What a disappointment. We arrived at 9:45a for breakfast and the restaurant was busy but not overly busy. The waitstaff was slow and didn't acknowledged us until we flagged them down. We ordered breakfast and it took forever to come to the table. We almost left. When the food arrived the eggs were over-cooked. The only person who seemed to have any hustle was the food runner. Our waitress never returned to ask how our food was, never asked if we wanted more coffee or water, which we did. Really just a terrible experience all around. There are a lot of restaurants to chose from in the area. Just avoid this place. read more

We were visiting friends in the area and went out for brunch on Saturday morning. This place serves breakfast and lunch all day. This is perfect for us because my husband is not a big breakfast fan. The have AMAZING fresh squeezed juice. I had the grapefruit...and it was delicious!!! I also recommend the Greek omelet which was stuffed with tomato, fresh spinach, olives, and feta cheese. This was one of the best Greek omelets ever and this is something I test often. My husband had the burger with homemade potato chips....also delicious! The table next to us ordered the kitchen sink cooking which were delivered warm to the table and smelled delicious. This was a lucky find in a beach community. Give it a try....you will love it! read more

Got carry out on a Sunday morning and although the restaurant was busy, we got our food relatively quickly. Great service. The food was also pretty good and fulfilling. Nutella and chocolate chip pancakes were delicious. I got the parfait and that was also delicious, but they should also include a greek yogurt option just to have a choice to tone down the sweetness. The bagels were also pretty good, but there should be an option to toast them. The fruit was so fresh and they gave us a lot for a side! Overall though, it was tasty and I'd recommend it for a nice Sunday brunch. read more

The Penguin - Katie's Parfait - Burgers Near Me - Bethany Beach, Delaware

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Fun place. Friendly staff and good food. Our mail came out hot and fresh. The eggs were perfectly cook, the pancakes were nice and fluffy!

Went in for some drinks and lunch off season. Every drink is made from scratch down to fresh squeezing the oranges and grapefruits! The chopped salad was LITERALLY the best salad I've ever had. My husband had the tuna melt which was great as well. Even the potato chips are made at the restaurant. For dessert we had warm chocolate chip cookies with a shot of milk. I am so glad we discovered the Penguin- it will now be on the rotation for our must visit every time we come to the beach! read more

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Looking for a place to grab a quick lunch near Bethany Beach, we stopped at a place called The Penguin on the main strip. Lisa chose the ROBIN'S WRAP, a Bethany favorite! Oven roasted turkey breast with dried cranberries, chunky Granny Smith apples and Brie cheese wrapped in a flour tortilla. It was delicious and came with tasty fries. I went with a special of the day a CHEESE BURGER WRAP, prime fresh beef grilled with green pepper, onion, tomato, our basil aioli sauce and American cheese, all rolled in a flour wrap. I had burger on my mind when we headed out for lunch and I must say this really hit the mark, exceptional texture flavor and came with some homemade potato chips. Lisa and I shared so we could try each others and I truly would be hard pressed to pick which wrap I liked best. Okay, I was wanting a cheeseburger so i guess my wrap wins. read more

The Penguin - Burgers Near Me - Bethany Beach, Delaware

Just finished my Greek omelette, it was good and made with fresh ingredients -so why the low score? I'm watching carbs so ordered it with no potatoes or bread. Instead ordered a side of bacon - @4$, notice a side of potatoes is 3$. Common sense would say the difference between the two is 1$, right? Got the bill, they charged me for the full price of the plate and the side - essentially I paid for two things I didn't get! By the way, they did the same for my wife's order. Won't get burned a third time. read more

We visit The Penguin a few times whenever we visit Bethany Beach. Seems to get better and better every time. Veggie Scrambler is great, a very nice size portion and served with a few fresh berries, a nice touch! Also tried and loved Shirley's Brisket Bowl... sooooooo good (add a little hot sauce). I had something similar in Nashville a few years ago... but this was better. If you like coffee drinks you MUST try the Maple Chino, you can thank me later. I got the recipe from the bartender and started making them at home. Service was consistent the few times we were there... ask for Chloe if you like servers with a little personality, she's hysterical. read more

