Practically an institution The Original Mels has been around for as long as I can remember. I was craving breakfast so I ordered the Country Fried Steak and eggs. The order was prepared quickly packaged nicely and ready to go when I arrived. Now we all know Mel's is a greasy spoon diner but at $13.69 the CFS breakfast was tasty and affordable. Although this is the only dish I have tried Mel's compares favorably to the other breakfast spots in the area. If you're craving some throw back diner food give Mel's a try. read more

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My experience with The Original Mels (2057 Arena Blvd # 100, Sacramento, CA 95834) was really bad. Missing items from our plate and the food was overcooked and not fresh. There was also this psycho who would chase me every time I went to the rest room for the sole purpose of clearing his throat in a disgusting manner as passive aggression. They seem under-staffed and disoriented. Didn't like it, and not gonna go there again any time soon. Oh wait forgot one thing: it's hugely overpriced compared to the low quality they provide. read more

Came here for dessert, and although there were other servers present, one poor girl was working hard and running the whole floor. She was the cashier, waiter, server, and answered phones all on her own while we were there. There was 4 of us and we each got our dessert at different times, and because it included ice cream we had to eat it at separate times. The ice cream was gooey like it had been freezer burned, pie was good, coffee was okay. Not really rushing to come back. read more

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WHY WE WENT HERE: - dinner; the search continues for the best chili cheese fries THE LOOK (FROM THE OUTSIDE): - located in a plaza off Arena Blvd and Truxel Blvd - located in the same plaza as Massage Envy THE LOOK (FROM THE INSIDE): - old school diner; the decor and music made me think of the movie Grease THE MENU: - three egg omelettes - Mels skillets - sides - specialty breakfast platters - breakfast favorites - beverages - eggs by the #s - dessert - Mels baskets - shareables - salads, soup & chili - chicken & veggie burgers - blue plate dinners - Mels fries - specialty sandwiches - shakes & malts - sundaes WHAT WE ORDERED: - Side Salad - Chili Melfries upgrade to Curly Melfries - Mels Original Cheese Steak Sandwich - Mel's Classic Sampler THE TASTE: - first off, the portions for everything were HUGE; definitely shareable - Side Salad - refreshing, crunchy - Chili Melfries upgrade to Curly Melfries - good! - Mels Original Cheese Steak Sandwich - too spicy for me, but the fiance thought it was fair, not bad, but not great - Mel's Classic Sampler - comforting CUSTOMER SERVICE: - warm and welcoming - attentive but not overbearing read more

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Mel's finally reopened in September 2024, after repairs from their May 2023 attic fire. Very clean, with American Graffiti decor and color scheme, and bright lighting. Dayna was our evening server, super nice! There were maybe two other tables with folks dining in. Otherwise not packed, and kinda slow business (so much so that they sometimes close early). Breakfast all day! I had the 2+2 which was two pancakes, 2 eggs (I chose scrambled), and either bacon or sausage (I got applewood smoked bacon). Shared the shareable zesty wings basket, with sauce on the side (buffalo, ranch, and/or BBQ), and fries. My boo got the country skillet with hashbrowns rather than country potatoes, sausage, bacon, and gravy, choice of bread, and spread for toast. We were seated right away, and iced water and straws were provided. The wings came out first, then the breakfast items. We did not avail ourselves of the 25-cents-each jukebox selection at the table/booth, but the music playing did fit the classic diner vibe. read more

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Good food. Newly renovated. Employees are nice. Will probably try this place again. You have to take bill to counter in front to pay. read more

The Original Mels - Newly renovated. Food was good. Nice ambiance, family friendly. Lots of parking . - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

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Read reviews ahead of me - all accurate. I honestly had to get up to ask for coffee because I only received one and was choking on the microwave heated biscuit and gravy :( I seen them do it. Then got rotten avocados , every plate minutes apart but by then they are cold. I can go on and on but you get the point. Not a good Christmas breakfast; quite embarrassed to have brought my mom to eat burnt bacon read more

The Original Mels - Just an example - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

