Johnnie D’s

I just spent 30 minutes waiting for a bacon BLT to go. Four shriveled up bacon for only $ 10. This was definitely not worth the wait.

Nice cozy, affordable restaurant. They have your basic dinner Yummies. Although I wouldn’t recommend getting Ribs unless it was a Rib joint. I could tell the Ribs were at least a day old… rewarmed in the Microwave with more BBQ sauce poured on it. Not good at all. My boyfriend on the other hand had Chicken fried steak with Mashed Potatos… he said they were the best potatos he had ever had… lol. so I guess it’s a hot or miss. Our Waitress was very nice.

Johnny D’s is A Nother privately owned diner that is above average but does not reach out and smack you in the face with deliciousness. I do not eat here often but it is and has been pleasant to eat there. Their baby back ribs are delicious. Portions are appropriate and more importantly they have TV! I could be wrong but from what I understand this used to be a Denny’s and when the owner wanted to put televisions the chain had a problem with it. Well the franchise owner apparently gave Denny’s the middle finger and did it his way. If true, that’s a pretty cool story of an entrepreneur standing up for what he believes in. TV for the customers.

Always have enjoyed this place. Used to be a Denny’s. Like that it’s independent. Have eaten here since moving near there 15 years ago. Lot of good family meals there over the years. Reasonably priced. Not too crowded.

Food was excellent. Got the French toast breakfast. Was 7.99. Had 2 French toast. Two eggs and a sausage. Extremely well done bacon.

Come join us at Johnnie ds for all you can eat pork ribs and now you can have ice cold beer or a glass of wine to wash down that fabulous meal. Also new menu on the way with new and sizzling things. Mention this reveiw and get a free dinner salad with purchase of a entrée. Just tell them Shannon sent you.

We both ordered steak. Both were over cooked amd had little flavor. The service was great and we have eaten here for breakfast with great result however the steak dinner was not their specialty.

We came here in November and ordered a Western Bacon style cheeseburger and a chicken fried steak. The food took a while to get to us and the people that came in after us got served faster.
The burger was so dry I was unable to finish it, and it severely lacked any flavor as well. The chicken fried steak tasted like the flour and grease it was fried in. We know from the reviews the place is having a hard time and we like to see local businesses flourish but between the service and the food we cant bring ourselves to spend money here again.

I love this place. My boyfriend and I go here every Sunday and love the atmosphere. Good burgers and good service. :) our first visit made us decide to make Sundays at Johnnie’s a weekly tradition. :) I really like the old Apple Valley memorabilia on the walls and little modernization. It makes it feel a lot more «home-​y.»

The hubby and I stopped in for breakfast. Having read the previous reviews I was a little nervous, but it had to be better than Dennys.
This experience far surpassed my expectations. We were seated almost immediately (on a Sunday morning). Our waitress, Rosario, was awesome. She was happy to recommend her favorite items from the menu. My husband ordered a ham steak and was impressed by the size, and it came with all you can eat pancakes. I had the French toast and I loved it!
As we ate 2 separate employees, who were not our waitress, came by to refill drinks and check if we needed anything.
When the bill came we were pleasantly surprised.
We will be back!

What the heck happened we thought things had changed .We came for breakfast this past sunday. The service sucked we sat with no menu or anything for 10 mins. we asked the lady Shannon if we were going to get waited on and she said I don’t know are you? Not Funny, very rude., not to mention she looks like a truck stop dive waitress. We asked to talk to the manager and she said I am the manager, we said no Jenny, & She said she don’t work here anymore… We wont ever be back. We also noticed other employees not working and just chit chatting. This place is never going to make it, unless they clean house and get all new help. What happened to Jenny? She was a great choice for this place. If anyone knows her whereabouts, please post it.

We have been here twice and it was very good both times. The first visit the booths were torn and a week later on our second visit they had been redone– Good upgrade! The service was a little slow as it seems everyone knows everyone and they are very chatty –even with each other and sometimes took long to come back to take orders or refills, that would be the one thing I would recommend for improvment. We overheard others saying the place had went downhill and the owners and workers knew that, but it seems like they are working to improve it and have rebounded now. We will be making this one of our regular go to diners as the price is right and food is good.

Gave it another shot and we were thrilled to find that our favorite waitress, Shannon is now the manager. Based on her experience, this was a very good move. Booths are being recovered, décor is being updated, Shannon cleaned house, place has a fresh feel, staff really seems energetic and happy. Pancakes are exceptional again. Love the fact that Shannon is still waiting tables as well as managing — she has a following for a reason and a memory like a steel trap! Everything was wonderful, we will be back. Kudos to Shannon and her staff.