Location is very convenient. Service is very quick as there can be a line. Love the sinks in the bathroom. For folks with kids: There is a changing table, and a coloring activity for kids while you wait. Kid portions are generous, and their banana pancakes are yummo. Where the dining experience could be better: 1. There are flies in the restaurant each time I've dined. It is distracting, and I would prefer not to swat at them as I'm eating. 2. The food presents well, but I don't think it is particularly good or stands out. The salsa on their "A Long Sunrise over Bethany" (aka avocado toast) was mystifying. It looked and tasted like it was salsa that had been drained, then left out to air dry for a couple hours. read more

Eggs not even free range! Fish tacos for $16 were 2 tiny tacos with one ounce of fish total ( if that) Tourist trap rip off!!

The Penguin has changed significantly since it opened over 10 years ago. Back then The Penguin Diner was a must go to destination because our sons were obsessed with penguins and it had place mats children could color to stay occupied while waiting for food. We could order breakfast even in the evening which was great for picky eaters. Over the years they added an ice cream/milkshake bar and did away with the penguin themed merchandise to make room for much needed table space. Our latest visit we learned it is called The Penguin, they stopped serving breakfast at 4:30p, the ice cream bar is gone, and the dinner menu had an upscale makeover. The price points increased accordingly. We order fried calamari, fish tacos and crab cakes for six. The calamari was over-breaded as were the fish tacos. The meals were disappointing all around, especially for the $160+ we paid it. Our waitress was good and squeaked in an order of fries as the kitchen was closing for our son who didn't like the crab dip he ordered. We won't return because there are too many amazing seafood restaurants in the area. My suggestion is to ditch The Penguin name entirely and rebrand. I'm not sure they can successfully cater to families during the day and the happy hour crowd in the evening. read more

I've eaten at Penguin once last year, and again this year. I recalled it being pretty bad from last year, but stopped there again this year out of pure laziness. We needed a fast easy breakfast so we could go soak up as much precious beach time as possible, and Penguin has one thing down - location. My biggest gripe above all about this place is that everything is disposable. When I asked the woman why this is, she furrowed her brow in a way that made me think I wasn't the first to inquire, and gave me several responses: 1) "People like to take their meals back to the beach"... to which I thought - can't you offer take-out boxes for people who want to bring their runny eggs to the sandy beach (something I think few people would do, anyway). 2) "We wouldn't be able to let people in barefoot if there was glass" ... um, hello reusable plastic-ware and metal silverware?! 3) "We don't have dish washing facilities"... REALLY?! It's cheaper to pay for disposable crap than hire a dish washer?! What about the environmental cost of the waste you produce? The food is over-priced and under-whelming. The atmosphere is fine and well-lit, and the location is killer... but I just can't support a place with such an awful environmental conscious. read more

My only suggestion would be not to eat here. Its dreadful. Quesadilla was greasy and rubbery. Veggie wrap was tasteless an the gauc seems to have been made.from limeade. Looking for something to wash the taste out of my mouth! read more

Ordered the fish tacos with blacken fish, it tasted really but the portion was soooo small for the price. I was still hungry after finishing my plate. It came with a small handful of potatoes chips. The place was pretty empty and my drink was never refilled. read more

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Stunningly bad service. An otherwise enjoyable time with friends became a low point for the trip when the poorly trained staff ruined my girlfriend's ID. The waitress had apparently never seen an out of state ID before and her manager smugly creased it in half when asked to check it, declaring that "a real ID wouldn't bend." What did she expect, a stone tablet? Rather that apologize, she decided to take the low road and suggest we go to the police if we were so upset. Overall an extremely unprofessional staff serving sad and underwhelming food. Avoid at all costs unless you're into cold fries and trips to small claims court. read more