Came in to eat about a year ago with my mom and brother. I think they were having some sort of sewer issue because the entire restaurant smelled like sht (not being dramatic) it smelled like a sewage backup. We sat, processed the smell and then left and drove to Huckleberry's and had a much better experience. The fact that there were a few people in there still eating, tells me all I need to know about them lol. Anyway, I'm surprised this place is still open. 0/10. There are better locations. read more

I have found hairs in my food and even a piece of thread once. Service was terrible. Everything seemed to go downhill when they changed hands. Was a fun place to go when it first opened. Not now. Haven't been back in years. read more

Stopped in 8 pm with the family. Very friendly staff. Very clean. Fast service. Food yummy. Hot Dog came in a paper 50's car for the little one. She chose fruit and ate it all. I had turkey sandwich and clam chowder. Both excellent. Others had burgers, fries and onion rings. All tasty. Played the jukebox and fun reading all the songs from 50s, 60s, 70s, etc. Bathrooms clean. Handicap acessible. read more

Went in for breakfast and thought it would be better now that this location had reopened after a long remodel but service was not as great as before. Waiter did not come to check on us and after he brought the first plate it took about 10 minutes for second plate to arrive. Ordered the California omelette, the Two plus two and zesty chicken wings. The wings are still great tasting like before. They have the perfect amount of zesty spice flavor In the batter. I prefer them with no sauce but they also taste great with ranch dressing. The 2+2 was not that great, the bacon & eggs were overcooked. I ordered over medium eggs and yolks were completely cooked. The pancakes I only took one bite of because they were too dark and looked as if they had left them on the grill, a little too long. They were very rough and hard to cut through. The California omelette was good a portion size but the hash browns served with them were dry and no flavor. Somewhat tasted like they were frozen and reheated. I more than likely would only visit again for the wings. Those have always been one of my favorites. The inside of restaurant was clean and well kept up. read more

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This place is absolutely amazing! Great prices, amazing service, and no lines!!!! I live in LA and every time I come up to Sacramento I have to get me Mel's fix! If I am lucky enough to be here on the week days I get the steak and egg special....less than $14 and it is great! read more

So happy to finally check out this Mel's Diner after being closed for construction upgrades! I love how the hostess asked for our drink order after she sat us down. It was a hot day and we were thirsty! Next Jessica took care of us as we ordered our delicious Mel's Sampler (chicken strips, buffalo wings, beer battered onion rings, fries, mozzarella sticks, BBQ sauce, ranch dressing and marinara dipping sauce), Philly cheesesteak sandwich, corned beef and hash, and kid's grilled cheese sandwich. Delicious food, great hospitality, reasonable prices, clean restaurant and restrooms, love the music from back in the day and cheerful ambience! Thank you, Jessica, for taking great care of our family! read more

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Mel's never disappoints! So glad to have this place in the neighborhood for a breakfast treat or to satisfy a lunchtime meal craving. read more

The Original Mels - Eggs Benedict w/ham & crispy deep-fried hash browns - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

Why did this location reopen? Ribeye steak and eggs 22$ for a piece of meat that looks like someone stepped on it. More fat than edible meat. And couldn't catch the servers attention to get a refill on coffee. Close it back down till someone that cares about food can run it. read more

A pleasant visit! We were in the area to meet up with family and chose this location as it is minutes away from SMF airport. The host and server were kind and hospitable. Hubby got a big breakfast called "The Hangover" as seen in the photo. I wanted to just go with oatmeal but, they didn't have any nondairy milk substitute. Instead of oatmeal, decided to get a bigger breakfast--the egg white omelette w/their Mel's potatoes. Eggs, veggies, and potatoes were tasty that I almost finished my plate. Decaf was A-OK. Menu has plenty of choices. The restaurant and ladies' room was clean. Staff wears masks. On a Sunday morning, parking was easy peasy in the strip mall lot shared w/other businesses. Overall, Mel's is a decent diner. Would definitely return when in the Natomas area of Sacto. This is more like a 3.5 just like the current yelp average but, I'll round it to 3. Cheers! read more

