Mel's Kitchen

Good spot to grab dinner before a show. We were a block away from the great American music hall and decided to check this out for dinner. No crazy thrills but easy American diner food serving breakfast and other classics. Tried the albacore tuna sandwich and it was tasty! Crispy bread, melty cheese and yummy tuna filling. On the pricier side but makes sense being in SF. Service was easy, nice and clean inside especially their bathrooms. Good experience overall for a very casual dinner out.

Went here after my son was admitted at the hospital and didn't want toneat hospital food. I would've gotten better service at the hospital. Walked in with my husband and we were able to sit anywhere. We sat down and I noticed there was only 2 other tables being used. First thing first is our waitress gave off major racist vibes and I'm not for all that. I would've said something to her directly, but its 2025 and people are crazy. A black man came in and our waitresses mood went straight to annoyed and judging him. He asked for a water with lime and a slider, she responded with "why not the full sandwich?" He responded back with "the slider is $6.00 and fine."She brought him over a small plastic cup with water no ice. When my husband and I ordered I was brought a big glass of ice water. Why the difference? He asked her for ice and she told the person behind the bar to get him ice again it was put in a small plastic and just handed to him. That's not it either, at the end of our meal an older white lady walked in and was trying to make small talk to the same waitress and she kept brushing her off and the lady mentioned a night with music in the restaurant and Antonia put her hand up and said "you can go sit down." The older lady went and sat at the table and wasn't talked to again, three older men came in and Antonia knew them and sat them took there order, another man walked in and she sat and took his order all while the older lady just waited. I get this is san francisco and I know the homeless community is very and judging people by the way they look or the color of there skin or age isn't right. She needs to be talked to and know that the way she represents the resturant is not okay. I will 100% not be a Mels Customer ever again. On our personal and food experience: We got our menus and our waitress, Antonia, came over and asked if we were ready, off the bat kinda rude. We were ready and honestly was going to leave cause I didn't care for the tension in that place and really nothing on the menu sounded good. We ended up ordering cause like I said didn't want hospital food. Our food came out and my french toast was burnt, I asked for it to be remade, nicely, and her response was "umm probably not cause it will most likely come back the same way, do you want pancakes or a waffle instead?" I'm sorry I've been to a lot of breakfast resturants and never had my french toast burt and taste the way it did, I mean the cook can make it to where it's not not burnt. Order the waffle, regret it cause it tasted like box plain crap. Next time I will stick to the hospital food.

I'd rate Mel's Kitchen 3.5 stars. Three stars if you're basing it on just the food and four stars if you're in it for the cinematic history and early rock 'n' roll vibes. More on the cinema angle below. First the food and the rest of the experience. On my first visit, I thought the turkey burger was pretty good. And the hostess was even better. She highly recommended the burger and had the kind of dry sense of humor of the old-school waitresses from diners in days gone by. We were across the street from a hospital so I feel good about my healthy choice. LOLSecond trip, I had a very efficient waiter. It was busy and he got from table to table very quickly. I ordered the waffle combo with turkey sausage and scrambled eggs for $17.50. It was yummy - the waffle was actually very good, crispy and light, if not spectacular. The eggs were average, as was the turkey sausage. But no hate. It's nice to get a good breakfast in a nostalgic joint. The coffee was good enough, too bad about the prepackaged creamer. Milk that doesn't go through that heat treatment just tastes so much better.The good thing about a diner menu like this is that there's something for everyone, kids included. And because it San Francisco, there's some relatively healthy options.Now let's talk about some history - classic American movies and rock 'n' roll - a lot of people write about the photos and nostalgia for a reason. Mel'sis completely tied in with the diner vibe of American Graffiti and the early rock 'n roll era and the walls hold plenty of stills from the 1973 breakout film by George Lucas. Why? Because Lucas shot the film at the actual carhop, Mel's Diner, located not far down the road on South Van Ness. If you don't know what a carhop is, I think it would be fun for you to look up! Anyway, Mel's became a chain grown by Mel's son. The lead actor, Ron Howard, became a huge TV star in Happy Days, the TV show based on the film, and then he went on to become an extremely talented director. Mel's Kitchen's relationship to the original is that it is part of the chain which was sold to the Fosters company. that's the history and that is how a good but not amazing diner gets a four-star review.

Convenient dive spot connected to the hotel. Came in clutch for a decent breakfast. Fresh squeezed OJ. Not too busy. Food came out quick and hot. I love biscuits and gravy but used to the southern hefty biscuits that are sometimes too much. These were thin and had a crisp to the outside that was different but delicious. Very affordable and friendly staff. Seems like it's infrequently visited by other patrons outside of the hotel.

Stopped by at night and the food was pretty good! Nothing too special, but pretty decent. The chicken sandwich wasn't too crispy, but the flavor was nice and the fries were good. My spouses chicken Caesar salad was okay. She wasn't a big fan of the dressing. Service was quick and the place was quiet. Overall, nothing special, but definitely serviceable for a quicker meal.

This place is lacking the decor of a Mel's diner. It just looks like a regular diner. Service is attentive and wonderful though. Patty melt is solid and menu offers the norm of a diner outing. I like their freshly squeezed OJ as a beverage. Convenient corner diner to grab something to eat while waiting for an appointment to the hospital across the street or being in this neighborhood and part of town.

We decided to give Mel's a try as it was connected to our hotel. Service was excellent (thank you, Delma V.) but the food was just average. We had the Elvis Scramble and the Country Fresh Eggs.It was convenient, however ...

I've been to Mel's for a few times. It's clean. Lots of seating. I work a block away so it's convenient that's why I've visited a couple of times. The food is okay. Medicare. I've had mostly their sandwiches. Service has varied. I've had those grill cheese and tomato soup. A place to grab a quick bite in a pitch.

I had very bad stomachache and diarrhea shortly after eating here. The portion size is much smaller compared to other Mel's Kitchen locations. The hash brown was dry, stiff, and tasted like it had been reheated from the previous day or early morning. It makes me wonder if they're using old food and cutting portions to save costs.

One of the worst restaurants I've ever been to. I went in about 5 on a Sunday evening. There were only a few customers. The hostess seated me and then disappeared. There were no employees in sight anywhere. She finally came back andbrought me a menu, then disappered again. After another long wait, she took my order for a hamburger and fries. Then I waited and waited again with no employees in sight and few customers. Finally another customer entered, the hostess/waitress appeared and began chatting with him. I finally cought her eye and asked about my order. She assured my it was coming. and it eventually did. It probably took 20 minutes or more. Again, remember there were hardly any customers. The meat was overcooked, the presentation was terrible and the hostess/waitress remained surly. Neither she, nor the bartender who appeared occasionally looked clean. I did not leave a tip. What ever is wrong with the owners? How could they allow their business to be so poorly run?