One of my favorite places, not only at the beach, but ever. Pros: 1) They have a fantastic gluten-free menu and not just the lazy kind, like "our gluten-free options are things that don't include gluten...like salad." They have a GF fried chicken sandwich which gave me a happy coma. 2) Their service is top-notch. Every server I've had has been down-to-earth, friendly and personable. And I've been here multiple times in one week during my annual beach week jaunts. 3) Who doesn't love Penguins? They cater to a diverse population; they have a farm to table menu post-5 o'clock for the fancier folk but you can bring your kids in as well any time of day. Big kids of any age can order a milk shake or you can get a beer with your lunch. It's up to you. Cons: 1) I was very sad to walk in this year and see they had Bethesda-ized. I liked the more laid back decor of diner seats and crayons on the table. The more chic chic doesn't appeal to me. 2) Even though I like that everyone can come here, it is a bit annoying to have fifteen kids screaming in your ear. I know there isn't an easy solution, but perhaps some creative ones? Like discount kid menus from 11-12? 3) I love the GF options but in the spirit of things, I wish there were more. Since it's more than, "Here's your GF roll", I'm hoping PD will expand to GF breakfast soon (pancakes and french toast especially). You already have the bread, and I believe there's a gluten free batter that's made for the chicken, so if it can be converted sugar-style with blueberries or peaches, that would be scrumptious and $$ :) read more

We've been going to the Penguin Diner since it opened, and we've found the food to be reliable and good, but since there has been a change in management, and chef, we've found the food to be outstanding. My egg white omelette with crabmeat and fresh vegetables was the best I've ever tasted. The fruit salad was fresh with seasonal fruits. They had plenty of gluten free options, and we were told that there are more to come. My husband enjoyed his omelette with onions and feta cheese. The portion size was more ample than any other of our favorite diners. The new manager shared with us that they are featuring more and more locally sourced food, and it was evident that the chef was enjoying ways to feature them including the way our food was garnished. Our quest for the perfect beach diner is over. We'll see you soon, Penguin Diner! read more

We just finished breakfast here. There are a lot of good options for kids and adults. But for me, the most important is that they'll make anything (except for pancakes) gluten free. So I got gluten free French toast and a side of scrambled eggs. The waitress said that they would make my order in a separate area of the kitchen. The food was very good. Simple and well-made. Great breakfast spot. read more

I wouldn't say that the Penguin Diner was the worst restaurant experience I've ever had, but it was close. My parents and me were looking for a quick bite to eat in among the Bethany shops and the Diner seemed like a decent enough place. It was the second week of September, so it was far from crowded. The hostess quickly seated us, though why she chose to cram every party into one corner still baffles me. We were uncomfortably sandwiched between two couples when the majority of the tables in the restaurant were vacant. Our neighbors got their food before we ordered and quickly sent an omelet back for being visually undercooked. Wary but hopeful, we placed our orders a few minutes later, avoiding anything with eggs (half the menu, it's a diner.) Mom and dad ordered a BLT and a chicken sandwich, respectively. The BLT was on soggy toast, with floppy lettuce, over-ripened tomatoes, and undercooked bacon (to be fair, mom requested that it not be crispy, but this was nearly raw). The chicken sandwich was bland and flavorless, improved only with generic hot sauce. I ordered the chicken fajita wrap, a fairly safe choice. It was dripping with oil and grease from whatever they fried the pepper and onions in - - not the worst flavor, but unappetizing. I shouldn't have to wash my hands after eating a wrap. All were served with stale, unsalted potato chips that added nothing to the meal. Would have been thrilled to get some fries, but they're not standard sides. All in all, we paid $40 for a 3 person meal that no one liked. Having been to more than a few diners, it was grossly overpriced. The service wasn't awful, but definitely needs improvement and was obviously made up of recently hired, inexperienced seasonal staff. Avoid this tourist trap. You'll be much happier almost anywhere else. read more

Wow, I should have read Mallory's review because it sound like we ate the same meal this past weekend... My first clue should have been how empty it was on labor day weekend. I ordered at the counter with a fellow I believe may have been the owner and asked for the short stack of pancakes on the separate plate and he said "we'll bring you another plate" which of course they did not. It was eco-nightmare... plastic and paper everything - cups, plates, utensils... The pancakes were cold and hard like they were cooked earlier and served, the french toast was soggy and whole wheat (who makes french toast with whole wheat???) and my omelot was average and came with undercooked/crunchy home fries - about 8 nuggets - and one piece of dry toast. Whoa is me, if we could turn back time..., and run far away... read more