The Original Mels - Bacon, biscuits/gravy, eggs, and potatoes - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

Literally came here just to pick up a banana milkshake. I LOVE how they use actual banana in their shake. I am literally obsessed with it. Best banana shake, ever. Guaranteed. read more

This is a classic greasy spoon diner. The coffee was super strong but bitter, the eggs and meats were coated with butter. The pancakes were great with the vanilla. The staff was attentive but let customers enjoy their meals without hovering. The restaurant was clean but there was an inflatable arm swinging advertisement right outside the door with a loud drone. If I were a local, I could see coming back when I have no specific idea for food but wanted something filling read more

So glad we have a Mel's in Natomas. The owners are amazing, and provide excellent service. Highly recommend!

They close early at random times. Multiple sites have different business hours. How is anyone supposed to know when to come here?? The service is not great either. Please maintain consistent hours and make a friendlier atmosphere read more

I enjoy eating here all the time always pick up my food on my own until today everything was just a MESS. Employees were looking confused looking for my order that "didn't" go through but in reality they just gave it off to a random person without confirming who it was for. NEVER AGAIN WILL I COME HERE!! Take your money somewhere else!!! read more

Don't eat or give your business to this restaurant if you do not want to get sick. My family got sick from eating here and dining in. They also will not take responsibility and get defensive. They said they have no procedure of noting down the issue or incident and will not take responsibility for anything per their manager. 2 face place, they are happy to get your business, but when customer get injured they don't care. They only will offer you free food if you get serious, but who want to eat at a place where they got sick again. read more

Stopped by this Mels Diner in Natomas for an impromptu brunch. We were seated right away. There's lots of cute old school decor and a jukebox at every table if you want to place music. The two waitresses taking care of all the tables were just the nicest ladies you could ask to be served by! Our food came right away and it was really good. I ordered the chili cheese fries and my husband ordered the gourmet fries. I also ordered a root beer float and it was huge. It came with a side cup of root beer which was really nice. Definitely recommend coming here! read more

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I have had this new obsession with Mels but I usually go tot he Roseville location on Douglas when I am there. This one is closer to my house. It was one of those days that I wanted a satisfying meal. I get the same thing, San Francisco Scramble. It has everything I want for a good price. We walk in and were seated quickly. Our waitress was very nice. Then my food came. I was disappointed to see that I did not get as many potatoes as I usually do which didn't bother me as much as the taste. They were very bland and had an old refrigerator taste like they had been sitting there in open air awhile. I usually eat all of my potatoes and my friend's potatoes! but these were so bad, I left more than I ate. The toast was cold with barely any butter on them. Suffice to say I was disappointed. The place was also not as clean as Roseville. Not to say it was dirty necessarily but my benchmark is the Douglas/Roseville location and they do not even compare. read more

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We came for the first time after it reopened & we're not impressed. We started going to the one downtown & the food there is a lot better and prices a lot cheaper!!! We normally spend $30 on breakfast max for us and our son downtown we came here last week and it was around $55 for the same thing :( read more

People working here need to train new employees on DoorDash orders they gave someone my order I had for pickup says it was delivery showed staff it was pickup and impossible for someone to come pick it up as delivery I waited an hour and wanted me to wait for them to replace order. I always do a pickup with this location because I prefer to pick up my food then deliver for this reason horrible service. read more

Super friendly staffs! We enjoyed our cod and sweet potatoes special, chicken and potato special and cobb salad. We did the dine out. Pleasant environment. I think most of us are getting use to this arrangement during this pandemic. Probably won't go away anytime soon. A lifestyle we're adopting to have somewhat "normal" life with the addition of wearing a mask. Nonetheless, we were at bad bakers to try out their donuts before heading here for lunch. Go here with your family. read more

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I love Mel's. I have been to a couple different locations but this was our first time to this location and the quality follows the name. I love their breakfasts and I got the California Eggs Benedict. I ate it all. We were visiting the morning of the Fourth of July and we were super appreciative of them being open. We just finished the Folsom Firecracker 10k earlier that morning and we were starving! The service was fast and super friendly! Parking was great and everything in the area seemed very clean and safe. read more

