as possible. Sam's Cafe serves good breakfast food at reasonable prices. I mean their breakfast special is like $5 and you get 2 eggs, bacon, and pancakes. And they use REAL butter. No other places that I've been to have quality food for a price like that. The place is pretty small so if you have more than 6 people, it's not happening. Strangely for as small as the place is, I've never waited for a table, even in a busy Saturday morning. There is like one server/busboy/cashier and he is awesome. Love this place! read more

It's like stepping back in time where diners like this were a staple for breakfast for many. They had many tables in the back where the good old boys were catching up over their breakfasts. It might look run down or old, but everything looked clean. The server was nice and attentive. I had the breakfast special with 2 scrambled eggs, crispy bacon, and fluffy pancakes. Nothing fancy, but you could tell the guy at the grill had the experience of cooking many a breakfast like this over the years. Very inexpensive too. You find the bathrooms by going through back door to storage area and it's to your right. Simple food but simply good too. read more

This hole-in-the-wall was a great find. Service was fast and friendly, customers were a little gruff, but nice. Food was great for this greasy spoon. We had t-bone steaks and french toast for breakfast. Small place, so I can imagine it fills up fast. Not a long wait for anything and reasonably priced. read more

I was going to this restaurant based on what people said on yelp and I wasn't disappointed! Food is cheap, breakfast special is $4 and it runs all day! Service was as quick as you can get and still have been freshly made! The decor is diveish but you aren't paying for a formal French you are paying for good cheap food fast! Also the french toast is dipped in pancake batter and is really delicious!!!! I know I will be going again! read more

I stopped in here for breakfast the other day, and it was pretty excellent. I had the breakfast special for about $4.25, and it included two eggs, a few slices of bacon, and a short stack of outstanding pancakes. The server was very friendly, and the food was brought out quickly. I'd highly recommend this place for a low-key diner-style breakfast. read more

My favorite breakfast place of all time here. It's your typical cafe, everything done the way you would want it. Don't even bother with Merry Anns just come straight to Sams. So the food is greasy... if you're not into that you can order it light on the butter/grease. They make everything to order (duh). Sam and his family are some really hard working people and it shows. I'm just so happy at Sams, bottomless coffee and eggs all to the tune of 5 dollars. You can't go wrong! read more

Best kept breakfast secret in Champaign. This little hole in the wall has a small menu and does it all right. The french toast is simple and perfectly done. The location is small, but everyone there is friendly in close quarters and it has a wonderful old-time family feel. Its always nice to find someone who knows what they are doing and does not need any extra flares or frills. read more

This is my favorite breakfast restaurant in Champaign - as good as it gets! They close in mid afternoon, so only serve breakfast and lunch options. They only accept cash as well so keep this in mind if planning to eat here. Many items have a unique twist to them here. Gus's Famous French Toast is french toast dipped in pancake batter (at least that's what it appears like) and is unique and amazing. The price is quite low as well. Two people can eat breakfast well for under $10 per person with tip and drinks. The portions are also very large and they offer a full size item or half stack (hash browns, french toast, pancakes, etc.). Their hash browns are called American fries and also have an original twist to them! Sam's Cafe also has a old fashioned diner feel to it. Local businesses are advertised on the ceiling and it has a real 'local' feel to it. Strongly recommend Sam's Cafe! read more

It is a small crowded place serving inexpensive and ok food. But I think it is over rated in yelp.

Cheesiest omelette EVER! And it's delicious melty American cheese, not oily coagulated cheddar. And I swear these has browns are from scratch. Deeeeelicious! read more

Stopped through champaign on our way back to Iowa from Indiana. Whole family had breakfast. Every item ordered rocked! French toast was unlike any I've eaten... Was simply amazing! read more

The French toast, oddly pancake style, is to die for. Also great to eat the ethnic food in the evening when available.

Bland biscuits and gravy and underwhelming french toast (despite all the reviews to the contrary) made this a cheap, but forgettable dining experience. read more

Just stopped through on a road trip and the French toast is to die for. Amazing service. Lightening fast.

Really good value tasty breakfast/brunch. The all day breakfast special is only $5.10! Nice place to meet with friends, friendly staff and nice atmosphere :-) read more