I paid with credit card and they added more $ to the tip. It was only $ 1 more, no big deal, but I didn’t know if it was a simple honest mistake, or if they purposely do this, so it was quite upsetting, More upsetting because I had ordered «to-​go» which means technically, I didn’t have to tip, but I did, and they added more money for themselves?
I wasn’t sure if this was an honest mistake or not, maybe someone accidentally pushed wrong number on the credit card machine, but just in case they purposely do this on regular basis, I went back the next day and talked to the manager. I more or less went back to talk to the manager to see and test how they would react.
Now, I used to part-​time at a restaurant in college, so I know that if someone pays with credit card, the end of the shift is when they add the tip to the card. Meaning, someone has to physically enter the tip amount to the credit card transaction. Which means, how much tip gets added to the credit card is dependent on whoever’s in charge of the credit card machine. And receipt generated by the credit card machine at the end of shift is the only way you can see how much tip was added to the bill.
I didn’t get to see this end of shift credit card receipt and I have no way of knowing who did this or if it was intentional or a simple mistake… but the thing is, while I was waiting for my to-​go order that night, I witnessed something to the effect that the waitstaff at Johnnie D’s were very serious about their tip money. An elderly couple in their 70’s or 80’s were leaving, the wife waiting for the husband at the cashier stand, and the husband finally approached the cashier stand, and said something about he had taken out money for tip but couldn’t find it, so he was looking around the table, so that’s why he took so long, and then realized he put the tip money back into his money clip. And then he handed over tip money to the cashier who was also their waitress, and the only thing she said was, «Oh, I would’ve run after you…» She was dead serious, and the elderly couple just stood there, stunned and uncomfortable.
So after witnessing that, it made me think the waitress could’ve intentionally added extra $ tip, so I went back and talked to the manager, showed her my credit card receipt and a print-​out of my statement. She confirmed against the restaurant receipt and gave me my money back.
The manager seemed very surprised I knew about end of shift master receipt, and she didn’t have much to say, so I’m seriously wondering if they randomly add a $ 1 here and there to credit card transaction, hoping nobody will notice, just like in the movie Hackers or Sneakers. $ 1 here and a $ 1 there does add up if you have a lot of customers, and it would be easy to get away with it because most people wouldn’t notice $ 1 more to the credit card bill. I don’t know if the situation with my card was a simple mistake or done intentionally, but regardless, it happened, and it should’ve never happened in the first place.
As far as my previous experience here… the restaurant is L shaped so if you get seated behind the cashier stand, they can’t see you so you’ll be ignored the whole time, so try to get seated in the front main area. Some dishes okay, equivalent Denny’s more or less. $ 9.99 bbq rib dinner was okay-​good. I wanted the slender thin Tony Romas kind, but they turned out the be thicker big boned ribs, but not bad. People have been extremely nice, service very slow.
Johnnie D’s people have been very nice, so I’d hate to give it low rating, but I just can’t get past the credit card mistake. If it were a real honest mistake, most people would’ve just simply said, I’m so sorry about this and refunded the money. Simple as that, no big deal. But instead, the manager offered no apologies, kept quiet because she seemed very surprised how much I knew about credit card machines and end of shift receipts, kept her eyes down on the paper and avoided mine, and just said, I don’t know why you’re bank statement is saying that. Then only showed me restaurant receipt and not the master end of shift credit card receipt-​the one with the added tip. So judging by the manager’s reaction, my gut instincts tell me it was intentional-​because 90% of their clients are senior citizens who easily forget and probably wouldn’t notice, and they randomly picked mine, which happened to be a to-​go order, and that’s why it caught my eye. Had I dined-​in, I probably wouldn’t have noticed. Let’s hope it was a simple honest mistake, though. Not hating on the restaurant. Just telling my experience here, so it doesn’t happen to other people.

My husband n I have been here twice for a reason. We r from out of town n was hungry the first night we got here n we tried it bcus it look like a decent place to eat. The place is very clean n friendly atmosphere. Restrooms were very clean. They had fun things to look @ on the wall. N for the food, it was great. Loved they served steak fries. Their incredible french toast was incredible alright. We came back to this place the second time on our way out bcus the french toast. I personally don’t care for them, but I had a bite from my husband’s plate n I fell in love with it. I ordered it for a dessert. This place left me satisfied all around. Good menu selections for everyone.

Friendly customer service., the manager and his staff were very good. The food is good for the price point they offer.

First of all if I had read the reviews first, we probably would have kept going.
That said, it really isn’t as terrible has some of the reviewers have stated, or they cleaned up their act?
The place was very clean. The waitress was attentive, and the food was good, not great, but good. The place reminded me of Bakers Square back in the 80’s. The building and décor, not the food. It needs a good refurbishing inside, but its not a big deal, I’ve sat on duct taped seats before.
What bothers me is the B rating on the window. Food not kept at a correct temperature? I would hope this was fixed, or it was just a fluke when the health department did their inspection.
Will I come back? Hmmm, if the rating changes back to an A, I think I might. Like I said the food tasted good, but I do have to be careful, I have a sensitive stomach.
I wish the restaurant all the best, they are trying really hard to make it.

The feeling of the place is like an older diner, which is great takes you back in time. The food is like diner food, the the grilled chicken patties are addictive, it’s what I get every time I go there. The coffee is always fresh and yummy. They have flavored creamer which is a must have at any restaurant. The staff is like family, they get to know you, and are happy to see you when you walk in the door, reminds me a lot of the show «Cheers».

Let’s go to Johnnie D’s i say. We don’t need to support Denny’s corporate i say…
Walk in, nice girl, nice dude sits us down, gets our drink order BEFORE he leaves the table (awesome).
Server girl comes over and could not have given a flying shit whether we were there or not, but that’s okay because i’m not at Mastros, i’m at Johnnie D’s.
Place order for pancakes, french toast and bacon… And the girl disappears.
20, yes i said 20 as in twenty, 10×2, minutes later our food appears. No explanation, no i’m sorry, no nothing, just a «there you go». She did ask if she could get me anything else and when i said tabasco i got a «oh it’s right there» snarl lip reply.
I dunno, maybe i slept with this chick many years ago and didn’t call, maybe she wasn’t any good… who knows. Maybe she didn’t get any action last night. Don’t know. Not my problem.
Get a new job.

Here is an in depth review:
This place needs a month long Gordon Ramsey «Restaurant Makeover» visit. He might actually (censored)-ing explode in one of his (expletive)-ing tirades.
It sucks, don’t go, save yer money. Food is as blah as it gets. The standard/​simple breakfast or lunch fare seems store bought AND «older.» Any one can throw stuff in grease and heat stuff up.
DON’T GO.