The Original Mels - California Benedict - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

Service was attentive from Asian waitress, dining room was bright and clean, my kid's mac and cheese was very dry and bland, my chicken fried steak was very low quality, my clam chowder was creamy with excellent flavor but it was served in barely warm temperatures, 2 stars for the food at best, prices were high compared to the quality. read more

I just came here to sit down and drink a coffee and chill out which isn't a big deal at most diners.... but i guess it was today, i kept getting weird looks from the employees and was getting treated significantly different from other customers simply because i was spending less money. I felt like i was being looked over my shoulder as if they thought i was gonna run out and not pay for a $4 coffee... Reallly really weird energy when i just wanted to chill and drink some coffee. read more

Typical diner food. Good for late night eats since they open late. Courtesy and attentive staff. Decently priced. Nice diner atmosphere (takes you back in time). Food came out fresh and fast. This was our first time here and won't be our last. read more

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We used to really like coming here but since they re-opened the staff is rude and portions were small..

I would say this location is in an area you wouldn't expect however the area itself is fairly decent. It was my first time trying these gourmet fries. though instead of regular fries I wanted to substitute for sweet potato fries which to me is not only a healthier alternative but taste better then the regular potato fries. It was a nice sized plate that could serve two people as their menu also says it's shareable so that's true which I like and not misleading. The waitress allowed people to sit wherever they wanted which was a plus because I prefer to be tucked off alone if possible and she was really consistent with making sure I had everything I needed. I would recommend this place to a family or friend. Happy Holidays! read more

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Yes. Definitely could be improved. We certainly hope so. I've been twice since the reopening. The decor has been refreshed and it's nice and clean. But it's still Mel's in side. The problem is the service. The staff works hard; however, there seems to be a lack of coordination with the functions, (reception, server,busser). In my opinion delaying a drink order should not put the entire efficiency (of service) into such confusion that a coffee and two milkshakes are delivered last and we had to ask the Busser to find our server. Another problem was that when one of our party ordered a burger and another ordered a hot dog no additional condiments were offered. And no one came back to check on us. A person (manager/owner - not sure if Mel's are franchisees), standing around just chit-chatting is not a good sign. The food was good. As a family Mel's has always been partial to lunch at Mel's. I'm not really sure prices are in line with the product,it's just hard to tell these days. Although we lunched at Mimi's for not a lot more. We really want this revised Mel's to succeed. Hope this helps. read more

This place is so charming and cute. Staff are sweet and so nice. Food was awesome and will be back. I suggest to support Mel's if you can as they were not busy when we were there for dinner and their food is delicious. read more

The Original Mels - Seafood combo basket. Soooooooo good! - American Near Me - Sacramento, California

Food wasn't very good, service was worse, waitress doesn't speak any English. Very disappointed.

This was an excellent place for a great breakfast at a reasonable price. The staff is always friendly and the food good. In todays situation where you need to spend your money wisely it would be a shame if they don't reopen. Good food for a reasonable price, please reopen soon. read more

I forgot to take a picture of the food because I was hungry Riana is the best server 10/10 would come again

Disappointed in the cost vs the quality of food and multiple mistakes on our order. I ordered a cheesesteak sandwich and specifically ordered no grilled onions or peppers, the person taking my phone order even repeated my order. When I got my sandwich surprise! It had grilled onions and peppers. I wouldn't complain if they were easily removable but they were intertwined with the steak. About the only thing that was good about this sandwich was the cheese sauce on the side. We were given a side of thousand island ranch but it looked used already when we opened it. The lettuce in one of the burgers we ordered also looked old and grey is some spots. The banana pineapple shake was good though. 1 cheesesteak sandwich with a side of curly fries, 1 Melburger with curly fries and a shake totaled $35 So the cost to quality ratio was disappointing. You're better off going to in N out down the road. For half the cost. read more

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This place is temporarily closed. Just an FYI. We tried to go 2 weekends ago and again today.