I like diners. Just not this one. Their hours of operation are not typical of most diners. Their food is of lesser quality than what's available at other restaurants nearby. The service was slow. Take your money elsewhere and save yourself an experience you'll wish you never had. read more

My Goodness! So many bad reviews on here. My hubby and I were in Rehoboth yesterday, looking for a vegetarian lunch. We were surprised to find a hummus wrap on the menu (at a diner- who knew??) so we went in. Sure, the set-up isn't typical. You order at the counter, take a seat and have your food delivered. But it works. And it's obvious the owner is trying to cut costs at all measures by doing this but so what. I had the hummus wrap which was good- I would suggest a little more hummus but that's the way I like it. My hubby had the veggie wrap and enjoyed it. We also had fries with our wraps which were crispy and delicoius. Our table was cleared quickly, we got up and paid and that was that! My only concern with the place (and I will be writing the owner about this) is the amount of waste they are creating. There is no reason to give everyone wrapped up plastic wear- we didn't need knives, forks or spoons but we got them anyway, with our napkins. Also, my husband's soda was served in a plastic cup/lid and straw. Since we were dining in, we should have been given a real plastic cup and real silverwear. It's 2011- we should all be not only aware of our environmental concerns but willing to do something about it. Cutting out the plastic would be a great step for this company. read more

Fresh juice, enormous fresh salads, well balanced cocktails, vegetarian options at reasonable prices. This place is like the equivalent of busboys and poets, except that it's by the beach. I really appreciated having this joint as a food option during our stay in Bethany beach. A gem. read more

If you enjoy horrible food and terrible service, well then this is the place for you. First off, the customer service was pathetic! Counting my table, there were probably only five more tables in there while we were dining in. That's not bad considering I counted six people on the wait staff. And yet not one of them could come up to us and refill our waters? Or ask how the food was when we got it? Actually to be honest, after they handed us our food our waiter never showed back up to check up on us. It's as if he knew the food was terrible and didn't want to deal with the problems that may arise from it. He only came by at the end to give us our check. Speaking of our waiter; I don't know if the kid was new or not but he really needs to step up his game and work on his speaking skills. Granted, if he was new to this that's fine, but if not then ya'll got some problems. If you're new to the job, as you should introduce yourself to your customers you should mention that. This way we cut you some slack and become more understanding, especially if you're still learning the menu. The guy who served us seemed to have some knowledge about the food when asked, but the delivery of his speech left much to be desired. It was just confusing. Aside from the fact that there were SIX PEOPLE "WORKING", they weren't working at all! The majority of them were teenagers and young adults, as well as one older woman. AND THEY WERE ALL BEHIND THE COUNTER CHATTING. My friends and I even overheard two of the waiter's conversation. They were goofing off out in the open and were even cursing out loud. Seriously? There were kids not too far from us and you're going to use that type of language? The food. Oh dear god the food. When my friends inquired about the Black Bean Burger our waiter mentioned that it was pretty popular albeit a little spicy. Well they order it, thinking to trust our waiter's judgement. Well they get the food and it was literally black beans on a bun. There was literally no beef patty in sight. The menu and our server never mentioned that part. If anything we thought it was going to be a regular burger with black beans on top. NOT JUST ALL BEANS. And it wasn't even spicy! I ordered Beany's Bacon Cheddar Burger. I asked for no tomato and if I could exchange the cheddar cheese with plain ol' American cheese. Waiter said sure they could do that. I eventually get my food and lo and behold nothing was changed. But getting to the taste of the food, to sum it up it was pretty gross; on the burger side at least. I cant really speak for the other food. But the bread was greasy, considering it was covered in what seemed to be butter then toasted a bit as the sides were a bit crunchy. The burger was greasy as well and practically oozed out oil. And the fries were the exact same fries they sold back at my old public highschool in MD. Meaning that they were pre-packaged frozen french fries bought from a distributor. The fries though are so frail that just like my old school, you couldn't throw them in the fryer so instead you bake them. So what you get are these droopy tasteless fries which are smooshy in some areas while being somewhat crispy in others. If you're not used to the taste it can be pretty disgusting. Never coming back here. read more

Ugh. Had to wait 10 minutes to be greeted despite plenty of open tables; service was incredibly slow; one of our orders wasn't even put in while the other 4 orders all had something wrong with them. Lots of apologies about what they acknowledged as numerous mistakes on their side, but no attempt to make things right other than "we'll put that order in right away and ask to rush it" (by this point the other diners in our group were done eating). Food was okay. We will not return. read more

So excited they went farm to table!!! Went with a large party for breakfast. Everything was delicious and everyone was happy. The ham in the omelet was real ham and not just cheap deli ham. The pancakes were delicious. The chocolate chip pancakes came out looking like a work of art. I have never found their service amazing but good enough. Definitely a family favorite read more

This is my go to spot anytime of the day because they serve breakfast food all day. I just tried the yogurt parfait and was told it was made with housemaid granola. I tried it, with both choices of strawberries and blueberries, and cannot get it out of my mind! I want it now again and again. read more

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A relaxed and friendly spot to grab a casual breakfast in town. The prices are reasonable and there are plenty of options. The food won't blow you away, but it's good. read more

I was in Bethany this past weekend and on my way out I got brunch with my girl friends. We sat down and the first thing we noticed was how rude our waitress was. She didn't really check on us much, making us wait super long to pay and then when the time finally came she told us she couldn't split our check (?). There was also an old couple that sat down near us and no one came to wait on them so they left, which made us so sad! The food was average, my eggs and bacon were pretty dry but I guess some people like it that way. The place did have a cute vibe to it though, so maybe on a less busy day it would have been better! read more

I can only review the breakfast. It's was horrible so greasy There are a ton of other options. We were very sorry we picked this one

Great food. I had fish tacos with salmon. Delicious. Also great is that their fryers are dedicated gluten free, so my daughter could have chicken fingers. She loved them! My wife and son had breakfast food, and both enjoyed their meals. A great experience at the beach! read more

The Penguin - Burgers Near Me - Bethany Beach, Delaware

We have come to Bethany Beach for many years now and one of favorite things to do was come to the Penquin Diner for our favorite sandwich, the Cloak and Dagger. This year we stopped in and found out that they have removed it from the menu. Wanted to just get up and leave. We stayed. Server was very good. We had to settle for other sandwiches. There were five of us. THe burger looked good and I was told it was Ok. I was told the black bean burger was Ok, same with the chicken sandwich. All Ok, nothing fancy. My crab Cake sandwich was exactly what I expected. Small crab cake on a big roll (what is the problem with restaurants and crab cake sandwiches) and not a lot of flavor. Only thing we really didn't like at all was the French Turkey. It turned out to be a Breakfast Monte Cristo without ham. The menu wording let us to believe it was a toasted french roll, not french toast. Would have been better on white toast. THe turkey cheese and raspberry sauce was good but the french toast made it heavy and overpowered everything else. Not sure we will return as the prices are a bit high for what it is. The diner atmosphere is pretty good and fun. Our service was a bit slow but there was also a 15 person table that got seated right before us. Kitchen must have not been ready or able to handle a large group. In past years the service has been Ok. read more

Chloe was the best waitress!! She was so kind, she deserves a raise. The drinks were strong & delicious. Plus they gave us crayons and paper to draw our own penguins. FUN! read more

Not impressed. I ordered scrambled eggs with home fries and toast. If you think you can't screw up scrambled eggs, well....you'd be wrong. Not fluffy at all, basically an extremely thin and flat omelet chopped up. Also, I was supposed to get a "side of fruit" but I only received a single sad looking strawberry. Overall the place itself is clean and kind of cute but the food was disappointing. read more

Had one of the daily specials; Baja Crab Melt. I chose the coleslaw for my side, hubby went with the fries. All were excellent. Portions were very generous. We could not finish it all. Service was very friendly and prompt. Excellent experience. read more

The Penguin - Burgers Near Me - Bethany Beach, Delaware

We've walked past this place for years eyeing it up and finally came early for Breakfast. What an absurdly over priced place this is. $4 for a side of bacon. $7 and $3 for a kids meal with orange juice. My coffee? $3. Spent $32 for a family of three. I've had a better breakfast at Denny's or Bob Evans. Do not waste your money here. read more

The Penguin - This place charges outrageous prices (juice, coffee bacon) - Burgers Near Me - Bethany Beach, Delaware

I'd been here a handful of times before so stopping on a Sunday afternoon before hitting the road back to Baltimore seemed like a good plan. We were looking for something quick and reasonably priced, and this was a good place to get that. We were seated immediately, which was great considering how busy Bethany was that day- but it seemed like some kind of staff meeting was occurring at the time in the bar area (paychecks and scheduling were also being done), so we didn't have a server come to our table for a while- everyone's attention was elsewhere. Overall, the restaurant had a dated and cluttered feel- could've been a little cleaner and more updated. Another thing that always gets me- the silverware had been cleaned but had water spots and streaks all over (as if someone towel dried them). Once a server did greet us, the service was really pretty good. The food came out quickly and was delicious (two of us ordered off the breakfast menu, two from lunch). I got the Grown Up Grilled Cheese with bacon and it was awesome! Ultimately, The Penguin Diner was great for what we wanted it to be- quick, tasty, and affordable. I wish I could rate them a bit higher, but the dated and cluttered (not necessarily dirty) atmosphere and lack of service at the beginning of our experience kept me from four stars. read more

First time in Bethany Beach in a while. After a harrowing car accident the day before, we finally made it to the beach. And we were starving. We hit up this places expecting salvation. And in theory we got it (we didn't starve to death). But it wasn't very good. I got a burger with brie cheese. The cheese didn't have much taste to it, nor did the burger. In fact I'm pretty sure they just use pre-made patties seeing as how it was perfectly circular and flat. And it'd also explain the lack of any real flavor. The homemade chips were pretty decent though. The other people I dined with didn't have anything great to say about their meals either. I heard complaints about the guacamole being very plain. The prices were too high to justify what were essentially flavorless nutrients. I'm no Bethany food buff, but I'm certain you can do much better than this place. read more

I ordered the vermonster, which is basically a bacon cheeseburger. The burger was ok, nothing special about the patty itself. However the bacon was fantastic-two very thick & large cut pieces that really saved the meal. The fries were delicious. The Mrs. ordered the fish tacos which she raved about for days. Didn't try them but knowing her opinion of food, they must have been good. In addition to these, we also ordered a peach sangria which was very tasty. I server was super friendly & although she disappeared for a while (she said it was because she spilled a soda on someone), she very attentive. The only hangup for me was the price - since they market the place as farm to table which means they can charge more. What I do like about the penguin is its very casual easy dining in a nice setting which is a nice change of pace from the busyness of Bethany beach. read more

Location, location, location. Penguin diner has it. We've been four times and we've always had excellent service. Last week we ordered take-away for a picnic dinner on the beach. The cashier was super helpful offering up extra napkins and ketchup. I've also had take-away Egg Pengwich and it was tasty. The children's artwork hanging up is very cute. I've worked in many restaurants and one of them was a "paper store", no automatic dishwasher. I consider myself quite green and appreciate it when restaurants make the effort. Sometimes space dictates what you can and cannot do. Penguin Diner could take the retail space away and make room for a dishwasher, but there's a lot that goes into redesigning a restaurant. If this is the only "paper restaurant" in Bethany - then go there or don't go there. Go to Mango's and see if they're recycling all those bottles (I think not). Food...the food is not homemade and the quality is not good. The sweet potatoes fries (which probably arrive frozen as opposed to fresh sliced) are yummy. The veggie burger (Morningstar - yuck) is not tasty. The Bacon cheddar burger isn't a "good burger" either. I've asked for water twice (once when just ordering ice cream and once when getting take-away) and they were kind enough to give me a cup without charging me like a bunch of the other beach take-away restaurants. read more